On April 12, 1879, a small religious group calling themselves Christian Scientists quietly met in Boston—voting "To organize a church designed to commemorate the word and works of our Master [Christ Jesus], which should reinstate primitive Christianity and its lost element of healing" ("Historical Sketch," Manual of The Mother Church, p. 17).
From these historical beginnings, now more than a century after its founding, The Mother Church has over 2,500 branch churches around the world in 68 countries. Each branch is run locally ... ... and democratically by its members. All church services are open to the public. Groups that have not yet organized branches may be found in an additional 20 countries. Large and small, these congregations share in The Mother Church's founding purpose to reinstate Christian healing.
Because Mary Baker Eddy's hopes that the established churches of her day would more openly embrace the practice of Christian healing were not realized, she had no alternative but to organize her own Church. The result is The Mother Church and its worldwide branches, which share a common form of government under the Church Manual.
