Unity Church
Encyclopedia
Unity, known informally as Unity Church, is a religious movement within the wider New Thought
movement and is best known to many through its Daily Word
devotional publication. It describes itself as a "positive, practical Christianity" which "teach[es] the effective daily application of the principles of Truth taught and exemplified by Jesus Christ" and promotes "a way of life that leads to health, prosperity, happiness, and peace of mind."
Unity operates several programs, including a prayer program called Silent Unity, the Unity Society of Practical Christianity, Unity School of Christianity, Unity Institute, the Office of Prayer Research, the Association of Unity Churches, and Unity House, the church's publishing arm. The home of Unity is at Unity Village
, Missouri
.
, Missouri
in 1889 by Charles Fillmore
(1854–1948) and Myrtle Fillmore
(1845–1931) after Mrs. Fillmore had been cured of her tuberculosis, she believed, by spiritual healing. This resulted in the Fillmores studying spiritual healing, and being influenced by Emma Curtis Hopkins
and Mary Baker Eddy
(the founder of Christian Science
). This gradually developed into the Unity School of Christianity as the Fillmores attempted to share their insights through magazines, books, and pamphlets and through Silent Unity, a telephone and mail service that offered people help through prayer and counseling. This growth led to several moves within Kansas City, and eventually, after World War I
, to the development of Unity Village
, 15 miles from Kansas City. The movement was led, in part, after Charles Fillmore’s death, by the Fillmores’ sons and grandchildren.
Unity describes itself as having no particular creed, no set dogma, and no required ritual. It maintains that there is good in every approach to God and in every religion that is filling someone's needs. Its position holds that one should not focus on past sins but on the potential good in all.
Unity emphasizes spiritual healing, prosperity and practical Christianity in its teachings. Illness is considered to be curable by spiritual means, but Unity does not reject or resist medical treatments. It is an inclusive faith that welcomes diversity of belief. Unity is accepting of the beliefs of others.
Churches are either aligned with the Federation of Independent Unity Churches or the Association of Unity Churches.
are:
Unity is devoted to demonstrating that the teachings of Jesus Christ can be lived every day. Unity's basic position is that the true "Church" is a "state of consciousness in mankind". Unity teaches that each person is a unique expression of God, that each person is sacred, and each person is worthy. Unity emphasizes the creative power of thought in people's experience, and encourages taking personal responsibility to choose life-affirming thoughts, words and actions, holding that when people do this, they experience a more fulfilling and abundant life.
H. Emilie Cady
's 1896 book Lessons in Truth, A Course of Twelve Lessons in Practical Christianity is considered a core text of Unity.
. The presence of God only seeks to express the highest good through everyone and everything. According to Unity founder Charles Fillmore, God is spirit, the loving source of everything. God is one power, all good, wisdom
, everywhere present. God is Divine Energy
, continually creating, expressing and sustaining all creation. In God we live and move and have our being.
and one who demonstrated the Way. Unity uses the term "Christ" to mean the divinity in all people. Jesus is the great example of the Christ in expression.
Salvation
, in the Unity view, is found in conscious understanding of one's innate divinity and then putting this knowledge into practice in everyday life.
as history and allegory. They interpreted it as a metaphysical representation of each soul's evolutionary journey toward spiritual awakening. Unity understands the Bible as a complex collection of writings compiled over many centuries. The Bible is a valuable spiritual resource, but is understood as a reflection of the comprehension and inspiration of the writers and their times.
is understood, in Unity, as the highest form of creative thought. It includes the release of negative thoughts and holding in mind statements of spiritual truth. Through meditation
and prayer
, we can experience the presence of God. Prayer and meditation heighten our awareness of truth and thereby transform our lives.
Unity teaches that it is helpful to pray with the belief that we have already received all that we need. In this view, through prayer the mind is renewed and the body transformed. The awareness that we are conscious creators of our lives, has the power to make the bridge between the old Christianity where we are "sin
ners" to the new understanding that we are "learners." The Unity school of Christianity holds that prayer is not a way to inform God of one's troubles or to change God in any way, but rather, prayer is properly used to align with the power that is God.
