Marriage

Hymn 423

Hymn 423, 69
James J. Rome
(423)
PENITENTIA
Edward Dearle
Give me, O Lord, an understanding heart,
That I may learn to know myself in Thee,
To spurn the wrong and choose the better part
And thus from sinful bondage be set free.

Give me, O Lord, a meek and contrite heart,
That I may learn to quell all selfish pride,
Bowing before Thee, see Thee as Thou art
And ’neath Thy sheltering presence safely hide.

Give me, O Lord, a gentle, loving heart,
That I may learn to be more tender, kind,
And with Thy healing touch, each wound and smart
With Christly bands of Love and Truth to bind.


Heb. 13:4 (to ,)
4Marriage is honourable in all,

Matt. 19:6 What
6What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.

Ruth 1:16 whither, 17
16whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:
17Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the Lord do so to me, and more also, if aught but death part thee and me.

Gen. 1:26 God, 27
26God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
27So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Matt. 1:18-22 (to 2nd ,)
18¶ Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.
19Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily.
20But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.
21And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
22Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet,

John 2:1-10
1And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there:
2And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage.
3And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine.
4Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come.
5His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.
6And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece.
7Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim.
8And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it.
9When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom,
10And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now.

Luke 20:34-36
34And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage:
35But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage:
36Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection.

Matt. 25:1-10
1Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
2And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.
3They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:
4But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
5While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.
6And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.
7Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
8And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
9But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
10And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.

Rom. 7:4 2nd ye
4ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.

Matt. 3:15 Suffer (to 1st .)
15Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness.



SH 65:3-19
May Christ, Truth, be present at every bridal
altar to turn the water into wine and to give to
human life an inspiration by which man’s spiritual and
eternal existence may be discerned.
Righteous foundations
    If the foundations of human affection are consistent
with progress, they will be strong and enduring. Divorces
should warn the age of some fundamental error
in the marriage state. The union of the sexes
suffers fearful discord. To gain Christian Science and its
harmony, life should be more metaphysically regarded.
Powerless promises
    The broadcast powers of evil so conspicuous to-day
show themselves in the materialism and sensualism of
the age, struggling against the advancing
spiritual era. Beholding the world’s lack of
Christianity and the powerlessness of vows to make home
happy, the human mind will at length demand a higher
affection.

SH 60:16-2
Centre for affections    Marriage should improve the human species, becoming
a barrier against vice, a protection to woman, strength to
man, and a centre for the affections. This,
however, in a majority of cases, is not its
present tendency, and why? Because the education of
the higher nature is neglected, and other considerations, 
— passion, frivolous amusements, personal adornment,
display, and pride, — occupy thought.
Spiritual concord
    An ill-attuned ear calls discord harmony, not appreciat-
ing concord. So physical sense, not discerning the true
happiness of being, places it on a false basis.
Science will correct the discord, and teach us
life’s sweeter harmonies.

    Soul has infinite resources with which to bless mankind,
and happiness would be more readily attained and would
be more secure in our keeping, if sought in Soul. Higher
enjoyments alone can satisfy the cravings of immortal
man. We cannot circumscribe happiness within the
limits of personal sense.

SH 68:11
Be not
in haste to take the vow “until death do us part.”
Consider its obligations, its responsibilities, its rela-
tions to your growth and to your influence on other
lives.

SH 332:4-5 Father-Mother
Father-Mother is the name for Deity, which in-
dicates His tender relationship to His spiritual creation.

SH 249:5 (only)
    Let the “male and female” of God’s creating appear.

SH 508:13-14, 23
    God determines the gender of His own ideas. Gen-
der is mental, not material. The intelligent individual idea, be it male
or female, rising from the lesser to the greater, unfolds
the infinitude of Love.

SH 59:17-8
Trysting renewed    Tender words and unselfish care in what promotes the
welfare and happiness of your wife will prove more salutary
in prolonging her health and smiles than stolid
indifference or jealousy. Husbands, hear this
and remember how slight a word or deed may renew the
old trysting-times.

