MARY BAKER G. EDDY
THE STORY OF HER LIFE AND THE HISTORY OF CHRISTIAN SCIENCE
BY
GEORGINE MILMINE
IX
LITERARY ACTIVITIES
ILLUSTRATION FROM A PHOTOGRAPH
THE STORY OF HER LIFE AND THE HISTORY OF CHRISTIAN SCIENCE
BY
GEORGINE MILMINE
IX
LITERARY ACTIVITIES
ILLUSTRATION FROM A PHOTOGRAPH
When Mrs. Eddy reopened the Massachusetts Metaphysical College after her husband's death in 1882 and, with half a dozen of her students, settle down to her old routine of teaching, she soon began to plan for a monthly publication which should be devoted to the interests of Christian Science. Quite as willing to contribute to the Boston dailies as she had been to enliven with prose and verse the columns of the more modest weeklies of Lynn, Mrs. Eddy wrote a great many press notices regarding her church and college, and it was Arthur Buswell's business to take these about to the various newspaper offices and attempt to place them. Editors, however, were often prejudiced by Mrs. Eddy's involved style and extravagant claims, and their unwillingness to print many of her contributions suggested to Mr. Buswell and Mrs. Eddy that they have a periodical of their own.
On April 14, 1883, the Journal of Christian Science, a small eight-page monthly, made its appearance, bearing the name of Mary B. Glover Eddy as editor. The new magazine opened with a prospectus which began as follows: "The ancient Greek looked longingly for the Olympiad. The Chaldee watched for the appearing of a star; to him, no higher destiny dawned upon the dome of being than that foreshadowed by the signs in the heavens." Whether Mrs. Eddy meant to imply that just so the modern world waited for Christian Science, the reader must conjecture; she certainly does not say so, nor does she say anything at all about the purpose or policy of her journal. The only sentence in the prospectus which could be constructed as having anything to do with her magazine is the following, which would seem to indicate her intended policy as editor, though this is not very clear:
"While we entertain decided views as to the best method for elevating the race, physically, morally, and spiritually, and shall express these views as duty demands, we shall claim no especial gifts from our divine origin, or any supernatural power," etc.
The founding of the Journal was perhaps the most important step Mrs. Eddy had taken since she came to Boston, as it afterward proved one of the most effective means of extending her influence and widening the boundaries of Christian Science. In the beginning the magazine had but a handful of subscribers, and the cost of printing it was not more than thirty or forty dollars an issue. This sum was raised by voluntary subscription, nearly all the Christian Scientists contributing money except Mrs. Eddy.
(continued on "MBGE Page 2")
On April 14, 1883, the Journal of Christian Science, a small eight-page monthly, made its appearance, bearing the name of Mary B. Glover Eddy as editor. The new magazine opened with a prospectus which began as follows: "The ancient Greek looked longingly for the Olympiad. The Chaldee watched for the appearing of a star; to him, no higher destiny dawned upon the dome of being than that foreshadowed by the signs in the heavens." Whether Mrs. Eddy meant to imply that just so the modern world waited for Christian Science, the reader must conjecture; she certainly does not say so, nor does she say anything at all about the purpose or policy of her journal. The only sentence in the prospectus which could be constructed as having anything to do with her magazine is the following, which would seem to indicate her intended policy as editor, though this is not very clear:
"While we entertain decided views as to the best method for elevating the race, physically, morally, and spiritually, and shall express these views as duty demands, we shall claim no especial gifts from our divine origin, or any supernatural power," etc.
The founding of the Journal was perhaps the most important step Mrs. Eddy had taken since she came to Boston, as it afterward proved one of the most effective means of extending her influence and widening the boundaries of Christian Science. In the beginning the magazine had but a handful of subscribers, and the cost of printing it was not more than thirty or forty dollars an issue. This sum was raised by voluntary subscription, nearly all the Christian Scientists contributing money except Mrs. Eddy.
(continued on "MBGE Page 2")