An Inclusive Spiritual Home on Telegraph Road
Set back from Telegraph Road among tall evergreens, the Unity Spiritual Center of Bellingham has been a steady presence in Whatcom County since 1961. More than six decades on, the center describes itself as "a joyful, evolving, and spiritually conscious community" that "celebrates the uniqueness of everyone, recognizing and welcoming each person as a beautiful expression of the One." The building, a wooded sanctuary with nine panel windows facing the forest, anchors a practice that blends Christian teaching, affirmative prayer, and an openness to the universal truths found in every religious tradition.
Unity of Bellingham is part of Unity Worldwide Ministries, the global movement founded in the late nineteenth century by Charles and Myrtle Fillmore. The Bellingham center is affiliated with the Unity NW Region and operates as a member-supported congregation. Sunday donations, class love offerings, and an active tithing program keep the center's ministries running.
Sunday Celebrations in Person and Online
Sunday gatherings begin at 10:00 a.m. and are offered both in person and as a livestream on the church's YouTube channel. Each service follows a familiar rhythm: opening titles, a welcome, a meditation song, prayer and a guided meditation, music, the Sunday message, announcements, and a closing "Prayer for Protection." Recent services have included messages such as "Next Level Order! Abundance from Overturning Obstacles," "Signs of the Sacred," "Living in a Sacred Order of Meshworks," and "A Great Turning of Unraveling and Re-braiding."
Music is woven through the morning. Singers and instrumentalists such as Kate Curtis, Cheryl Hodge, Marcia Osborne, Helen and Stephen, and a rotating jazz trio regularly perform pieces ranging from original meditations like "Hands of Grace" and "Heaven Guide Me" to songs such as "That's Who I Am," "The Breeze at Dawn," and "Feeling Good." A Prayer Chaplain is on hand each week to offer affirmative prayer, and Service Assistants and an Audio/Video Team keep the service running smoothly.
Anyone who cannot attend in person can watch live at 10:00 a.m. or catch up on archived services on the Unity Bellingham YouTube channel. Recorded services run roughly 45 minutes to an hour and a half, and edited versions are also posted.
Affirmative Prayer and the Five Principles
Unity's signature spiritual practice is affirmative prayer, described at the center as "the highest form of creative thought." Instead of asking a distant God for help, practitioners release limiting thoughts and hold statements of spiritual truth, believing that what is affirmed in consciousness tends to manifest in experience. The Prayer for Protection, written by James Dillet Freeman, is recited at the close of nearly every service:
"The light of God surrounds me, the love of God enfolds me, the power of God protects me, the presence of God watches over me, wherever I am, God is!"
The center outlines Five Principles that summarize its teaching:
- God is good and present in all things.
- The holiness of God is my own true nature.
- I am creating my experiences by how I think.
- My thinking is guided by my daily affirmative prayers and affirmative actions.
- I follow and am sustained by these values in every way, every day.
For those who would like prayer support beyond Sunday morning, requests can be submitted online, dropped in the prayer box at the center, or phoned in to the office. The local Prayer Chaplaincy, a team of more than a dozen volunteers, holds each request in prayer consciousness and then forwards it to Silent Unity, the movement's worldwide prayer ministry, for an additional thirty days of holding.
Weekday Classes, Conversations, and a Wednesday Series
Beyond Sunday, the center offers a weekly rhythm of study and spiritual practice.
- Spiritual Conversations meets Mondays from 10:30 to 11:45 a.m. Facilitated by Jonathan Hall, the group begins with the previous Sunday's message and lets the conversation unfold into the heart, soul, and mind of each person's Divine nature. A love offering is welcome.
- Tuesday Book Study gathers from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m., both in person and on Zoom. The group is currently working through Understanding Your Soul: The Channeled Wisdom of Jesus by Christine M. Bush, exploring how to apply spiritual principles to daily life.
- Prayer and Meditation on Wednesdays from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. brings together the Prayer Chaplains for shared prayer, followed by forty-five minutes of silence. Requests written during the hour are sent onward to Silent Unity.
- Komyo Reiki is offered on the first and third Wednesdays from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., with a brief meditation, a teaching on Reiki principles, an attunement, and group healings.
Mid-week offerings expand further through the Wednesday Spiritual Series, a rotating slate of one-time events, multi-week sessions, and longer seven-week series on topics such as book studies, journal explorations, creative projects, and group discussions. Most Wednesday offerings include an in-person component with a Zoom option as well. Past series have included the Minister's Fall Book Study and a fall contemplative program.
Longer-running study classes include a Deeper Meanings and Metaphysical Bible Course led by George Rounthwaite, meditation and elective classes with Jonathan Hall, and a Twelve Powers Art Course with M'Lyn Avera.
