The Irish standard., 1905-09-23

G. Eddy opened a sort of faith cure
boarding house, which she called by
the grandiloquent name of 'Massachu
sets Metaphysical College, That was
thirty years ago. Mrs. Baker was then
an attractive young woman who had
been twice married, and was seeking
pleasant means of earning her bread
and butter. She probably had no idea
at that time that great riches would
be poured into her lap, or that her
Church of Christ. Scientist, would
cause such numerous desertions from
the older congregations of the land as
to alarm the clergy.
"For fourteen years Mrs. Eddy plod-
ded along with her faith cure board
ing house. Then, sixteen years ago,
she opened her first church of Chris
tian Scientists in Boston, with twenty
six members. 1t had taken her all
those years to gather togeuner that lit
tie band of followers. After that things
went with leaps and bounds. The
Mother Church in Boston now has
$4,000 members, and there are more
than 500 Christian Science congrega-
tons scattered throughout the coun-
try. They are increasing every year.
Some of the Christian Science temples
are structures of great architectural
beauty. In New York the two churches
facing the west side of Central Park
are regularly visited by sightseers.
'"The immense profits regularly that
accrue through the invention of new
religion are made clear by the admis-
sion of Mrs. Eddy that she abandoned
her Metaphysical College, although
her income from it was $4,000 year,
to devote her time exclusively to the
upbuilding Of Christian Science. That
this step was not in the nature of a
sacrifice is shown in still further ad-
missions-made by her secretary
that it is her custom to give away in
charity more than $4,000 every year,
and that she began this liberality as
far back as 1895, when her church was
only six years old. Dur
ing the past ten years Mrs. Eddy's
profits, including requests, are said to
have amounted to fully $1,00O,OO0."
Then follows the story of John
Alexander Dowie, founder of Zion City,
self-styled the Prophet Elijah III.
Dowie was once a Congregational
preacher in a little town near Sydney,
Australia. Fifteen years ago, almost
penniless, he went to Chicago. Since
then "his scheme of creating new
property values by massing his fol-
lowers upon a farm and changing it
into city met with such success that
he now intends to set on foot a similar
enterprise on a larger scale in Mex
ico." In one of his addresses Dowie
said: II have listened, and have
looked at the whole situation, and my
conviction is that $15O,0O0,O0O will
flow into Zion within five years."
katherine A. Tingley, once hailed by
Theosophists as the successor of
Madame Blavatsky, has established a
colony of her followers at Point Iona,
Cal. Says Mr.. Kirby:
Mrs. Tingley calls her colony the
School for the Revival of the Lost
Mysteries of Antiquity. To establish
it, she bought hotel, beautifully situ-
ated on an eminence commanding
wide view of the surrounding land and
water, and spent 100000 in embellish-
ing the ground. The money was con-
tributed by three or four individuals,
one of them being A. G.. Spalding, the
New York manufacturer of sporting
goods.
I'm the Greek temple which she has
built she presides as high priestess,
and has invented a ritual which has
proved SO offensive to many of the
1'heosophists that they have rebelled
from her authority"
Mr.. Kirby goes on to tell of other
queer religious societies.:
AT Bar Harbor, Mich, is the settle
ment of the Lost Tribes of Israel.
They believe that Satan will be driven
from the world forever In 1916, and
that from that year mankind will be
sinless. The society is under the
leadership of Benjamin Purnell. He
has absolute control of the property
Of all the members. 1t is a type of
many similar communities.
"The Sun Worshipers may be called
a metropolitan cult, because little
Roadway has been made in proselytiz-
ing outside of Greater New York. The
leader of these people is DR.. Hanish,
a very young looking old man, whose
splendid physical condition is not
credited to the care he has taken of
himself, but to the rejuvenating effects
OF his philosophy Among his follow
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