0.0 – Christian Science Publication Contents

  	THE EXTENSION OF THE MOTHER CHURCH
  	OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST: ITS INCEPTION,
  	CONSTRUCTION, AND DEDICATION 


 1	MRS. EDDY'S MESSAGE TO THE MOTHER CHURCH,
  	                                         JUNE 15, 1902 

 3	                                              [Extract] 


  	    Here allow me to interpolate some matters of busi-
  	ness that ordinarily find no place in my Message. 
 6	It is a privilege to acquaint communicants with the
  	financial transactions of this church, so far as I know
  	them, and especially before making another united effort
 9	to purchase more land and enlarge our church edifice so
  	as to seat the large number who annually favor us with
  	their presence on Communion Sunday. 

12	THE ANNUAL MEETING OF THE MOTHER CHURCH, JUNE
  	         18, 1902 — TWO MILLION DOLLARS PLEDGED 

  	    Edward A. Kimball, C.S.D., offered the following
15	motion: — 
  	     "Recognizing the necessity for providing an auditorium
  	for The Mother Church that will seat four or five thou-
18	sand persons, and acting in behalf of ourselves and the
  	Christian Scientists of the world, we agree to contribute
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                     8


 1	any portion of two million dollars that may be necessary
  	for this purpose." 

 3	    In support of the motion, Mr. Kimball said in part:
  	"Our denomination is palpably outgrowing the institu-
  	tional end thereof.  We need to keep ...pace with our own
 6	growth and progress.  The necessity here indicated is be-
  	yond cavil; beyond resistance in your thought." 

  	    Judge William G. Ewing, in seconding the motion, said: — 
 9	"As we have the best church in the world, and as we
  	have the best expression of the religion of Jesus Christ,
  	let us have the best material symbol of both of these, and
12	in the best city in the world. 
  	    "Now I am sure that I have but expressed the universal
  	voice of Christian Scientists, that there should be some-
15	thing done, and done immediately, to make reasonable
  	accommodation for the regular business of the Christian
  	Science church, and I believe really, with my faint
18	knowledge of arithmetic and the relationship of figures,
  	that a church of twenty-four thousand members should
  	have a seating capacity of more than nine hundred, if
21	they are all to get in." 
  	    The motion was carried unanimously. 

  	                 Greeting from the Church to Mrs. Eddy 

24	    "Ten thousand Christian Scientists from throughout
  	the world, convened in annual business meeting in
  	Boston, send our greeting to you, whom we recognize
27	as logically the natural and indispensable Leader of our
  	religious denomination and its activity. 
  	    "Since the last report, in 1900, one hundred and five
30	new churches or congregations have been added, and  
                                 Our Leader’s Thanks                               9


1	those previously established have had large accessions
  	to their membership.  In recognition of the necessity for
 3	providing an audience-room in The Mother Church which
  	will seat four or five thousand persons, we have agreed to
  	contribute any portion of two million dollars that may
 6	be needed for that purpose. 
  	    "The instinctive gratitude which not only impels the
  	Christian to turn in loving thankfulness to his heavenly
 9	Father, but induces him to glory in every good deed and
  	thought on the part of every man — this would be scant
  	indeed if it did not continually move us to utter our grati-
12	tude to you and declare the depth of our affection and
  	esteem. 
  	    "To you, who are standing in the forefront of the effort
15	for righteous reform, we modestly renew the hope and
  	desire that we may worthily follow with you in the way
  	of salvation through Christ." 


18	                              OUR  LEADER'S  THANKS 

  	    To the Members of The Mother Church: — I am bankrupt
  	in thanks to you, my beloved brethren, who at our last
21	annual meeting pledged yourselves with startling grace
  	to contribute any part of two millions of dollars towards
  	the purchase of more land for its site, and to enlarge
24	our church edifice in Boston. I never before felt poor
  	in thanks, but I do now, and will draw on God for
  	the amount I owe you, till I am satisfied with what my
27	heart gives to balance accounts. 

  	                                                     MARY BAKER EDDY 

  	Pleasant View, Concord, N. H.,
30	                  July 21, 1902 

 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   10


 1	          [Christian Science Sentinel, May 16, 1903] 

  	    It is inevitable that the transforming influence of
 3	Christian Science should improve the thought, enlarge the
  	favorable expectation, and augment the achievements of
  	its followers. It was inevitable that this mighty impulse
 6	for good should have externalized itself, ten years ago,
  	in an edifice for The Mother Church. It is inevitable
  	that this same impulsion should now manifest itself in a
 9	beautiful, ample building, embodying the best of design,
  	material, and situation. 
  	    Some money has been paid in towards the fund, and
12	some of the churches and other organizations have taken
  	steps in this direction, but the time is at hand, now, for
  	this entire donation to be specifically subscribed as to
15	amount and date of payment. No appeal has ever been
  	made in this behalf, and it is probable that none will be
  	made or ever be needed. It is doubtful if the Cause of
18	Christian Science could prosper, in any particular, on the
  	basis of fretful or reluctant sacrifice on the part of its
  	people. Christian Scientists are not expected to contrib-
21	ute money against their will or as the result of impor-
  	tunity or entreaty on the part of some one else. 
  	    They will provide the money necessary to this end,
24	because they recognize the importance of The Mother
  	Church to the Cause. They realize that there must be
  	a prosperous parent church, in order to insure the pros-
27	perity of the branch churches; indeed, they know that
  	it is the prosperous growth of this movement which
  	now necessitates this onward step. They know that
30	their own individual welfare is closely interwoven with
  	the general welfare of the Cause. 
 
                                            Editorial                                          11


 1	    Notwithstanding the fact that as Christian Scientists
  	we are as yet but imperfect followers of the perfect Christ,
 3	and although we may falter or stumble or loiter by the
  	way, we know that the Leader of this movement, Mrs.
  	Eddy, has been constantly at her post during all the
 6	storms that have surged against her for a generation. 
  	She has been the one of all the world who has encountered
  	the full force of antagonism. We know, too, that during
 9	these years she has not tried to guide us by means of
  	forced marches, but has waited for us to grow into readi-
  	ness for each step, and we know that in all this time she
12	has never urged upon us a step that did not result in our
  	welfare. 
  	    A year ago she quietly alluded to the need of our
15	Mother Church. She knew that we were ready; the re-
  	sponse was instant, spontaneous. Later on she expressed
  	much gratification because of prompt and liberal action,
18	and it needs no special insight to predict that she will be
  	cheered and encouraged to know that, having seized upon
  	this privilege and opportunity, we have also made good
21	the pledge. 


  	 [Editorial in Christian Science Sentinel, May 16, 1903] 

  	    Our readers have been informed of the purchase of the
24	land upon which the new building will be erected, and
  	that this land has been paid for. The location is, there-
  	fore, determined. The size of the building was decided
27	last June, but there still remained for definite decision
  	the amount to be expended and the date for commen-
  	cing building operations. The pledge of the annual
30	meeting was "any portion of two million dollars that
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   12


 1	may be necessary for this purpose," and this of course
  	carried the implication that work should be commenced
 3	as soon as the money in hand justified the letting of
  	contracts. 
  	    The spontaneous and liberal donations which enabled
 6	those having the work in charge to secure the large
  	parcel of land adjoining The Mother Church, gives
  	promise of the speedy accumulation of a sum sufficient
 9	to justify the decision of these remaining problems. 
  	Each person interested must remember, however, that
  	his individual desires, both as to the amount to be
12	expended and the date of commencing work, will be best
  	evidenced by the liberality and promptness of his own
  	contribution. 


15	[Mrs. Eddy in Christian Science Sentinel, May 30, 1903] 

  	                                    NOW AND THEN 

  	    This was an emphatic rule of St. Paul: "Behold, now
18	is the accepted time." A lost opportunity is the great-
  	est of losses. Whittier mourned it as what "might
  	have been." We own no past, no future, we pos-
21	sess only now. If the reliable now is carelessly lost in
  	speaking or in acting, it comes not back again. What-
  	ever needs to be done which cannot be done now,
24	God prepares the way for doing; while that which can
  	be done now, but is not, increases our indebtedness to
  	God. Faith in divine Love supplies the ever-present
27	help and now, and gives the power to "act in the living
  	present." 
  	    The dear children's good deeds are gems in the settings
30	of manhood and womanhood. The good they desire to
 
                                    Now and Then                                      13


 1	do, they insist upon doing now. They speculate neither
  	on the past, present, nor future, but, taking no thought
 3	for the morrow, act in God's time. 
  	    A book by Benjamin Wills Newton, called "Thoughts
  	on the Apocalypse," published in London, England, in
 6	1853, was presented to me in 1903 by Mr. Marcus
  	Holmes. This was the first that I had even heard of
  	it. When scanning its interesting pages, my attention
 9	was arrested by the following: "The church at Jerusalem,
  	like a sun in the centre of its system, had other churches,
  	like so many planets, revolving around it.  It was
12	strictly a mother and a ruling church." According to
  	his description, the church of Jerusalem seems to pre-
  	figure The Mother Church of Christ, Scientist, in
15	Boston. 
  	    I understand that the members of The Mother Church,
  	out of loving hearts, pledged to this church in Boston
18	any part of two millions of money with which to build
  	an ample temple dedicate to God, to Him "who forgiveth
  	all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; who
21	redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee
  	with lovingkindness and tender mercies; who satisfieth
  	thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed
24	like the eagle's," — to build a temple the spiritual spire
  	of which will reach the stars with divine overtures, holy
  	harmony, reverberating through all cycles of systems and
27	spheres. 
  	    Because Christian Scientists virtually pledged this
  	munificent sum not only to my church but to Him who
30	returns it unto them after many days, their loving giving
  	has been blessed. It has crystallized into a foundation
  	for our temple, and it will continue to "prosper in the
  
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   14


 1	thing whereto [God, Spirit] sent it." In the now they
  	brought their tithes into His storehouse. Then, when
 3	this bringing is consummated, God will pour them out a
  	blessing above the song of angels, beyond the ken of
  	mortals — a blessing that two millions of love currency
 6	will bring to be discerned in the near future as a gleam
  	of reality; not a madness and nothing, but a sanity
  	and something from the individual, stupendous, Godlike
 9	agency of man. 


  	[Editorial in Christian Science Sentinel, January 2, 1904] 

  	    A few days ago we received a letter from a friend in
12	another city, saying that he had just been informed — 
  	and his informant claimed to have good authority for the
  	statement — that the entire amount required to complete
15	The Mother Church building fund had been paid in;
  	consequently further payments or subscriptions were not
  	desired. 
18	    Our friend very promptly and emphatically pro-
  	nounced the story a fabrication of the evil one, and he
  	was entirely right in doing so. If the devil were really
21	an entity, endowed with genius and inspiration, he could
  	not have invented a more subtle lie with which to en-
  	snare a generous and loyal people. 
24	    As a matter of fact, the building fund is not complete,
  	but it is in such a healthy state that building operations
  	have been commenced, and they will be carried on without
27	interruption until the church is finished. The rapidity
  	with which the work will be pushed forward necessitates
  	large payments of money, and it is desirable that the con-
30	tributions to the building fund keep pace with the dis-
  	bursements. 
 
