Any discussion of religion and spirituality can be fraught with conversational landmines, but the New Thought movement, including Unity, seems to invite skepticism. How then, do people who participate in and promote Unity describe it to others?

When asked how she talks to her friends about Unity, Denise Blake, Unity.FM producer, laughed and said, “I typically describe Unity as a not-for-profit, nondenominational spiritual movement based on the teachings of Jesus Christ. After I say that, my friends change the subject.”

Often people want to know if Unity is a religion. There are differing opinions about this within Unity. Many people say that Charles and Myrtle Fillmore started Unity as a spiritual movement in the 1800s, offering a positive, practical, progressive approach to Christianity. While Unity does not subscribe to dogma or doctrine, there are more than 900 Unity churches worldwide, which led some like Rev. Tom Shepherd to say, “Of course Unity is a religion. What else could it be?”
 
Licensed Unity Teacher Patricia McNinch says Unity is difficult to describe because it doesn't fit into the typical concept of a religious institution. “Many are not comfortable with the idea that we believe in only one presence and one power—God the Good,” she says. However, when she explains that Unity's foundation is in prayer people seem to be reassured.

Sally Falk, Web designer for Unity, believes many questions arise from a lack of understanding, not outright skepticism. She tells people that Unity is about co-creating a world that works for all. She also describes Unity as a movement that is “a love-based form of Christianity, which respects all paths to God and is very open and practical.” Falk finds that most people are open to Unity's philosophy because Unity is open to all people.

Diane Shireman, fundraising manager and former Unity employee, gets questions about whether Unity tries to convert people. She says no. Instead, she lets people know that Unity can be a supplemental spiritual tool, which can support rather than replace an individual's existing belief system.

Jenny Hahn, graphic artist, offers a practical explanation of Unity. She tells her friends it is a worldwide spiritual movement with a publishing house, prayer ministry and seminary.

Rev. Thomas Shepherd offers a more academic explanation of Unity. He says, “Unity is a Protestant Christian movement which recognizes that there are truths to be discovered in all the religions of humanity … (It offers) a recognizable theology ground in rather ancient Christian mysticism and in Ralph Waldo Emerson's American Transcendentalism.”

Surveys by Pew Forum and Gallup show increasing numbers of people identifying more with spirituality and less with formal religion. Whether one attends a Unity church, subscribes to Unity's Daily Word® magazine for inspiration, or explores Unity's classic metaphysical interpretations of the Bible, Unity—the movement or the religion—offers something for all people.

Shepherd summed it up. “Unity is culturally Christian, spiritually unlimited.”

 

Other frequently asked questions:

Are Unity and Unitarian the same thing?  No.

Is Unity a cult? No. Read Is Unity a Cult to learn more.

Is Unity Christian? Yes. Read Christian or Not? for more information.

To further explore what Unity teaches, visit the About Us section.