Tributes by Mary Baker Eddy

TRIBUTES

THERE IS NO DEATH

by Mary Baker Eddy

(Miscellany p. 297)

A suppositional gust of evil in this evil world is the dark hour that precedes the dawn. This gust blows away the baubles of belief, for there is in reality no evil, no disease, no death; and the Christian Scientist who believes that he dies, gains a rich blessing of disbelief in death, and a higher realization of heaven.

My beloved Edward A. Kimball, whose clear, correct teaching of Christian Science has been and is an inspiration to the whole field, is here now as veritably as when he visited me a year ago. If we would awaken to this recognition, we should see him here and realize that he never died; thus demonstrating the fundamental truth of Christian Science.

Mary Baker Eddy

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“It was this essence and substance Mrs. Eddy gave in Miscellany in her tribute to Edward A. Kimball on his passing when he completed his work, that it was his “clear, correct teaching of Christian Science” that “has been and is an inspiration to the whole field” (297:18), for certainly what has been and is as an inspiration can never become an is not, can never be separate from God, can never be a bona fide opposite to God, and can never be unreal, when one is thinking scientifically!”

“So Mrs. Eddy had special reason for giving her tribute. First, it was not given to laud the personality of Kimball, but to acknowledge his understanding as being “clear and correct.” There is an infinite difference! Second, it was also to protect this “clear, correct teaching of Christian Science” because it was her very own “clear, correct teaching” she taught him under her direction in preparation for his becoming the Normal Class teacher, showing that another, other than Mrs. Eddy, could teach this subject! Third, it was also to protect this teaching for the future, until another, other than myself (Mrs. Eddy) and Edward A. Kimball, would step forward to unfold it this teaching under God’s direction as her “successor as Revelator” by fulfilling twelve of her major prophecies. It would also be his teaching and his understanding, but not his person, that would keep Christian Science from disappearing “from among mortals.” (My. 197:8)

As early as 1885, Mrs. Eddy was patiently waiting for a Kimball (1890) to rise to this understanding and be able to state these truths clearly, correctly and, further, without the approval of the Board of Directors.

As Mrs. Eddy had to be patient until God brought forth and identified Edward A. Kimball to her thought in 1890, and then brought forth Mr. Eustace to the attention of both Edward A. Kimball and Mrs. Eddy’s thought in 1902.

Mrs. Eddy said of Edward A. Kimball’s clear and correct understanding in her tribute to him, that what “has been and is” (My. 297:10), can never become an IS NOT. She wasn’t singling out the personality of Kimball, but his understanding.

Kimball was the first, other than Mrs. Eddy, to rise to this understanding, contrary to all the arguments of the human mind and so-called personalities claiming otherwise. Mr. Eustace was the second, and when Kimball found out that Mr. Herbert W. Eustace grasped this C.C.T. [clear, correct teaching] Mrs. Eddy was truly delighted for it showed that someone from the field of Christian Scientists was seeing this truth, that a student (Eustace) of a student (Kimball) was now seeing what was being conveyed by a student, someone other than Mrs. Eddy! This proved this teaching could now go forward without a personal Leader. It is the key reason why Mrs. Eddy in 1903 (again note the three or third year of the new century) was able to place a By-law estoppel clause in her Manual telling the field to no longer call her mother, that God as Science and Health would now be seen the forever Leader, a term “already used in our periodicals.” (See Manual, Article XXII, Sect. 1.) This scenario symbolically completed the entire round of what education truly is, and that a personality in the form of Mrs. Eddy would no longer be involved. The Word could now go forth impersonally.

Paul W. Ambuul

“The following points will further solidify how consciousness is establishing your very own understanding of the “Clear, correct teaching of Christian Science” (My 297:18), hereafter referred to as the C.C.T., for short. This phrase is from a tribute given by Mrs. Eddy to Edward A. Kimball. It wasn’t Kimball’s personality she was giving her tribute to; it was his spiritual understanding. With Mrs. Eddy it was always one’s spiritual understanding of what consciousness is that is essential to the demonstration of Christian Science, never the person, or one’s personal sense. Persons generally think any old thing they want, and usually do!” (Paul W. Ambuul letter of 11/25/1998)

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