                                    Communion, 1904                               15


 1	                     [Christian Science Sentinel, March 5, 1904] 

  	                            AMENDMENT TO BY-LAW 

 3	    Section 3 of Article XLI (XXXIV in revised edition) of
  	the Church By-laws has been amended to read as follows: — 
  	THE MOTHER CHURCH BUILDING. — SECTION 3. The
 6	edifice erected in 1894 for The First Church of Christ,
  	Scientist, in Boston, Mass., shall neither be demolished
  	nor removed from the site where it was built, without the
 9	written consent of the Pastor Emeritus, Mary Baker
  	Eddy. 


  	                        COMMUNION, 1904 

12	    My Beloved Brethren: — My heart goes out to you as
  	ever in daily desire that the Giver of all good transform
  	you into His own image and likeness. Already I have
15	said to you all that you are able to bear now, and thanking
  	you for your gracious reception of it I close with Kate
  	Hankey's excellent hymn, —  

18	                             I love to tell the story,
  	                                Of unseen things above,
  	                             Of Jesus and his glory,
21	                               Of Jesus and his love. 
  	                             I love to tell the story,
  	                               Because I know 'tis true;
24	                             It satisfies my longings,
  	                               As nothing else can do. 

  	                             I love to tell the story;
27	                               For those who know it best
  	                             Seem hungering and thirsting
  	                               To hear it like the rest. 
30	                             And when, in scenes of glory,
  	                               I sing the NEW, NEW SONG,
  	                             'Twill be the OLD, OLD STORY
33	                               That I have loved so long. 



 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   16


 1	EXTRACT FROM THE TREASURER'S REPORT, JUNE 14, 1904 

  	    The report of Mr. Stephen A. Chase, treasurer of the
 3	building fund of The Mother Church, made to the
  	annual meeting, showed that a total of $425,893.66 had
  	been received up to and including May 31, 1904, and that
 6	there was a balance of $226,285.73 on hand on that date,
  	after paying out the sum of $199,607.93, which included
  	the purchase price of the land for the site of the new
 9	building. 

                     

                            THE CORNER-STONE LAID 

  	    The corner-stone of the new auditorium for The Mother
12	Church in Boston was laid Saturday, July 16, 1904, at
  	eight o'clock in the forenoon. In addition to the members
  	of the Christian Science Board of Directors, who have
15	the work directly in charge, there were present on this
  	occasion:  Mr. Alfred Farlow, President of The Mother
  	Church; Prof. Hermann S. Hering, First Reader; Mrs.
18	Ella E. Williams, Second Reader; Mr. Charles Brigham
  	and Mr. E. Noyes Whitcomb, respectively the architect
  	and the builder of the new edifice. 
21	    The order of the services, which were conducted by the
  	First Reader, was as follows: — 
  	Scripture reading, Isaiah 28 : 16, 17, — 

24	     "Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I lay in
  	Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious
  	corner stone, a sure foundation:  he that believeth shall
27	not make haste. 
  	    "Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteous-
  	ness to the plummet:  and the hail shall sweep away the
 
                        The Corner-stone Laid                               17


 1	refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding
  	place." 
 3	    Also, 1 Peter 2 : 1-6, —  
  	    "Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and
  	hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, 
 6	    "As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word,
  	that ye may grow thereby: 
  	    "If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.   
 9	    "To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed
  	indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, 
  	    "Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house,
12	an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, accept-
  	able to God by Jesus Christ. 
  	    "Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture,
15	Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious:
  	and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded." 

  	    The reading of selections from "Science and Health
18	with Key to the Scriptures" by Mary Baker Eddy, — 

  	                     Page 241, lines 13-30
  	                       "   136,       "      1-5, 9-14
21	                       "   137,       "     16-5
  	                       "   583,       "     12-19
  	                       "     35,       "     20-25 

24	    This was followed by a few moments of silent prayer
  	and the audible repetition of the Lord's Prayer with its
  	spiritual interpretation, as given in the Christian Science
27	textbook, after which the following extracts from Mrs.
  	Eddy's writings were read: —  
  	    "Hitherto, I have observed that in proportion as this
30	church has smiled on His 'little ones,' He has blessed
  	her.  Throughout my entire connection with The Mother
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   18


 1	Church, I have seen, that in the ratio of her love for
  	others, hath His love been bestowed upon her; water-
 3	ing her waste places, and enlarging her borders. 
  	    "One thing I have greatly desired, and again earnestly
  	request, namely, that Christian Scientists, here and else-
 6	where, pray daily for themselves; not verbally, nor on
  	bended knee, but mentally, meekly, and importunately.  
  	When a hungry heart petitions the divine Father-Mother
 9	God for bread, it is not given a stone, — but more grace,
  	obedience, and love.  If this heart, humble and trustful,
  	faithfully asks divine Love to feed it with the bread of
12	heaven, health, holiness, it will be conformed to a fitness
  	to receive the answer to its desire; then will flow into it
  	the 'river of His pleasure,' the tributary of divine Love,
15	and great growth in Christian Science will follow, — even
  	that joy which finds one's own in another's good."  (Mis-
  	cellaneous Writings, p. 127.) 
18	    "Beloved brethren, the love of our loving Lord was
  	never more manifest than in its stern condemnation of all
  	error, wherever found.  I counsel thee, rebuke and exhort
21	one another.  Love all Christian churches for the gospel's
  	sake; and be exceedingly glad that the churches are united
  	in purpose, if not in method, to close the war between
24	flesh and Spirit, and to fight the good fight till God's will
  	be witnessed and done on earth as in heaven."  (Christian
  	Science versus Pantheism, p. 13.) 

27	    The corner-stone was then laid by the members of the
  	Christian Science Board of Directors. It contained the
  	following articles:  The Holy Bible; "Science and Health
30	with Key to the Scriptures" and all other published
  	writings of the Rev. Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer
 
                                Unselfish Loyalty                                19


 1	and Founder of Christian Science; Christian Science
  	Hymnal; "The Mother Church;" the current numbers of
 3	The Christian Science Journal, Christian Science Sentinel,
  	Der Herold der Christian Science, and the Christian Science
  	Quarterly. 
 6	    The ceremony concluded with the repetition of "the
  	scientific statement of being," from Science and Health
  	(p. 468), and the benediction, 2 Corinthians 13 : 14:
 9	"The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of
  	God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you
  	all.  Amen." 


12	                                 UNSELFISH LOYALTY 

  	    To one of the many branch churches which contributed
  	their local church building funds to The Mother Church
15	building fund, Mrs. Eddy wrote as follows: —  


  	FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST,
  	              Colorado Springs, Col. 

18	    Beloved Brethren: — It is conceded that our shadows
  	follow us in the sunlight wherever we go; but I ask for
  	more, even this:  That this dear church shall be pursued
21	by her substance, the immortal fruition of her unselfed
  	love, and that her charity, which "seeketh not her
  	own" but another's good, shall reap richly the reward of
24	goodness. 
  	    Those words of our holy Way-shower, vibrant through
  	time and eternity with acknowledgment of exemplary
27	giving, no doubt fill the memory and swell the hearts of
  	the members of The Mother Church, because of that gift
  	which you so sacredly bestowed towards its church build-
30	ing fund. These are applicable words: "Verily I say
  	unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   20


 1	throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done
  	shall be spoken of for a memorial of her."  (Mark 14 : 9.) 
 3	                                          Gratefully yours in Christ,

  	                                                       MARY BAKER EDDY 

  	PLEASANT VIEW, CONCORD, N. H.,
 6	                September 1, 1904 


  	                                         HOLIDAY GIFTS 

  	    Beloved Students: — The holidays are coming, and I
 9	trow you are awaiting on behalf of your Leader the
  	loving liberty of their license. May I relieve you of
  	selecting, and name your gifts to her, in advance? 
12	Send her only what God gives to His church. Bring
  	all your tithes into His storehouse, and what you would
  	expend for presents to her, please add to your givings
15	to The Mother Church building fund, and let this
  	suffice for her rich portion in due season. Send no gifts
  	to her the ensuing season, but the evidences of glorious
18	growth in Christian Science. 

  	                                        MARY BAKER EDDY 

  	PLEASANT VIEW, CONCORD, N. H.,
21	                  October 31, 1904 


  	      A WORD FROM THE DIRECTORS, MAY, 1905 

  	    In view of the fact that a general attendance of the
24	members of The Mother Church at the communion
  	and annual meeting in Boston entails the expenditure
  	of a large amount of money, and the further fact that
27	it is important that the building fund of The Mother
  	Church should be completed as early as possible, it has
  	been decided to omit this year the usual large gathering
30	in Boston, and to ask the members to contribute to
 
                    A Word from the Directors                             21


 1	the building fund the amount which they would have
  	expended in such an event. 
 3	    We all know of the loving self-sacrifices which have been
  	made by many of the branch churches in transferring to
  	this fund the money which had been collected for the
 6	purpose of building church homes of their own, and it will
  	thus be seen that the course suggested will not only
  	hasten the completion of The Mother Church, but will
 9	also advance the erection of many branch churches. 
  	We therefore feel sure that all Christian Scientists will
  	gladly forego a visit to Boston at this time, in order to
12	contribute more liberally to the building fund and thereby
  	aid the progress of our Cause throughout the world. 
  	    Christian Scientists have learned from experience that
15	divine Love more than compensates for every seeming
  	trial and deprivation in our loyalty to Truth, and it is
  	but right to expect that those who are willing to forego
18	their anticipated visit this year will receive a greater
  	blessing — "good measure, pressed down, and shaken
  	together, and running over." The local members, who
21	have always experienced much pleasure in welcoming
  	their brethren from far and near, and who have antici-
  	pated much joy in meeting very many of them this year,
24	will feel that they have been called upon to make no less
  	sacrifice than have others; but we are confident that
  	they too will be blessed, and that all will rejoice in the
27	glad reunion upon the completion of the new edifice in
  	Boston. 
  	      IRA O. KNAPP,                     JOSEPH ARMSTRONG,
30	      WILLIAM B. JOHNSON,       STEPHEN A. CHASE,
  	                         ARCHIBALD McLELLAN,
  	                           The Christian Science Board of Directors 
  
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   22


1	         THE ANNUAL MEETING, JUNE 13, 1905 

  	                       Extract from the Clerk's Report 

 3	    In the year 1902 our Leader saw the need of a larger
  	edifice for the home of The Mother Church, one that
  	would accommodate the constantly increasing attendance
 6	at all the services, and the large gatherings at the annual
  	meeting; and, at the annual meeting in June, 1902, a
  	sum of money adequate to erect such a building was
 9	pledged. Christian Scientists have contributed already
  	for this grand and noble purpose, but let us not be uncon-
  	sciously blind to the further needs of the building fund,
12	in order to complete this great work, nor wait to be urged
  	or to be shown the absolute necessity of giving. 
  	    Since 1866, almost forty years ago, — almost forty
15	years in the wilderness, — our beloved Leader and teacher,
  	Mrs. Eddy, the Founder of Christian Science, has labored
  	for the regeneration of mankind; and time has put its
18	seal of affirmation upon every purpose she has set in
  	motion, and the justification of her labors is the fruit. 
  	In these years of work she has shown wisdom, faith, and
21	a spiritual discernment of the needs of the present and of
  	the future that is nothing less than God-bestowed. 
  	    In years to come the moral and the physical effects
24	produced by The Mother Church, and by the advanced
  	position taken by our Pastor Emeritus and Leader, will
  	appear in their proper perspective. Is it not therefore
27	the duty of all who have touched the healing hem of
  	Christian Science, to get immediately into the proper
  	perspective of the meaning of the erection of the new
30	edifice of The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in
  	Boston? 
 
