First Church of Christ, Scientist, La CaÑada Flintridge

Wednesday Meeting Readings

1. Prov 20:12

   12The hearing ear, and the seeing eye, the Lord hath made even both of them.

2. Gen 3:1-7 (to ;)

   1Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

   2And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:

   3But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.

   4And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:

   5For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.

   6And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

   7And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked;

3. Isa 64:4 since, 5 (to 1st :), 7, 8

   4since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.

   5Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways:

   7And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee: for thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities.

   8But now, O Lord, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.

4. Isa 35:5 the

   5the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.

5. Prov 3:19-22

   19The Lord by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens.

   20By his knowledge the depths are broken up, and the clouds drop down the dew.

   21¶My son, let not them depart from thine eyes: keep sound wisdom and discretion:

   22So shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace to thy neck.

6. Ps 143:8 (to :)

   8Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust:

7. Ps 119:18

   18Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.

8. Matt 6:22

   22The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.

9. Matt 16:1-3

   1The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came, and tempting desired him that he would shew them a sign from heaven.

   2He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red.

   3And in the morning, It will be foul weather to-day: for the sky is red and lowering. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?

10. Mark 8:18 (to 2nd ?)

    18Having eyes, see ye not? and having ears, hear ye not?

11. Mark 10:46-52

    46¶And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging.

    47And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.

    48And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou son of David, have mercy on me.

    49And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee.

    50And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.

    51And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.

    52And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.

12. Mark 7:32-35

    32And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to put his hand upon him.

    33And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue;

    34And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened.

    35And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain.

13. John 10:1-4

    1Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.

    2But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.

    3To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.

    4And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.

14. I Cor 2:9-14 as

    9as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

    10But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

    11For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.

    12Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.

    13Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

    14But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

15. II Cor 5:1-8

    1For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

    2For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:

    3If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked.

    4For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.

    5Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit.

    6Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:

    7(For we walk by faith, not by sight:)

    8We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.

16. James 1:17-19

    17Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

    18Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

    19Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:

17. Matt 6:33 seek

    33seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

1. S&H 489:3-5
   3

   If the Science of Life were understood,
   it would be found that the senses of Mind are
   never lost and that matter has no sensation.

   
   
2. S&H 530:13-25 (to 1st .)
   Genesis iii. 4, 5. And the serpent said unto the woman,
   Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day
   15ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened; and ye shall
   be as gods, knowing good and evil.

   
   

   This myth represents error as always asserting its su-
   18periority over truth, giving the lie to divine Science and
   Error's
   assumption saying, through the material senses: "I can
   open your eyes.

   I can do what God has not
   21done for you.

   Bow down to me and have another god.

   
   

   Only admit that I am real, that sin and sense are more
   pleasant to the eyes than spiritual Life, more to be de-
   24sired than Truth, and I shall know you, and you will be
   mine.

   
   
3. S&H 532:28-31
   In the allegory the body had been
   naked, and Adam knew it not; but now error
   30demands that mind shall see and feel through matter, the
   five senses.

   
   
4. S&H 214:10
   The mate-
   Adam and
   the senses rial senses, like Adam, originate in matter and
   12return to dust, ” are proved non-intelligent.

   
   

   They go out as they came in, for they are still the error,
   not the truth of being.

   When it is learned that the spirit-
   15ual sense, and not the material, conveys the impressions
   of Mind to man, then being will be understood and found
   to be harmonious.

   
   
5. S&H 86:29-31
   Mortal mind sees what it believes as
   30certainly as it believes what it sees.

   It feels, hears, and
   sees its own thoughts.

   
   
6. S&H 123:11
   The verity of Mind shows conclusively how it is that
   Seeming
   and being 12matter seems to be, but is not.

   Divine Science,
   rising above physical theories, excludes matter,
   resolves things into thoughts, and replaces the objects of
   15material sense with spiritual ideas.

   
   
7. S&H 526:9
   9

   Belief involves theories of material hear-
   ing, sight, touch, taste, and smell, termed the five senses.

   
   

   The appetites and passions, sin, sickness, and death,
   12follow in the train of this error of a belief in intelligent
   matter.

   
   
8. S&H 489:24-28
   24

   The corporeal senses are the only source of evil or
   error.

   Christian Science shows them to be false, be-
   Organic
   construction
   valueless cause matter has no sensation, and no organic
   27construction can give it hearing and sight nor
   make it the medium of Mind.

   
   
9. S&H 479:9-11
   9

   An image of mortal thought, reflected on the retina, is
   Matter's
   supposed
   selfhood all that the eye beholds.

   Matter cannot see,
   feel, hear, taste, nor smell.

   
   
10. S&H 489:17-18
    How can man, reflecting God, be de-
    18pendent on material means for knowing, hearing, seeing?

    
    
11. S&H 586:3-6
    3

    eyes. Spiritual discernment, ” not material but
    mental.