Unity stresses its agreements, not differences, with other Christians.
Unity considers itself to be a nonsectarian educational institution although Unity ministers do complete a prescribed program of courses and training. Due to the interdenominational nature of Unity, its influence extends beyond its membership.
, Eleanor Powell
, Wally Amos
, Licensed Unity Teacher Ruth Warrick
, Barbara Billingsley
, Theodore Schneider
, Erykah Badu
, Matt Hoverman
, author Victoria Moran
,http://www.victoriamoran.com Patricia Neal
, Holmes Osborne
and Esther Williams
.
In March 2008 Maya Angelou
stated that she plans to spend part of the year studying at the Unity Church. In 2005 she attended a Unity Church service in Miami and decided that day to "go into a kind of religious school and study" on her 80th birthday. Author Marianne Williamson
is an ordained Unity minister, and served a Unity church in Detroit in the 1980s and 90s.
New Thought
New Thought promotes the ideas that "Infinite Intelligence" or "God" is ubiquitous, spirit is the totality of real things, true human selfhood is divine, divine thought is a force for good, sickness originates in the mind, and "right thinking" has a healing effect.Although New Thought is neither...
movement and is best known to many through its Daily Word
Daily Word
The Daily Word is a daily inspirational message provided by the Unity Church of Christianity. Themes include inner peace, hope, healing, guidance, and others. It is distributed via magazine, website, and e-mail.-History:...
devotional publication. It describes itself as a "positive, practical Christianity" which "teach[es] the effective daily application of the principles of Truth taught and exemplified by Jesus Christ" and promotes "a way of life that leads to health, prosperity, happiness, and peace of mind."
Unity operates several programs, including a prayer program called Silent Unity, the Unity Society of Practical Christianity, Unity School of Christianity, Unity Institute, the Office of Prayer Research, the Association of Unity Churches, and Unity House, the church's publishing arm. The home of Unity is at Unity Village
Unity Village, Missouri
Unity Village is a village in Jackson County, Missouri, United States. The population was 140 at the 2000 census. The village is the world headquarters of Unity, which has over 2 million followers.-Geography:...
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
.
History
It was founded in Kansas CityKansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
in 1889 by Charles Fillmore
Charles Fillmore (Unity Church)
Charles Sherlock Fillmore , born in St. Cloud, Minnesota, founded Unity, a church within the New Thought movement, with his wife, Myrtle Page Fillmore, in 1889...
(1854–1948) and Myrtle Fillmore
Myrtle Fillmore
Mary Caroline "Myrtle" Page Fillmore was co-founder of Unity, a church within the New Thought movement, along with her husband Charles Fillmore. Prior to that time, she worked as a schoolteacher....
(1845–1931) after Mrs. Fillmore had been cured of her tuberculosis, she believed, by spiritual healing. This resulted in the Fillmores studying spiritual healing, and being influenced by Emma Curtis Hopkins
Emma Curtis Hopkins
Emma Curtis Hopkins organized New Thought and was a primary theologian, teacher, writer, feminist, mystic and prophet who ordained women at what she named the Christian Science Theological Seminary of Chicago...
and Mary Baker Eddy
Mary Baker Eddy
Mary Baker Eddy was the founder of Christian Science , a Protestant American system of religious thought and practice religion adopted by the Church of Christ, Scientist, and others...
(the founder of Christian Science
Christian Science
Christian Science is a system of thought and practice derived from the writings of Mary Baker Eddy and the Bible. It is practiced by members of The First Church of Christ, Scientist as well as some others who are nonmembers. Its central texts are the Bible and the Christian Science textbook,...
