"In a spiritual context, wholeness is the energy of communion, principle, purpose, and nonresistance... Wholeness is not outside of you, nor it is separate from you. It is the essence of your true nature and spiritual identity. And because wholeness is the foundation of your being, nothing can oppose you...

"The belief that someone or something is against you is what Jesus called the 'enemy'. Your enemy could be your body, an illness or physical condition. Your enemy could be a dreaded eventuality such as death or a divorce. Your enemy could be an unsympathetic co-worker or a colleague who challenges your authority. Whatever seems to be against you is your enemy. You know that you are in relationship to an 'enemy' when your first inclination is to be in control of the situation or to be right or to make the other person wrong. When you resist change, you are face-to-face with an enemy - a situation or person holding your well-being hostage.

"Remember that the enemy is a reflection of your belief that someone or someone is against you. The belief is not true. Nor is it true that the person or situation is against you. Regarding the person or situation as being against you will only create more separation. You must relate differently to the experience in order to dismantle the belief that supports the experience of an enemy in your life."

"In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told the disciples that anyone could love those who give love in return... But to be considered a child of God, you must love where it is most difficult to love... In other words, you must treat your enemy as you would treat a beloved friend...For this to occur, you must do as Jesus instructs: "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good the them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you." (Mt. 5:44 KJV). This instruction is a method for demonstrating your wholeness..."

The above paragraphs are excerpted from "I of the Storm: Embracing Conflict and Creating Peace", by Rev. Dr. Gary Simmons, Unity's former Director of Peacemaking. For most of us, conflict is an unwelcome intrusion into our lives. Rev. Simmons suggests that we learn shift our perception away from an "us vs. them" orientation to one of gratitude for the learning opportunities presented by conflict.

For the next seven weeks, we'll be looking at ways to befriend conflict. Learning to create peace is important work. Our Sunday lessons will be focusing the transformative possibilities available through conflict. On Saturdays, you will have the opportunity to go deeper into the work of peacemaking in a classroom setting. We frequently claim the intention to "be the change we wish to see in the world". This work will help you to actually do that.

The I of the Storm: Embracing Conflict, Creating Peace

Sundays through Oct. 9 (10:30 - 11:30 am)

Saturday Morning Study Group: 10:00am - 11:30am Aug. 27 - Oct. 8

Our great commandment is to love one another as we love ourselves. If we are to do this, we must learn to navigate conflict. We all want peace. Learning to relate to conflict in a positive way is a necessary first step.

I invite you to join in as we work together to learn how to move beyond merely managing the conflict in our lives to actually embracing it, remaining open to learning the lessons we might not otherwise learn. This process leads to peace, within ourselves, in our relationships, and with outer circumstances. We'll explore how our spiritual principles, biblical teachings, and concepts from modern science all point us toward the means of realizing peace in our lives.

In addition to Sunday lessons, Nita will facilitate a series of Saturday morning classes. There are specific actions and practices we can incorporate into our lives which allow us to function more peacefully in our day-to-day lives. Unity Institute elective credit will be available for those who may be seeking leadership credentialing.

Books are available at amazon.com . A few copies will be available at class.