Healing Journeys with Suzie Daggett
Suzie interviewed Reverend Joe Sloan, minister of Unity in the Gold Country. He and his wife, Lyn were instrumental in helping to create the Unity community just five years ago. Since then, Unity has grown to such an extent that they recently moved into new quarters in Grass Valley. Unity in the Gold Country is a Spiritual Family celebrating the loving presence of God by honoring all paths.
Why did you become a Unity minister?
I had been a practicing Catholic for 40 years, and then got divorced. After that, as I was looking for a spiritual base, I found I was attracted to Unity because of the variety of teachings and progressive type of literature I found in the church book store. In addition, they had a female minister, which intrigued me. I started singing as a soloist and got involved in the board, finally becoming the board president. When I discover that I was spending more time at church than the minister, I decided to try for the ministry. I applied and was accepted out of a large field of applicants. I found out later that only 25 people were accepted. Had I know that, I might not have tried! I have always been involved with the study of spirituality and public affairs (my masters’ degree is in Public Communication), so it turns out the ministry was the right place for me.
Can you tell us about Unity?
Unity was created over 115 years ago, when the co-founders, Charles and Myrtle Fillmore, students of spiritual healing, decided that Unity would not be a denomination itself, but a place where people of any belief could come for a healing, physical or spiritual. Methodists, Baptists, Catholics or people from any religion could come to Unity and then feel free to go back to their church. For a variety of reasons, people may be in need of spiritual healing from a place other than their own church. Our intent is to be inclusive and not exclude anyone for his or her beliefs. Our emphasis is Christian and yet we open our doors and hearts to all people. The main emphasis in unity comes from Colossians 1:27: Christ in You, the Hope of Glory. In you! Christ, the spirit of God is not outside you somewhere in a church, rather, the Christ spirit is in you. We believe that Jesus is an ideal – he lived a life that we would all like to mirror. He said: “These things I do, you can do and even greater things.” This could be true if we were to live the same life he did and tune into the will of God to the extent that he did – for instance, not to be judgmental, or contentious or jealous or live with the need to be right.
Tell us about Unity of the Gold Country:
We started from scratch just five years ago – and today, we have a growing congregation and a new facility. It is really remarkable that we attracted a community, since there are many choices in this area for spiritual direction. I understand there are over 48 religious organizations to choose from here. Unity was originally called the Unity School of Practical Christianity and so we refer to our community as students. We are all learning and continuously studying. We feel that using the teachings of Jesus daily is essential to help people live their lives better. In our Sunday service, we begin the lesson with a reading from scripture and relate that to a practical application for today. We have programs for all levels, including tots and teens. We also have regional groups and I am the Regional Representative for the west central region of over 50 churches.
What other events do you offer your community?
We offer classes on many spiritual subjects during the week, A Course in Miracles study group, daytime classes for Men and Women. We have a small bookstore, which will expand as we grow. We also offer special events, like Shanti-Shanti, young western teens who chant Sanskrit prayers. They will be with us on Sunday, June 12th for service and a 12:30 concert. On Friday night, June 17th the Buddhist monk Bhanti Wamala will speak and show a film about the relief effort in his native Sri Lanka.
Do you have any Words of Wisdom for someone looking for spiritual growth?
Come here! I know that sounds a bit facetious, however, since our philosophy is for healing, no matter what your belief system is, we have helped many people find a closer relationship with God so they can live their life better. As a minister, I find it is best not get in the way of someone and their God. I listen as I allow someone to find his or her way to God. I do not try to fix the problem; rather suggest prayer and meditation as a very important way to open up to hear God.
Reverend Sloan and Unity in the Gold Country can be reached at 530-274-2463. They are located in their new facility, 500 Crown Point Circle, Grass Valley. www.unitygold.us
Healing Journeys is a column written by Suzie Daggett for the Grass Valley Union newspaper. Suzie interviews a variety of health practitioners most Fridays in the Wellness section. Click here to read past articles prior to 2005. Enter "Suzie Daggett" in the search box to get listing of all articles. |