                    The Annual Meeting. 1905                             23


 1	    It is not necessary for us to delay our contributions in
  	order to find out how much our neighbor has given, or to
 3	compute by the total membership of The Mother Church
  	what amount each shall send the Treasurer. The divine
  	Love that prompted the desire, and supplied the means to
 6	consummate the erection of the present edifice in 1894, is
  	still with us, and will bless us so long as we follow His
  	commands. 


 9	                       Extract from the Treasurer's Report 

  	    Building Fund: — Amount on hand June 1, 1905,
  	$303,189.41; expenditures June 1, 1904 to May 31, 1905,
12	$388,663.15; total receipts June 19, 1902 to June 1,
  	1905, $891,460.49. 
  	    Amount necessary to complete the sum of $2,000,000
15	pledged at the annual meeting, 1902, $1,108,539.51. 


  	           Greeting to Mrs. Eddy from the Annual Meeting 

  	    Beloved Teacher and Leader: — The members of your
18	church, The Mother Church, The First Church of Christ,
  	Scientist, in Boston, Mass., in annual business meeting
  	assembled, send their loyal and loving greetings to you,
21	the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science and
  	author of its textbook. 
  	    We rejoice greatly that the walls of our new edifice are
24	rising, not only to faith but also to sight; that this temple,
  	which represents the worship of Spirit, with its inseparable
  	accompaniment, the Christ-healing, is being built in our
27	day; and that we have the privilege of participating
  	in the work of its erection. As the stately structure
  	grows, and stone is laid upon stone, those who pass by are
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   24


 1	impelled to ask, What means this edifice? and they learn
  	that the truth which Christ Jesus revealed — the truth
 3	which makes free — is to-day being proven and is ready
  	to heal all who accept its divine ministry. We congratu-
  	late you that the building is to express in its ample audi-
 6	torium something of the vastness of the truth it represents,
  	and also to symbolize your unmeasured love for humanity,
  	which inspires you to welcome all mankind to the privi-
 9	leges of this healing and saving gospel. As the walls are
  	builded by the prayers and offerings of the thousands
  	who have been healed through Christian Science, we know
12	that you rejoice in the unity of thought and purpose
  	which is thus expressed, showing that The Mother Church
  	"fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the
15	Lord." 


  	[Editorial in Christian Science Sentinel, November 25, 1905] 

  	    We are prompted to state, for the benefit of those who
18	have inquired about the progress of the work on the
  	extension to The Mother Church, that the erection of the
  	building is proceeding rapidly; in fact, it is being pushed
21	with the utmost energy, and at the present time there
  	are no less than fifteen different trades represented. The
  	beauty of the building, and the substantial and enduring
24	character of its construction, have been remarked by the
  	many visitors who have recently inspected the work, and
  	they have gone away with the conviction that the structure
27	is worthy of our Cause and that it will meet the needs of
  	The Mother Church as well as this can be done by a
  	building with a seating capacity of five thousand. 
30	    It therefore occurs to us that there could be no more
  	appropriate time for completing the building fund than
 
                                           Card                                          25


 1	the present Thanksgiving season; and it is suggested to our
  	readers that there would be great propriety in making a
 3	special effort during the coming week to dispose fully and
  	finally of this feature of the demonstration. 


    	                     [Christian Science Sentinel, March 17, 1906] 

 6	                       GIFTS FROM THE CHILDREN 

  	    The great interest exhibited by the children who attend
  	the Sunday School of The Mother Church is shown by
 9	their contributions to the building fund. The following
  	figures are taken from the report of the secretary of the
  	Sunday School and are most gratifying:
12	    March 1, 1903 to February 29, 1904, $621.10; March 1,
  	1904 to February 28, 1905, $845.96; March 1, 1905 to
  	February 28, 1906, $1,112.13; total, $2,579.19. 


15	                                                 CARD 

  	    Will one and all of my dear correspondents accept this,
  	my answer to their fervid question:  Owing to the time
18	consumed in travel, et cetera, I cannot be present in
  	propria persona at our annual communion and the dedi-
  	cation in June next of The Mother Church of Christ,
21	Scientist. But I shall be with my blessed church "in
  	spirit and in truth." 
  	    I have faith in the givers and in the builders of this
24	church edifice, — admiration for and faith in the grandeur
  	and sublimity of this superb superstructure, wherein all
  	vanity of victory disappears and the glory of divinity
27	appears in all its promise. 

  	                                                      MARY BAKER EDDY 

  	PLEASANT VIEW, CONCORD, N. H.,
30	                    April 8, 1906 


  
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   26


1	                       [Christian Science Sentinel, April 14, 1906] 
  	          ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE DEDICATION 

 3	    The Christian Science Board of Directors takes pleasure
  	in announcing that the extension of The Mother Church
  	will be dedicated on the date of the annual communion,
 6	Sunday, June 10, 1906. 


  	                       [Christian Science Sentinel, April 28, 1906] 
  	                     TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS 

 9	    My Beloved Students: — Your generous check of five
  	thousand dollars, April 23, 1906, is duly received. You
  	can imagine my gratitude and emotion at the touch of
12	memory. Your beneficent gift is the largest sum of money
  	that I have ever received from my church, and quite
  	unexpected at this juncture, but not the less appreciated. 
15	My Message for June 10 is ready for you. It is too
  	short to be printed in book form, for I thought it better
  	to be brief on this rare occasion. This communion and
18	dedication include enough of their own. 
  	    The enclosed notice I submit to you, and trust that you
  	will see, as I foresee, the need of it. Now is the time to
21	throttle the lie that students worship me or that I claim
  	their homage. This historical dedication should date
  	some special reform, and this notice is requisite to give
24	the true animus of our church and denomination. 
  	                                   Lovingly yours,

  	                                        MARY BAKER EDDY 

27	PLEASANT VIEW, CONCORD, N. H.,
  	                  April 23, 1906 
 
                                            Editorial                                          27


 1	                                       NOTICE 

  	    To the Beloved Members of my Church, The Mother Church,
 3	The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston: — Divine
  	Love bids me say:  Assemble not at the residence of your
  	Pastor Emeritus at or about the time of our annual
 6	meeting and communion service, for the divine and not
  	the human should engage our attention at this sacred
  	season of prayer and praise. 

 9	                                                   MARY BAKER EDDY 


  	NOTICE TO CONTRIBUTORS TO THE BUILDING FUND 

  	    The contributors to the building fund for the extension
12	of The Mother Church, The First Church of Christ,
  	Scientist, in Boston, Mass., are hereby notified that
  	sufficient funds have been received for the completion of
15	the church building, and the friends are requested to send
  	no more money to this fund. 

  	                                                  STEPHEN A. CHASE,
18	                                           Treasurer of the Building Fund 

  	    BOSTON, MASS., JUNE 2, 1906 


  	             [Editorial in Christian Science Sentinel, June 9, 1906] 

21	    Christian Scientists will read with much joy and
  	thanksgiving the announcement made by Mr. Chase in
  	this issue of the Sentinel that sufficient funds have been
24	received by him, as treasurer of the building fund, to
  	pay all bills in connection with the extension of The
  	Mother Church, and to most of them the fact that he
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   28


 1	has been able to make this announcement coincident
  	with the completion of the building will be deeply
 3	significant. Our Leader has said in Science and Health
  	(p. 494), "Divine Love always has met and always
  	will meet every human need," and this has been proved
 6	true in the experience of many who have contributed
  	to the building fund. 
  	    The treasurer's books will show the dollars and cents
 9	received by him, but they can give no more than a hint of
  	the unselfish efforts, and in many instances the loving
  	self-sacrifice, of those who have given so generously to the
12	building of this church. Suffice it to say, however, that
  	the giving to this fund has stimulated those gentle
  	qualities which mark the true Christian, and its influence
15	upon the lives of thousands has been of immense value to
  	them. 
  	    The significance of this building is not to be found in
18	the material structure, but in the lives of those who, under
  	the consecrated leadership of Mrs. Eddy, and following
  	her example, are doing the works which Jesus said should
21	mark the lives of his followers. It stands as the visible
  	symbol of a religion which heals the sick and reforms
  	the sinful as our Master healed and reformed them. It
24	proclaims to the world that Jesus' gospel was for all time
  	and for all men; that it is as effective to-day as it was
  	when he preached the Word of God to the multitudes of
27	Judea and healed them of their diseases and their sins. 
  	It speaks for the successful labors of one divinely guided
  	woman, who has brought to the world the spiritual under-
30	standing of the Scriptures, and whose ministry has revealed
  	the one true Science and changed the whole aspect of
  	medicine and theology. 
 
