Church services alive!
By The Christian Science Board of Directors
From the February 2012 issue of The Christian Science Journal
“May we sing hymns accompanied by guitar?”
“Why do you still use the King James Version for the Bible Lesson?”
“Why does the Church occasionally use other translations than the KJV?”
We regularly receive such inquiries, together with requests that the Board of Directors either issue clarifying policy statements—or reprint Board statements from the 1950s or ’80s, or even the ’20s.
As to Christian Science church services, we value branches finding innovative and interesting ways to follow the “present order of services” in the Church Manual. Still, the key to the success of those services must be inspiration and healing. Format and technicalities need to serve the spiritual purpose, not the other way around. Also, Mary Baker Eddy expected that wherever a Christian Scientist went, he or she would recognize the service as distinctly Christian Science.
This Board—like every Board in our Church’s history—is committed to the welfare and prosperity of our movement, and turns to the one Mind for answers and guidance. The last few years the Board has focused on the topic of “Church, Healing, Unity.” More than 240 meetings with churches all over the world have made clear to us the strength and resolve of this movement to bring to humanity freedom from sin, sickness, and death. But how to fulfill this mission needs to be demonstrated anew in every generation.
In this generation we are privileged to witness great individuality and variety in the answers that have come to members—including how they announce notices in the services, perform music, and experience fellowship in their congregation, all in harmony with the Manual. We see this unity in diversity as a strength.
Sometimes, though, the human mind feels uneasy in the midst of diversity and change. It may look for safety in tradition and human regulation. Nevertheless, true safety comes from looking for spiritual freshness and renewal. And while tradition based on tried and true experience might offer a valuable foundation, it shouldn’t limit inspiration and creativity.
In the Bible we find a God that’s ever fresh, dynamic, and inspiring, but also constant and immutable. In Malachi 3:6 we read, “I am the Lord, I change not.” Lamentations 3:23 says that God’s compassion is new every morning. God’s nature is ever-present goodness, never-ending love, dependable truth, eternal life. That nature cannot change. But God is forever unfolding infinite individuality, which manifests itself in progressive forms in human experience.
Supporting this progress, the Manual steers us clear of the distractions of personal sense so that we base our decisions on inspired foundations.
A congregation striving to reach a right decision recently asked us if it’s acceptable to read from the Full Text Quarterly at the Sunday service. The Manual specifies, “The Readers shall not read from copies or manuscripts, but from the books” (Article III, Section 4, p. 32). Of course, if followed literally, this could mean Readers should read the Golden Text and Responsive Reading only from the books, instead of from the Quarterly. There are many good reasons for reading from the books, but there may be equally good reasons to read from the Full Text. So in this case, as in many others, how important it is to use wisdom and discernment. We’re grateful that Readers and congregations are bringing prayer and spiritual insight to this and other questions, and coming to inspired decisions that meet their unique branch needs.
Mary Baker Eddy places a special privilege and obligation on the office of Reader. She says, for example, “. . . that the mental atmosphere they [Readers] exhale shall promote health and holiness, even that spiritual animusso universally needed” (Manual, Article III, Section 1, p. 31). This spirituality guides Readers and other members to work together in making right decisions for their individual branch.
Dear friends, we join you in knowing that Christ, God’s redemptive power, is bringing comfort and healing to all humanity. And we look forward to hearing the wonderful ways Christian Science services are bringing this Christly comfort to your community.
The Christian Science Board of Directors
The live link is: https://journal.christianscience.com/issues/2012/2/130-02/church-services-alive