What is an ideal spiritual ministry?

Three weeks from today, in Round Rock, Texas, we launch Unity Wings, a Unity study group focusing on the Unity School Correspondence Course. The experiment is whether Unity's classic teaching from 1909 through 1975 is relevant to anyone today. I hope so.

But a successful study class is not just about the teaching! More important are the methods and ideals for conducting the study class. My friend and mentor Rev. Eleanor Fleming sent me just that ... Methods and Ideals for Conducting Centers and Study Classes, the ideal ministry as conceived by Unity School sometime between 1909 and 1930. In six short parts, we learn:

The vision and purpose of a spiritual ministry
What Truth students really want
The Spiritual basis for healing
How to get along with others in your ministry
How to handle ministry finances with integrity
Who the two or three most important people are in your ministry

Thank you, Rev. Eleanor! May our class be not only dedicated to the classic teaching of Unity, but also dedicated to the classic methods and ideals of a Unity spiritual ministry. Click on the link or the graphic to read the full text and to download PDF copies of the original.

For the first time in over 35 years ...

Hi Friends -

In January 2012 I will launch a class in Round Rock, Texas based on The Unity Society Correspondence School course. As far as I can tell, it is the first time in over 35 years that this pristine, classic Unity teaching is being used to teach Unity principles.

The eighteen lessons of the course were developed in 1909 by Charles Fillmore and he constantly referred to them when he gave his many talks. This course was Unity's primary way to teach it's principles to lay people and ministers ...

Nine questions we need to ask each Sunday

Before you go to church this Sunday, ask yourself these questions:

Do our church leaders support trying new things?
Are leaders willing to evaluate and use what works, and put aside what doesn't?
Is there joy and laughter in this church?
Does this church really show people how to pray through sermons and classes?
Are we continually reminded here of God's love for us?
Are the sermons here almost always inspiring and interesting to me?
Does this church community help me identify and use my spritual gifts?
Are the congegational songs here uplifting, inspiring and easy to sing?
Is the special music of this church excellent and soul satisfying?

Fifty-Five Expansion Opportunties for Unity Pioneers

When the census was taken in 2010, the Census Bureau published a list of the 100 fastest-growing counties (there are over 3,000 counties in the United States). How many of these 100 fastest-growing counties are without a Unity church? Approximately fifty-five.

To see these counties:

Go to www.findaunitychurch.com (or click on the graphic above)
You will then see Red markers and Yellow markers. Red markers are Unity churches that exist. Yellow markers are counties that are among the one hundred fastest-growing and yet do not have a Unity church.
To see only the yellow markers, click on the legend in the lower left corner.
To see a list of these markers, click on the double arrows (

I know that not all of these 55 yellow markers are true expansion opportunities. Some are too small, others are too close to an existing ministry. However many are clearly prime opportunities. May we use this map as a tool to bring consciousness to these opportunities.

Prosperity in 120 steps

If you listen to Martha Giudici's series on Prosperity for just ten minutes your good will begin to flow. She's not chicken soup for the impoverished soul, she's a sixteen ounce can of energy drink.

I never thought anyone would find her believable but me ... then my wife heard the CDs while driving my car one day ... "Who is that woman? Can I have those CDs?" A few weeks later I played some clips to a class of skeptic, post-modern intellectuals ... they got excited fast and by the next day each student had a set of CDs. They're still emailing me about how Martha has impacted them.

So here we have our Aunt Martha who will set us straight fast on how life and money work. Go to her when you're stuck. You'll get unstuck.

These recordings have been segmented into 120 short clips, each one being two or three minutes, and each containing a central point that Martha is making about prosperity. At the bottom of each page is a one or two sentence summary of each clip (so Google can rank the content).

Get grounded with Practical Metaphysics

Unity can be confusing. Are there any essential teachings? If so, what are they?

In 1981 when Eric Butterworth gave his 8-week series of talks on Practical Metaphysics, he spoke about the same topics that Charles Fillmore wrote about in Christian Healing, which was his only book for the first 30 years of Unity's history, and that Emilie Caty wrote about in Lessons In Truth, which Unity has always declared to be its basic textbook.

If you want to get grounded in Unity's classic teachings, you can now listen to these extraordinary talks:

These talks will clarify and deepen your understanding of what it means to live metaphysically, they will inspire you to focus on what has proven to work for nearly 120 years of Unity's teachings and they will awaken your desire to live from the centered place of your own truth.

I hope you listen intently to them, because they will change your life.

Butterworth, Freeman & Co Answer Your Questions

Have you ever wished you could spend a few minutes with people like James Dillet Freeman ("The Light of God Surrounds Me") or Eric Butterworth ("Discover the Power Within You") or other Unity great teachers and get their take on big life issues like marriage, money, finding the right job or health? Would you enjoy learning what they have to say about affirmations, the Law of Mind Action, prayer and tithing?

And would you like it in short 3-4 minute segments so you can select the topics that are most important to you?

And would you like it free and online?

And would you like it in streaming video so you can get a close-up feel for the personality of these great teachers?

If so, go here and select one or more of the seventeen streaming video segments!

Eric Butterworth credits three great teachers for impacting his life

Have you ever wondered how Eric Butterworth knew so much and lived life so fully? In a series of talks given many years ago, he credits three "great teachers":

Meister Eckhart, who Butterworth credits as the one who "unlocked the key" for Butterworth's understanding of Oneness with God (clip 18)
Ralph Waldo Emerson, who Butterworth credits as the one who gave him the idea for Discover The Power Within You (clip 38)
Henry David Thoreau, who Butterworth says he reads each year to keep his life and ministry on course (clip 44).

You can listen to these talks right here

I hope you enjoy them!

All The Way

“All The Way” is a series of six talks given by Rev. Thomas E. Witherspoon that provides an overview of the Christian faith given to Unity by Charles and Myrtle Fillmore.

The six talks are segmented in 91 sound clips that allow you to pick and choose the topics of interest. Some of my favorites are:

The 24 basic teachings of Unity as distilled by the author (clips 10-34)
The Mystical Christ consciousness of Myrtle Fillmore (clips 35-47)
Witherspoon’s commentary on the last chapter of Keep A True Lent, which describes how Jesus’ decision to go “All The Way” inspired the Fillmores (clips 81-91)

These recordings were made from audio cassette tapes at Unity Library and Archives. If you are blessed by hearing Witherspoon’s message, be sure to a give back to the Archives.

Jack Boland - Unity and Alcoholism

We've now got a series of three talks by Rev. Jack Boland on the subject of Unity and Alcoholism. Jack Boland is a well-known and much beloved Unity minister and leader of the Unity movement. He needs no introduction.

Here's why we need to hear his message:

he will bring support and encouragement to all who struggle with chemical dependency
his impassioned and thoughtful message will challenge others who struggle with hearing the phrase "I am an alcoholic"

Truth Unity

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