Mary Baker Eddy's arresting declaration in the Manual of The Mother Church that the prosperity of Christian Science depends largely upon the Lesson-Sermons in the Christian Science Quarterly stirs us with its challenge. She writes (Art. III, Sect. 1), " The Readers of The Mother Church and of all its branch churches must devote a suitable portion of their time to preparation for the reading of the Sunday lesson,—a lesson on which the prosperity of Christian Science largely depends."
Not only the Readers, but all members of The Mother Church realize the importance of devoting a suitable portion of their time to preparation for the Sunday lesson; and, it might be added, a lesson on which their individual spiritual prosperity largely depends. A workable understanding of the omnipotence of God, all-pervading Love, bearing the fruits of harmony and healing, must be the test of spiritual prosperity; and such individual prosperity in Christian Scientists will measure the prosperity of the Cause. The individual preparation for the Sunday church service by students the world over includes daily prayerful study of the Lesson-Sermon.
There are reasons why the Lesson-Sermon is to play such an important part in the prosperity of Christian Science. Mrs. Eddy gives one reason in her statement that each of the twenty-six subjects of the lessons which she ordained as the basis for weekly lessons unfolded to her through divine revelation. One of her pupils, Irving C. Tomlinson, quotes her as saying of these subjects (Twelve Years with Mary Baker Eddy, p. 145): "Tell the committee the original subjects were given of God—they are sufficient, and they will remain forever."
