This year’s Annual Meeting of The Mother Church will take place on Monday afternoon, June 6, and earlier that same day, the annual meeting of the Christian Science Board of Directors will be held “for electing officers and other business” (Church Manual, Article XIII, Section 2). This year, a new First Reader and Second Reader will be elected to conduct services here in Boston and over the Web for a three-year term. Because quite a few people are needed to facilitate this transition smoothly, we wanted to share this news with you in advance and invite your continued love, support, and gratitude for the devoted members who serve the Church in these offices.
It’s a joy to announce our intent to elect Louis E. Benjamin, CSB, of Hillcrest, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, as First Reader, and Diane Uttley Marrapodi, CSB, of Forest Hill, Maryland, USA, as Second Reader, for the term of June 2016 to June 2019.
While Louis has made his home for many years some 8,000 miles (13,000 kilometers) from Boston, many of you have had the privilege of getting to know him through his work as a lecturer, frequent contributor to the periodicals, Committee on Publication for the Northern Provinces of South Africa, and other assignments. After completing his schooling in Johannesburg, South Africa, Louis studied at the Potteries in Stoke-on-Trent, England, and then worked on the technical side of the clay-brick industry. He is a lifelong student of Christian Science who, when asked, has always loved praying for friends and work colleagues. He has served his local branch church and community as First Reader and Second Reader, and on numerous church and interfaith committees. These activities provided Louis with the opportunity to share copies of Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy and copies of the Christian Science periodicals with many hungry hearts in the Rainbow Nation communities. In 2000 Louis began advertising as a full-time Christian Science practitioner, and in 2009 he became a teacher of Christian Science.
You may also know Diane from her work as a lecturer, frequent contributor to the periodicals, and featured guest of Sentinel Chats. As a child she attended the Christian Science Sunday School in Patchogue, Long Island, New York. After a significant healing at the age of eight, Diane’s focus and one desire was to study, apply, demonstrate, and share the good news of Christian Science. As the only Christian Scientist in a high school of 2,000 students, and then in college, she had several invitations to speak with sociology and comparative religion classes about Christian Science. Her work in the public practice of healing began in college, and after college she trained and served as a Christian Science nurse for ten years. In 1981 Diane began advertising as a full-time Christian Science practitioner, and in 1985 became a Christian Science teacher.
With grateful hearts we thank our current Readers, Judith (Judy) Hardy Olson, CSB, and Norm Bleichman, CS, for their warm, gracious, and inspired service to our local and global Mother Church community.
And we look forward to welcoming Louis and his wife, Gail, and Diane and her husband, Lou, to Boston soon!
THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
