Sunday, October 20th, 2019 Roundtable

Beloved Father-Mother, God, give me wisdom to meet the problems I may have to meet today; give me understanding to deny error and to proclaim the truth. Give me grace to keep silent when speech is unnecessary. There is no strife, for Truth, risen Truth will destroy error of every sort. And heaven is right here. God gives abundance of intelligence and opportunity. I cannot be impoverished mentally, physically, spiritually, or financiaily. God is substance and I reflect that substance.

— from Divinity Course and General Collectanea, the “Blue Book,” by Mary Baker Eddy, page 60

60 — WATCH lest the salt lose its savor, or that you endeavor either to express humanity without having established the basis, or divinity, of which the humanity is the outward expression, or try to be absolute, without any application to the human need. Science and Health says, “The divinity of the Christ was made manifest in the humanity of Jesus.” Divine Science is expressed in Christian Science.

If the humanity, or salt, comes to occupy first place in your thought, you may drop the divinity, and become all salt. If you seek divinity without expressing it in humanity, the salt loses its savor.

The effect of divinity applied to humanity is to give life a flavor as it heals and blesses man.

When one fails to express divinity in humanity, in loving helpfulness, compassion, unselfishness and self-sacrifice for others, the salt loses its savor since the salt savors life only so long as it is the right expression of divinity.

The so-called absolute Scientist, if he saw a man getting soaking wet in the rain, would declare, “Never mind; above the clouds the sun is shining.” The student seeking to express humanity would hand the man an umbrella to use until the storm was over. Then he would be ready for the absolute teaching which would show him that even while it was raining, and there were dark clouds, the sun was not affected by them, but continued to shine.

— from 500 Watching Points by Gilbert Carpenter

---

Golden Text — “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.” — Galatians 3 : 26

---

Forum post — One in quality, not in quantity. by Rae from FL

---

Introduction

In 1875, seldom more than twenty persons gathered for Sunday services in a small, rented hall in Lynn, Massachuesetts twenty-five years afterwards, a new church edifice was being built every four days; now wherever Christianity Is preached, there are teachings of Christian Science. Coming in the humblest, most unobtrusive guise – the healing of a sick woman – it is a movement without parallel in modern history.

As the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, Mary Baker Eddy made the decision to measure the strength of her Church by the depth of the understanding (and not by the numbers) of its members. It was this decision which per­mitted her to require of her followers that, as she said in her 1901 Message to The Mother Church, they follow “their leader only so far as she follows Christ.”

By its very wording, this was a call that included obedience to the instructions, ‘”Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils” and a summons to return to the full teachings of the Master by restoring to Christianity the practice of healing.

— Excerpt from The Cross and the Crown, 1957, by Norman Beasley

---

Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.

— Psalm 51: 6

---

Forum post — Truth in the inward parts. by Joanne from FL

---

Before each meal, deny the existence of any power or intelligence that can interfere with our conscious oneness with God.

— from Divinity Course and General Collectanea, the “Blue Book,” by Mary Baker Eddy, page 195

---

Forum post — “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” by Lynda

---

Student: I am ready to obey when I understand.

Mrs. Eddy: Be ready to obey before you understand.

— from Divinity Course and General Collectanea, the “Blue Book,” by Mary Baker Eddy, page 104

---

It is not enough that we do our best; sometimes we must do what is required.

— Winston S. Churchill

---

1     Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,

2     Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat:

3     All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.

4     For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.

5     But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments,

6     And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues,

7     And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.

8     But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.

9     And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.

10     Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.

11     But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.

12     And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.

— Matthew 23 : 1-12 from citation 4 in the Bible portion of this week’s Lesson

---

It matters not what be thy lot,
So Love doth guide;
For storm or shine, pure peace is thine,
Whate’er betide.

And of these stones, or tyrants’ thrones,
God able is
To raise up seed — in thought and deed —
To faithful His.

Aye, darkling sense, arise, go hence!
Our God is good.
False fears are foes—truth tatters those,
When understood.

Love looseth thee, and lifteth me,
Ayont hate’s thrall:
There Life is light, and wisdom might,
And God is All.

The centuries break, the earth-bound wake,
God’s glorified!
Who doth His will — His likeness still —
Is satisfied.

— Hymn 161 from the Christian Science Hymnal, the words this hymn were written by Mary Baker Eddy.

---

Quit your bellyaching!

— Plainfield Roundtable

---

Forum post — “Earnest” by Parthens

---

Unless a man advances spiritually, he is not scientific; and if he is scientific he must start honestly, and journey some every day; and however long he is in reaching the desired goal, if his honesty be preserved, he will finish his course.

— from Science and Health, First Edition, 1875, by Mary Baker Eddy, page 130

---

Discouragement is impatience, haste to tread where we have not conquered, to occupy a place we have not proven our fitness to fill. Impatience is doubt-doubt of God’s willingness to help us, doubt of His presence and power, doubt of His love, when we are told ‘God is Love’.

— from Divinity Course and General Collectanea, (the “Blue Book”), by Mary Baker Eddy, page 82

---

A little more grace, a motive made pure, a few truths tenderly told, a heart softened, a character subdued, a life consecrated, would restore the right action of the mental mechanism, and make manifest the movement of body and soul in accord with God.

— from Miscellaneous Writings by Mary Baker Eddy, page 354

---

Final Readings