What is Unity?

UNITY IS A POSITIVE PATH TO SPIRITUAL LIVING

Unity is a progressive approach to Christianity and all the world’s spiritualities. We believe there are many paths to God and respect them all. There’s so much wisdom in all of the world’s traditions…how can we afford to ignore that rich trove of wisdom! We are more spiritual than religious.

WE BELIEVE THE FOLLOWING

There is only one force in the universe, God the Good. We love all the faces of God. We honor all the names of God (YHWH Yahweh, Allah, Jehovah, Spirit, Unified Field, Great Spirit, Creator, Infinite Intelligence, Spiritual Energy, Buddha Nature, Quantum Field, Pure Consciousness). The founders of AA were brilliant when they coined the term “God as we each understand God to be”.

We believe all humans to be spiritual in essence, and therefore good. This is emphasized as opposed to that part of our human nature which may do wrong. Our spiritual nature is much more powerful than our human nature! Thus, we have hope for humankind due to our spiritual nature, our soul’s strength.

We believe our thoughts help create our reality. "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he" from Proverbs. “We are what we think” from the Buddha. Prayer and Meditation are the basic tools whereby we alleviate suffering, know our at-one-ment with God, and manifest God's good in our life and in the world. We put these principles into ACTION on a day to day basis.

OTHER IDEAS WE BELIEVE IN

FREEDOM OF THOUGHT

You can disagree with any of our beliefs. We value Truth AND Unity, our oneness with God and each other, and how we treat each other. It's important to have opinions, yet having to be right about one’s opinions is a form of violence that we inflict on each other. Beliefs, even the beliefs on this page, tend to divide. We respect all beliefs so as to not have them divide. Respectful discussion of beliefs will point us to the Truth. Beliefs are not the sole point…LOVE is too, and perhaps even more so.

UNITY IS A PRACTICAL SPIRITUALITY

We want for your life to be improved, happier, and transformed NOW through the practice of spiritual tools and principles that we talk about every Sunday.·

RELIGION TENDS TO DIVIDE US. SPIRITUALITY UNITES US.

The Greatest Commandments, love God and your neighbor, are taken very seriously.

INDIVIDUALS HAVE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THEMSELVES.

The Law of Mind Action/Attraction is not just a tool to get material gain, but to improve our life by taking responsibility for what comes our way.

NO BLAME, SHAME, OR GAMES.

And when a societal system oppresses someone or group, we believe the Principles of Nonviolence as practiced by Jesus, The Buddha, Dr. King, Mohandas Gandhi, Dorothy Day, Cesar Chavez, etc. to be the key to freedom.

THE BIBLE AND OTHER TEXTS

The Bible is one of Unity's main texts, yet we do not believe that the Bible is to be interpreted literally. It is the story of humankind and gives us guidance and inspiration. We interpret it metaphysically, i.e. how each passage resonates with the essence of our soul. We utilize the teachings found in many books written by authors like our co-founders Myrtle and Charles Fillmore, and many others like The Buddha, Eckhart Tolle, Byron Katie, Don Miguel Ruiz, Eric Butterworth . We respect and learn from all the world's scriptures.

JESUS CAME TO TEACH US HOW TO SAVE OURSELVES

~ from the personal hells we put ourselves through, NOW, not at some later time. Salvation from pain and suffering is for NOW, not later. He taught us "these things I do you can do too and even greater". So, Unity believes there is great hope for us if we take what Jesus said to heart.

WE FOCUS ON HEAVEN AND HELL AS STATES OF MIND

Though many in Unity still believe in a heaven hereafter, it’s more of a stopping place in between lifetimes as many of us in Unity believe in reincarnation. However, no one can really say what is True about the hereafter.

Our negative/toxic thinking, unhealthy ego, unresolved inner pain and various biological disorders cause problems in this world.

We believe that there is no devil, except experienced as our own inner demons. Meditation helps us deal with our inner demons.

We are concerned about the plight of the human condition, the earth and much more.

Jesus was a revolutionary about social causes…The Buddha was all about alleviating suffering. See our Social Action Ministries page in this website!

You could call Unity the "quantum church."

We believe there are myriads of possibilities for every life situation. We believe that one day science and spirituality will support and prove one another. With God, anything is possible!

STATEMENT OF PEACE

Unity stands for peace in the presence of conflict; for love in the presence of hatred; for forgiveness in the presence of injury. Unity honors the many names for God, the many paths to God, the many ways to worship God; for there is only one power and presence of God and that God loves each one of us equally. It is therefore the position of The International Association of Unity Churches and Unity to urge all nations, their leaders, and their people to turn to God by whatever the name for guidance during these challenging times and pursue peace, not war, for this is what honors the God of all our faith traditions. Unity stands for peace in our lifetime.

STATEMENT OF UNITY, DIVERSITY, AND "INCLUSIVITY"

Unity Church of Charleston believes in the oneness and unity of all humankind. We believe that all people are created with sacred worth and that we are stronger because we are different. We recognize the importance of serving all people in spiritually and emotionally caring ways. Our ministry and outreaches are free of discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender, age, creed, religion, national origin, ethnicity, physical disability or sexual orientation. It is with love and in celebration of our unity, in the midst of our wondrous diversity, that we affirm this position.

PRAYER FOR THE CHILDREN

In the Unity of our humanity, we dedicate ourselves to the Spirit of God within all children everywhere,believing in the dignity, well being and safety of each child. Where children are hungry, homeless, or their safety is threatened, we ask ourselves along with Myrtle Fillmore, “Who will take care of the children?” In so doing, we encourage positive prayer, as well as the commitment to put feet to our prayers by spiritually discerning and acting upon what is ours to do to provide for the basic needs of each child in loving humanitarian service to our fellow human beings.

OUR PRAYER FOR THE CHILDREN

We behold all children in God’s care and keeping; divinely guided and protected through life’s experiences. Love and Understanding are in the hearts of all those who care for the children of the world. Divine Wisdom and Imagination guide the minds and hearts of those who legislate for the highest good of all concerned. The Light of Oneness shines upon all actions as humanity moves towards its greatest expression of Compassion, Caring and Loving Collaboration. And so it is. Amen.

UNITY OF CHARLESTON’S VISION

We joyfully grow in spirit manifesting a loving world by embracing peace, prosperity and acceptance.

OUR CORE VALUES

Spirituality, unconditional love, community and healing

OUR MISSION STATEMENT

Unity is a loving, joyful, spiritual community celebrating diversity and empowering personal growth.