               Communion Service and Dedication                   29


 1	[Christian Science Sentinel, June 16, 1906. Reprinted from
  	                                         Boston Herald] 

 3	        COMMUNION SERVICE AND DEDICATION 

  	    Five thousand people kneeling in silent communion;
  	a stillness profound; and then, rising in unison from the
 6	vast congregation, the words of the Lord's Prayer! Such
  	was the closing incident of the dedicatory services of the
  	extension of The Mother Church, The First Church of
 9	Christ, Scientist, at the corner of Falmouth and Norway
  	Streets, yesterday morning. And such was the scene
  	repeated six times during the day. 
12	    It was a sight which no one who saw it will ever be able
  	to forget. Many more gorgeous church pageantries have
  	been seen in this country and in an older civilization;
15	there have been church ceremonies that appealed more
  	to the eye, but the impressiveness of this lay in its very
  	simplicity; its grandeur sprang from the complete
18	unanimity of thought and of purpose. There was some-
  	thing emanating from the thousands who worshipped
  	under the dome of the great edifice whose formal open-
21	ing they had gathered to observe, that appealed to and
  	fired the imagination. A comparatively new religion
  	launching upon a new era, assuming an altogether differ-
24	ent status before the world! 
  	    Even the sun smiled kindly upon the dedication of the
  	extension of The Mother Church. With a cooling breeze
27	to temper the heat, the thousands who began to congregate
  	about the church as early as half past five in the morning
  	were able to wait patiently for the opening of the doors
30	without suffering the inconveniences of an oppressive day. 
  	From that time, until the close of the evening service,
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   30


 1	Falmouth and Norway Streets held large crowds of people,
  	either coming from a service or awaiting admission to
 3	one. As all the services were precisely the same in every
  	respect, nobody attended more than one, so that there
  	were well over thirty thousand people who witnessed
 6	the opening. Not only did these include Scientists from
  	all over the world, and nearly all the local Scientists,
  	but many hundreds of other faiths, drawn to the church
 9	from curiosity, and from sympathy, too. 
  	    It spoke much for the devotion of the members to their
  	faith, the character of the attendance. In those huge
12	congregations were business men come from far distant
  	points at personal sacrifices of no mean order; profes-
  	sional men, devoted women members, visitors from
15	Australia, from India, from England, from Germany,
  	from Switzerland, from South Africa, from Hawaii, from
  	the coast States. 
18	    They gave generously of their means in gratitude for the
  	epoch-making event. The six collections were large, and
  	when the plates were returned after having been through
21	the congregations, they were heaped high with bills, with
  	silver, and with gold. Some of these contributions were
  	one-hundred-dollar bills. Without ostentation and quite
24	voluntarily the Scientists gave a sum surpassing some of
  	the record collections secured by evangelists for the work
  	of Christianity. 
27	    Though the church was filled for the service at half
  	past seven, and hundreds had to be turned away, by far
  	the largest crowd of the day applied for admission at the
30	ten o'clock service, and it was representative of the entire
  	body of the Christian Science church. 
  	    Before half past seven the chimes of the new church
 
               Communion Service and Dedication                   31


 1	began to play, first the "Communion Hymn," succeeded
  	by the following hymns throughout the day: "The
 3	morning light is breaking;" "Shepherd, show me how
  	to go;" "Just as I am, without one plea;" "I need
  	Thee every hour;" "Blest Christmas morn;" "Abide
 6	with me;" "Day by day the manna fell;" "Oh, the
  	clanging bells of time;" "Still, still with Thee;" "O'er
  	waiting harpstrings of the mind;" Doxology. 
 9	    Promptly at half past six the numerous doors of the
  	church were thrown open and the public had its first
  	glimpse of the great structure, the cost of which approxi-
12	mates two millions of dollars, contributed from over the
  	entire world. The first impression was of vastness, then
  	of light and cheerfulness, and when the vanguard of the
15	thousands had been seated, expressions of surprise and of
  	admiration were heard on every hand for the beauty and
  	the grace of the architecture. The new home for worship
18	that was opened by the Scientists in Boston yesterday
  	can take a place in the front rank of the world's houses
  	of worship, and it is no wonder that the first sight which
21	the visitors caught of its interior should have impressed
  	them as one of the events of their lives. 
  	    First Reader William D. McCrackan, accompanied by
24	the Second Reader, Mrs. Laura Carey Conant, and the
  	soloist for the services, Mrs. Hunt, was on the Readers'
  	platform. Stepping to the front of the platform, when
27	the congregation had taken their seats, the First Reader
  	announced simply that they would sing Hymn 161,
  	written by Mrs. Eddy, as the opening of the dedicatory
30	service. And what singing it was! As though trained
  	carefully under one leader, the great body of Scientists
  	joined in the song of praise. 
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   32


 1	    Spontaneous unanimity and repetition in unison were
  	two of the most striking features of the services. When,
 3	after five minutes of silent communion at the end of the
  	service, the congregation began to repeat the Lord's
  	Prayer, they began all together, and their voices rose as
 6	one in a heartfelt appeal to the creator. 
  	    So good are the acoustic properties of the new structure
  	that Mr. McCrackan and Mrs. Conant could be heard
 9	perfectly in every part of it, and they did not have to lift
  	their voices above the usual platform tone. 
  	    Following the organ voluntary — Fantasie in E minor,
12	Merkel — the order of service was as follows: —  

  	    Hymn 161, from the Hymnal. Words by the Rev. 
  	Mary Baker Eddy.¹ 
15	    Reading from the Scriptures:  Deuteronomy 26 : 1, 2,
  	5-10 (first sentence). 
  	    Silent prayer, followed by the audible repetition of the
18	Lord's Prayer with its spiritual interpretation as given in
  	the Christian Science textbook. 
  	    Hymn 166, from the Hymnal.² 
21	    Reading of notices. 
  	    Reading of Tenets of The Mother Church. 
  	    Collection. 
24	    Solo, "Communion Hymn," words by the Rev. Mary
  	Baker Eddy, music by William Lyman Johnson. 
  	    Reading of annual Message from the Pastor Emeritus,
27	the Rev. Mary Baker Eddy. 
  	    Reading the specially prepared Lesson-Sermon. 
  	    After the reading of the Lesson-Sermon, silent com-
30	munion, which concluded with the audible repetition of
  	the Lord's Prayer. 

  	                    ¹ Hymn 306,  ² Hymn 108, in Revised Hymnal
 
               Communion Service and Dedication                   33


1	    Singing the Communion Doxology. 
  	    Reading of a despatch from the members of the church
 3	to Mrs. Eddy. 
  	    Reading of "the scientific statement of being" (Sci-
  	ence and Health, p. 468), and the correlative Scripture,
 6	1 John 3 : 1-3. 
  	    The benediction. 

  	    The subject of the special Lesson-Sermon was "Adam,
 9	Where Art Thou?" the Golden Text: "Search me, O
  	God, and know my heart:  try me, and know my
  	thoughts:  and see if there be any wicked way in me,
12	and lead me in the way everlasting."  (Psalms 139 : 23,
  	24.) The responsive reading was from Psalms 15 : 1-5;
  	24 : 1-6, 9, 10. 
15	    1 Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall
  	dwell in thy holy hill? 
  	    2 He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteous-
18	ness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. 
  	    3 He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth
  	evil to his neighbor, nor taketh up a reproach against his
21	neighbor. 
  	    4 In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he
  	honoreth them that fear the Lord. He that sweareth to
24	his own hurt, and changeth not. 
  	    5 He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor
  	taketh reward against the innocent. He that doeth these
27	things shall never be moved. 
  	    1 The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof;
  	the world, and they that dwell therein. 
30	    2 For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established
  	it upon the floods. 
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   34


 1	    3 Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? or who
  	shall stand in his holy place? 
 3	    4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who
  	hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn
  	deceitfully. 
 6	    5 He shall receive the blessing from the Lord, and
  	righteousness from the God of his salvation. 
  	    6 This is the generation of them that seek him, that
 9	seek thy face, O Jacob. 
  	    9 Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up, ye
  	everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. 
12	    10 Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he
  	is the King of glory. 

  	    The Lesson-Sermon consisted of the following citations
15	from the Bible and "Science and Health with Key to the
  	Scriptures" by the Rev. Mary Baker Eddy, and was
  	read by Mr. McCrackan and Mrs. Conant: —  


18	                                       I
  	          The Bible                            Science and Health ¹ 

  	    Genesis 3:9-11                         224:22 
21	    Proverbs 8:1, 4, 7                     559:8-10, 19 
  	    Mark 2:15-17                            181:21-25
  	                                                     307:31-8 


24	                                      II 
  	    Psalms 51:1-3, 6, 10, 12,         308:8, 16-28 This;
  	      13, 17                                         Jacob
27	                                                     323:19-24, 28-32
  	                                                         When; The effects 
  	      ¹ The Science and Health references in this lesson are according
30	       to the 1913 edition.

 
               Communion Service and Dedication                   35


 1	                                      III
  	           The Bible                            Science and Health 
 3	    Hebrews 11:1, 3, 6                    297:20 Faith
  	    Proverbs 3:5, 6                          241:23-27
  	    Job 28:20, 23, 28                      275:25
 6	    1 Corinthians 14:20                   505:21-28 Under-
  	                                                        standing
  	                                                      536:8


 9	                                      IV
  	    Psalms 86:15, 16                      345:31
  	    Matthew 9:2-8                           337:10
12	                                                      525:4
  	                                                     494:30-2 Our Master
  	                                                     476:32-4
15	                                                     171:4


  	                                      V
  	    Mark 12:30, 31                            9:17-21 Dost thou
18	    John 21:1 (first                          53:8-11
  	      clause), 14-17                         54:29-1
  	    1 John 4:21                             560:11-19, 22 The
21	                                                        great; Abuse
  	                                                    565:18-22


  	                                       VI
24	    John 21:4-6, 9, 12, 13                34:29-29
  	    Revelation 3:20
  	    Revelation 7:13, 14, 16, 17 


27	    During the progress of each service, First Reader
  	William D. McCrackan read to the congregation the
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   36


 1	dedicatory Message from their teacher and Leader, Mrs.
  	Mary Baker Eddy. 
 3	    The telegram from the church to Mrs. Eddy was read
  	by Mr. Edward A. Kimball of Chicago, and the five
  	thousand present rose as one to indicate their approval
 6	of it. 


  	REV. MARY BAKER EDDY, Pastor Emeritus 

  	    Beloved Teacher and Leader: — The members of your
 9	church have assembled at this sacred time to commune
  	with our infinite heavenly Father and again to consecrate
  	all that we are or hope to be to a holy Christian service
12	that shall be acceptable unto God. 
  	    Most of us are here because we have been delivered from
  	beds of sickness or withheld from open graves or reclaimed
15	from vice or redeemed from obdurate sin. We have ex-
  	changed the tears of sorrow for the joy of repentance and
  	the peace of a more righteous living, and now with blessed
18	accord we are come, in humility, to pour out our gratitude
  	to God and to bear witness to the abundance of salvation
  	through His divine Christ. 
21	    At this altar, dedicated to the only true God, we who
  	have been delivered from the depths increase the measure
  	of our devotion to the daily life and purpose which are in
24	the image and likeness of God. 
  	    By these stately walls; by this sheltering dome; by
  	all the beauty of color and design, the Christian Scientists
27	of the world, in tender affection for the cause of human
  	weal, have fulfilled a high resolve and set up this taber-
  	nacle, which is to stand as an enduring monument, a sign
30	of your understanding and proof that our Supreme
  	God, through His power and law, is the natural healer
 
               Communion Service and Dedication                   37


 1	of all our diseases and hath ordained the way of salva-
  	tion of all men from all evil. No vainglorious boast,
 3	no pride of circumstances has place within the sacred
  	confines of this sanctuary. Naught else than the gran-
  	deur of humility and the incense of gratitude and com-
 6	passionate love can acceptably ascend heavenward from
  	this house of God. 
  	    It is from the depths of tenderest gratitude, respect,
 9	and affection that we declare again our high appreciation
  	of all that you have done and continue to do for the ever-
  	lasting advantage of this race. Through you has been
12	revealed the verity and rule of the Christianity of Christ
  	which has ever healed the sick. By your fidelity and the
  	constancy of your obedience during forty years you have
15	demonstrated this Science before the gaze of universal
  	humanity. By reason of your spiritual achievement the
  	Cause of Christian Science has been organized and main-
18	tained, its followers have been prospered, and the philos-
  	ophy of the ages transformed. Recognizing the grand
  	truth that God is the supreme cause of all the activities of
21	legitimate existence, we also recognize that He has made
  	known through your spiritual perception the substance
  	of Christian Science, and that this church owes itself and
24	its prosperity to the unbroken activity of your labors,
  	which have been and will still be the pretext for our
  	confident and favorable expectation. 
27	    We have read your annual Message to this church. 
  	We are deeply touched by its sweet entreaty, its ineffable
  	loving-kindness, its wise counsel and admonition. 
30	    With sacred resolution do we pray that we may give
  	heed and ponder and obey. We would be glad if our
  	prayers, our rejoicing, and our love could recompense your
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   38


 1	long sacrifice and bestow upon you the balm of heavenly
  	joy, but knowing that every perfect gift cometh from
 3	above, and that in God is all consolation and comfort,
  	we rest in this satisfying assurance, while we thank you
  	and renew the story of our love for you and for all that
 6	you are and all that you have done for us. 

