Article May 31, 1930 Issue

Government of The Mother Church

CORNELIUS CROSBY WEBSTER

In writing the Manual of The Mother Church, Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, was God-inspired to found church government upon divine law, just as surely as she was God-guided in writing our textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures." The nature of government was correctly stated when she wrote in the Manual (Art. 1, Sect. 9), "Law constitutes government." And referring to Christian Science and its Magna Charta, Mrs. Eddy said (The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany, p. 247), "Essentially democratic, its government is administered by the common consent of the governed, wherein and where man governed by his creator is self-governed."

In Christian Science, self-government of man means government by God. Understanding this, one is enabled to exercise his franchise in favor of spiritual government, in proportion to his willing and obedient consent to be God-governed in all his actions and relations.

In is interesting that one's problems relating to the human body are apt to be problems of government. True solutions of these problems are never attained through dwelling in thought upon the mortal body or upon its physical functioning, members, or organs, in an effort to keep them smoothly performing their tasks, cooperating to a common end, and manifesting endurance and usefulness. In Christian Science the ideals of government are demonstrated through reversing the false beliefs of material misgovernment by turning thought to the law-creating, governing divine Principle.

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