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{{Short description|Christian Science denomination}} | |||
'''The Church of Christ, Scientist''', often known as '''The Christian Science Church''' or internally as '''The Mother Church''', was founded by ] in ]. Church teachings are based on the ] and her book '']'', the key doctrinal sources for the Church. | |||
{{distinguish|text=the ]}} | |||
{{Infobox Christian denomination | |||
| name = Church of Christ, Scientist | |||
| image = Christian Science Church and Reflection, Boston, Massachusetts crop.JPG | |||
| imagewidth = | |||
| caption = ] in ], the church's administrative headquarters | |||
| main_classification = ] ] ] | |||
| orientation = ] | |||
| scripture = '']'' and '']'' | |||
| polity = | |||
| founder = ] | |||
| founded_date = {{start date and age|1879}} | |||
| founded_place = ], Massachusetts, U.S. | |||
| separated_from = | |||
| parent = | |||
| merger = | |||
| separations = | |||
| associations = | |||
| area = United States | |||
| congregations = approximately 1750<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.truththatmeetsyourneed.com/ourchurch.html|title = Spiritual Healing - Woking}}</ref> worldwide (1,153 in US as of 2010) | |||
| members = estimates range from around 400,000 to under 100,000. | |||
| footnotes = | |||
Eddy argued that given the absolute perfection and goodness of God, sin, disease, and death were not of Him, and therefore could not be truly real. The material world was thus in effect an illusive blend of spiritual truth, or reality, and material "error" which could be remedied through the elevated spiritual understanding of God and man. This understanding, she contended, was what enabled Jesus in the Christian biblical record to heal. Adherents of this teaching, known as ''Christian Scientists'', thus believe that disease can be overcome through faith, prayer, and an ever-deepening understanding of God and man's relation to Him. As a result, church members generally substitute prayer for traditional medical care, often with the aid of ] (people who devote their full time to treatment through prayer) and claim to experience healing, often reporting these experiences in church publications since the church's founding. | |||
}} | |||
The '''Church of Christ, Scientist''' was founded in 1879 in ], Massachusetts, by ], author of ''],'' and founder of ]. The church was founded "to commemorate the word and works of ]" and "reinstate primitive Christianity and its lost element of ]". | |||
Christian Science's unconventional practice of spiritual healing is controversial. In resorting to it, a number of people have died from normally treatable illnesses because they failed to seek proper medical care. There have also been criminal negligence and wrongful death lawsuits brought against the parents of children who have died while receiving spiritual treatment. | |||
<!--Because spiritual healing is not coerced and generally regarded as a less empirical field than conventional medicine, no easy definition of what constitutes negligence with regards to spiritual healing has been reached in law.--> | |||
Christian Scientists answer that decease alone is not grounds for prosecution and that spiritual healing has also cured numerous well-documented cases deemed incurable by the medical faculty. | |||
In the early decades of the 20th century, Christian Science churches were founded in communities around the world, though in the last several decades of that century, there was a marked decline in membership, except in Africa, where there has been growth. Headquartered in Boston, the church does not officially report membership, and estimates as to worldwide membership range from under 100,000 to about 400,000.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Church Of Christ, Scientist (Christian Science) |url=http://www.religioustolerance.org/cr_sci.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222163516/https://www.religioustolerance.org/cr_sci.htm |archive-date=22 February 2014}}</ref> In 2010, there were 1,153 churches in the United States.<ref>{{Cite web |title=US Religion Census - 2010 |url=https://www.usreligioncensus.org/report1.php?year=2010}}</ref> | |||
The practice of healing led to some measure of stir in the theological realm too: particularly under the eye of the scientific revolutions of the 19th century, many mainstream denominations had relegated it to the realm of a one-time ] rather than a modern practice. During Christian Science's early days of rapid growth, healing under its influence became a subject of heated debate at Christian conventions, but it also became, for the same reason, a subject of wider reawakened interest beginning in the ] and ]. | |||
==History== | |||
] | |||
] | |||
The church was incorporated by ] in 1879, following a claimed personal healing in 1866, which she said resulted from reading the ].<ref name="IIProthero2009">{{cite book|author1=Edward L. Queen, II|author2=Stephen R. Prothero|author3=Gardiner H. Shatuck, Jr.|title=The Encyclopedia of American Religious History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u-_6P2rMy2wC&pg=PA253|access-date=24 May 2013|date=1 January 2009|publisher=Infobase Publishing|isbn=978-0-8160-6660-5|page=253}}</ref> The Bible and Eddy's textbook on Christian healing, '']'', are together the church's key ] sources and have been ordained as the church's "dual impersonal ]".<ref>Mary Baker Eddy. ''Manual of the Mother Church'', 89th Edition, page 58, Article XV "The Christian Science Pastor" Ordination. Section 1. First copyrighted 1895</ref> | |||