). This gradually developed into the Unity School of Christianity as the Fillmores attempted to share their insights through magazines, books, and pamphlets and through Silent Unity, a telephone and mail service that offered people help through prayer and counseling. This growth led to several moves within Kansas City, and eventually, after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, to the development of Unity Village
Unity Village, Missouri
Unity Village is a village in Jackson County, Missouri, United States. The population was 140 at the 2000 census. The village is the world headquarters of Unity, which has over 2 million followers.-Geography:...
, 15 miles from Kansas City. The movement was led, in part, after Charles Fillmore’s death, by the Fillmores’ sons and grandchildren.
Overview of Unity
Unity describes itself as a worldwide Christian organization which teaches a positive approach to life, seeking to accept the good in all people and events, and as beginning as a healing ministry and healing has been its main emphasis for over 100 years. It teaches that all people can improve the quality of their lives through thought.Unity describes itself as having no particular creed, no set dogma, and no required ritual. It maintains that there is good in every approach to God and in every religion that is filling someone's needs. Its position holds that one should not focus on past sins but on the potential good in all.
Unity emphasizes spiritual healing, prosperity and practical Christianity in its teachings. Illness is considered to be curable by spiritual means, but Unity does not reject or resist medical treatments. It is an inclusive faith that welcomes diversity of belief. Unity is accepting of the beliefs of others.
Churches are either aligned with the Federation of Independent Unity Churches or the Association of Unity Churches.
Basic teachings
Five basic ideas that Unity sets forward as its main belief systemBelief system
A belief system is a set of mutually supportive beliefs. The beliefs may be religious, philosophical, ideological or a combination of these.The British philosopher Stephen Law has described some belief systems as "claptrap" and said that they "draw people in and hold them captive so they become...
are:
- "GodGodGod is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
is the source and creator of all. There is no other enduring power. God is good and present everywhere." - "We are spiritual beings, created in God’s image. The spirit of God lives within each person; therefore, all people are inherently good."
- "We create our life experiences through our way of thinking."
- "There is power in affirmative prayerAffirmative prayerAffirmative prayer is a form of prayer or a metaphysical technique that is focused on a positive outcome rather than a negative situation. For example, a person who is experiencing some form of illness would focus the prayer on the desired state of perfect health and affirm this desired intention...
, which we believe increases our connection to God." - "Knowledge of these spiritualSpiritualitySpirituality can refer to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality; an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.” Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop...
principles is not enough. We must live them."
Unity is devoted to demonstrating that the teachings of Jesus Christ can be lived every day. Unity's basic position is that the true "Church" is a "state of consciousness in mankind". Unity teaches that each person is a unique expression of God, that each person is sacred, and each person is worthy. Unity emphasizes the creative power of thought in people's experience, and encourages taking personal responsibility to choose life-affirming thoughts, words and actions, holding that when people do this, they experience a more fulfilling and abundant life.
H. Emilie Cady
H. Emilie Cady
Harriet Emilie Cady was an American homeopathic physician and author of New Thought spiritual writings. Her 1896 book Lessons in Truth, A Course of Twelve Lessons in Practical Christianity is now considered the core text on Unity Church teachings...
's 1896 book Lessons in Truth, A Course of Twelve Lessons in Practical Christianity is considered a core text of Unity.
God
God is understood as spiritual energy which is everywhere present and is available to all people. In the Unity view, God is not a being in the sky who is capable of angerAnger
Anger is an automatic response to ill treatment. It is the way a person indicates he or she will not tolerate certain types of behaviour. It is a feedback mechanism in which an unpleasant stimulus is met with an unpleasant response....
. The presence of God only seeks to express the highest good through everyone and everything. According to Unity founder Charles Fillmore, God is spirit, the loving source of everything. God is one power, all good, wisdom
Wisdom
Wisdom is a deep understanding and realization of people, things, events or situations, resulting in the ability to apply perceptions, judgements and actions in keeping with this understanding. It often requires control of one's emotional reactions so that universal principles, reason and...
, everywhere present. God is Divine Energy
Energy
In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
, continually creating, expressing and sustaining all creation. In God we live and move and have our being.