  	                                     WILLIAM B. JOHNSON, Clerk

  	    By means of a carefully trained corps of ushers, num-
 9	bering two hundred, there was no confusion in finding
  	seats, and when all seating space had been filled no more
  	were admitted until the next service. The church was
12	filled for each service in about twenty minutes, and was
  	emptied in twelve, in spite of the fact that many of
  	the visitors showed a tendency to tarry to examine the
15	church. 
  	    It was "children's day" at noon, for the service at half
  	past twelve was specially reserved for them. They filled
18	all the seats in the body of the church, and when it came
  	to the singing, the little ones were not a whit behind their
  	elders, their shrill trebles rising with the roll of the organ
21	in almost perfect time. In every respect their service was
  	the same as all the others. 
  	    There was no more impressive feature of the dedication
24	than the silent communion. Devout Scientists said after
  	the service that they would ever carry with them the
  	memory of it. 


27	             THE ANNUAL MEETING, JUNE 12, 1906 

  	    The annual meeting of The First Church of Christ,
  	Scientist, in Boston, was held in the extension of The
30	Mother Church, Tuesday, June 12, at ten o'clock in the
 
                           The Annual Meeting, 1906                        39


 1	forenoon, and in order to accommodate those who could
  	not gain admittance at that hour a second session was held
 3	at two o'clock in the afternoon. The meeting was opened
  	by the President, Rev. William P. McKenzie, who read
  	from the Bible and Science and Health as follows: —  

 6	            The Bible                              Science and Health 
  	    Isaiah 54:1-5, 10-15,                    571:22
  	      17                                               574:3-16, 27 The Revela-
 9	    Revelation 19:1, 6-9                          tor; The very
  	                                                         577:4

  	    Then followed a short silent prayer and the audible
12	repetition of the Lord's Prayer, in which all joined. The
  	following list of officers for the ensuing year was read by
  	the Clerk: —  
15	    President, Willis F. Gross, C.S.B.; Treasurer, Stephen
  	A. Chase, C.S.D.; Clerk, William B. Johnson, C.S.D. 
  	    In introducing the new President, Mr. McKenzie said: —  

18	    When I introduce the incoming President, my modest
  	task will be ended. You will allow me, however, the
  	privilege of saying a few words of reminder and prophecy. 
21	My thoughts revert to a former occasion, when it was my
  	pleasant duty to preside at an annual meeting when our
  	Pastor Emeritus, Mrs. Eddy, was present. We remember
24	her graciousness and dignity. We recall the harmonious
  	tones of her gentle voice. Our hearts were thrilled by her
  	compassion, and the memory lives with us. But even more
27	distinctly may we realize her presence with us to-day. 
  	Why? Because our own growth in love and unity enables
  	us to comprehend better the strength and beauty of her
30	character. 
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   40


 1	    Moreover, this completed extension of The Mother
  	Church is an evidence to us of her hospitable love. She
 3	has desired for years to have her church able to give
  	more adequate reception to those who hunger and thirst
  	after practical righteousness; and we are sure that now
 6	the branch churches of The Mother Church will also en-
  	large their hospitality, so that these seekers everywhere
  	may be satisfied. This will imply the subsidence of criti-
 9	cism among workers. It may even imply that some who
  	have been peacebreakers shall willingly enter into the
  	blessedness of peacemakers. Nothing will be lost, how-
12	ever, by those who relinquish their cherished resentments,
  	forsake animosity, and abandon their strongholds of
  	rivalry. Through rivalries among leaders Christendom
15	became divided into warring sects; but the demand
  	of this age is for peacemaking, so that Christianity
  	may more widely reassert its pristine power to bring
18	health and a cure to pain-racked and sorrow-worn hu-
  	manity. "The wisdom that is from above is first
  	pure, then peaceable, . . . And the fruit of righteous-
21	ness is sown in peace of them that make peace." 
  	"Blessed are the peacemakers:  for they shall be called
  	the children of God." 
24	    Our Leader, Mrs. Eddy, has presented to the world the
  	ideal of Christianity, because she is an exact metaphysi-
  	cian. She has illustrated what the poet perceived when he
27	said, "All's love, but all's law." She has obeyed the divine
  	Principle, Love, without regrets and without resistance. 
  	Human sense often rebels against law, hence the proverb:
30	Dura lex, sed lex (Hard is the law, nevertheless it is
  	the law). But by her own blameless and happy life,
  	as well as by her teachings, our Leader has induced a
 
                           The Annual Meeting, 1906                       41


 1	multitude — how great no man can number — to be-
  	come gladly obedient to law, so that they think rightly
 3	or righteously. 
  	    No one can change the law of Christian metaphysics,
  	the law of right thinking, nor in any wise alter its
 6	effects. It is a forever fact that the meek and lowly in
  	heart are blessed and comforted by divine Love. If the
  	proud are lonely and uncomforted, it is because they
 9	have thoughts adverse to the law of love. Pride, arro-
  	gance, and self-will are unmerciful, and so receive judg-
  	ment without mercy; but the law of metaphysics says,
12	"Blessed are the merciful," and will allow no one to
  	escape that blessedness, howsoever far he may stray,
  	whatsoever lawlessness of hatred he may practise and
15	suffer from. 
  	    So we see that Christian Science makes no compromise
  	with evil, sin, wrong, or imperfection, but maintains the
18	perfect standard of truth and righteousness and joy. It
  	teaches us to rise from sentimental affection which ad-
  	mires friends and hates enemies, into brotherly love which
21	is just and kind to all and unable to cherish any enmity. 
  	It brings into present and hourly application what Paul
  	termed "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus," and
24	shows man that his real estate is one of blessedness. Why
  	should any one postpone his legitimate joy, and disregard
  	his lawful inheritance, which is "incorruptible and unde-
27	filed"? Our Leader and teacher not only discovered
  	Christian Science, but through long years of consecration
  	has obeyed its every demand, for our sakes as well as
30	for her own; and we begin to understand how illim-
  	itable is the Love which supports such selfless devotion,
  	we begin to comprehend the "beauty of holiness," and
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   42


 1	to be truly grateful to her who has depicted its form
  	and comeliness. We have found it true that "she
 3	openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is
  	the law of kindness." 
  	    It is my pleasure to introduce to you a faithful follower
 6	of this Leader as the President for the coming year, Willis
  	F. Gross, C.S.B., one who has for many years "witnessed
  	a good confession" in the practice of Christian Science. 
 9	You are no doubt already acquainted with him as one of
  	the helpful contributors to our periodicals, so that any
  	further words of mine are unnecessary. 

12	    Mr. Gross, on assuming office, said: — 

  	Beloved Friends: — Most unexpectedly to me came the
  	call to serve you in this capacity, and I desire to improve
15	this opportunity to express my thanks for the honor con-
  	ferred upon me. With a heart filled with gratitude for the
  	countless blessings which have come into my life through
18	Christian Science, I shall endeavor to perform this service
  	to the best of my ability. 
  	    It affords me great pleasure to welcome you to our first
21	annual meeting held in the extension of The Mother
  	Church. I shall not attempt to speak of the deep signifi-
  	cance of this momentous occasion. I realize that only as
24	infinite good unfolds in each individual consciousness can
  	we begin to comprehend, even in small degree, how great
  	is the work that has been inaugurated by our beloved
27	Leader, how faithful is her allegiance to God, how untiring
  	are her efforts, and how successful she is in the performance
  	of her daily tasks. 
30	    "With a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm"
  	were the children of Israel delivered from the bondage of
  
                           The Annual Meeting, 1906                       43


 1	the Egyptians, but this deliverance did not put them in
  	possession of the promised land. An unknown wilder-
 3	ness was before them, and that wilderness must be con-
  	quered. The law was given that they might know what
  	was required of them, that they might have a definite rule
 6	of action whereby to order aright the affairs of daily life. 
  	Obedience to the demands of the law revealed the God
  	of their fathers, and they learned to know Him. During
 9	their sojourn in the wilderness they suffered defeats and
  	met with disappointments, but they learned from experi-
  	ence and finally became willingly obedient to the voice of
12	their leader. The crossing of the Jordan brought them
  	into the promised land, and this experience was almost
  	as marvellous as had been the passage of the Red Sea
15	forty years before. In obedience to the command of
  	Joshua, twelve stones taken from the midst of the river
  	were set up on the other side for a memorial. In future
18	generations when it was asked, "What mean ye by these
  	stones?" it was told them:  Israel came over this Jordan
  	on dry ground. 
21	    Forty years ago the Science of Christian healing was
  	revealed to our beloved Leader, the Rev. Mary Baker
  	Eddy. A few years later she gave us our textbook,
24	"Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures." Obedi-
  	ence to the teachings of this book has brought us to this
  	hour. We have learned from experience, and to-day we
27	rejoice that we have found in Christian Science that
  	which heals and saves. 
  	    The world looks with wonder upon this grand achieve-
30	ment, — the completion and dedication of our magnificent
  	temple, — and many are asking, "What mean ye by these
  	stones?" The answer is, The way out of the wilderness
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   44


 1	of human beliefs has been revealed. Through the under-
  	standing of God as an ever-present help, the sick are being
 3	healed, the shackles of sin are being broken, heavy burdens
  	are being laid down, tears are being wiped away, and
  	Israel is going up to possess the promised land of eternal,
 6	harmonious existence. 
  	    Friends, our progress may be fast or it may be slow,
  	but one thing is certain, it will be sure, if we are obe-
 9	dient to the loving counsel of our ever faithful Leader. 
  	The Christ is here, has come to individual conscious-
  	ness; and the faithful disciple rejoices in prophecy ful-
12	filled, "Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of
  	the world." 


