Obedience

Question:

I've been a member of Unity for 27 years and I cannot recall any meaningful discussion as to Unity philosophy towards the idea of obedience to God and His word.

Comment:

I must admit to being a little flabbergasted at the question. I think perhaps you want a discussion framed in traditional terms and beliefs—and in some cases, indeed, old definitions and assumptions do not conform to Unity's understanding of the universal spiritual principles that define our relationship to the divine. But to suggest that Unity has no concern with "obedience to God and His word" is to totally miss the point of our entire spiritual movement.   We do not, indeed, believe in a being named “God” sitting in a distant place named Heaven testing humankind by making up rules and regulations and seeing how well we obey them. Our relationship to God is much more intimate and personal than that.   Jesus Christ teaches—and we believe—that our entire purpose, as spiritual beings engaged in a shared human experience, is to make the choices that will create the new, elevated dimension of consciousness that Jesus describes as the kingdom of heaven. How do we do that? Precisely by being “obedient to God”—that is, by recognizing, trusting and following the Presence and Power of God that constitute our true identity as the Christ.   God is an eternal energy of infinite love constantly seeking to enfold us, move through us and express through us according to the creative choices we make. We have allowed obstacles to block that creative flow. Our spiritual work to do is to dissolve those blocks and re-establish within and through us the free flow of divine creative energy that we are here to express. The entire focus of the Unity movement—from the prayer work of Silent Unity to the classes of Unity Institute to the spiritual support and fellowship of our individual Unity centers throughout the world—is to affirm the Truth of our innate divinity and support each other as we move through the process of dissolving blocks and creating the kingdom. That is precisely God's will for us, and the only form of obedience that will move us forward on our shared spiritual path.   Blessings!

Rev. Ed