Jesus
Unity proclaims the divinity of Jesus, but also proclaims that we are all children of God and share that divine potential. Unity believes that Jesus expressed his divine potential and sought to show others how to do the same. Unity sees Jesus as a master teacher of universal TruthTruth
Truth has a variety of meanings, such as the state of being in accord with fact or reality. It can also mean having fidelity to an original or to a standard or ideal. In a common usage, it also means constancy or sincerity in action or character...
and one who demonstrated the Way. Unity uses the term "Christ" to mean the divinity in all people. Jesus is the great example of the Christ in expression.
The Nature of Humanity
Unity teaches that we are individual, external expressions of God. Our essential nature is divine and therefore we are inherently good. Our purpose is to express our divine potential as demonstrated by Jesus. The more we awaken to our divine nature, the more fully God expresses in and through our lives.Salvation
Salvation
Within religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...
, in the Unity view, is found in conscious understanding of one's innate divinity and then putting this knowledge into practice in everyday life.
The Bible
Unity founders, Charles and Myrtle Fillmore, studied the BibleBible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
as history and allegory. They interpreted it as a metaphysical representation of each soul's evolutionary journey toward spiritual awakening. Unity understands the Bible as a complex collection of writings compiled over many centuries. The Bible is a valuable spiritual resource, but is understood as a reflection of the comprehension and inspiration of the writers and their times.
Affirmative Prayer
Affirmative prayerAffirmative prayer
Affirmative prayer is a form of prayer or a metaphysical technique that is focused on a positive outcome rather than a negative situation. For example, a person who is experiencing some form of illness would focus the prayer on the desired state of perfect health and affirm this desired intention...
is understood, in Unity, as the highest form of creative thought. It includes the release of negative thoughts and holding in mind statements of spiritual truth. Through meditation
Meditation
Meditation is any form of a family of practices in which practitioners train their minds or self-induce a mode of consciousness to realize some benefit....
and prayer
Prayer
Prayer is a form of religious practice that seeks to activate a volitional rapport to a deity through deliberate practice. Prayer may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When language is used, prayer may take the form of...
, we can experience the presence of God. Prayer and meditation heighten our awareness of truth and thereby transform our lives.
Prayer is valuable not because it alters the circumstances and conditions of your life, but because it alters you.
Unity teaches that it is helpful to pray with the belief that we have already received all that we need. In this view, through prayer the mind is renewed and the body transformed. The awareness that we are conscious creators of our lives, has the power to make the bridge between the old Christianity where we are "sin
Sin
In religion, sin is the violation or deviation of an eternal divine law or standard. The term sin may also refer to the state of having committed such a violation. Christians believe the moral code of conduct is decreed by God In religion, sin (also called peccancy) is the violation or deviation...
ners" to the new understanding that we are "learners." The Unity school of Christianity holds that prayer is not a way to inform God of one's troubles or to change God in any way, but rather, prayer is properly used to align with the power that is God.
Relationship to Christianity
Although Unity is not a traditional Christian teaching, the Fillmores were Christians and Unity is a Christian faith in that the foundations are based on the teachings of Jesus and the Bible.Unity stresses its agreements, not differences, with other Christians.
It has been generally accepted that Jesus' great works were miracles and that the power to do miracles was delegated to His immediate followers only. In recent years many of Jesus' followers have inquired into His healing methods, and they have found that healing is based on universal mental and spiritual laws which anyone can utilize who will comply with the conditions involved in these laws.
Unity considers itself to be a nonsectarian educational institution although Unity ministers do complete a prescribed program of courses and training. Due to the interdenominational nature of Unity, its influence extends beyond its membership.
Notable members
Well known persons affiliated with Unity include Betty WhiteBetty White
Betty White Ludden , better known as Betty White, is an American actress, comedienne, singer, author, and former game show personality. With a career spanning seven decades since 1939, she is best known to modern audiences for her television roles as Sue Ann Nivens on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and...