  	                               Telegram to Mrs. Eddy 

15	    Judge Septimus J. Hanna then advanced to the
  	front of the platform, read the following despatch, and
  	moved that it be forwarded at once to our Leader,
18	Mrs. Eddy. The motion was carried unanimously by a
  	rising vote. 
  	    The despatch was as follows: —  


21	TO THE REV. MARY BAKER EDDY,
  	         Pleasant View, Concord, N. H. 

  	    Beloved Teacher and Leader: — The members of The
24	Mother Church, The First Church of Christ, Scientist,
  	in Boston, Mass., in annual meeting assembled, hereby
  	convey to you their sincere greetings and their deep
27	love. 
  	    They desire to express their continued loyalty to your
  	teachings, their unshaken confidence in the unerring wis-
30	dom of your leadership, and their confident assurance
 
                           The Annual Meeting, 1906                       45


 1	that strict and intelligent recognition of and obedience to
  	the comprehensive means by you provided for the further-
 3	ance of our Cause, will result in its perpetuity as well
  	as in the ultimate regeneration of its adherents and of
  	mankind. 
 6	    We are witnessing with joy and gratitude the significant
  	events associated with this, one of the greatest and most
  	important gatherings of Christian Scientists in the annals
 9	of our history. Yet the upwards of thirty thousand who
  	are physically present at the dedication represent only a
  	small part of the entire body who are of us and with us
12	in the animus and spirit of our movement. 
  	    The great temple is finished! That which you have long
  	prophetically seen has been accomplished. The magnifi-
15	cent edifice stands a fitting monument of your obedience
  	and fidelity to the divine Principle revealed to you in that
  	momentous hour when purblind mortal sense declared you
18	to be in extremis. You followed unswervingly the guid-
  	ance of Him who went before you by day in a pillar of
  	cloud to lead you in the way, and by night in a pillar
21	of fire to give you light, and the results of such following
  	have been marvellous beyond human ken. As clearly
  	as in retrospect we see the earlier leading, we now discern
24	the fulfilment of the later prophecy, that "He took not
  	away the pillar of cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by
  	night," for each advancing step has logically followed
27	the preceding one. 
  	    The great temple is finished! This massive pile of New
  	Hampshire granite and Bedford stone, rising to a height
30	of two hundred and twenty-four feet, one foot loftier than
  	the Bunker Hill monument, stands a material type of
  	Truth's permanence. In solid foundation, in symmetrical
  
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   46


1	arches, in generous hallways, in commodious foyer and
  	broad stairways, in exquisite and expansive auditorium,
 3	and in towering, overshadowing dome, the great structure
  	stands, silently but eloquently beckoning us on towards
  	a higher and more spiritual plane of living, for we know
 6	that without this spiritual significance it were but a pass-
  	ing dream. 
  	    In the best sense it stands in prophetic verity of the
 9	primary declaration of this church in its original organiza-
  	tion; namely, "To organize a church designed to com-
  	memorate the word and works of our Master, which should
12	reinstate primitive Christianity and its lost element
  	of healing."  (Church Manual, p. 17.) To rise to the
  	demands of this early pronouncement is the work of true
15	Christian Scientists. 
  	    To preach the gospel and heal the sick on the Christ-
  	basis is the essential requirement of a reinstated Chris-
18	tianity. Only as we pledge ourselves anew to this demand,
  	and then fulfil the pledge in righteous living, are we faith-
  	ful, obedient, deserving disciples. 
21	    On this solemn occasion, and in the presence of this
  	assembled host, we do hereby pledge ourselves to a deeper
  	consecration, a more sincere and Christly love of God and
24	our brother, and a more implicit obedience to the sacred
  	teachings of the Bible and our textbook, as well as to the
  	all-inclusive instructions and admonitions of our Church
27	Manual in its spiritual import, that we may indeed reach
  	"unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem,
  	and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general
30	assembly and church of the firstborn." 

  	                                      WILLIAM B. JOHNSON, Clerk 

  	BOSTON, MASS., June 12, 1906 
 
                           The Annual Meeting, 1906                       47


1	                                    Report of the Clerk 

  	    Beloved Brethren of The First Church of Christ, Scientist,
 3	in Boston, Mass.: — It seems meet at this time, when
  	thousands of Christian Scientists have gathered here
  	from all parts of the world, many of whom have not had
 6	the means of knowing the steps by which this church has
  	reached its present growth, to present in this report a few
  	of the stages of its progress, as gleaned from the pages of
 9	its history. 
  	    After a work has been established, has grown to great
  	magnitude, and people the world over have been touched
12	by its influence for good, it is with joy that those who have
  	labored unceasingly for the work look back to the pictur-
  	esque, interesting, and epoch-marking stages of its growth,
15	and recall memories of trials, progress, and victories that
  	are precious each and all. To-day we look back over the
  	years that have passed since the inception of this great
18	Cause, and we cannot help being touched by each land-
  	mark of progress that showed a forward effort into the
  	well-earned joy that is with us now. For a Cause that
21	has rooted itself in so many distant lands, and inspired so
  	many of different races and tongues into the demonstration
  	of the knowledge of God, the years that have passed since
24	Mrs. Eddy founded her first church seem but a short
  	time. And this little church, God's word in the wilder-
  	ness of dogma and creed, opened an era of Christian
27	worship founded on the commands of Jesus: "Go ye
  	into all the world, and preach the gospel to every
  	creature. . . .  And these signs shall follow them that
30	believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they
  	shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up ser-
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   48


 1	pents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not
  	hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they
 3	shall recover." 
  	    Not until nineteen centuries had passed was there one
  	ready to receive the inspiration, to restore to human con-
 6	sciousness the stone that had been rejected, and which
  	Mrs. Eddy made "the head of the corner" of The Church
  	of Christ, Scientist. 
 9	    With the reading of her textbook, "Science and
  	Health with Key to the Scriptures," Mrs. Eddy insisted
  	that her students make, every day, a prayerful study of
12	the Bible, and obtain the spiritual understanding of its
  	promises. Upon this she founded the future growth of
  	her church, and twenty-six years later the following
15	splendid appreciation of her efforts appeared in the
  	Methodist Review from the pen of the late Frederick
  	Lawrence Knowles: —  
18	    "Mrs. Eddy . . . in her insistence upon the constant
  	daily reading of the Bible and her own writings, . . .
  	has given to her disciples a means of spiritual development
21	which . . . will certainly build such truth as they do gain
  	into the marrow of their characters.  The scorn of the
  	gross and sensual, and the subordination of merely material
24	to spiritual values, together with the discouragement of
  	care and worry, are all forces that make for righteousness.  
  	And they are burned indelibly upon the mind of the
27	neophyte every day through its reading.  The intellects
  	of these people are not drugged by scandal, drowned in
  	frivolity, or paralyzed by sentimental fiction. . . .  They
30	feed the higher nature through the mind, and I am bound
  	as an observer of them to say, in all fairness, that the
  	result is already manifest in their faces, their conversation,
 
                           The Annual Meeting, 1906                       49


 1	and their bearing, both in public and private.  What
  	wonder that when these smiling people say, 'Come thou
 3	with us, and we will do thee good,' the hitherto half-
  	persuaded one is wholly drawn over, as by an irresistible
  	attraction.  The religious body which can direct, and con-
 6	trol, in no arbitrary sense, but through sane counsel, the
  	reading of its membership, stands a great chance of sweep-
  	ing the world within a generation." 
 9	    The charter of this little church was obtained August
  	23, 1879, and in the same month the members extended a
  	unanimous invitation to Mrs. Eddy to become its pastor. 
12	At a meeting of those who were interested in forming the
  	church, Mrs. Eddy was appointed on the committee to
  	formulate the rules and by-laws, also the tenets and church
15	covenant. The first business meeting of the church was
  	held August 16, 1879, in Charlestown, Mass., for the pur-
  	pose of electing officers. August 22 the Clerk, by instruc-
18	tions received at the previous meeting, sent an invitation
  	to Mrs. Eddy to become pastor of the church. August 27
  	the church held a meeting, with Mrs. Eddy in the chair. 
21	An interesting record of this meeting reads: "The minutes
  	of the previous meeting were read and approved.  Then
  	Mrs. Eddy proceeded to instruct those present as to their
24	duties in the Church of Christ, giving some useful hints as
  	to the mode of conducting the church." 
  	    At a meeting held October 19, 1879, it was unanimously
27	voted that "Dr. and Mrs. Eddy merited the thanks of the
  	society for their devoted labors in the cause of Truth,"
  	and at the annual meeting, December 1 of the same year,
30	it was voted to instruct the Clerk to call Mrs. Eddy
  	to the pastorate of the church, and at this meeting Mrs.
  	Eddy accepted the call. The first meeting of this little
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   50


 1	church for deliberation before a Communion Sabbath
  	was held at the home of the pastor, Mrs. Eddy, Jan-
 3	uary 2, 1880. 
  	    Most of those present had left their former church
  	homes, in which they had labored faithfully and ardently,
 6	and had united themselves into a little band of prayerful
  	workers. As the Pilgrims felt the strangeness of their
  	new home, the vast gloom of the mysterious forests, and
 9	knew not the trials before them, so this little band of
  	pioneers, guided by their dauntless Leader and teacher,
  	starting out on their labors against the currents of dogma,
12	creed, sickness, and sin, must have felt a peculiar sense of
  	isolation, for their records state, "The tone of this meeting
  	for deliberation before Communion Sabbath was rather
15	sorrowful;" but as they turned steadfastly from the mor-
  	tal side, and looked towards the spiritual, as the records
  	further relate, "yet there was a feeling of trust in the
18	great Father, of Love prevailing over the apparently dis-
  	couraging outlook of the Church of Christ." The Com-
  	munion Sunday, however, brought fresh courage to the
21	earnest band, and the records contain these simple but
  	suggestive words, — "Sunday, January 4, 1880.  The
  	church celebrated her Communion Sabbath as a church,
24	and it was a very inspiring season to us all, and two new
  	members were added to the church." This was indeed
  	the little church in the wilderness, and few knew of its
27	teachings, but those few saw the grandeur of its work
  	and were willing to labor for the Cause. 
  	    The record of May 23, 1880, more than twenty-six years
30	ago, states: "Our pastor, Mrs. Eddy, preached her fare-
  	well sermon to the church.  The business committee met
  	after the services to call a general meeting of the church
 
