Ask a Researcher
Answers to questions our research team has received.
Technology in Mary Baker Eddy’s Household
Airplanes: “Calvin Frye was much interested in mechanical developments and was a steady subscriber to technical magazines. When it was announced that an airplane meet would take place at Squantum, Massachusetts, Mr. Frye and other members of the household very much...
Article XXIII, Section 1: “Local Self-government”
To best answer this inquiry, we have prepared a chronology of this By-Law’s development. To read the full text please download the PDF.
Mary Baker Eddy’s Experience During the Civil War
The U.S. Civil War, from 1861 to 1865, had a profound impact on the lives of every American who lived through it. Eddy was no exception; both her son and several friends served, and she herself lived through incredible hardships at a time when the entire country was...
“Present Order of Services”
"Order of Services," (Church Manual 120-121), was originally published in the Christian Science periodicals. In August 1889 Mary Baker Eddy introduced a notice in The Christian Science Journal that, for the first time, mentioned the order of services.Mary B. G....
Mary Baker Eddy and John Greenleaf Whittier
(Updated June 18, 2026) Mary Baker Eddy was a lifelong admirer of the American poet and abolitionist John Greenleaf Whittier (1807–1892). An avid scrapbooker, she clipped his poems out of literary magazines and later quoted his words in her own published writings. ...
What are the “blue book” and the “red book”?
Read about our exploration of the history and authenticity of these widely circulated compilations.
The “Great Litigation”
The litigation consisted of two lawsuits: Eustace vs. Dickey, and Dittemore vs. Dickey. The first lawsuit was between the Trustees of The Christian Science Publishing Society and the Christian Science Board of Directors; the second was between John V. Dittemore, a...
The early years of Christian Science Reading Rooms, 1887–1910
Hotel Boylston, Boston, undated. P04159. Herbert L. Dunbar.(Updated January 2019) The beginnings of Christian Science Reading Rooms can be dated to January 1887. According to a later article in The Christian Science Journal, in that month the “Free Dispensary of...
Elvis Presley and Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures
The Library’s Research staff had heard this rumor over the years but like many rumors that come to us for authentication, we’d found no concrete evidence one way or another. Then, in the November 17, 2008, issue of The New Yorker, an article reviewed the work of the...
What’s the background on Eddy’s poems set to music in the “Christian Science Hymnal”?
"Christmas Morn" was published in The Christian Science Journal for December 1898. It was first included in the...
How have Christian Scientists responded to natural disasters?
Find out what our collections have to say—the record is one of extensive activity.
Christian Science and a woman’s right to vote
Read what our Library collections have to say.
Was Eddy the “person” who followed the Graham system?
Here’s information on a question we’re often asked.
Did Eddy ever refer to Tesla?
See what we know about her exposure to the work of this inventor.
What were some ways The Mother Church responded to racial unrest in the 1960s?
Here’s some helpful information from our research.