Article April 11, 1953 Issue

THE READER'S RESPONSIBILITY

MARGARET NOBLE PLEASANT

It is a joyous privilege to serve as a Reader in a branch Church of Christ, Scientist. To the casual observer it may seem a comparatively simple thing to stand at a desk and read aloud certain prescribed passages. Yes, it is simple, but it is the hard-won simplicity of godliness—of victory over self—which enables a Reader to fulfill his duties with freedom and joy.

A newly elected Reader will find clear instruction in Article III, Section 1, of the Manual of The Mother Church by Mary Baker Eddy. "Moral Obligations" is the title of this section, which reads as follows: "The Readers of The Mother Church and of all its branch churches must devote a suitable portion of their time to preparation for the reading of the Sunday lesson, —a lesson on which the prosperity of Christian Science largely depends. They must keep themselves unspotted from the world,—uncontaminated with evil,—that the mental atmosphere they exhale shall promote health and holiness, even that spiritual animus so universally needed."

In preparation for his reading, the conscientious Reader will take every step he can to make the mechanics of the reading as perfect as possible; that is, he will learn the technique of reading. He will look up the meaning and pronunciation of every word with which he is unfamiliar. And while he will guard against the effects of artificiality, he will practice reading aloud so as to conform his emphasis and tone to the correct meaning of the passages. He will want to be familiar with each Bible narrative or character brought into the Lesson-Sermon, as given in the Christian Science Quarterly, and he will search our Leader's writings for further light on the topics included in the Lesson, praying diligently to discern their spiritual meaning.

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