, Eleanor Powell
Eleanor Powell
Eleanor Torrey Powell was an American film actress and dancer of the 1930s and 1940s, known for her exuberant solo tap dancing.-Early life:...
, Wally Amos
Wally Amos
Wallace "Wally" Amos, Jr. is an American actor and writer from Tallahassee, Florida. He is the founder of the "Famous Amos" chocolate chip cookie brand. He later co-founded Uncle Wally's muffins...
, Licensed Unity Teacher Ruth Warrick
Ruth Warrick
Ruth Elizabeth Warrick , DM, was an American singer, actress and political activist, best known for her role as Phoebe Tyler on All My Children, which she played regularly from 1970 until her death in 2005....
, Barbara Billingsley
Barbara Billingsley
Barbara Billingsley was an American film, television, voice and stage actress. She gained prominence in the 1950s movie The Careless Years, acting opposite Natalie Trundy, followed by her best–known role, that of June Cleaver on the television series Leave It to Beaver and its sequel Still...
, Theodore Schneider
Theodore Schneider
Theodore F. Schneider was the second bishop of the Metropolitan Washington, D.C. Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. He was elected bishop by the 1995 Synod Assembly, and was reelected by the 2001 Synod Assembly. His term ended in 2007....
, Erykah Badu
Erykah Badu
Erica Abi Wright , better known by her stage name Erykah Badu , is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Her work includes elements from R&B, hip hop and jazz. She is best known for her role in the rise of the neo soul sub-genre, and for her eccentric, cerebral musical...
, Matt Hoverman
Matt Hoverman
Matt Hoverman is an American actor, playwright, teacher of solo shows, and voice actor based in New York City.Matt Hoverman’s plays include "Who You See Here" , "In Transit" , "The Student" , "The...
, author Victoria Moran
Victoria Moran
Victoria Moran is an American writer and speaker, specializing in books on spirituality and nutrition. She lives in New York City with her husband and stepdaughter. Her articles have appeared in publications including Ladies' Home Journal, Woman's Day, Body & Soul, Weight Watchers Magazine, Natural...
,http://www.victoriamoran.com Patricia Neal
Patricia Neal
Patricia Neal was an American actress of stage and screen. She was best known for her film roles as World War II widow Helen Benson in The Day the Earth Stood Still , wealthy matron Emily Eustace Failenson in Breakfast at Tiffany's , middle-aged housekeeper Alma Brown in Hud , for which she won...
, Holmes Osborne
Holmes Osborne
Holmes Osborne is an American actor, best known for starring in Richard Kelly's films - Donnie Darko , Southland Tales and The Box . He's also played the father of Guy Patterson in the movie That Thing You Do!, and starred in the movie Bring it On. He has made appearances in TV shows such as...
and Esther Williams
Esther Williams
Esther Jane Williams is a retired American competitive swimmer and MGM movie star.Williams set multiple national and regional swimming records in her late teens as part of the Los Angeles Athletic Club swim team...
.
In March 2008 Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou is an American author and poet who has been called "America's most visible black female autobiographer" by scholar Joanne M. Braxton. She is best known for her series of six autobiographical volumes, which focus on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first and most highly...
stated that she plans to spend part of the year studying at the Unity Church. In 2005 she attended a Unity Church service in Miami and decided that day to "go into a kind of religious school and study" on her 80th birthday. Author Marianne Williamson
Marianne Williamson
Marianne Williamson is a spiritual activist, author, lecturer and founder of The Peace Alliance, a grass roots campaign supporting legislation currently before Congress to establish a United States Department of Peace. She is also the founder of Project Angel Food, a meals-on-wheels program that...
is an ordained Unity minister, and served a Unity church in Detroit in the 1980s and 90s.
Further reading
- Mosley,Glenn R. The History and Future NEW THOUGHT, ANCIENT WISDOM of the New Thought Movement, Templelton Foundation Press, (2006). ISBN 0-59947-089-6