The |
The First Church of Christ, Scientist publishes the weekly newspaper '']'' in print and online. | ||
==Beliefs and practices== | |||
Branch Christian Science churches and Christian Science Societies are at once related to the central church but with large autonomy. They can be found worldwide, primarily in the US though also in Europe and other locations, and usually maintain a ] for reading and study open to the public. Churches have usually one one-hour church service each Sunday, consisting of hymns, prayer, and readings from the ] and ]. They also hold a one-hour Wednesday evening testimony meeting, with similar readings and accounts by those attending, and sponsor Christian Science lectures in their communities annually. | |||
Christian Scientists believe that prayer is effective for healing diseases.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Eddy |first1=Mary Baker |title=Science and Health |publisher=CSPS |page=1 |isbn=9780879524371 |url=https://www.christianscience.com/the-christian-science-pastor/science-and-health/chapter-i-prayer |access-date=3 February 2020}}</ref> The Church has collected over 50,000 testimonies of incidents that it considers healing through Christian Science treatment alone. While most of these testimonies represent ]s neither diagnosed nor treated by ], the Church requires three other people to vouch for any testimony published in any of its official organs, including the '']'', '']'', and '']''; verifiers say that they witnessed the healing or know the testifier well enough to vouch for them.<ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060324173617/http://www.spirituality.com/journal/testimony_guidelines.jhtml |date=2006-03-24 }} ''Christian Science Journal'' web site</ref> | |||
A ] is someone who devotes their full time to prayer for others, but they do not use drugs or make medical diagnoses.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Issaoui |first1=Nawal |title=Christian Science’s faith healing practice in the United States and Canada: an overview from a historical and legal perspective |journal=Acta Comparanda Subsidia II |date=2015 |page=32 |issn=0779-9853}}</ref> Christian Scientists may take an intensive two-week "Primary" class from an authorized Christian Science teacher.<ref>''Church Manual,'' page 92, Article XXX, Section 8.</ref> Those who wish to become "'']''-listed" (accredited) practitioners, devoting themselves full-time to the practice of healing, must first have Primary class instruction. When they have what the church regards as a record of healing, they may submit their names for publication in the directory of practitioners and teachers in the ''Christian Science Journal''. A practitioner who has been listed for at least three years may apply for "Normal" class instruction, given once every three years.<ref>''Church Manual'', page 89, Article XXIX, Section 2.</ref><ref>''Church Manual,'' page 84, Article XXVi, Section 4.</ref> Those who receive a certificate are authorized to teach.<ref>''Church Manual'', page 85, Article XXVI, Section 9.</ref> Both Primary and Normal classes are based on the Bible and the writings of Mary Baker Eddy. The Primary class focuses on the chapter "Recapitulation" in ''Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures''. This chapter uses the Socratic method of teaching and contains the "Scientific Statement of Being". The "Normal" class focuses on the platform of Christian Science, contained on pages 330-340 of ''].''<ref>''Church Manual'', page 86, Article XXVII, Section 3.</ref> | |||
The church is structured by a 138-page constitution of sorts by Eddy titled the ], consisting of various Articles of By-Laws ranging from duties of officers to discipline to provisions for church meetings. The Manual was an unusual establishment, as it enacted a rule of law in place of hierarchy, placing binding requirements on even its top executives whom she subordinated to it. A few adherents contend Eddy intended the Mother Church to dissolve upon her passing, though the view is a minority one. | |||
==Organization== | |||
Christian Science is not to be confused with ], the international ] movement, or ] founded by ]. Although it has outward similarities to the ], of which Religious Science is a part, partly through ties between the New Thought Movement and certain disaffected Eddy students such as ], Christian Science regards itself as more restrictedly Christianity-focused. | |||
] and 111 Huntington Avenue are in the background.]] | |||
] is the legal title of The Mother Church and administrative headquarters of the Christian Science Church.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Visit The Mother Church|url=https://www.christianscience.com/find-us/visit-the-mother-church|access-date=2021-12-04|website=Christian Science|language=en}}</ref> The ] is housed in an 11-story structure originally built for The Christian Science Publishing Society. | |||
