“My church is dead,” a friend lamented after attending a series of church services that failed to inspire him.
“What church are you attending?” I asked. “A church of matter or the church of Spirit?”
I remember a time when I entered a home filled with family members fighting with each other. The atmosphere of the house was bitter. Parents fighting. Children arguing. Resentments voiced. No forgiveness. “Love is dead here,” it was easy to conclude after leaving the house. But I was happy to see later, when I had visited again, that the bitterness was gone. Children were playing with each other. The parents were kind to one another. Love was flourishing in the home.
Love was not dead the first time I visited. It just wasn’t apparent to the material senses. Once thought tuned into it, it came alive, and the home was transformed for the better.
Church is the same. Church is not a material place. It cannot be seen with the material senses or measured in any material way.
Church is spiritual, like love. It never dies. It never disappears. It never leaves. It is the omnipresence of Love, the power of God, the “living, palpitating presence of Christ,” Mrs. Eddy describes in Science and Health on page 351. It is very real to spiritual sense and always present to experience fully and abundantly.
If we try to find church through material sense, we’re likely to see a “dead church,” for true church is not found in matter. If we tune into the realities of Spirit, and behold what God sees and knows, we’ll find church alive and well, for we will be experiencing true church.
Church never dies. It’s always thriving and ready to be experienced to the fullest by thought tuned into its realities. That’s our part to play—to tune in, and to stay tuned in!
Thank you Evan.
Excellent!! Thank you so much ,Evan! Will share !
In decades I have missed maybe a handful of services.
I do not go to “get”.
I go with a heart filled with love to GIVE. “Give of your heart’s rich overflow,” as a hymn says.
Go to give love, and cheer, and inspiration, and gratitude for each other and for God’s allness, Go in gratitude for Mary Baker Eddy’s remarkable, provable discovery in Christ Jesus’ words and life that evil is NOTHINGNESS, for God is ALL. Go in living proof of that, and let your grateful joy draw others into your living, vital prayer.
She says “A small group of wise thinkers is better than a wilderness of dullards and stronger than the might of empires. Unity is spiritual cooperation, heart to heart, the bond of blessedness …”We, to-day, in this class-room, are enough to convert the world if we are of one Mind; for then the whole world will feel the influence of this Mind; as when the earth was without form, and Mind spake and form appeared”.
(Miscellaneous Writings 1883–1896, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 279:27)(The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany, Mary Baker Eddy, p. 162).
Convert the world to what? To hope, and health, brotherhood and peace.
You have anything better to do today?
“God so loved the world.that he gave..” Mind loves the world and GIVES. Oneness with Mind is oneness with giving –giving proof of Love, Truth, Spirit, LIFE. This caring beams a light that banishes darkness in consciousness. It is one with omnipotence, omnipresence, and omniscience. It is knowing that there’s no one in the room but God, anywhere, and it banishes sin, sickness, discouragement and HEALS. There’s nothing more vital to do, no place more compelling to be.
Every service, Sunday, Wednesday, Sunday School and Reading Room duty, calls on us to SERVE, serve God in gratitude for all that Christian Science is and means and does, both in potential and in fact.
That’s great (other) Diane ! I love what you have just written at the exact same time I was typing mine too! I love what you say about serving too….one of our readers likes to remind us that the word “Service” is not just a noun, but a VERB!
Thank you, Diane, for so beautifully expressing what I have been thinking. – the passage from Miscellaneous Writings about “We, today, in this classroom…..,,,.’” Keeps coming to thought. As does we are “an active part of one stupendous whole.”
I am so grateful for Christian Science – to know the grand possibilities of being – mankind, as the cherished children of light.
Thank you, Diane, for this beautiful exposition on the importance of church and our place in (the) service.
and thanks to Diane W. and Joyce for their additional comments. they provide great food for thought
When someone asked me, “Why do you go to Church?” I said, “Christian Science saved my life. I go to give gratitude for all that I am grateful for in my Church and in my life. I can do this by attending all services, participating in them, using and serving in my Reading Room, and loving to attend Church and serve God.” You have written a beautiful, sincere article about loving Church and loving to serve. Thank you.
As we know, nothing that has lived ever dies…but most things do transform into new forms and as there can be no backward steps, we are all here at a very vital time with great potential. I remember hearing a speaker saying how we must not fear darkness or equate it with evil or degeneration, but rather remember that, according to Genesis 1 from void and darkness came Light; also a seed germinates in the darkness before it grows into something quite magnificent and beautiful; also even physical life starts in the partial darkness of the womb; when we pray what do we do? We CLOSE our eyes to be in darkness. We should realise the potential in darkness. The church and some countries are in a dark (and seemingly dangerous place) right now…so there’s always room for much light.! One of the greatest healings in the Bible happened through apparent blindness and church destruction. When we think of Saul, a mass murderer of Christians and a man full of ego, self-righteousness and self-justification in doing so much that was so wrong …and yet he had to experience the deepest darkness in order to see the light of God. Today we have that same God and the same light …and the same sorts of situations to shine light on and know that only evil can die as it is seen in the light.
