1. One of the most recent and outspoken annulments of an enabled by-law in the
Church Manual by the Director's is that of Article 11, Section 2, page 50, Violation
of By-Laws:
"A member who is found violating any of the By-Laws or Rules
herein set forth, shall be admonished in consonance with the Scriptural demand in
Matthew, 18:15-17 (generally known as The Matthew Code); and if he neglect to accept
such admonition, he shall be placed on probation, or if he repeat the offense, his
name shall be dropped from the roll of Church membership."
2. For more
than a decade the Christian Science Board of Directors has departed from this view
of governance, namely, that they need not be bound by the same by-laws which they
administer. They have declared themselves to be the infallible and exclusive owners
of the by-laws.
4. Even so, each Christian Scientist has a solemn duty to
uphold and defend the teachings and by-laws we have received, individually and collectively,
from Mary Baker Eddy. To allow her by-laws to be diminished, supplemented or altered
by the very individuals who are seated at the administrative table of her institution
is something which nobody can comfortably allow.
5. A by-law, titled Duties
of Church Officers, speaks to each of us directly with this charge, saying in part:
"It
is the duty of any member of this Church, and especially of one who has been or who
is the First Reader of a church, to inform the Board of Directors of the failure
of the Committee on Publication or of any other officer in this Church to perform
his official duties. ... If the Christian Science Board of Directors fails to fulfil
the requirements of this By-Law, and a member of this Church or the Pastor Emeritus
shall complain thereof to the Clerk and the complaint be found valid, the Directors
shall resign their office or perform their functions faithfully." (Man 28:25).
6.
Nevertheless, the historical evidence below shows that the Directors of the Mother
Church consider themselves not subject to that portion of the by-laws known as Matthew-Code
complaints, thereby putting themselves above the by-laws that govern themselves and
the Mother Church.
7. The Manual stipulates that no additional by-laws may
be made, but we show evidence of another of these illegitimate by-laws in the "Resolution"
of the Board, cited below.
8. But first, let us consider two of our authentic
by-laws in the Manual:
(a) Pastor Emeritus to be Consulted. Sect.18. The Mother
Church shall not make a church By-Law ... without first consulting her [Mrs. Eddy]
on said subject and adhering strictly to her advice thereon. (70:1).
(b) Amendment
of By-Laws. Sect.3. No new Tenet or By-Law shall be adopted, nor any Tenet or By-Law
amended or annulled, without the written consent of Mary Baker Eddy, the author of
our textbook, Science and Health. (105:1).
9. As part of a board resolution
signed by the then clerk of The Mother Church, Olga Chaffee, the board determined
the following in their RESOLUTION OF AUGUST 6, 1993:
"IT IS NOW HEREBY
FURTHER RESOLVED that it is and has long been the determination of the Board both
(a) that it is implicit in any decision of The Christian Science Board of Directors
to take or refrain from taking any action does not violate any provision of the Manual
of The Mother Church and (b) that no determination of The Christian Science Board
of Directors at any time that purports to apply the provisions of the Manual of The
Mother Church either (1) can or does prohibit or invalidate any action thereafter
taken by The Christian Science Board of Directors or (2) can or does prohibit or
invalidate any subsequent determination of The Christian Science Board of Directors
purporting to apply the provisions of the Manual of The Mother Church in a different
manner, whether such subsequent determination be explicit or implicit."
10.
This Resolution is a claim of infallibility, and a denial of accountability, which
the Directors have apparently secretly added to their own Manual, contrary to Mrs.
Eddy’s intent.
11. The Resolution boldly asserts, as translated in these words,
that "Nothing we’ve done, or failed to do, can ever be construed as contrary
to the By-Laws. We are the sole interpreters of the by-laws. Members’ interpretations
are of no significance. Nor are any interpretations of a court."
12.
Mrs. Eddy foresaw that the Directors might violate the by-laws, and included mention
of that possibility in the by-law first mentioned above, Duties of Church Officers,
requiring the "FAILING" Directors either to "perform" or "resign."
13.