    
    

    Jesus said, thinking of the outward vision, "Having
    6eyes, see ye not?" (Mark viii. 18.)

    
    
12. S&H 214:26
    How transient a sense is mortal sight, when a wound on
    27the retina may end the power of light and lens!

    But the
    The senses
    of Soul real sight or sense is not lost.

    Neither age nor
    accident can interfere with the senses of Soul,
    30and there are no other real senses.

    It is evident that the
    body as matter has no sensation of its own, and there is no
    oblivion for Soul and its faculties.

    Spirit's senses are with-
    215:1out pain, and they are forever at peace.

    Nothing can hide
    from them the harmony of all things and the might and
    3permanence of Truth.

    
    
    S&H 247:4-5
    A woman of eighty-five, whom I knew,
    Eyes and
    teeth
    renewed had a return of sight.

    
    
13. S&H 585:1-4
    585:1

    ears. Not organs of the so-called corporeal senses,
    but spiritual understanding.

    
    

    3

    Jesus said, referring to spiritual perception, "Having
    ears, hear ye not?" (Mark viii. 18.)

    
    
14. S&H 213:16
    Sound is a mental impression made on mortal belief.

    
    

    The ear does not really hear.

    Divine Science reveals
    18sound as communicated through the senses of Soul ”
    through spiritual understanding.

    
    
15. S&H 488:23-27
    Mind alone
    24possesses all faculties, perception, and comprehension.

    
    

    Therefore mental endowments are not at the mercy of
    organization and decomposition, ” otherwise the very
    27worms could unfashion man.

    
    
16. S&H 509:29
    Knowing the Science of creation, in which all is Mind
    30and its ideas, Jesus rebuked the material thought of his
    fellow-countrymen: "Ye can discern the face of the
    510:1sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?"

    
    

    How much more should we seek to apprehend the spirit-
    Spiritual ideas
    apprehended 3ual ideas of God, than to dwell on the objects
    of sense!

    To discern the rhythm of Spirit
    and to be holy, thought must be purely spiritual.

    
    
17. S&H 91:16
    Absorbed in material selfhood we discern and reflect
    but faintly the substance of Life or Mind.

    The denial of
    18material selfhood aids the discernment of man's spirit-
    ual and eternal individuality, and destroys the erroneous
    knowledge gained from matter or through what are termed
    21the material senses.

    
    
18. S&H 144:8
    The various mortal beliefs formulated in human philoso-
    9phy, physiology, hygiene, are mainly predicated of matter,
    Soul and
    sense and afford faint gleams of God, or Truth.

    
    

    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.

    
    
19. S&H 543:8-15
    In divine Science, the material man is shut out from
    9the presence of God.

    The five corporeal senses cannot
    Dwelling in
    dreamland take cognizance of Spirit.

    They cannot come
    into His presence, and must dwell in dream-
    12land, until mortals arrive at the understanding that ma-
    terial life, with all its sin, sickness, and death, is an illu-
    sion, against which divine Science is engaged in a warfare
    15of extermination.

    
    
20. S&H 284:15-23, 28-29
    15

    Can Deity be known through
    the material senses?

    Can the material senses, which re-
    ceive no direct evidence of Spirit, give correct testimony
    18as to spiritual life, truth, and love?

    
    

    The answer to all these questions must forever be in
    the negative.

    
    

    21

    The physical senses can obtain no proof of God.

    They
    can neither see Spirit through the eye nor hear it through
    Our physical
    insensibility
    to Spirit the ear, nor can they feel, taste, or smell Spirit.

    
    

    According to Christian Science, the only real senses
    of man are spiritual, emanating from divine Mind.

    
    
21. S&H 85:15-24
    15

    It is recorded that Jesus, as he once journeyed with his
    students, "knew their thoughts," ” read them scientifi-
    cally.

    In like manner he discerned disease and healed
    18the sick.

    After the same method, events of great mo-
    ment were foretold by the Hebrew prophets.

    Our
    Master rebuked the lack of this power when he said:
    21"O ye hypocrites! ye can discern the face of the sky;
    but can ye not discern the signs of the times?"

    
    

    Both Jew and Gentile may have had acute corporeal
    24senses, but mortals need spiritual sense.

    
    
22. S&H 276:9-14
    9

    Man and his Maker
    are correlated in divine Science, and real consciousness
    is cognizant only of the things of God.

    
    

    12

    The realization that all inharmony is unreal brings
    objects and thoughts into human view in their true light,
    and presents them as beautiful and immortal.

    
    
23. S&H 487:6
    6

    There is more
    Christianity in seeing and hearing spiritually
    than materially.

    There is more Science in the perpetual
    9exercise of the Mind-faculties than in their loss.

    Lost
    they cannot be, while Mind remains.

    The apprehension
    of this gave sight to the blind and hearing to the deaf cen-
    12turies ago, and it will repeat the wonder.