Jesus told the people that they (and we) are all the light of the world. With so many lights, how can we accept that anything or anyone good can fall into darkness? Each one of us is like a crystal in the Grand Chandelier of Life in which there is no place for darkness to be seen.
What a lovely way of describing how “each one of us is like a crystal in the Grand
Chandelier of Life in which there is no place for darkness to be seen”. Love that!! Diane W!
My Grandfather had a chandelier when I was growing up and I remember how the
crystal prisms shone, with each, like a rainbow, reflecting the colors of Life’s awesomeness.
We are like rays of the sun which also each, contains beautiful rainbows of thought that
shines upon our world in a Peace that is so needed in the world today. And Nicki, below…
Love how you wrote, “Essential, we were/[are] the party!”! Collectively, in sharing our
part, we express the wholeness of Spirit/Love in one grand brotherhood, (paraphrasing)
shining through all as the blossom shines through the bud. (MBE)
Thank you, Diane, for sharing your powerful thoughts
Christ is the head of his body, the church, (Col. 1:18), and we are members of his body (Eph. 5:30).
Christ carefully nourishes and protects and cherishes His body , the church. (Eph. 5:29, Amplified Classic translation).
Church is therefore cherished, protected, and nourished, – by Him! All it can ever do is flourish!
Yay!
I so appreciated this article.
It reminded me of a conversation that I had with my mom when I was a kid. A friend of mine often said, “I’m bored” and I was perplexed by the comment, so I discussed it with my mom. She and I concluded that boredom never presents itself to spiritually active, purposeful, open thought.
Later, as a young adult, my friends and I intentionally decided to create an environment of joy and inclusion wherever we went. Consequently, we didn’t need outside elements to influence our experience. Essentially, “we were the party!”
Church participation and membership can be viewed this way as well. I find that my church experience correlates directly to the altitude of the thought that I bring to church.
Thank you, Nicki, for your loving response to boredom and darkness. Although I live alone in a large apartment building, there is never a feeling of darkness nor boredom here. God is all around here, and I have just met another resident with whom we can share similarities. And my church here is full of wonderfully dedicated members who support and share the wisdom of Mrs. Eddy’s writings. Our team of readers bring new light into our understanding. And we share on Zoom the Sunday and Wednesday services which are richly attended.
I am grateful for the absolute essence and purpose of church as a very real sense of truth . Our purpose in church , no matter what that may be, continues to grow , shape and structure as we adhere to the idea of. Church being continuous Love uninterrupted!
Thank you Evan for these expressions!
A great reminder that in every experience we get from it what we bring to it. If we come ready to give love and joy, we find it. Church or any other place is not about the structure, it’s about us.
Well, if you suddenly find oneself in such a situation, that’s the opportunity to be the light, or the example or to demonstrate a spiritual alternative to that view. Thank you, Evan for this so important reminder.
Loved “Church is not a material place. It cannot be seen with the material senses or measured in any material way.”
That’s it! What instruments are we measuring with?
We can apply this to everything we “see” everyday
Thank you so much for this blog
I love the healing message of True church shared by all above! Thank you all!!
And as Mrs. Eddy describes in the Glossary of S&H, ” Church. The structure of
TRUTH and LOVE; whatever rest upon and proceeds from divine Principle.
The Church is that institution, which affords proof of its utility and is found elevating
the race, rousing the dormant understanding from material beliefs to apprehension
of spiritual ideas and the demonstration of divine Science, thereby casting out devils,
or error, and healing the sick”. We are IN our church wherever we are and we take
it with us like a turtle has a shell. Our unity with this loveliness inspires our every
action and such love is shared here. So appreciated and cherished!!
Carol I love this, “We are IN our church wherever we are.” And I agree that we take it with us wherever we go, when we take the consciousness of Love and Gratitude and Joy — which are built into us — wherever we go.
There are many ways to apply these concepts, such as at my place of work. When I “do not go to “get” as diane w.a. wonderfully states above, but rather “go to give love, and cheer, and inspiration, and gratitude for each other and for God’s allness,” I find that things go so much better. When I forget my purpose there is to serve God by expressing good to His children, and start thinking I’m there about myself and get engrossed in my own needs, that’s when things get out of whack and error sees an opening to come in.