An international newspaper, '']'', founded by Eddy in 1908 and winner of seven ]s, is published by the church through the ].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Monitor|first=The Christian Science|date=2012-03-12|title=About Us|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/About|access-date=2021-12-04|website=The Christian Science Monitor|language=en}}</ref> | |||
⚫ | ==External |
||
* | |||
===Board of directors=== | |||
⚫ | |||
] is the ] and {{shy|ad|min|is|tra|tive head|quar|ters}} of the ].]] | |||
The Christian Science Board of Directors is a five-person executive entity created by ] to conduct the business of the ] under the terms defined in the by-laws of the '']''. Its functions and restrictions are defined by the ''Manual''. | |||
==Controversies== | |||
===Broadcasting=== | |||
{{see|WBPX-TV#Christian Science Monitor ownership}} | |||
Beginning in the mid-1980s, church executives undertook a controversial and ambitious foray into electronic broadcast media. The first significant effort was to create a weekly half-hour ], ''The Christian Science Monitor'' Reports. "Monitor Reports" was anchored in its first season by newspaper veteran ].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Larmer |first1=Brook |title=Monitor broadcasting to gain TV station and shortwave radio |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/1986/0530/amon.html |work=Christian Science Monitor |date=30 May 1986}}</ref> He was replaced in the second by the ''Christian Science Monitor'''s former Moscow correspondent, ].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hughes |first1=John |title=A Passion For Journalism |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/1993/0218/18192.html |work=Christian Science Monitor |date=18 February 1993}}</ref> | |||
In October 1991, Christian Science Monitor anchor John Hart, who is not a Christian Scientist, resigned following professional disputes with the Monitor regarding Christian Science teachings and his journalistic independence.<ref>{{Cite news |date=September 2, 1992 |title=Ex-anchor cites interference at Monitor |work=Baltimore Sun |agency= |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/1992/09/02/ex-anchor-cites-interference-at-monitor/ |url-status=live |access-date=February 27, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314185701/http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1992-09-02/features/1992246098_1_world-monitor-non-church-christian-science-church |archive-date=March 14, 2012}}</ref> | |||
The hundreds of millions lost on broadcasting brought the church to the brink of bankruptcy. However, with the 1991 publication of '']'' by the late ], the church secured a $90 million bequest from the Knapp trust. The trust dictated that the book be published as "Authorized Literature", with neither modification nor comment. Historically, the church had censured Knapp for deviating at several points from Eddy's teaching, and had refused to publish the work. The church's archivist, fired in anticipation of the book's publication, wrote to branch churches to inform them of the book's history. Many Christian Scientists thought the book violated the church's ], and the editors of the church's religious periodicals and several other church employees resigned in protest. Alternate beneficiaries subsequently sued to contest the church's claim it had complied fully with the will's terms, and the church ultimately received only half of the original sum.<ref>Peter Steinfels. ''The New York Times'' (February 29, 1992)</ref><ref> Stanford University. December 16, 1993</ref> | |||
The fallout of the broadcasting debacle also sparked a minor revolt among some prominent church members. In late 1993, a group of Christian Scientists filed suit against the Board of Directors, alleging a willful disregard for the '']'' in its financial dealings. The suit was thrown out by the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts in 1997, but a lingering discontent with the church's financial matters persists to this day.''<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.appellate.net/briefs/weaverbrief.pdf | title = Appellate Brief No. SJC-07156 | access-date = 2011-08-20 | publisher = COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS SUPREME JUDICIAL COURT | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110723015154/http://www.appellate.net/briefs/weaverbrief.pdf | archive-date = 2011-07-23 | url-status = dead }}</ref> The Destiny Of The Mother Church'' ceased publication in September 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2023-10-01 |title=A message from the Christian Science Board of Directors |url=https://journal.christianscience.com/issues/2023/10/141-10/a-message-from-the-christian-science-board-of-directors |access-date=2023-10-22 |website=The Christian Science Journal |language=en-US}}</ref> | |||
===Membership decline and financial setbacks=== | |||
