What is Unity?
Unity is a positive, practical, progressive approach to Christianity based on the teachings of Jesus and the power of prayer. Unity honors the universal truths in all religions and respects each individual’s right to choose a spiritual path.
Teachings
Unity teachings continue to evolve as we identify, embrace and apply spiritual insights and the spiritual implications of new discoveries. They are based on the following core tenets:
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There is One Presence and One Power in the universe, God the Good. This is a radical statement of non-dual awareness.
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There is That presence and power, a spark of Divinity, within you. In Unity this is often referred to as “The Christ within.” The statement “I Am That” refers to this also.
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We create our worlds through our thinking and feeling. Thoughts held in mind manifest after their kind. Feeling states often exist under thoughts.
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Our connection with God or Spirit is through prayer and meditation. The language of God is Silence; it is beyond words.
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It does no good to know all of these principles unless you practice them. Knowing them is not enough; you must live them in your life.
God
God is the invisible, intangible, dynamic energy that is the underlying reality of all manifestation (Metaphysics I, p. 18). God is infinite and eternal. God is not a person but Principle, absolute good expressed in all creation. God is individualized in each person when we recognize God within us as our indwelling life, intelligence, love, and power. When we recognize God within ourselves we come into God/Christ consciousness (The Revealing Word, paraphrased). God is within each one of us and is directly accessible. We need only to quietly turn within ourselves to contact God.
Jesus
Jesus Christ is the man who understood His divine nature, who fully demonstrated His divine potential, and who completely fulfilled His divine purpose on this earth. We refer to Jesus Christ as our Elder Brother, Teacher, and Way Shower, who by His works and words, teaches us that we, too, have the ability to realize Christ consciousness. When Unity refers to Jesus the Christ, they are intentionally acknowledging that Christ is the name of Jesus’ spiritual identity, not His earthly last name.
Nature of Humankind
We are each individual, eternal expressions of God. Our essential nature is divine and therefore inherently good. Our purpose is to express our divine potential as realized and demonstrated by Jesus and other master teachers. The more we awaken to our divine nature, the more fully God expresses in and through our lives.
Bible
Hebrew and Christian Scriptures are the main religious texts used by Unity followers. To Charles Fillmore, the Bible was more than the Word of God. The Word of God is the spirit in man, and the Bible is an attempt “to describe that invisible Work which cannot be described but must be lived.” In 1931, Fillmore published the Metaphysical Bible Dictionary. The writings of all world religions are respected. “Unity believes that there is good in every religion on earth.”