Church Alive March 7, 2011 Issue

The following was written in support of Church Alive, a focus of The First Church of Christ, Scientist, that explores the meaning and possibilities of awakening to the spiritual basis and impact of Church. 

Love for church — renewed!

By Mary Beattie

For many years I juggled family and career commitments alongside church committee work. Many times the labour felt hard, including such things as the time and effort for adequate preparation for Sunday School teaching, learning new technologies as they applied to the church, and accommodating a variety of personalities in my fellow members. I became tired of trying to uphold the “institutional” vision of church.

This sense of labour was at variance with my deep love for Christian Science and my affection for church as “. . . that institution, which affords proof of its utility . . .” (Science and Health, p. 583).

The overwhelming characteristic I noticed about the members was not labour but service. 