Editorial August 6, 1904 Issue

The Building Fund

We have been advised of the circulation of a rumor that the total amount necessary for the completion of the new edifice of the Mother Church in Boston is "promised or pledged," and that the Field is therefore released from the necessity of sending further contributions to the Treasurer. If those who are responsible for the circulation of this rumor intend that the phrase "promised or pledged" shall be understood as meaning that the resolution adopted at the Annual Meeting in 1902 has received the ratification of the membership at large, no fault will be found with this statement; but the assertion that there is no need of further contributions cannot be reconciled with this view. The resolution adopted in 1902 reads as follows: "Recognizing the necessity for providing an auditorium for the Mother Church that will seat four or five thousand, and acting in behalf of ourselves and the Christian Scientists of the world, we agree to contribute any portion of two million dollars that may be necessary for this purpose." This resolution is a promise or pledge and has been so recognized by Christian Scientists throughout the world, and they are loyally fulfilling the obligation which they so cheerfully and voluntarily assumed ; it is therefore a matter of considerable surprise that rumors such as the one referred to can pass current among Christian Scientists who are readers of the Sentinel, and have been informed through its columns of the true status of the Building Fund. Why these rumors arise and are passed from one to another should be obvious to every Christian Scientist.

The substance of the Treasurer's report to the Annual Meeting was published in the Sentinel of July 2, and the figures therein given, show that there is still need for further contributions. As soon as the need ceases, official notification to that effect will be given to our readers: and in the mean time, there should be no cessation of our efforts. Other interests should not be allowed to interfere with this endeavor. The building operations are progressing rapidly and stisfactorily, and the Treasurer's report shows that he has a large sum of money on hand, but this is necessary in order that the work may continue with the same dispatch as heretofore.

The statement has often been made that if there were no Mother Church, there could be no branch churches; just as there could be no branches to a tree without a trunk to support them. This statement will bear repeating many times, because it so truly indicates the relation of the Mother Church to its branches, and because the seeming importance of local conditions may at times blind our people to the unity and universality of the Cause.

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