About Me...Rev. Alicia-Leslie






All of my life, I felt a deep desire to be closer to God; to know, love and serve God. I
prayed and did my best to live in accord with the teaching of my church of origin.
Oftentimes, I found that I could not resolve the teachings of the church and the
Truth that lives in my heart and soul.

I did all that was expected of me, which basically meant getting married and raising a
family, and as the fairy tale ending says, "live happily ever after." The "happily ever
after" was not happening though. It seemed as if the prayers I had prayed all of my
life just were not working. And so, I began a quest to help me to discover who I am,
who God is, and how I could live a meaningful life.

Do not misunderstand me. Many things in my life were wonderful. I am blessed with
amazing children. I was divinely blessed with creativity and a wonderful family.  I was
blessed with the ability to see the lesson, and the good in spite of appearances. Yes.
The good. That is how I found Unity, which is the church of my heart.

While on my quest to find God and the meaning of my life I was given a copy of the
"Daily Word," which is Unity's monthly devotional magazine. I found that its words
echoed the deepest beliefs of my heart and soul. It took another year or so for me
to find my way to a Unity church. Then, when I was truly ready, I walked into the
church that would change my life, enrich my relationship with God, and give me an
understanding of Jesus, the Christ and what he taught.

I found that Unity truly is a way of life that works, and because of this I dedicated
my life to sharing the Unity teaching by giving my life to God as a Unity minister. In
1992, after completing the Ministerial Education Program at Unity Village, MO I was
ordained as a Unity Minister. Since that time, I have served three churches and am
pioneering this church, "Spirit of Unity," to bring the Unity teaching to my
"hometown" Middlesex County area.

I invite you to explore Unity, and Spirit of Unity Church. See if your soul says "Yes!"
as mine did. If so...I will look forward to seeing you soon. If not, I bless you on your
path...and behold the Divinity...as we in Unity say...the Christ in you.

Spirit of Unity Church...and Spiritual Life Center
Primary Path or Prayer and Inspiration

Unity serves two basic types of people. One is Primary Path. The people on the
Primary Path have found Unity to be "their" church, finding it is the spiritual path
they have chosen for their primary expression of study, worship and connection.
Primary Path people commit to the church by becoming a Partner in Ministry. This
also means that they have made the commitment to support the church with their
time, energy, talent and tithe. This is Spirit of Unity Church.

The other group Unity serves is the Prayer and Inspiration people. This group
already has a primary path. It could be any spiritual or religious denomination, and
they have found that Unity enhances that relationship. Our Spiritual Life Center is
dedicated to serving people of all faiths.

Whether you find prayer and inspiration at Unity, or choose to become a Partner in
Ministry, know that you will be warmly received and welcome to come, learn, pray,
worship and even play together. So...check us out!

Our Mission...
is to touch hearts and change lives by learning, living and sharing the Universal
Principles of Truth as taught by Jesus Christ

Our Vision:
(The vision of our church is the ideal that we hold in our minds, hearts and prayers as we work to bring it into
manifestation. While the church may not yet have these programs in place, the intention is to develop them as we grow.)

As a Spiritual Family...
We are a thriving center of spiritual light in the community.
We offer life-changing services and classes.
We have a dynamic children's program.
We have exciting social programs and activities to enhance and enrich lives.
We have spiritual ministries and support groups for:
*Singles
*Teens
*Couples
*Families
We actively participate in and serve the community.
We are a permission-giving church, encouraging the use of spiritual gifts in individual
ministry.

Our Values
We behold and honor the Christ~Divinity in each person.
We value the power of prayer and meditation.
We honor our diversity and celebrate our Unity.
We value the spiritual growth and development of children.
We value peace and harmony individually and universally.
We value the gift of our planet and accept our responsibility for its well-being.

Our Special Calling:
Excellence in Intergenerational Ministry
Our vision is to create an intergenerational ministry celebrating all who come to
Spirit of Unity.

As a family size church, we do not offer Sunday School for the children. Rather than
seeing this as a problem, we prefer to see it as an opportunity to create true community;
to pray, worship, learn and play together with others of all ages, of like mind and heart.

Our goal is to plan and present services and events that will provide a meaningful
experience, interesting and engaging everyone from our youngest to most senior
congregation members. Affirming the truth of the statement, "It takes a village to raise a
child," each child in the service is treated as a part of the family that they are.

The concept of intergenerational ministry is new to many. We pray knowing that as
others experience our vision, they will share our enthusiasm for this vision.

Our Shared Core Beliefs

  • 1.We believe in God, the Good--Omnipotence, Omniscience, Omnipresence,
    and Omnibenevolence--Our Father-Mother God, Divine Mind, in Whom "we live
    and move and have our being (Acts 17:28, NAB). We believe that God-Mind is
    primary and causative, and we believe in the supremacy and eternity of the
    Good.

