Christian Science -- Controversial literature; Eddy, Mary Baker, 1821-1910
“We lately stood on the threshold of the Holy of Holies of the
Mother-Church, and with a crowd of worshippers patiently waited for
admittance to the hallowed precincts of the 'Mother's Room.' Over the
doorway was a sign informing us that but four persons at a time would be
admitted; that they would be permitted to remain but five minutes only,
and would please retire from the 'Mother's Room' at the ringing of the
bell. Entering with three of the faithful, we looked with profane
eyes upon the consecrated furnishings. A show-woman in attendance
monotonously announced the character of the different appointments.
Set in a recess of the wall and illumined with electric light was an
oil-painting the show-woman seriously declared to be a lifelike and
realistic picture of the Chair in which the Mother sat when she composed
her 'inspired' work. It was a picture of an old-fashioned? country, hair
cloth rocking-chair, and an exceedingly commonplace-looking table with a
pile of manuscript, an ink-bottle, and pen conspicuously upon it. On
the floor were sheets of manuscript. 'The mantel-piece is of pure onyx,'
continued the show-woman, 'and the beehive upon the window-sill is made
from one solid block of onyx; the rug is made of a hundred breasts of
eider-down ducks, and the toilet-room you see in the corner is of the
latest design, with gold-plated drain-pipes; the painted windows are
from the Mother's poem, “Christ and Christmas,” and that case contains
complete copies of all the Mother's books.' The chairs upon which the
sacred person of the Mother had reposed were protected from sacrilegious
touch by a broad band of satin ribbon. My companions expressed their
admiration in subdued and reverent tones, and at the tinkling of the
bell we reverently tiptoed out of the room to admit another delegation
of the patient waiters at the door.”
Now, then, I hope the wound is healed. I am willing to relinquish the
portrait, and compromise on the Chair. At the same time, if I were going
to worship either, I should not choose the Chair.
As a picturesquely and persistently interesting personage, there is no
mate to Mrs. Eddy, the accepted Equal of the Saviour. But some of her
tastes are so different from His! I find it quite impossible to imagine
Him, in life, standing sponsor for that museum there, and taking
pleasure in its sumptuous shows. I believe He would put that Chair in
the fire, and the bell along with it; and I think He would make the
show-woman go away. I think He would break those electric bulbs, and the
“mantel-piece of pure onyx,” and say reproachful things about the golden
drain-pipes of the lavatory, and give the costly rug of duck-breasts to
the poor, and sever the satin ribbon and invite the weary to rest and
ease their aches in the consecrated chairs. What He would do with the
painted windows we can better conjecture when we come presently to
examine their peculiarities.
THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE PASTOR-UNIVERSAL
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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