Apostolic Faith Church - Unity School of Christianity

Key Person or Founder, Date, Location

Jesus Christ.
Founded about A.D. 30-33, in the Judean Province of Palestine (Israel today), under the Roman Empire.

Charles (1854-1948) and Myrtle (1845-1931) Filmore. Founded 1889 in Kansas City, Missouri. Headquarters in Unity Village, Missouri.

Key Writings

The Bible, written originally in Hebrew and Aramaic (Old Testament), and Greek (New Testament)

Unity magazine. Lessons in Truth, Metaphysical Bible Dictionary, the Bible (not as reliable, interpreted with "hidden" meanings).

Who is God?

The one God is Triune (one God in three Persons, not three gods): Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Often the title "God" designates the first Person, God the Father. He created the universe out of nothing. He is eternal, changeless, holy, loving, and perfect.

Invisible impersonal power. "God" is interchangeable with "Principle," "Law," "Being," "Mind," "Spirit." God is in everything, much as the soul is in the body. No Trinity. the Spirit is reality; matter is not.

Who is Jesus?

Jesus is God, the second Person of the Trinity. As God the Son, He has always existed and was never created. He is fully God and fully man (the two natures joined, not mixed). As the second Person of the Trinity, He is coequal with God the Father and the Holy Spirit. In becoming man, He was begotten through the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. Jesus is the only way to the Father, salvation, and eternal life. He died on a cross according to God's plan, as full sacrifice and payment for our sins. He rose from the dead on the third day, spiritually and physically immortal. For the next 40 days, He was seen by more than 500 eyewitnesses. His wounds were touched and He ate meals. He physically ascended to Heaven. Jesus will come again visibly and physically at the end of the world to establish God's kingdom and judge the world.

Jesus was a man and not the Christ. Instead, he was a man who had "Christ Consciousness." "Christ" is a state of perfection in every person. jesus had lived many times before and was in search of his own salvation. Jesus did not die as a sacrifice for anyone's sins. Jesus did not rise physically and will never return to earth in physical form.

Who is the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit is God, the third Person of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit is a person, not a force or energy field. He comforts, grieves, reproves, convicts, guides, teaches, and fills Christians. He is not the Father, not the Son, Jesus Christ.

The Holy Spirit is the law of God in action, "the executive power of both Father and Son." A "definite" thought in the mind of man.

How to Be Saved

Salvation is by God's grace, not by an individual's good works. Salvation must be received by faith. People must believe in their heart that Jesus died for their sins and physically rose again, which is the assurance of forgiveness and resurrection of the body. This is God's loving plan to forgive sinful people.

By recognizing that each person is as much a Son of God as Jesus is. There is no evil, no devil, no sin, no poverty, andno old age. A person is reincarnated until he learns these truths and becomes "perfect."

What Happens After Death

Believers go to be with Jesus. After death, all people await the final judgment. Both saved and lost people will be resurrected. Those who are saved live with Jesus in Heaven. Those who are lost suffer the torment of eternal separation from God (Hell). Jesus' bodily resurrection guarantees believers that they, too, will be resurrected and receive new immortal bodies.

Death is a result of wrong thinking. One moves to a different body (reincarnation) until enlightenment. No literal heaven or hell.

Other Beliefs or Practices

Group worship, usually in churches. No secret rites. Baptism and Lord's Supper (Communion). Active voluntary missionary efforts. Aid to those in need: the poor, widows, orphans, and downtrodden. Christians believe that Jesus is the Jewish Messiah promised to Israel in the Old Testament (Tanakh). Jesus said His followers would be known by their love for one another.

Worship services in Unity churches. Counseling and prayer ministry ("Silent Unity") by phone and mail. It is reported that Unity receives millions of prayer requests annually. Unity devotionals, such as Daily Word, are used by members of other religious groups and churches. Millions of pieces of literature are printed each year.