  • 2.We believe in Christ, the Son of God, the perfect Word or Idea of God, that
    abides in each person as potential perfection.

  • 3.We believe in Jesus Christ, the Head of our Church, the Son of God made
    manifest in Jesus of Nazareth, the embodiment of all divine ideas, which exists
    externally in Divine Mind.

  • 4.We believe in the Holy Spirit--the whole Spirit of God in action, God's love
    and grace ever ready to be poured out in spiritual baptism upon all who
    receptively look to it for guidance.

  • 5.We believe in the Holy Trinity of God (Father-Mother): Mind, Idea (the Christ)
    and Expression (Holy Spirit): we believe that the whole Spirit of God is with us
    at all times, everywhere.

  • 6.We believe in the trinity of humankind: the threefold nature of each person
    as Spirit (Superconscious or Christ Mind), soul (or mind, including conscious
    and subconscious), and body (including all that appears in this plane of
    embodiment).

  • 7.We believe that the kingdom of heaven or harmony is within the individual,
    and that through each person the law and order existing in Divine Mind are to
    be established on earth.

  • 8.We believe that the way to the full experience and expression of the kingdom
    of heaven is not through any material object or personality, but only through
    the indwelling Christ.

  • 9.We believe that the "second coming" of Jesus Christ is now being fulfilled,
    that His Spirit is quickening the whole world.

  • 10.We believe that God's will for us is good and only good, including
    illumination, wholeness, prosperity, harmony, peace and joy, and that God "is
    pleased to give (us) the kingdom" (Lk 12:32, NAB)

  • 11.We believe that we are created "in the divine image" (Genesis 2:27, NAB),
    and therefore are co-creators with God, endowed with free will and spiritual
    dominion.

  • 12.We believe that divine intelligence is always present in every atom of
    humankind and matter.

  • 13.We believe in the creative power of thoughts and words, whether spoken or
    silent.

  • 14.We believe in the power of prayer to illumine, heal, prosper, and bless
    unlimited by time and space.

  • 15.We believe in the law of mind action: that thoughts held in mind reproduce
    after their kind.

  • 16.We believe in the Golden Rule: "Do unto others whatever you would have
    them do to you" (Mt. 7:12 NAB) as our standard of life.

  • 17.We believe we are to follow Jesus Christ in the Regeneration--the unification
    of Spirit, soul, and body in eternal spiritual oneness, or unity.

  • 18.We believe all the doctrines of Christianity, spiritually interpreted, and agree
    with the universal Truth evident in all religions, for each one is a path to God.

  • 19.We believe that the Holy Bible testifies to the Word of God, the Truth that
    is echoed in all scriptures.

  • 20.We believe that it is our divine purpose to provide a setting where the
    Word of Truth is spoken, according to our highest understanding of the
    teachings of Jesus Christ in the tradition of Charles and Myrtle Fillmore, co-
    founders of the Unity Movement, and others of like mind, for the Word of
    Truth illumines, heals, prospers, and frees. "You will know the truth, and the
    truth will set you free." (Jn 8:32, NAB)

  • 21.We believe that Spirit of Unity Church is a ministry for spiritual learning and
    healing in mind and in body, and a place of happiness of peace, where the love
    offering plan is taught and practiced. We teach and practice the Christ
    principles of tithing in appreciation for spiritual food, and we know that Truth is
    priceless. God is our instant, constant and abundant Source, and we are
    grateful!

    "The creed that you write today may not fit the
    viewpoint of tomorrow; hence the safe and sure religious foundation for all
    men that laid down by Jesus, 'The Spirit of Truth...shall guide you into all the
    truth.' A statement setting forth the teaching of a religious institution is
    essential, but compelling clauses should be omitted."
    Charles Fillmore, The Twelve Powers of Man

    The Statement of Faith composed by Charles Fillmore was published by Unity
    School throughout his life experience on this plane, and is the basis for the
    above Statement of Faith. Those who follow the Unity teachings are in no way
    compelled to accept this or any statement of faith, yet these ideas are set
    down as a standard of belief, that this congregation affirms as representing
    the fundamental teachings of Unity. We realize that our Statement of Faith is
    not written in stone, but rather, is always open to the guidance of the Holy
    Spirit. Members of our spiritual family who feel led to propose changes in this
    document are invited to submit their proposals in writing to the Minister of the
    church by December 1 of any year. Then during that December, these
    proposals will be prayerfully considered and put before the full membership for
    ratification at the next Annual Meeting in January of that year.

    This Unity Church Statement of Faith was written by the Reverend Leddy
    Hammock, based on the Statement of Faith written by Charles Fillmore, and
    published by Unity School of Christianity until 1984.
Our Minister, Church Mission, Vision,
Values and Core Beliefs