A Spiritual Message from Rev. Twyla
Unity's Basic Principles
There is only One Presence and One Power in the universe and in my life: The all loving presence of God.
The Spirit of God indwells every person. "Christ in you, the hope of glory." - Col. 1:27
We create our experience of the world through the activity of our thinking. Everything in the manifest realm has its beginning in thought.
Affirmative prayer and meditation are our daily practices for connection with God's loving presence.
Understanding these principles is not enough - we seek to live them in every area of our lives.
Unity's Teaching
The teaching of Unity is inclusive of all that Jesus lived, but is not exclusive of Truths revealed by other masters and teachers. The name Unity expresses a blend of the greatest concepts that have ever come to the mystic mind and heart of humanity. The philosophy and teaching of Unity is nothing new to the world.
Unity incorporates:
The laws of Moses
The love of Jesus
The ethics of Buddha
The contemplation of Lao-tzu
The morals of Confucius
The deep spiritualization of the Hindus
The mystical revelations of the saints of the Middle Ages
The laws of parallels and compensation of Emerson
The logic of Kant
The spirituality of Swedenborg
The beauty of Browning
The service of Mother Teresa
The surrender and humility of Ghandi
The vision and freedom of Martin Luther King
The faith and confidence in each person’s own interpretation of God, humankind, and the universe.
What is Unity?
Unity is an international spiritual organization founded by Myrtle and Charles Fillmore in 1889. Because of similarity in names, Unity has, on occasion, been confused with other organizations. However, there is no connection between Unity and Unitarianism or the Unification Church.
Unity is a positive approach to life, seeking to accept the good in people in all of life. God is seen as having many attributes, but the most important one is that God is LOVE. Unity stresses that God is not a physical man in the sky, for this limits God. God is Spirit, everywhere present, the one and only Spirit in and through all things.
Unity seeks to relate religion to daily needs, affirming that for every need there is God’s perfect answer. Its main textbook is the Bible and it related its lessons to your life and everyday experiences. Unity interprets the Bible metaphysically. Metaphysics simply defined is a philosophy of the cause and nature of all things. Unity was founded on the purity of the teachings of Jesus and is often referred to as Practical Christianity.
Unity proclaims the divinity of Jesus, but does further and assures you that you, too, are one with God and therefore divine in nature. Jesus expressed his divine potential and sought to show us how to express ours as well. Salvation is the expanding understanding of one’s innate divinity and perfectibility through living the life demonstrated by Jesus.
Unity explains the mind as your connecting link with God (Divine Mind) and shows you how the action of your mind affects your body and circumstances.
Prayer is not seen as a technique for changing God, but for expanding and transforming your mind.
Unity denies the existence of any power or presence opposed to God. There is the appearance of evil and suffering in the world, but Unity attributes these to ones’ misunderstanding and erroneous use of the Universal laws of life.
Unity has no dogma, ritual, creedal requirements or ecclesiastical garb. Unity chooses to believe that there is good in every religion. Different religions are like spokes on a wheel with the center being God. They may be set apart by a variance of beliefs and approaches, but they are all seeking the one God as the hub of all life. Consequently, Unity does not deny anyone the right to have their own beliefs.
Unity sees worship as celebrating Life by uplifting and glorifying God’s spirit in people in positive and joyous ways. It seeks not to emphasize one’s mistakes of the past, but instead gives attention to the good that exists in everyone and what can be done now to transform one’s self and life.
Its main teaching is not a “future life” but with teaching people that there is Oneness in all Life, how to live fully in the present and seeing the good in all things. Unity believes in eternal life and views the present moment as part of eternal life.
Unity does not impose financial burdens or pressure on its congregants. It believes the desire for giving should be initiated from within the giver to reap the joys of sharing. Unity ministries are autonomous and not funded by a governing body. All support is by freewill offerings.
In summation, Unity emphasizes the divine potential within every person and teaches that through a practical understanding and application of what Jesus taught, every person can realize and express their divine potential for a happier, fuller and more successful life.