                           The Annual Meeting, 1906                       51


 1	to devise means to pay our pastor, so as to keep her with
  	us, as there is no one in the world who could take her place
 3	in teaching us the Science of Life." May 26 of the same
  	year the following resolutions were passed: "That the
  	members of the Church of Christ, and all others now in-
 6	terested in said church, do most sincerely regret that our
  	pastor, Mrs. Eddy, feels it her duty to tender her resigna-
  	tion, and while we feel that she has not met with the
 9	support that she should have reason to expect, we venture
  	to hope she will remain with us.  That it would be a
  	serious blow to her Cause to have the public services
12	discontinued at a time when there is such an interest
  	manifested on the part of the people, and we know of no
  	one who is so able as she to lead us to the higher under-
15	standing of Christianity, whereby to heal the sick and
  	reform the sinner.  It was moved to instruct the Clerk to
  	have our pastor remain with us for a few Sundays if not
18	permanently." 
  	    At a meeting of the church, December 15, 1880, an invi-
  	tation was extended to Mrs. Eddy to accept the pastorate
21	for the ensuing year; but, as the records state, "she gave
  	no definite answer, believing that it was for the interest
  	of the Cause, and her duty, to go into new fields to
24	teach and preach." 
  	    An interesting record relative to this very early work of
  	the church, and its appreciation of Mrs. Eddy's tireless
27	labors, is that of July 20, 1881, which reads, "That we,
  	the members of The Church of Christ, Scientist, tender to
  	our beloved pastor, Mrs. Eddy, the heartfelt thanks and
30	gratitude shared by all who have attended the services, in
  	appreciation of her earnest endeavors, her arduous labors,
  	and successful instructions to heal the sick, and reform
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   52


 1	the sinner, by metaphysical truth or Christian Science, dur-
  	ing the past year.  Resolved:  That while she had many
 3	obstacles to overcome, many mental hardships to endure,
  	she has borne them bravely, blessing them that curse her,
  	loving them that despitefully use her, thereby giving in
 6	her Christian example, as well as her instructions, the
  	highest type of womanhood, or the love that heals.  And
  	while we sincerely acknowledge our indebtedness to her,
 9	and to God, for these blessings, we, each and all, will make
  	greater efforts more faithfully to sustain her in her work.  
  	Resolved:  That while we realize the rapid growth, and
12	welcome the fact of the spreading world wide of this great
  	truth, that Mind, Truth, Life, and Love, as taught and
  	expressed by our pastor, does heal the sick, and, when
15	understood, does bring out the perfection of all things, we
  	also realize we must use more energy and unselfish labor
  	to establish these our Master's commands and our pastor's
18	teachings, namely, heal the sick, and preach the gospel,
  	and love our neighbor as ourselves." 
  	    Eighteen years ago, the Rev. James Henry Wiggin, who
21	was not a Christian Scientist, wrote as follows: "What-
  	ever is to be Mrs. Eddy's future reputation, time will
  	show.  Little cares she, if only through her work Truth
24	may be glorified.  More than once, in her earnestness, she
  	has reached her bottom dollar, but the interest of the
  	world to hear her word has always filled her coffers anew.  
27	Within a few months she has made sacrifices from which
  	most authors would have shrunk, to insure the moral
  	rightness of her book." This statement "Phare Pleigh"
30	[the nom de plume of the Rev. James Henry Wiggin]
  	makes out of his own peculiar knowledge of the circum-
  	stances. "Day after day flew by, and weeks lengthened
 
                           The Annual Meeting, 1906                       53


 1	into months; from every quarter came important mis-
  	sives of inquiry and mercantile reproach; hundreds of
 3	dollars were sunk into a bottomless sea of corrections;
  	yet not until the authoress was satisfied that her duty
  	was wholly done, would she allow printer and binder to
 6	send forth her book to the world." This book has now
  	reached its four hundredth edition, each of one thousand
  	copies. 
 9	    On September 8, 1882, it was voted that the church
  	hold its meetings of worship in the parlors of Mrs. Eddy's
  	home, 569 Columbus Avenue, Boston. The services were
12	held there until November, 1883, and then in the Haw-
  	thorne Rooms, at No. 3 Park Street, the seating capacity
  	of which place was about two hundred and twenty-
15	five. At a meeting October 22, 1883, the church voted
  	to wait upon Mrs. Eddy, to ascertain if she would
  	preach for the society for ten dollars a Sunday, which
18	invitation she accepted. After establishing itself as a
  	church in the Hawthorne Rooms, the number of atten-
  	dants steadily increased. The pulpit was supplied by
21	Mrs. Eddy, when she could give the time to preach,
  	and by her students and by clergymen of different
  	denominations, among whom was the Rev. A. J. Pea-
24	body, D.D., of Cambridge, Mass. 
  	    The annual report of the business committee of the
  	church, for the year ending December 7, 1885, contains
27	some very interesting statements, among which is this:
  	"There was a steadily increasing interest in Christian
  	Science among the people, even though the continuity
30	of thought must have been very much broken by having
  	so many different ones address them on the subject.  
  	When our pastor preached for us it was found that the
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   54


 1	Hawthorne Rooms were inadequate for the occasion,
  	hundreds going away who could not obtain entrance;
 3	those present enduring the inconvenience that comes
  	from crowding, for the sake of the eternal truth she
  	taught them." The Boston Traveler contained the fol-
 6	lowing item: "The Church of Christ, Scientist, had their
  	meeting Easter Sunday at Hawthorne Rooms, which
  	were crowded one hour before the service commenced,
 9	and half an hour before the arrival of the pastor, the
  	Rev. Mary Baker Eddy, the tide of men and women
  	was turned from the door with the information, 'No
12	more standing-room.' " 
  	    On February 8, 1885, communion was held at Odd
  	Fellows Hall, and there were present about eight hundred
15	people. At this time the Hawthorne Rooms, which had
  	been regarded as the church home, were outgrown. Dur-
  	ing the summer vacation, different places were considered,
18	but no place suitable could be found that was available,
  	and the Sunday services were postponed. There was an
  	expectation that some place would be obtained, but the
21	desire for services was so great that the Hawthorne Rooms
  	were again secured. A record of this period reads, "It
  	should be here stated that from the first of September to
24	our opening, crowds had besieged the doors at the Haw-
  	thorne Rooms, Sunday after Sunday." On October 18,
  	1885, the rooms were opened and a large congregation
27	was present. It was then concluded to engage Chickering
  	Hall on Tremont Street. In the previous consideration
  	of places for meeting it had been decided that this hall
30	was too large, as it seated four hundred and sixty-four. 
  	The first Sunday service held in Chickering Hall was on
  	October 25, 1885. Mrs. Eddy preached at this service
 
                           The Annual Meeting, 1906                       55


 1	and the hall was crowded. This date is memorable as
  	the one upon which the Sunday School was formed. 
 3	    Meanwhile it was felt that the church needed a place of
  	its own, and efforts were made to obtain by purchase some
  	building, or church, in a suitable location. Several places
 6	were considered, but were not satisfactory; yet the
  	thought of obtaining a church edifice, although given up
  	for a time, was not forgotten. In the mean time, not
 9	only was the attendance rapidly growing in this church in
  	Chickering Hall, but the Cause itself was spreading over
  	the land. September 1, 1892, Mrs. Eddy gave the plot of
12	ground on which The Mother Church now stands. On
  	the twenty-third day of September, 1892, twelve of the
  	members of the church met, and, upon Mrs. Eddy's
15	counsel, reorganized the church, and named it The First
  	Church of Christ, Scientist. This effort of Mrs. Eddy
  	was an inspiration to Christian Scientists, and plans were
18	made for a church home. 
  	    In the mean time Sunday services were held in Chicker-
  	ing Hall, and continued there until March, 1894, and
21	during the last year the hall was crowded to overflowing. 
  	In March, however, the church was obliged to seek other
  	quarters, as Chickering Hall was to be remodelled. At this
24	time the church removed to Copley Hall on Clarendon
  	Street, which had a seating capacity of six hundred and
  	twenty-five, and in that place Sunday services were held
27	until The Mother Church edifice was ready for occupancy,
  	December 30, 1894. During the months that the con-
  	gregation worshipped in Copley Hall there was a steady
30	increase in attendance. 
  	    Twelve years ago the twenty-first of last month, the
  	corner-stone of The Mother Church edifice was laid, and
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   56


 1	at that time it was thought the seating capacity would be
  	adequate for years to come. Attendance at the Sunday
 3	service gradually increased, until every seat was filled and
  	many stood in the aisles, and in consequence two services
  	were held, morning and afternoon, the latter a repetition
 6	of the morning service. The date of the inauguration of
  	two Sunday services was April 26, 1896. It was soon
  	evident that even this provision was inadequate to meet
 9	the need, and it was found necessary to organize branch
  	churches in such suburbs of Boston as would relieve
  	the overcrowded condition of The Mother Church; there-
12	fore three branch churches were organized, one in each of
  	the following named places:  Cambridge, Chelsea, and
  	Roxbury. 
15	    For a while it seemed that there would be ample room
  	for growth of attendance in The Mother Church, but not-
  	withstanding the relief that the organization of branch
18	churches had given, the number of attendants increased
  	faster than ever. From the time that the three foregoing
  	named churches were established, the membership and the
21	attendance at them and at The Mother Church steadily
  	grew, and more branch churches were established in other
  	suburbs, members of which had formerly been attendants
24	at The Mother Church. In the spring of 1905 the over-
  	crowded condition of the morning service showed that
  	still further provision must be made, as many were obliged
27	to leave the church for the reason that there was not even
  	standing-room. Therefore, beginning October 1, 1905,
  	three services were held each Sunday, the second and
30	third being repetitions of the first service. 
  	    This continued growth, this continued overcrowding,
  	proved the need of a larger edifice. Our communion ser-
 
                           The Annual Meeting, 1906                       57


 1	vices and annual meetings were overcrowded in The
  	Mother Church, they were overcrowded in Tremont
 3	Temple, in Symphony Hall, and in the Mechanics Build-
  	ing, and the need was felt of an auditorium that would
  	be of great seating capacity, and one that would have the
 6	sacred atmosphere of a church home. 
  	    In Mrs. Eddy's Message to the church in 1902 she sug-
  	gested the need of a larger church edifice, and at the
 9	annual meeting of the same year the church voted to
  	raise any part of two millions of dollars for the purpose of
  	building a suitable edifice. The labor of clearing the land
12	was begun in October, 1903, and the corner-stone was
  	laid July 16, 1904. 
  	    The first annual meeting of the church was held in
15	Chickering Hall, October 3, 1893, and the membership
  	at that date was 1,545. The membership of this
  	church to-day is 40,011. The number of candidates
18	admitted June 5 of this year is the largest in the his-
  	tory of the church and numbers 4,889, which is 2,194
  	more than the hitherto largest admission, that of June,
21	1903. The total number admitted during the last
  	year is 6,181. The total number of branch churches
  	advertised in The Christian Science Journal of this
24	June is 682, 614 of which show a membership of
  	41,944. The number of societies advertised in the
  	Journal is 267. 
27	    Shortly before the dedication of The Mother Church in
  	1895, the Boston Evening Transcript said: "Wonders will
  	never cease.  Here is a church whose Treasurer has sent
30	out word that no sums except those already subscribed
  	can be received.  The Christian Scientists have a faith
  	of the mustard-seed variety.  What a pity some of our
  
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   58


1	practical Christian folk have not a faith approximate to
  	that of these impractical Christian Scientists." 
 3	    The fact that a notice was published in the Christian
  	Science Sentinel of last Saturday that no more funds
  	are needed to complete the extension of The Mother
 6	Church, proves the truth of the axiom, "History re-
  	peats itself." These are the evidences of the magnifi-
  	cent growth of this Cause, and are sufficient refutation
 9	of the statements that have been made that "Christian
  	Science is dying out." 
  	    The majesty and the dignity of this church edifice not
12	only shows the growth of this Cause, but proclaims the
  	trust, the willingness of those who have contributed to
  	the erection of these mighty walls. 
15	    This magnificent structure, this fitting testimonial in
  	stone, speaks more than words can picture of the love and
  	gratitude of a great multitude that has been healed and
18	purified through the labor and sacrifice of our revered
  	Leader and teacher, Mary Baker Eddy, the one through
  	whom God has revealed a demonstrable way of salvation. 
21	May her example inspire us to follow her in preaching,
  	"The kingdom of heaven is at hand," by healing the
  	sick and reforming the sinful, and, as she has done, ver-
24	ifying Jesus' words, "Lo, I am with you alway." 


