11/09/08 A Vision for Unity

November 9, 2008

Rev. Ron Fritts

“…forgetting what lies behind and straining forward
to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of
the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.”

Philippians 3:13-14

Recently, while flying to Detroit, I changed planes in Memphis.
Walking through the airport I came across a memorial to Martin Luther
King, Jr. The pictures on the wall reminded me of the high price
he and others paid to lead this country into a new consciousness
about African-Americans. It moved me to tears.

Getting on the plane I encountered a young, black man on his way
to Cornell University, who had invited him and was paying for his
trip. He was a high school senior, a football player, well-spoken
and polite. A school like Cornell doesn’t just recruit athletes.
They must be scholars as well.

I was struck by the progress that had been made since 1968. Less
than 50 years ago traveling through the south I remember restrooms
and drinking fountains marked white and colored. Schools were not
integrated, civil rights protests were raging and many people still
considered blacks to be inferior

On January 20 we will inaugurate the first African American President
of the U.S. One could say it has taken a long time. But I prefer
to view it as a major shift in consciousness for our country. Our
world is in need of and in the midst of transformation.

In the book 2012 Arjuna Ardagh writes, “Many years ago,
Albert Einstein said, ‘You cannot solve any problem in the
same state of consciousness in which it was created,’ So,
on the one hand, all of the challenges we face on this planet seem
separate; on the other, they are all symptoms of a state of collective
consciousness that is no longer viable.”

What is that state of consciousness we have come to regard as
normal, even if the heart will not accept it as natural? Pigs grunt.
Dogs bark. Penguins waddle. What do human beings do? What have we
come to accept as the default state of being human? I’ve spent
many years researching that question, asking writes, teachers, psychologists,
even hairdressers. Most agree that human consciousness is characterized
by an unnatural sense of separation, a sense of a ‘me’
and a ‘not me.’ We act as though the source of thought
within us, and the source of everything else are separate; ultimately,
we act as though we are separate from the source itself, from the
divine.”

“In every culture and in every age, a few isolated individuals
have broken free of this hallucination and have realized that the
sense of a ‘separate me’ is actually a fantasy. This
is not a question of self-improvement, or working on yourself to
make yourself into a more loving, conscious, better person. It is
a sudden and radical shift from a preoccupation with ‘me’
and ‘my story’ to a realization of the space, the vastness,
the eternity in which that story is occurring. Once this core hallucination
is corrected, everything else starts to fall into place.”

Over 100 years ago, Charles Fillmore named our movement Unity,
recognizing this truth that we are one with each other and one with
God. Last week as we looked at the history and structure of Unity,
one of the things we remembered was that Unity is not an organization,
but it is you and I. So what is our role in this transformative
shift in consciousness that is occurring?

If you go to www.unity.org and click on “Thriving in Unity”
you will find a video of James Trapp, the President and CEO of
Unity Worldwide Ministries describing our strategic
plan for addressing this question.

The three intentions of “Thriving in Unity” are:

* Becoming the fastest growing transformational spiritual movement
in the world

* Supporting the continued emergence of enlightened leaders and
thriving ministries

* Creating a world that works for all

John Shelby Spong, whose books have sold more than a million copies,
was bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Newark for 24 years before
his retirement in 2001. He began his ministry in the south and was
a strong proponent of Civil Rights in the 60/ & 70’s.

His admirers acclaim him as a teaching bishop who makes contemporary
theology accessible to the ordinary layperson — he's considered
the champion of an inclusive faith by many, both inside and outside
the Christian church.

A visiting lecturer at Harvard and at universities and churches
worldwide, Bishop Spong delivers more than 200 public lectures each
year to standing-room-only crowds. His bestselling books include
Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism, A New Christianity for a
New World, Why Christianity Must Change or Die, and Here I Stand.

Bishop Spong's extensive media appearances include a profile segment
on 60 Minutes as well as appearances on Good Morning America, Fox
News Live, Politically Incorrect, Larry King Live, The O'Reilly
Factor, William F. Buckley's Firing Line, and Extra.

Last week I was privileged to hear him speak at Unity Institute.
In one of his addresses he said, “The Unity movement, because
it has not been trapped inside the symbols is uniquely situated
to lead us into the new Christianity.”

James Trapp’s statement in the video was, “The time
has come for our movement to take its place as leaders in this very
transformational time.”

I am Unity. You are Unity. We have received the call. We have a
vision. We have been given the tools. The question now is, “How
will Unity respond?”