There are times when we need to step back and take a penetrating, thoughtful, in-depth look at the Church of Christ, Scientist. This need often arises from anticipation of assuming new duties or positions in our branch church work. Perhaps we have been appointed to a new committee or elected as a Reader or as a member of the executive board. Or perhaps we just feel a desire to experience the renewing, refreshing, healing inspiration that comes from a fuller understanding of what our Church is, where it comes from, and what its nature and purpose truly are.
The first mention of "church" in the Bible is in the sixteenth chapter of Matthew. After the Sermon on the Mount, after having fed the multitudes, after performing many healings, Jesus apparently wanted to know how he was being perceived by the world in general and by his disciples in particular. You will recall that he asked his disciples, "Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?" See Matt. 16:13-16. The response indicated that the general public didn't really understand either his nature or his purpose. They believed him to be the reincarnation of John the Baptist, or of Elijah, Jeremiah, or one of the other prophets of the Old Testament.
Suppose we were to ask a similar question today: "What do men say the Church of Christ, Scientist, is?" Might we not receive an answer of comparable misinformation, ignorance, or indifference? As Jesus then asked his disciples— "But whom say ye that I am?"—should we not ask ourselves, "But what do we say the Church of Christ, Scientist, is?"