  	                 LETTERS AND EDITORIAL 

  	MRS. MARY BAKER EDDY,
27	         Pleasant View, Concord, N. H. 

  	    My Dear Teacher: — Of the many thousands who
  	attended the dedicatory services at the Christian Science
30	church last Sunday it is doubtful if there was one so deeply
 
                                  Letters and Editorial                                59


 1	impressed with the grandeur and magnitude of your work
  	as was the writer, whom you will recall as a member of
 3	your first class in Lynn, Mass., nearly forty years ago. 
  	When you told us that the truth you expounded was
  	the little leaven that should leaven the whole lump, we
 6	thought this might be true in some far distant day
  	beyond our mortal vision. It was above conception
  	that in less than forty years a new system of faith and
 9	worship, as well as of healing, should number its adher-
  	ents by the hundreds of thousands and its tenets be
  	accepted wholly or in part by nearly every religious and
12	scientific body in the civilized world. 
  	    Seated in the gallery of that magnificent temple, which
  	has been reared by you, gazing across that sea of heads,
15	listening again to your words explaining the Scriptures,
  	my mind was carried back to that first public meeting in
  	the little hall on Market Street, Lynn, where you preached
18	to a handful of people that would scarce fill a couple of
  	pews in this grand amphitheatre; and as I heard the sono-
  	rous tones of the powerful organ and the mighty chorus of
21	five thousand voices, I thought of the little melodeon on
  	which my wife played, and of my own feeble attempts
  	to lead the singing. 
24	    In years gone by I have been asked, "Did Mrs. Eddy
  	really write Science and Health?  Some say she did not." 
  	My answer has invariably been, "Send those who say
27	she did not to me.  I heard her talk it before it was
  	ever written.  I read it in manuscript before it was ever
  	printed." Now my testimony is not needed. No human
30	being in this generation has accomplished such a work or
  	been so thoroughly endorsed or so completely vindicated. 
  	It is marvellous beyond all imagining to one who knew of
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   60


 1	your early struggles. I have been solicited by many of
  	your followers to say something about the early history
 3	of Christian Science. I have replied that if Mrs. Eddy
  	thought it wise to instruct them on the subject she would
  	doubtless do so. 
 6	    Possibly you may remember the words of my uncle, the
  	good old deacon of the First Congregational Church of
  	Lynn, when told that I had studied with you. "My boy,
 9	you will be ruined for life; it is the work of the devil." 
  	He only expressed the thought of all the Christian (?)
  	people at that time. What a change in the Christian
12	world! "The stone which the builders rejected" has
  	become the corner-stone of this wonderful temple of
  	"wisdom, Truth, and Love."  (Science and Health, p.
15	495.) I have yet the little Bible which you gave me
  	as a reward for the best paper on the spiritual sig-
  	nificance of the first chapter of Genesis. It has this
18	inscription o        n the fly-leaf in your handwriting, "With
  	all thy getting get understanding." 
  	                          Respectfully and faithfully yours,
21	                                                        S. P. BANCROFT 

  	CAMBRIDGE, MASS., June 12, 1906 


  	MRS. MARY BAKER EDDY,
24	         Pleasant View, Concord, N. H. 

  	    Dear Leader and Guide: — Now that the great event,
  	the dedication of our new church building, is over, may
27	I ask a little of your time to tell you of the interesting
  	part I had to perform in this wonderful consummation. 
  	On the twenty-fifth of last March I was asked by one
30	of the Directors if I would care to do a little watching
 
                                  Letters and Editorial                                61


 1	at the church. I gladly answered in the affirmative, and
  	have been in the building part of every night since that
 3	time. To watch the transformation has been very in-
  	teresting indeed, and the lessons I have learned of the
  	power of divine Mind to remove human obstructions
 6	have been very precious. At first I thought that, since
  	it seemed impossible for the building to be completed
  	before the end of summer, the communion would likely
 9	be postponed until that time. Then came the announce-
  	ment that the services would be held in the new exten-
  	sion on June 10. I saw at once that somebody had to
12	wake up. I fought hard with the evidence of mortal
  	sense for a time; but after a while, in the night, as
  	I was climbing over stones and planks and plaster,
15	I raised my eyes, and the conviction that the work
  	would be accomplished came to me so clearly, I said
  	aloud, "Why, there is no fear; this house will be ready
18	for the service, June 10." I bowed my head before
  	the might of divine Love, and never more did I have
  	any doubt. 
21	    One feature about the work interested me. I noticed
  	that as soon as the workmen began to admit that the work
  	could be done, everything seemed to move as by magic;
24	the human mind was giving its consent. This taught me
  	that I should be willing to let God work. I have often
  	stood under the great dome, in the dark stillness of the
27	night, and thought, "What cannot God do?"  (Science
  	and Health, p. 135.) 
  	    As I discovered the many intricate problems which must
30	necessarily present themselves in such an immense under-
  	taking, I appreciated as never before the faithful, earnest
  	work of our noble Board of Directors. With unflinching
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   62


 1	faith and unfailing fidelity they have stood at the breast-
  	works in the battle, and won the reward, "Well done,
 3	good and faithful servant; . . . enter thou into the joy
  	of thy lord." 
  	    But what of this magnificent structure? Whence did it
 6	come? To me it is the result of the love that trembled
  	in one human heart when it whispered: "Dear God, may
  	I not take this precious truth and give it to my brothers
 9	and sisters?" How can we ever thank God enough for
  	such an one, — ever thank you enough for your unselfed
  	love. May the glory which crowns the completion of this
12	structure shed its brightest beams on your pathway, and
  	fill your heart with the joy of Love's victory. 
  	                                           Your sincere follower,
15	                                                       JAMES J. ROME 

  	BOSTON, MASS., June 30, 1906 


  	REV. MARY BAKER EDDY, 
18	        Pleasant Vie w, Concord, N. H. 

  	    Beloved Leader and Teacher: — We, the Directors of
  	your church, send you loving greetings and congratulations
21	upon the completion of the magnificent extension of The
  	Mother Church of Christ, Scientist, and we again express
  	our thankful appreciation of your wise counsel, timely
24	instruction, and words of encouragement when they were
  	so much needed. 
  	    We acknowledge with many thanks the valuable services
27	rendered to this Board by the members of the business
  	committee, who were ever ready to assist us in every way
  	possible; also the services of other members of the church,
30	who gave freely of their time and efforts when there was
  	urgent need of both. 
 
                                  Letters and Editorial                                63


 1	    We do not forget that it was through you we were en-
  	abled to secure the services of Mr. Whitcomb as builder
 3	in the early days of the construction of the church, and of
  	Mr. Beman in an advisory capacity in the later days; for
  	this, and for their valuable services, we are grateful. 
 6	Lovingly and gratefully your students,

  	       THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE BOARD OF DIRECTORS,

  	                           By WILLIAM B. JOHNSON, Secretary 

 9	     BOSTON, MASS., July 10, 1906 


    	     [Editorial in Christian Science Sentinel, June 23, 1906] 

  	    Our annual communion and the dedication of the exten-
12	sion of The Mother Church are over, and this happy and
  	holy experience has become a part of our expanding con-
  	sciousness of Truth, to abide with us and enable us better
15	to work out the purposes of divine Love. It was scarcely
  	possible to repress a feeling of exultation as friend met
  	friend at every turn with words of rejoicing; and even the
18	greetings and congratulations of those not of our faith
  	seemed to say that all the world was in some degree sharing
  	in our joy. But within our sacred edifice there came a
21	deeper feeling, a feeling of awe and of reverence beyond
  	words, — a new sense of the magnitude of Christian
  	Science, this revelation of divinity which has come to the
24	present age. Grandly does our temple symbolize this
  	revelation, in its purity, stateliness, and vastness; but
  	even more impressive than this was the presence of the
27	thousands who had come, as the Master predicted, "from
  	the east, and from the west, and from the north, and
  	from the south," to tell by their presence that they had
30	been healed by Christ, Truth, and had found the kingdom
  	of God. 
 
                The First Church of Christ, Scientist                   64


 1	    As one thought upon the significance of the occasion,
  	the achievements of our beloved Leader and her relation
 3	to the experiences of the hour took on a larger and truer
  	meaning. The glories of the realm of infinite Mind,
  	revealed to us through her spiritual attainments and her
 6	years of toil, encompassed us, and hearts were thrilled
  	with tender gratitude and love for all that she has done. 
  	If to-day we feel a pardonable pride in being known as
 9	Christian Scientists, it is because our Leader has made the
  	name an honored one before the world. 
  	    In her dedicatory Message to The Mother Church,
12	Mrs. Eddy says, "The First Commandment of the Hebrew
  	Decalogue, 'Thou shalt have no other gods before me,'
  	and the Golden Rule are the all-in-all of Christian Science." 
15	In all her writings, through all the years of her leadership,
  	she has been teaching her followers both by precept and
  	example how to obey this commandment and rule, and
18	her success in so doing is what constitutes the high stand-
  	ing of Christian Science before the world. Fearlessly does
  	she warn all her followers against the indulgence of the
21	sins which would prevent the realization of ideal manhood
  	 — the reign of the Christ — and now it is ours to address
  	ourselves with renewed faith and love to the high and holy
24	task of overcoming all that is unlike God, and thus prove
  	our worthiness to be "living stones" in the universal
  	temple of Spirit, and worthy members of The Mother
27   Church before men.
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