Christian Science church buildings the world over are consecrated to divine worship in the manner sanctioned by our Leader. They are not used for gatherings of a secular nature. It is well known that when a Christian Science church is dedicated —that is, publicly consecrated to God—it is wholly out of debt. This universal practice of our churches is in line with an early admonition of Mrs. Eddy, published in the Sentinel of October 14, 1905.
It is fitting that some notice be taken of the occasion when a formal dedication is made, but it is neither necessary nor desirable that a special service be held. Our Church Manual and Quarterly give all that is needed for every Sunday service, and the Manual makes provision, page 120, for reading whatever notices may be needed for any proper purpose. On the Sunday when a church is to be dedicated the regular service need not be changed; but under the heading, "Announcing necessary notices" (Manual, p. 120), there may be read an appropriate sketch of the history of the church from its organization down to its dedication.
The announcement of the dedication of the church should be made before or after this sketch is read, and may include a quotation from our Leader's writings, as, for instance, "This Church is hereby dedicated 'in faith unfeigned, not to the unknown God, but unto Him whom to know aright is life everlasting' (The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany, p. 193)." Any other appropriate phrasing might be used; and the quotation just given is not suggested for everyone to follow, but merely as an example.