In spite of its early meteoric rise, church membership has declined over the past eight decades, according to the church's former treasurer, J. Edward Odegaard.<ref>''The Christian Science Journal'' November 2010</ref> Though the Church is prohibited by the ] from publishing membership figures, the number of branch churches in the United States has fallen steadily since ]. In 2009, for the first time in church history, more new members came from Africa than the United States.<ref>Christa Case Bryant, '']'' (June 9, 2009). Retrieved March 16, 2012</ref> | |||
In 2005, '']'' reported that the church was considering consolidating Boston operations into fewer buildings and leasing out space in buildings it owned. Church official Philip G. Davis noted that the administration and Colonnade buildings had not been fully used for many years and that vacancy increased after staff reductions in 2004. The church posted an $8 million financial loss in fiscal 2003, and in 2004 cut 125 jobs, a quarter of the staff, at the '']''. Conversely, Davis noted that "the financial situation right now is excellent" and stated that the church was not facing financial problems.<ref>''The Boston Globe'' October 13, 2005 p. A1</ref> | |||
=== Use of spiritual healing in place of medical treatment === | |||
The use of prayer, often in place of medical treatment, has been an area of controversy since the founding of the church; and the legality of practicing Christian Science was raised as early as 1887, when some Christian Science practitioners were charged with practicing medicine without a license.<ref>Issaoui 2015, pp. 33-35.</ref> Avoidance of medical care is not a doctrinal obligation and is considered a personal choice.<ref>Issaoui 2015, p. 29.</ref> However, during the 1980s and 1990s in the United States, a number of Christian Scientist parents whose children died for lack of access to medical treatment were the subject of considerable controversy and were charged with manslaughter or even murder, but the outcomes of the cases were inconsistent.<ref>Issaoui 2015, pp. 29-42.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Christian Scientists in the Courts |url=https://rpl.hds.harvard.edu/religion-context/case-studies/minority-america/christian-scientists-courts |access-date=2024-02-28 |website=rpl.hds.harvard.edu |language=en}}</ref> The lack of consensus regarding medical care is reflected in the laws of various U.S. states, which have also been inconsistent regarding religious exemptions from medical care.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sandstrom |first=Aleksandra |title=Most states allow religious exemptions from child abuse and neglect laws |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2016/08/12/most-states-allow-religious-exemptions-from-child-abuse-and-neglect-laws/ |access-date=2024-02-28 |website=Pew Research Center |language=en-US}}</ref> | |||
==See also== | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ], a college for Christian Scientists in Elsah, Illinois | |||
* ] | |||
==References== | |||
{{Reflist|35em}} | |||
⚫ | ==External links== | ||
* | |||
⚫ | {{Christian Science}} | ||
{{Authority control}} | |||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Church Of Christ, Scientist}} | |||
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Latest revision as of 02:50, 11 December 2024
Christian Science denomination Not to be confused with the Church of Scientology.Church of Christ, Scientist | |
---|---|
The First Church of Christ, Scientist in Boston, the church's administrative headquarters | |
Classification | Christian new religious movement Restorationist |
Orientation | Nontrinitarianism |
Scripture | Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures and Bible |
Region | United States |
Founder | Mary Baker Eddy |
Origin | 1879; 145 years ago (1879) Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
Congregations | approximately 1750 worldwide (1,153 in US as of 2010) |
Members | estimates range from around 400,000 to under 100,000. |
The Church of Christ, Scientist was founded in 1879 in Boston, Massachusetts, by Mary Baker Eddy, author of Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, and founder of Christian Science. The church was founded "to commemorate the word and works of Christ Jesus" and "reinstate primitive Christianity and its lost element of healing".
In the early decades of the 20th century, Christian Science churches were founded in communities around the world, though in the last several decades of that century, there was a marked decline in membership, except in Africa, where there has been growth. Headquartered in Boston, the church does not officially report membership, and estimates as to worldwide membership range from under 100,000 to about 400,000. In 2010, there were 1,153 churches in the United States.
History
The church was incorporated by Mary Baker Eddy in 1879, following a claimed personal healing in 1866, which she said resulted from reading the Bible. The Bible and Eddy's textbook on Christian healing, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, are together the church's key doctrinal sources and have been ordained as the church's "dual impersonal pastor".
The First Church of Christ, Scientist publishes the weekly newspaper The Christian Science Monitor in print and online.
