Article October 12, 1918 Issue

Our Midweek Feasts

JOHN RANDALL DUNN

The members of the Churches of Christ, Scientist, invite their friends, neighbors, and the strangers within their gates to a midweek feast—fifty-two of them a year. The host in charge of the ceremonies may be said to be the First Reader who, after announcing an opening hymn, supplies marvelous food and drink for the guests in reading life-giving passages from the Scriptures, and selections from the Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" by Mrs. Eddy, in accordance with the provisions of the Manual of The Mother Church. Then after silent prayer, the Lord's Prayer, and another hymn, the one in charge of the meeting virtually turns the feast over to the congregation with the understanding that the privilege and responsibility of further feeding the guests is theirs.

And what is the result, on far too many occasions? Silence, protracted silence, and then more silence! There sit the guests, and there sit their hosts and hostesses. The guests are hungry; without doubt the taste of the bread and water of Life given them during the enlightened reading of the Bible and Science and Health has actually whetted their appetites for more,—for the fruitage of this truth,—but there sit the hosts, silent either through unhandled fear or because they have come to the feast empty-handed.

Suppose one in a group of women proposes an expedition to the woods—an old-fashioned picnic. What is the first point of discussion after the time and place have been settled? Why this: What shall I take? Not one of that group has the slightest intention of shirking her self-imposed duty, that of doing her part, and "taking something." On such occasions, when the lunch boxes are opened, it is generally found that the supply far exceeds the demand, and that some baskets need not even be touched by reason of the abundance of others, and so the untouched food is kept for another occasion.

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