    After marriage, it is too late to grumble over incompati-
bility of disposition. A mutual understanding should
exist before this union and continue ever after, for decep-
tion is fatal to happiness.
Permanent obligation
    The nuptial vow should never be annulled, so long as
its moral obligations are kept intact; but the frequency
of divorce shows that the sacredness of this re-
lationship is losing its influence, and that fatal
mistakes are undermining its foundations. Separation
never should take place, and it never would, if both
husband and wife were genuine Christian Scientists.
Science inevitably lifts one’s being higher in the scale of
harmony and happiness.
Permanent affection
    Kindred tastes, motives, and aspirations are necessary
to the formation of a happy and permanent companion-
ship. The beautiful in character is also the
good, welding indissolubly the links of affec-
tion.

SH 59:1-16
Differing dutiesMatrimony should never be entered into
without a full recognition of its enduring obligations on
both sides. There should be the most tender
solicitude for each other’s happiness, and mu-
tual attention and approbation should wait on all the years
of married life.

    Mutual compromises will often maintain a compact
which might otherwise become unbearable. Man should
not be required to participate in all the annoyances and
cares of domestic economy, nor should woman be ex-
pected to understand political economy. Fulfilling the
different demands of their united spheres, their sympa-
thies should blend in sweet confidence and cheer, each
partner sustaining the other, — thus hallowing the union
of interests and affections, in which the heart finds peace
and home.

SH 589:15 (only)
Home, heaven.

SH 282:14-7
Opposite symbols    A straight line finds no abiding-place in a curve, and a
curve finds no adjustment to a straight line. Similarly,
matter has no place in Spirit, and Spirit has
no place in matter. Truth has no home in
error, and error has no foothold in Truth. Mind cannot
pass into non-intelligence and matter, nor can non-intel-
ligence become Soul. At no point can these opposites
mingle or unite. Even though they seem to touch, one
is still a curve and the other a straight line.

    There is no inherent power in matter; for all that is
material is a material, human, mortal thought, always
governing itself erroneously.

    Truth is the intelligence of immortal Mind. Error is
the so-called intelligence of mortal mind.
Truth is not inverted
    Whatever indicates the fall of man or the opposite of
God or God’s absence, is the Adam-dream, which is neither
Mind nor man, for it is not begotten of the
Father. The rule of inversion infers from
error its opposite, Truth; but Truth is the light which
dispels error. As mortals begin to understand Spirit,
they give up the belief that there is any true existence
apart from God.
Source of all life and action
    Mind is the source of all movement, and there is no
inertia to retard or check its perpetual and harmonious
action. Mind is the same Life, Love, and wis-
dom “yesterday, and to-day, and forever.”

SH 130:26
All evil unnatural    If thought is startled at the strong claim of Science
for the supremacy of God, or Truth, and doubts the su-
premacy of good, ought we not, contrari-
wise, to be astounded at the vigorous claims
of evil and doubt them, and no longer think it natural to
love sin and unnatural to forsake it, — no longer imagine
evil to be ever-present and good absent? Truth should
not seem so surprising and unnatural as error, and error
should not seem so real as truth. Sickness should not seem
so real as health. There is no error in Science, and our
lives must be governed by reality in order to be in har-
mony with God, the divine Principle of all being.

SH 58:24-25
    Said the peasant bride to her lover: “Two eat no more
together than they eat separately.”

SH 58:14
With ad-
ditional joys, benevolence should grow more
diffusive. The narrowness and jealousy, which would
confine a wife or a husband forever within four walls, will
not promote the sweet interchange of confidence and love;
but on the other hand, a wandering desire for incessant
amusement outside the home circle is a poor augury for
the happiness of wedlock. Home is the dearest spot on
earth, and it should be the centre, though not the bound-
ary, of the affections.


