A Reader in a Christian Science church is a member of the congregation who has been elected to serve in one of two positions responsible for church services. Each week's sermon in Christian Science churches is outlined in the Christian Science Quarterly, prepared months in advance, and is the same in all Christian Science churches, worldwide. As a lay church, the congregation elects readers from the congregation and they serve as readers for a set period of time. The sermons consist of passages from the Bible (usually the King James Version) and Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy, and are studied as lessons during the week and read aloud to the congregation on the Sunday following. The readers are referred to as the First Reader and Second Reader, according to the order in which they initially speak during the Sunday services. First Readers also conduct the Wednesday evening testimony meetings.
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Duties of Readers
The Christian Science church was established as a lay church by founder Mary Baker Eddy. The principal responsibilities of Readers in Christian Science churches are established in the Manual of The Mother Church, written by Eddy. The Mother Church and its "branch churches" around the world each have two Readers, who are referred to simply as First Reader and Second Reader, according to the order in which they initially speak during the Sunday service.