Beliefs and practices
Christian Scientists believe that prayer is effective for healing diseases. The Church has collected over 50,000 testimonies of incidents that it considers healing through Christian Science treatment alone. While most of these testimonies represent ailments neither diagnosed nor treated by medical professionals, the Church requires three other people to vouch for any testimony published in any of its official organs, including the Christian Science Journal, Christian Science Sentinel, and Herald of Christian Science; verifiers say that they witnessed the healing or know the testifier well enough to vouch for them.
A Christian Science practitioner is someone who devotes their full time to prayer for others, but they do not use drugs or make medical diagnoses. Christian Scientists may take an intensive two-week "Primary" class from an authorized Christian Science teacher. Those who wish to become "Journal-listed" (accredited) practitioners, devoting themselves full-time to the practice of healing, must first have Primary class instruction. When they have what the church regards as a record of healing, they may submit their names for publication in the directory of practitioners and teachers in the Christian Science Journal. A practitioner who has been listed for at least three years may apply for "Normal" class instruction, given once every three years. Those who receive a certificate are authorized to teach. Both Primary and Normal classes are based on the Bible and the writings of Mary Baker Eddy. The Primary class focuses on the chapter "Recapitulation" in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. This chapter uses the Socratic method of teaching and contains the "Scientific Statement of Being". The "Normal" class focuses on the platform of Christian Science, contained on pages 330-340 of Science and Health.
Organization
The First Church of Christ, Scientist is the legal title of The Mother Church and administrative headquarters of the Christian Science Church. The Mary Baker Eddy Library for the Betterment of Humanity is housed in an 11-story structure originally built for The Christian Science Publishing Society.
An international newspaper, The Christian Science Monitor, founded by Eddy in 1908 and winner of seven Pulitzer prizes, is published by the church through the Christian Science Publishing Society.
Board of directors
The Christian Science Board of Directors is a five-person executive entity created by Mary Baker Eddy to conduct the business of the Christian Science Church under the terms defined in the by-laws of the Church Manual. Its functions and restrictions are defined by the Manual.
Controversies
Broadcasting
Further information: WBPX-TV § Christian Science Monitor ownershipBeginning in the mid-1980s, church executives undertook a controversial and ambitious foray into electronic broadcast media. The first significant effort was to create a weekly half-hour syndicated television program, The Christian Science Monitor Reports. "Monitor Reports" was anchored in its first season by newspaper veteran Rob Nelson. He was replaced in the second by the Christian Science Monitor's former Moscow correspondent, David Willis.
In October 1991, Christian Science Monitor anchor John Hart, who is not a Christian Scientist, resigned following professional disputes with the Monitor regarding Christian Science teachings and his journalistic independence.
The hundreds of millions lost on broadcasting brought the church to the brink of bankruptcy. However, with the 1991 publication of The Destiny of The Mother Church by the late Bliss Knapp, the church secured a $90 million bequest from the Knapp trust. The trust dictated that the book be published as "Authorized Literature", with neither modification nor comment. Historically, the church had censured Knapp for deviating at several points from Eddy's teaching, and had refused to publish the work. The church's archivist, fired in anticipation of the book's publication, wrote to branch churches to inform them of the book's history. Many Christian Scientists thought the book violated the church's by-laws, and the editors of the church's religious periodicals and several other church employees resigned in protest. Alternate beneficiaries subsequently sued to contest the church's claim it had complied fully with the will's terms, and the church ultimately received only half of the original sum.
The fallout of the broadcasting debacle also sparked a minor revolt among some prominent church members. In late 1993, a group of Christian Scientists filed suit against the Board of Directors, alleging a willful disregard for the Manual of The Mother Church in its financial dealings. The suit was thrown out by the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts in 1997, but a lingering discontent with the church's financial matters persists to this day. The Destiny Of The Mother Church ceased publication in September 2023.
Membership decline and financial setbacks
In spite of its early meteoric rise, church membership has declined over the past eight decades, according to the church's former treasurer, J. Edward Odegaard. Though the Church is prohibited by the Manual from publishing membership figures, the number of branch churches in the United States has fallen steadily since World War II. In 2009, for the first time in church history, more new members came from Africa than the United States.
