When "the angel of the Lord" came to the shepherds to announce the birth of Christ Jesus, it said to them, "Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people" (Luke 2:9, 10). Certainly, the law of universal Truth expressed in Jesus' extraordinary birth, life, teachings, and works could not be for less than "all people." Nor could it bring less than "great joy" for anyone to learn from the Christ that the law of God—divine Truth, Life, and Love—is the law that has authority over man and the universe. This message of Christ promises and delivers freedom from sin, disease, and death to any seeker for truth—insofar as it is received, understood, and faithfully lived.

The Scriptures, the book called the Holy Bible, were written to disseminate Christ's message of spiritual truth to all humanity. For this reason, no person should be deprived of the opportunity to own a Bible. And all should also have the opportunity to understand the spiritual message the Scriptures contain.

It was through her study of the Bible that Mary Baker Eddy discovered the Science of Christ, the law of God through which Jesus reformed the sinner and healed the sick—the divine Comforter Jesus promised the Father would send to explain his teachings. Mrs. Eddy loved the Bible. She said: "The Scriptures are very sacred. Our aim must be to have them understood spiritually, for only by this understanding can truth be gained" (Science and Health, p. 547).

From childhood, Mrs. Eddy had read and striven to understand the Bible, especially the teachings of Jesus. And throughout her remarkable youth and early adult life her prayers brought healing to herself and others on many occasions. Nevertheless, her prayers did not prove sufficient to deliver her permanently from the ill health from which she consistently suffered until she gained the spiritual understanding of God's law, Christian Science. As she says: "The author became a member of the orthodox Congregational Church in early years. Later she learned that her own prayers failed to heal her as did the prayers of her devout parents and the church; but when the spiritual sense of the creed was discerned in the Science of Christianity, this spiritual sense was a present help. It was the living, palpitating presence of Christ, Truth, which healed the sick" (ibid.,p. 351).

After her discovery of Christian Science, Mrs. Eddy was not only able to heal others with certainty and consistency on the basis of God's law; she was able to teach others how to heal successfully in Christ's name as well. Can you imagine what it must have been like for her to realize what she had discovered in the Scriptures—the Science of Christianity? It was surely a "great joy" to her—but it was meant for "all people," and she knew she must allow God to guide her in the means for making it available for everyone to understand and to practice for all time to come. Christian Science must be as available as the Bible itself, for it is the key to understanding the Bible's spiritual message and experiencing the power of the ever-present Christ to heal and save. That's one reason why Mrs. Eddy wrote Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures.

When the established Christian churches would not readily receive her discovery, Mrs. Eddy founded the Church of Christ, Scientist, and this Church serves to protect, preserve, and promote the pure statement of Christian Science as given in Science and Health, for the benefit of all mankind. And when personal preaching proved inadequate to present spiritual truth in its unadulterated purity, she made the Bible and its key, Science and Health, pastor over the Christian Science Church. In the Manualof The Mother Church, Mrs. Eddy says, "I, Mary Baker Eddy, ordain the Bible, and Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Pastor over The Mother Church,—The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Mass.,—and they will continue to preach for this Church and the world" (Art. XIV, Sect. 1).

Throughout the world, the Bible should be an open book to all people. To be truly so, its key, Science and Health, should be beside every Bible, opening its spiritual meaning for every seeker to understand. As the law of God is understood and practiced, the healing and saving power of Christ will be felt in every life and community throughout the world—in holiness, health, and peace.

The Christian Science pastor can become your pastor, your church's pastor, your world's pastor. The Church of Christ, Scientist, ensures that the universal availability of the essential part of the pastor, Science and Health, never ceases. ^{You can tell if the copy of Science and Health you hold in your hands is the authorized text Mrs. Eddy intended the world to receive—the one that contains her pure statement of the Science of Christ—by the appearance on the title page of both her facsimile signature and the Cross and Crown emblem, which are registered trademarks owned by The Christian Science Board of Directors .}

Barbara M. Vining