“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.”
Matthew 7:24
“Do not ask God to guide your footsteps if you are not willing to move your feet.”
Anonymous
Truth becomes ours only when we make it real in our lives. Spiritual growth often begins with an idea. To make it bear fruit we must have the courage to act on it. We are in such a place in our United States. Our country is founded on the premise that all people are created equal. It is obvious that making that real has been and is a tumultuous process. To embrace this principle requires letting go of fear, examining musty ideas that were passed along to us–many of them unconsciously, and learning to look through a new lens.
Seeing this on a more personal level, our Unity Movement has been for the last several years taking an honest look at the connection between principle and action. We know that our spiritual principles declare that all people are divine expressions of God. And there are and always have been many ways that we do live that out in Unity, where it is our Truth. At the same time, there are also ways where we have not. It is painful to see the places where we have not been inclusive of people of color, of people who are differently abled, or of members of the LGBTQI community. We are changing. Meaningful strides are being made at Unity Village and in Unity Worldwide Ministries. Much of this has been energized by the powerful and clear way Unity ministers and participants who are people of color, people who are differently abled, or who are members of the LGBTQI community have stood and communicated this necessity to leadership. And the leaders have listened.
Here at Unity of Austin we too have been taking an honest look at the connection between head and heart. Our Tuesday Book Study Ministry, Rev. Carol’s classes, and my classes and Sunday messages continue to invite us to put our principles into practice in the hard places. Our spiritual principles become real and bear fruit when we apply them to the healing of racism, violence, poverty, and division. Because we are a part of society, all of those isms affect us personally and as a church community. As we heal and learn to see through God’s lens we create waves of love in the community around us. Our personal freedom from constriction ripples out to open channels of freedom in the world. That freedom circles back to bless us. Living the Truth that we know lifts up everybody. Now that’s freedom!
I encourage you to read this recent article by Rev. Ellen Debenport, VP of Publishing and Content at Unity Village, “Unity and Race: A Truthful History, Mistakes, Apologies, and Actions Through the Years.” I’m proud of us in Unity that we are willing to see ourselves clearly–to take inventory of our glories and shames. Airing out the laundry sets us on a firm path to living our principles. And that’s what Unity is about. I also encourage you to read the powerful “Resolution on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” adopted by Unity Worldwide Ministries on Juneteenth 2021. I hope it makes you proud, as it does me, to be a part of our Unity movement. I am grateful that we endeavor to live in integrity, to be teachable, and to keep going, always learning how to live the Truth that we know.
In the Love and Light of the Living Christ,
Rev. Anna
