A branch in England writes to The Mother Church: ". . . After an unbroken period of sixty years, our branch church was faced with no longer [having] a member listed in the Journal as a practitioner."
The church, the report says, did not accept the situation but took it as a challenge to demonstrate the spiritual facts underlying Article XXIII, Section 7, of the Manual of The Mother Church by Mrs. Eddy. This By-Law states as one of the requirements for organizing a branch church that a "membership shall include at least one active practitioner whose card is published in the list of practitioners in The Christian Science Journal."
This church was convinced that this Manual requirement was a "divine demand." So it set out to prove, the report says, that the spiritual idea, Church,The definition of "Church" from Science and Health (p. 583) begins: "Church. The structure of Truth and Love; whatever rests upon and proceeds from divine Principle." is "constant, invariable . . . forever complete . . . ." When based on this spiritual foundation, or real Church, the report continues, "the continuity of . . . healing practice and [church] activity could not be lost .The rest of the definition of "Church" reads: "The Church is that institution, which affords proof of its utility and is found elevating the race, rousing the dormant understanding from material beliefs to the apprehension of spiritual ideas and the demonstration of divine Science, thereby casting out devils, or error, and healing the sick. (The executive board of this branch, before this crisis, had written each member a letter, inviting all "to pursue on a continuing basis [the] healing work and to bring inspiration and support to Sunday services and Wednesday evening testimony meetings.")
