Wednesday Meeting Readings

First Church of Christ, Scientist, La Cañada Flintridge

Wednesday Meeting Readings

100217-AnimalMagnetism

Overcoming the subtleties of animal magnetism

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Section I

The Bible:

John 1:1,4,5

1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

4In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

5And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

II Tim 3:1 in,2 (to ,),7,14,17

1in the last days perilous times shall come.

2For men shall be lovers of their own selves,

7Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

14But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;

17That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

I Sam 17:4,10 (to ;),11,16,22,28,29,32,38 (to ;),39 And David said,49,50

4¶And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.

10And the Philistine said, I defy the armies of Israel this day;

11When Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

16And the Philistine drew near morning and evening, and presented himself forty days.

22And David left his carriage in the hand of the keeper of the carriage, and ran into the army, and came and saluted his brethren.

28¶And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spake unto the men; and Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said, Why camest thou down hither? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know thy pride, and the naughtiness of thine heart; for thou art come down that thou mightest see the battle.

29And David said, What have I now done? Is there not a cause?

32¶And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine.

38¶And Saul armed David with his armour, and he put an helmet of brass upon his head;

39And David said unto Saul, I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them. And David put them off him.

49And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth.

50So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David.

Matt 13:47 the kingdom,48

47the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind:

48Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.

Mark 8:22-26 and they

22and they bring a blind man unto him, and besought him to touch him.

23And he took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of the town; and when he had spit on his eyes, and put his hands upon him, he asked him if he saw ought.

24And he looked up, and said, I see men as trees, walking.

25After that he put his hands again upon his eyes, and made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly.

26And he sent him away to his house, saying, Neither go into the town, nor tell it to any in the town.

Luke 22:31,32 (to :),33,34,54-62

31¶And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:

32But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not:

33And he said unto him, Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to death.

34And he said, I tell thee, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me.

54¶Then took they him, and led him, and brought him into the high priest's house. And Peter followed afar off.

55And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and were set down together, Peter sat down among them.

56But a certain maid beheld him as he sat by the fire, and earnestly looked upon him, and said, This man was also with him.

57And he denied him, saying, Woman, I know him not.

58And after a little while another saw him, and said, Thou art also of them. And Peter said, Man, I am not.

59And about the space of one hour after another confidently affirmed, saying, Of a truth this fellow also was with him: for he is a Galilaean.

60And Peter said, Man, I know not what thou sayest. And immediately, while he yet spake, the cock crew.

61And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.

62And Peter went out, and wept bitterly.

II Thess 2:2 be not,7 only,10 with,11,13,15-17

2be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.

7only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.

10with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

11And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:

13But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:

15Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.

16Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace,

17Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work.

Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures
by Mary Baker Eddy

103:18-23 (to 2nd .),25-32

18As named in Christian Science, animal magnetism or
hypnotism is the specific term for error, or mortal mind.
The genus
of error It is the false belief that mind is in matter, and
21is both evil and good; that evil is as real as
good and more powerful. This belief has not one qual‐
ity of Truth. It is either ignorant or malicious.

The truths of immortal Mind sustain man, and they anni‐
hilate the fables of mortal mind, whose flimsy and gaudy
27pretensions, like silly moths, singe their own wings and
fall into dust.

In reality there is no mortal mind, and conse‐
Thought‐
transference 30quently no transference of mortal thought
and will-power. Life and being are of
God.

102:1,20-23

102:1Animal magnetism has no scientific foundation, for
God governs all that is real, harmonious, and eternal, and
Mere
negation 3His power is neither animal nor human. Its
basis being a belief and this belief animal, in
Science animal magnetism, mesmerism, or hypnotism is
6a mere negation, possessing neither intelligence, power,
nor reality, and in sense it is an unreal concept of the so‐
called mortal mind.

So secret are the
21present methods of animal magnetism that they ensnare
the age into indolence, and produce the very apathy on
the subject which the criminal desires.

450:27-2

27Who, that has felt the perilous beliefs in life, substance,
and intelligence separated from God, can say that there
False claims
annihilated is no error of belief? Knowing the claim of
30animal magnetism, that all evil combines in
the belief of life, substance, and intelligence in matter,
electricity, animal nature, and organic life, who will deny
451:1that these are the errors which Truth must and will an‐
nihilate?

129:22-24

We must look deep
Ontology
needed into realism instead of accepting only the out‐
24ward sense of things.