SH 637:14-639:17
SAVED FROM INSANITY AND SUICIDE
    A few years ago, while under a sense of darkness and
despair caused by ill health and an unhappy home, Sci-
ence and Health was loaned me with a request that I
should read it.

    At that time my daughter was given up by materia
medica to die of lingering consumption, supposed to have
been inherited. My own condition seemed even more
alarming, as insanity was being manifested, and rather
than go to an insane asylum, it seemed to me the only
thing to do was to commit suicide. Heart trouble, kid-
ney complaint, and continual headaches caused from
female trouble were some of the many ailments I had
to contend with. My doctor tried to persuade me to
undergo an operation as a means of relief, but I had
submitted to a severe operation ten years previous, and
found only additional suffering as a result, so I would
not consent.

    When I began with Science and Health, I read the
chapter on “Prayer” first, and at that time did not sup-
pose it possible for me to remember anything I read,
but felt a sweet sense of God’s protection and power,
and a hope that I should at last find Him to be what
I so much needed, — a present help in time of trouble.
Before that chapter on “Prayer” was finished, my daugh-
ter was downstairs eating three meals a day, and daily
growing stronger. Before I had finished reading the
textbook she was well, but never having heard that the
reading of Science and Health healed any one, it was
several months before I gave God the glory.

    One by one my many ailments left me, all but the head-
aches; they were less frequent, until at the end of three
years the fear of them was entirely overcome.

    Neither myself nor my daughter have ever received
treatments, but the study of the Bible and Science and
Health, the Christian Science textbook by Mrs. Eddy,
has healed us and keeps us well.

    While Christian Science was very new to me, I at-
tended an experience meeting in First Church of Christ,
Scientist, Chicago. A gentleman told of an unhappy
woman who was about to separate from her husband.
This gentleman had asked her if she did not love her
husband. She replied, “No; when I married him I
did, but not now.” He told her God made man in His
image and likeness, and that He is perfect. He said
to her, “Go home and see only God’s perfect man; you
don’t need to love a sinful mortal such as you have been
looking upon.” The lady followed his advice, as he
told her there is no separation in divine Mind. In a
short time peace and harmony were in her home, and
both husband and wife became members of a Christian
Science church.

    This testimony was like a message from heaven to me.
I had received many benefits from the study of Science
and Health, but it had never dawned upon my darkened
consciousness till then how wonderful our God is. I
knew what had taken place in that home could take place
in my unhappy home where there was neither rest nor
peace.

    I hopefully took up my cross, and step by step my
burden grew lighter, as I journeyed along, realizing the
presence of the Christ, Truth, that indeed makes us
free. Not all at once did any outward change appear,
but at the end of three years all was peace, all the
members of the family attending church together and
realizing that there is but one Mind.  — E. J. B., Supe-
rior, Wis.


SH 463:12-13
A spiritual idea has not a single element of error,
and this truth removes properly whatever is offensive.

SH 56:1-6
When our great Teacher came to him for baptism,
John was astounded. Reading his thoughts, Jesus
added: “Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us
to fulfil all righteousness.” Jesus’ concessions (in certain
cases) to material methods were for the advancement of
spiritual good.

468:13-15
Spirit is
God, and man is His image and likeness. Therefore
man is not material; he is spiritual.


Hymn 510
Hymn 148

Hymn 148
Anna L. Waring*
(148)
EWING
Alexander Ewing
In heavenly Love abiding,
No change my heart shall fear;
And safe is such confiding,
For nothing changes here.
The storm may roar without me,
My heart may low be laid;
But God is round about me,
And can I be dismayed?

Wherever He may guide me,
No want shall turn me back;
My Shepherd is beside me,
And nothing can I lack.
His wisdom ever waketh,
His sight is never dim;
He knows the way He taketh,
And I will walk with Him.

Green pastures are before me,
Which yet I have not seen;
Bright skies will soon be o’er me,
Where darkest clouds have been.
My hope I cannot measure,
My path in life is free;
My Father has my treasure,
And He will walk with me.