The thought, that any member or group could be above the by-laws, is refuted by Mrs.
Eddy's statement:
"This church is impartial. Its rules apply not to one
member only, but to ONE AND ALL equally. Of this I am sure, that each Rule and By-law
in this Manual will increase the spirituality of him who obeys it, invigorate his
capacity to heal the sick, to comfort such as mourn, and to awaken the sinner."
(My 230:11).
14. A recent open letter circulated to members of the Mother
Church from two Board authorized Teachers of Christian Science states:
"The
Directors declared, in a meeting with us, that members may not follow the Matthew
Code in approaching them with concerns, since the Board of Directors is exempt from
the Matthew Code; to be loyal, members must obey the Board of Directors regardless
of whether the Board is ’right or wrong." (The Matters-of-Conscience letter
of November 6, 2006 from Elaine Natale Davidson CSB, and Joseph Eller CSB).
15.
Whereas the scriptural Matthew Code teaching is the method Jesus taught for handling
offenses of his followers.
16. Mrs. Eddy affirmed this healing method of resolving
offenses as basic to the ethics of scientific Christianity; yet the exercise of this
Christly method has now officially been deemed to be punishable by the Board of Directors.
17.
We asked several longtime members familiar with the history of the church whether
they ever heard of these Matthew interpretations. All replied that such theories
have never existed before, and that an extremely dangerous precedent has been set.
18.
Outlawing students’ exercise of the Matthew Code in regard to Mother Church affairs
eliminates a vital and corrective, redemptive provision taught by Jesus Christ and
required by the Church Manual.
19. The Directors recently told the entire
gallery of CSB Teachers that any Teacher who attempts to bring a Matthew Code complaint
against the Christian Science Board of Directors will be seriously disciplined. This
is yet further proof that the board sees itself as being above the by-laws of the
institution, and the laws of the land. If Teachers cannot approach the board to encourage
compliance with our foundational governing instruments, then our "constitution"
has been dismantled and destroyed.
20. What kind of organization spurns caring
inquiries so coldly? The Directors' response seems loud and clear: "We don’t
need to descend to your level; we are above you. This is OUR organization, not yours."
21.
It is long overdue for the branches to speak out censuring such behavior in an attempt
to prevent a further slide of our legacy into something akin to an infallible "papacy."
22.
It is vital to put on record our awareness of this serious wrong coupled with recognition
of our moral duty as members, by making formal written protest.
23. We owe
it to our Leader, and to our fellow congregants, the Directors, to hold them accountable
to our (Mrs. Eddy's) by-laws, which are designed to bless, not to impede or condemn.
Our voice is needed. We have significant moral authority to compel the directors
to comply with Mrs. Eddy's provisions. The Matthew Code requires that those who will
not comply with Christ’s boundaries for community are to be considered "outsiders"
by the church.
24. This is no small voice that we’ve been given. It is time
to be heard. Remember, the term "outsiders" was used by Jesus himself,
to describe those who will not heed what his church requires. Even the Babylonians
(who were "outsiders" as defined by the Jews) recognized that their king
was not above the law. In that city, "lawyers" and "politicians"
tricked their own King Darius with flattery into signing a new law which was then
used to force the king to throw Daniel (King Darius. friend) to the lions. (see Daniel
6: especially v.15).
25. Even the king must obey "the law, which varies
not," for that carnal, controlling mentality that would deceive the very elect
is still at work in the background, as yet, today.
26. Are we alert, or asleep?
Our liberty is not safeguarded unless we answer our call to duty.
27. Our
Leader says: "The Magna Charta of Christian Science means much, multum in parvo,
-- all-in-one and one-in-all. It stands for the inalienable, universal rights of
men. Essentially democratic, its government is administered by the common consent
of the governed, wherein and whereby man governed by his creator is self-governed.
The church is the mouthpiece of Christian Science, -- its law and gospel are according
to Christ Jesus; its rules are health, holiness, and immortality, equal rights and
privileges, equality of the sexes, rotation in office." (My 246:30).
28.
A little child can readily grasp the concept that "nobody is above the law."