In the spring of 1879, a little band of earnest seekers after Truth went into deliberations over forming a church without creeds, to be called the "Church of Christ, Scientist. " They were members of evangelical churches, and students of Mrs. Mary Baker Eddy in Christian Science, and were known as "Christian Scientists."Manual, p. 17.
These words form the opening paragraph of a "Historical Sketch" provided by Mrs. Eddy in the Manual of The Mother Church. It's of interest to note that the first members of the Church of Christ, Scientist, are identified here as having been "members of evangelical churches." Does this particular description of those founding members point to a significant element in the Church's formative years that may need rethinking and even rekindling today?
A number of other references in Mrs. Eddy's writings also indicate the importance of genuine evangelization and the role it should play in the Christian Science movement. Consider, for example, our Leader's trenchant observation in the "Bible Lessons" she includes in her Miscellaneous Writings. She writes, "Doctrines that deny the substance and practicality of all Christ's teachings cannot be evangelical; and evangelical religion can be established on no other claim than the authenticity of the Gospels, which support unequivocally the proof that Christian Science, as defined and practised by Jesus, heals the sick, casts out error, and will destroy death." Mis., p. 193.