144:11,23

The more material a belief, the more obstinately
12tenacious its error; the stronger are the manifestations of
the corporeal senses, the weaker the indications of Soul.

Because divine Science wars with so-called physical
24science, even as Truth wars with error, the old schools
Conservative
antagonism still oppose it. Ignorance, pride, or prejudice
closes the door to whatever is not stereotyped.
27When the Science of being is universally understood,
every man will be his own physician, and Truth will be
the universal panacea.

484:6-15,17-27 Certain

6Question. — Does Christian Science, or metaphysical
healing, include medication, material hygiene, mesmer‐
ism, hypnotism, theosophy, or spiritualism?

9Answer. — Not one of them is included in it. In di‐
vine Science, the supposed laws of matter yield to the
Mindless
methods law of Mind. What are termed natural
12science and material laws are the objective
states of mortal mind. The physical universe expresses
the conscious and unconscious thoughts of mortals.
15Physical force and mortal mind are one.

Cer‐
18tain results, supposed to proceed from drugs, are really
caused by the faith in them which the false human con‐
sciousness is educated to feel.

21Mesmerism is mortal, material illusion. Animal mag‐
netism is the voluntary or involuntary action of error
Animal
magnetism error in all its forms; it is the human antipode
24of divine Science. Science must triumph
over material sense, and Truth over error, thus putting
an end to the hypotheses involved in all false theories
27and practices.

451:14

Man walks in the
15direction towards which he looks, and where his treasure
is, there will his heart be also. If our hopes and affec‐
tions are spiritual, they come from above, not from be‐
18neath, and they bear as of old the fruits of the Spirit.

177:25-7

If a dose of poison is swallowed through mistake, and
Poison
defined
mentally the patient dies even though physician and
27patient are expecting favorable results, does
human belief, you ask, cause this death? Even
so, and as directly as if the poison had been intentionally
30taken.

In such cases a few persons believe the potion swal‐
lowed by the patient to be harmless, but the vast ma‐
178:1jority of mankind, though they know nothing of this par‐
ticular case and this special person, believe the arsenic,
3the strychnine, or whatever the drug used, to be poi‐
sonous, for it is set down as a poison by mortal mind.
Consequently, the result is controlled by the majority of
6opinions, not by the infinitesimal minority of opinions in
the sick-chamber.

491:11

Matter cannot connect mortals with the true
12origin and facts of being, in which all must end. It is only
by acknowledging the supremacy of Spirit, which annuls
the claims of matter, that mortals can lay off mortality and
15find the indissoluble spiritual link which establishes man
forever in the divine likeness, inseparable from his creator.

275:6-17

6 The starting-point of divine Science is
that God, Spirit, is All-in-all, and that there is no other
might nor Mind, — that God is Love, and therefore He
9is divine Principle.

To grasp the reality and order of being in its Science,
you must begin by reckoning God as the divine Principle
Divine
synonyms 12of all that really is. Spirit, Life, Truth, Love,
combine as one, — and are the Scriptural names
for God. All substance, intelligence, wisdom, being, im‐
15mortality, cause, and effect belong to God. These are
His attributes, the eternal manifestations of the infinite
divine Principle, Love.

253:9-14,25

9I hope, dear reader, I am leading you into the under‐
standing of your divine rights, your heaven-bestowed har‐
Heaven‐
bestowed
prerogative mony, — that, as you read, you see there is no
12cause (outside of erring, mortal, material sense
which is not power) able to make you sick or
sinful; and I hope that you are conquering this false sense.

Do not believe in any supposed necessity for sin, dis‐
ease, or death, knowing (as you ought to know) that God
27never requires obedience to a so-called material law, for
no such law exists. The belief in sin and death is de‐
stroyed by the law of God, which is the law of Life in‐
30stead of death, of harmony instead of discord, of Spirit
instead of the flesh.

442:16-18,19-22 When

Neither animal magnetism nor hypnotism enters into
the practice of Christian Science, in which truth cannot
Christ
the great
physician 18be reversed, but the reverse of error is true.

When
Christ changes a belief of sin or of sickness into
21a better belief, then belief melts into spiritual understand‐
ing, and sin, disease, and death disappear.

From the Christian Science Hymnal:
Hymn 201: “O do not bar your mind Against the light of good”
Hymn 67: "Gird thy heavenly armor on, Wear it ever night and day"
Hymn 136: “I love Thy way of freedon, Lord, To serve Thee is my choice”