On January 7, the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts took up the question of court intervention in internal church affairs. It's an issue raised by a suit brought by two church members against current and former officials of The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston. The seven justices of the Supreme Judicial Court heard arguments and questioned attorneys about the appeal to end the case.

We report on a meeting at which church employees were informed about the hearing. It was held in the Original Mother Church Edifice.

PRAYERFUL SUPPORT

Virginia S. Harris, Chairman of The Christian Science Board of Directors, who had attended the court hearing, welcomed the employees to the meeting and expressed gratitude to everyone who had been "praying, and supporting, and really striving in [their] own hearts to gain a clear understanding of Church and of Mary Baker Eddy's vision for her Church." She continued: "We are really touched by that sense of prayer and by its evidence throughout the world: by employees, officers of the Church, church members in the Field, by friends of this Church—who are not members—including eighteen other religious denominations and religious liberty organizations that have filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of The Mother Church."

Mrs. Harris invited David L. Degler, First Reader of The Mother Church, to share selections from the Bible. Mr. Degler read from the third chapter of First Kings, in which Solomon asks God for wisdom, and from Proverbs: "The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the Lord" (16:1).

"This case is not about individuals," Mrs. Harris continued. "It's about Church and its continuing forward mission for mankind." She mentioned how touched everyone had been to hear about a small Christian Science church in Louisiana whose members had volunteered to keep their Reading Room open all day so that people could pray for justice. She said how much the Board valued the work of all those who "stand for this Church and with this Church as it goes about what Mrs. Eddy intended it to do."

John L. Selover, a member of the Board of Directors and Board contact for the Office of the General Counsel, mentioned that Mrs. Eddy's own words were the model for selecting legal counsel for this hearing. "In her allegory in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," he said, "she describes the demeanor and attitude of defense counsel: 'The counsel's earnest, solemn eyes, kindling with hope and triumph, look upward' (p. 434). We were grateful to have found these attributes in our counsel."

Mrs. Harris told employees how impressed she had been by the atmosphere in the courtroom. "There was a sense of higher justice wanting to be done," she said, "and that was very reassuring. I was struck by the thoroughness with which the justices had prepared. They were very knowledgeable, they had a good understanding of our Church and how it operates, and they asked intelligent questions. One felt they had taken this case to heart and were really engaged in it."

COURT PROCEEDINGS

Mrs. Harris then invited the Church's General Counsel, Gary A. Jones, to summarize the proceedings of that morning before the Supreme Judicial Court. He reminded the employees that the church officer defendants that sought to terminate the case and that the Supreme Judicial Court was reviewing the lower court's decision.

In his arguments, the church officers' attorney maintained that the case should end because (1) the two church members lacked standing to make these claims—they do not have a right to vote or any personal, legal interest in the operations or funds or management of the Church and (2) the Free Exercise of Religion Clause of the United States Constitution contemplates that churches ought to be free to make their own decisions concerning their form of government and use of funds.

The church officers' attorney noted that the Supreme Judicial Court had affirmed in litigation during the 1920s that The Christian Science Board of Directors is the governing body of the Church... charged with the entire management of the Church. Under the U.S. Constitution, he said, courts must defer to the governing bodies of religious organizations.

Mr. Jones explained that the focus of the plaintiffs' attorney was on the role of the Church's Committee on Finance vis-a-vis The Christian Science Board of Directors. The plaintiffs are seeking to have the Supreme Judicial Court "redeclare the role of the Committee."

The plaintiffs' attorney also offered their notion of checks and balances and claimed that "throughout her writings Mrs. Eddy referred to The Mother Church as 'essentially democratic.'" However, Mr. Jones noted that Mrs. Eddy uses that term only in her article on the Board of Education, where she writes of "the Magna Charta of Christian Science" (emphasis added; see The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany, pp. 246–247). The term is not included in the Manual of The Mother Church nor elsewhere in Mrs. Eddy's writings. When asked by a justice whether The Mother Church is congregational, the attorney for the plaintiffs replied, "we believe it is."

Responding to questions from the employees, Mr. Jones stated that contrary to statements in the plaintiffs' written complaint, their attorney disavowed any desire to obtain an "injunction"—a court order dictating what church officials may do or not do.

Mr. Jones also confirmed that the Church has furnished the Massachusetts Attorney General with copies of court filings in this case and financial information, but that the Attorney General has chosen not to enter the case.

Mr. Jones explained that the justices will now be developing their written decision. Therefore, the strong prayerful support of church members is still necessary. A decision may come in six to nine months.

LOOKING ONWARD

In closing the meeting, Mrs. Harris emphasized that there should be no anxiety among employees or members and friends of the Church anywhere. "The months of waiting can be productive times for the Church and for us individually," she said. "We're looking onward, upward. It's the beginning of a wonderful new year, full of prosperity and potential for this Church and what it's to do for mankind. And that's not darkened, stopped, diminished, in any way."