I read more closely than ususal the part of Mrs. Eddy’s definition of Church that says, “The structure of Truth and Love…” I saw that because Truth and Love are spiritual qualities, their “structure” is non-physical, so we are never talking about church in any material sense, as Evan has explained above. One definition of structure is: the way in which something is made, built or organized. Truth and Love are made, built and organized by God alone, so as we reflect Him we are a walking living breathing Church-in-action.
Thanks to everyone for such wonderful inspiration today, much Love and appreciation to you all. Hope we can keep this going over the weekend, it is a great subject.
Thank you so much for your sweet inspiration, dear Rose. How true where
you pointed out about diane w.a.’s “not going to ‘get’, but rather to ‘give’ love
and cheer and inspiration and gratitude for each other and for God’s allness”.
To not give or to give selfishly, egocentrically is like – to not have power or
internet’s true inspiration – to not appreciate what we have been given – the
most gentlest of feeling of contented harmony – sweet, spiritual thoughts, that
our Living church provides continuously, regardless where we are or what we
are doing or accepting as Real. mortal mind thinking has us always searching
for physiological satisfaction in things of matter, because our church is only at
certain times or under certain conditions – connected to visual sights or to the
five material senses – a dead church. But in Spirit, we are Always satisfied,
fulfilled and grateful for what we have, and don’t need to keep coming back
for mortal reassuring that all is well, that temporary beliefs in matter, provides.
Our love is joyous, continuous, alive, and not dependent on false motivation
or desires, but is Living .. Eternal and that is a blessing to our heart and soul …
our True selfhood in divine Love and actions.
Church as our beloved leader shares (“Church. The structure of Truth and Love: whatever rests upon and proceeds from divine Principle.”) We are the expression of divine Love, Life. We, the expression of Church in our actions in the community, in our business, our home, where trust That God is All-in-all, we go shining, and that light shines, back at us, sharing this at home, our CHURCH giving gratitude.
Matthew 18:20 –
“For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” (King James version)
“And when two or three of you are together because of me, you can be sure that I’ll be there.” (The Message)
Whether it’s church, SpiritView, work, home, a supermarket, etc., the pure love of Christ (the divine manifestation of God…Science & Health p. 583) is with us always and forever.
“Up to Speed” By Elise L. Moore:
https://elisemoore.com/wp-content/uploads/pdf/20090602102158.pdf
Church exists where community exists. One can be a part of many communities and experience “church” in all of those places. Spiritview is one of the places I experience “church”. If you only experience church for one hour on Sunday and one hour on Wednesday, you are missing out. This is a very limited sense/definition of church. Church can be experienced 24/7.
Thank you, Kirsten, you are absolutely correct and I like how you write that Spiritview is a
place to experience “church”. As “human” children, we are often taught to color within the
lines, which may stifle creativity, (although it does have its merits, also). But like containing
church to only a mortal, material structure, thoughts from the One Mind are limitless and in
expressing them as God’s children, we are thinking outside of the box, as in spiritual
creativity and are not confined to a one-place, material version of church.
In one of the first paragraphs Mrs. Eddy writes in S&H is, “the time for thinkers has come”.
I feel so blessed by the thinkers that share here on Spiritview. It is truly a Living church.
“Church alive — yesterday, today and always!” by Janet Clements:
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/62695ab8d9b2bd4b35caf7ec/t/62759f801cbac36276b3eaed/1651875713637/Church+alive–yesterday%2C+today%2C+and+always+7.2011.pdf
Thank you very much Evan, for this most important topic about Church. You once had a SpiritView with the theme “The Church is full”. I love that SV about Church very much.
Up here are so many inspiring and loving comments and the two articles from you, dear “J”. They are very worth studying and very helpful to our spiritual understanding of Church.
During the silent prayer before the Lord`s Prayer I pray to be clear that Christian Science and it`s healing Church is “The healing Christ in action.” The Christ is in action during the whole service and further on!
And I also love the Bible verse which is very helpful and what “J” wrote in her first comment : “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them”.
Am I deeply thankful for your healing and comforting and teaching SpiritView, dear Evan!!!:)
Thank you for this Great Post on True Church, Evan. Also, thank you to all who share their comments here on SV, each one is helpful to all of us who come here for Daily Inspiration. This is such a precious way to learn more about Christian Science and it’s Healing for Everyone. The World needs our loving, non judgemental prayers everyday. Mrs. Eddy says, ” The “still, small voice” of scientific thought reaches over continent and ocean to the globe’s remotest bound.” Science and Health, page 559-8. Love to All.