In 2005, The Boston Globe reported that the church was considering consolidating Boston operations into fewer buildings and leasing out space in buildings it owned. Church official Philip G. Davis noted that the administration and Colonnade buildings had not been fully used for many years and that vacancy increased after staff reductions in 2004. The church posted an $8 million financial loss in fiscal 2003, and in 2004 cut 125 jobs, a quarter of the staff, at the Christian Science Monitor. Conversely, Davis noted that "the financial situation right now is excellent" and stated that the church was not facing financial problems.
Use of spiritual healing in place of medical treatment
The use of prayer, often in place of medical treatment, has been an area of controversy since the founding of the church; and the legality of practicing Christian Science was raised as early as 1887, when some Christian Science practitioners were charged with practicing medicine without a license. Avoidance of medical care is not a doctrinal obligation and is considered a personal choice. However, during the 1980s and 1990s in the United States, a number of Christian Scientist parents whose children died for lack of access to medical treatment were the subject of considerable controversy and were charged with manslaughter or even murder, but the outcomes of the cases were inconsistent. The lack of consensus regarding medical care is reflected in the laws of various U.S. states, which have also been inconsistent regarding religious exemptions from medical care.
See also
- Christian Science Reading Room
- Reader (Christian Science Church)
- Jewish Science
- List of Christian Scientists (religious denomination)
- List of Former Christian Science Churches, Societies and Buildings
- Principia College, a college for Christian Scientists in Elsah, Illinois
- Commonwealth v. Twitchell
References
- "Spiritual Healing - Woking".
- "The Church Of Christ, Scientist (Christian Science)". Archived from the original on 22 February 2014.
- "US Religion Census - 2010".
- Edward L. Queen, II; Stephen R. Prothero; Gardiner H. Shatuck, Jr. (1 January 2009). The Encyclopedia of American Religious History. Infobase Publishing. p. 253. ISBN 978-0-8160-6660-5. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
- Mary Baker Eddy. Manual of the Mother Church, 89th Edition, page 58, Article XV "The Christian Science Pastor" Ordination. Section 1. First copyrighted 1895
- Eddy, Mary Baker. Science and Health. CSPS. p. 1. ISBN 9780879524371. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
- "Guidelines for submitting testimonies" Archived 2006-03-24 at the Wayback Machine Christian Science Journal web site
- Issaoui, Nawal (2015). "Christian Science's faith healing practice in the United States and Canada: an overview from a historical and legal perspective". Acta Comparanda Subsidia II: 32. ISSN 0779-9853.
- Church Manual, page 92, Article XXX, Section 8.
- Church Manual, page 89, Article XXIX, Section 2.
- Church Manual, page 84, Article XXVi, Section 4.
- Church Manual, page 85, Article XXVI, Section 9.
- Church Manual, page 86, Article XXVII, Section 3.
- "Visit The Mother Church". Christian Science. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
- Monitor, The Christian Science (2012-03-12). "About Us". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
- Larmer, Brook (30 May 1986). "Monitor broadcasting to gain TV station and shortwave radio". Christian Science Monitor.
- Hughes, John (18 February 1993). "A Passion For Journalism". Christian Science Monitor.
- "Ex-anchor cites interference at Monitor". Baltimore Sun. September 2, 1992. Archived from the original on March 14, 2012. Retrieved February 27, 2010.
- Peter Steinfels. "Fiscal and Spiritual Rifts Shake Christian Scientists" The New York Times (February 29, 1992)
- Press release Stanford University. December 16, 1993
- "Appellate Brief No. SJC-07156" (PDF). COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS SUPREME JUDICIAL COURT. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-23. Retrieved 2011-08-20.
- "A message from the Christian Science Board of Directors". The Christian Science Journal. 2023-10-01. Retrieved 2023-10-22.
- The Christian Science Journal November 2010
- Christa Case Bryant, "Africa contributes biggest share of new members to Christian Science church" The Christian Science Monitor (June 9, 2009). Retrieved March 16, 2012
- The Boston Globe October 13, 2005 p. A1
- Issaoui 2015, pp. 33-35.
- Issaoui 2015, p. 29.
- Issaoui 2015, pp. 29-42.
- "Christian Scientists in the Courts". rpl.hds.harvard.edu. Retrieved 2024-02-28.
- Sandstrom, Aleksandra. "Most states allow religious exemptions from child abuse and neglect laws". Pew Research Center. Retrieved 2024-02-28.