Manual of The Mother Church/Appendix/Order of Communion Services

Present Order of Communion Services in Branch Churches.


1. Hymn.

2. Reading a Scriptural Selection.

3. Silent Prayer, followed by the audible repetition of the Lord's Prayer with its spiritual interpretation.

4. Hymn.

5. Announcing necessary notices.

6. Reading Tenets of The Mother Church.

7. Collection and Solo.

8. Reading the explanatory note on first leaf of Quarterly.

9. Announcing the subject of the Lesson-Sermon, and reading the Golden Text.

10. Reading the Scriptural selection entitled “Responsive Reading” alternately by the First Reader and the congregation.

11. Reading the Lesson-Sermon. (After the Second Reader reads the Bible references of the first Section of the Lesson, the First Reader makes the following announcement: “As announced in the explanatory note, I shall now read correlative passages from the Christian Science textbook, Science And Health with Key to the Scriptures, by Mary Baker Eddy.”)

12. The First Reader briefly invites the congregation to kneel in silent Communion. This is concluded by the audible repetition of the Lord's Prayer (spiritual interpretation omitted).

13. Singing the Doxology:

Be Thou, O God, exalted high;
And as Thy glory fills the sky,
So let it be on earth displayed,
Till Thou art here and now obeyed.”

14. Reading “The scientific statement of being” and the correlative Scripture according to 1 John, 3: 1-3.

15. Pronouncing Benediction.

The Church Tenets shall be read at this service.

The services should be preceded and followed by organ or piano music of an appropriate character in all cases where this is possible.