Earth Care and a Covenant with Mother Earth
Earth care is built into the center's identity, not treated as a side program. The Earth Care team meets on the second Sunday of each month after services and helped the congregation adopt an Earth Care Covenant in May 2022. The covenant affirms "the Oneness of all Beings in the Kosmos" and "the interconnectedness and interbeing of all creation," committing the community to live sustainably, healthfully, and in harmony with Mother Earth.
Practical actions grow out of that commitment. The team maintains a used-battery recycling box available on Sundays and supports an earth-oriented spirituality that the center weaves into its regular ministry. The center's Core Values list embraces "the Divine in our Mother Earth," naming local whales, eagles, salmon, and the surrounding ecosystem as expressions of God's grandeur.
Grace Bags, the Food Box, and Community Service
Unity of Bellingham describes compassionate service as one of its three central commitments, alongside spiritual practices and living on purpose. The center tithes to Silent Unity, Unity Worldwide Ministries, the NW Region, and local charities, and members serve with organizations across Whatcom County, including Habitat for Humanity, the Interfaith Coalition (Family Promise), CAST, the Light House Mission, Toys for Tots, the DVS Toy Drive, Relay for Life, a Lending Library Distribution Club, and the Interfaith Coat & Accessories Drive.
Two ongoing projects anchor the center's local outreach. The Unity Food Box gathers shelf-stable items such as canned tuna, chicken or salmon, peanut butter, canned vegetables, fruits, oils, spices, cereals, and healthy snacks for distribution to neighbors facing food insecurity. The most-needed list is updated on the center's Community Service page. Grace Bags are assembled year-round and distributed to people experiencing homelessness; each gallon-sized zip bag holds hygiene essentials, healthy snacks, and contact information for local support agencies. The center regularly asks for donations of toothbrushes, small toothpastes, hotel-size lotions and soaps, combs, hand sanitizer, small water bottles, and single-serve snacks sized to fit inside pockets and backpacks.
A Sanctuary Among the Trees
The center's building is as much a part of its ministry as any class or service. The Sanctuary accommodates up to 152 guests in theater seating or with tables and chairs, and faces nine tall windows looking out onto the surrounding forest. A projection screen and full A/V system support worship, concerts, and presentations. The smaller Forest Meeting Room seats fifteen to twenty guests, with theater seating or table arrangements, seven panel windows, and a 32-inch flat-screen television with DVD player.
In 2023, the congregation completed a "Grounded in Faith" capital campaign that replaced the 35-year-old roof, repaired the building's siding, installed new gutters, painted faded areas, trimmed intruding tree branches, decommissioned the septic system, and connected to the city's sewer. The work is finished, though ongoing donations to the building fund are still welcomed.
Weddings, Memorials, and Community Rentals
The center opens its spaces to the wider community. Weddings may use the Sanctuary, two additional rooms, and the kitchen. Memorials can be rented by the hour or for a full day, with access to the Sanctuary, the Forest Meeting Room, and the kitchen. Meetings can take advantage of the projection screen and A/V, and the television and DVD player are available for gatherings. Events and workshops may rent the Sanctuary and Forest Meeting Room by the hour or by the day. All rentals, member or non-member, require a completed Rental Guidelines and Policies agreement along with a Wedding, Rental, or Event Agreement.
Becoming a Member
Membership at Unity of Bellingham is open to anyone willing to attend the New Member's Class, traditionally held during Lent each year, and to sign an application. Members gain a practical voice in the consensus process for significant financial, visionary, and organizational decisions. More than that, the center frames membership as a way of saying yes to its ministries and mission: being "a joyful, evolving spiritual community, committed to spiritual practices, compassionate service, and living on purpose."
Leadership and Staff
Senior Minister Rev. Frank Castro-Wehr, ordained through Unity Worldwide Spiritual Institute, leads the center and preaches most Sundays. Spiritual education classes are led by George Rounthwaite (Deeper Meanings and Metaphysical Bible Course), Jonathan Hall (Meditation and various classes), and M'Lyn Avera (Twelve Powers Art Course). Marcia Osborne directs the Music Ministry, and a chaplaincy of more than a dozen trained Prayer Chaplains supports the prayer ministry.
Office, Giving, and Staying Connected
The office at 1095 Telegraph Road is open Monday through Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., with a midday break from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. Support for the center comes entirely through donations, and there are three ways to give: in person during a service or at the office, online through the secure giving platform, or by texting the word "give" to (360) 519-5195 and following the prompts. Prayer requests can be submitted online or by calling the office, and a weekly newsletter, email announcements, and the Daily Word magazine are available to anyone who would like to stay connected between visits.