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Unity Magazine—“Self-Empowerment Issue”—September/October 2020

Love yourself enough! Join Holly as she interviews Dawson Church, PhD, and they discuss how science is proving the affects of living a mindful life on the body. In his book, Mind to Matter: The Astonishing Science of How Your Brain Creates Material Reality Dr. Church shares: “As Mind to Matter drops each piece of the scientific puzzle. Dawson Church on 'The Science Behind Using Meditation: Rewiring Your Brain for Happiness' December 7, 2020 admin How Marijuana Works 0 Welcome back to the Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning podcast, episode #98 with researcher Dr. Dawson Church, the author of the new. Dawson Church appears to be a PhD in natural sciences (it explains why he thought m in the equation e=mc2 was matter not mass!). But the rest shows his evidence based approach to all matters of natural healing, intention experiments, meditation and so on. Dawson Memorial Baptist Church 1114 Oxmoor Road, Birmingham, AL 35209 205.871.7324 205.795.PRAY.

The September/October edition of Unity Magazine presents this year’s New Thought Walden Awards honorees, chosen by seven New Thought organizations working together to highlight 20 people who are making a difference.

You’ll get a glimpse of them in this edition and will probably want to do more of your own research, watch their videos, read their books, or even invite them to speak or teach where you are. Some you’ll recognize, some you won’t, but all are doing important work in the world from a spiritual foundation.

Here’s some of what you will find in the September/October 2020 issue of Unity Magazine, with suggestions to use the research and writing in your ministry.

The Power of Thought to Change Us

“Listening in with … Justin Michael Williams: A Practice to Empower” by Katy Koontz

The cover story is about one of the Walden honorees, musician Justin Michael Williams, who has published a book titled Stay Woke: A Meditation Guide for the Rest of Us.

He grew from hating meditation to seeing it as a lifesaving tool, especially for marginalized kids. His methods are more expansive than sitting still and trying to clear your mind. You might want to try it yourself or use his book in a meditation class.

“From Fear to Joy” by Anita Moorjani

Dawson Church Meditation Deutsch

Anita Moorjani, best-known for her book Dying to Be Me, says negative thoughts are an aspect of ourselves to be accepted, not repressed. She also ruminates on the meaning of self-love and authenticity in this excerpt from an interview she gave to Unity Online Radio. It’s all great fodder for Sunday talks.

“Bliss Brain” by Dawson Church

Dawson Church, Ph.D., a genetic researcher and New Thought minister, believes that human consciousness is trending upward. He says we’re making the world a better place because we can change our collective mind. We changed our mind about slavery, child labor, women voting, gay marriage, and we’re working on other changes—all moving toward greater compassion.

In fact, Church believes compassion may be driving brain evolution. He calls it “an upsurge in human flourishing.” Check out the article for an optimistic view of the world and humanity. You might want to use his book Bliss Brain for a class or book study.

Transport Yourself

“The Journey from Pain to Peace” by Celeste Huttes

Psychological trauma not only lodges in our bodies but can cause parts of our soul to take flight. Shamans use ancient practices to return the soul to wholeness. Now some shamans are working with veterans who have PTSD. This might open new doors if you’re offering healing work around trauma.

“On the Job-Tour with God” by Sue Frederick

A ministerial student who was widowed at age 29 reflects on the story of Job and whether we need to suffer in order to know love. It’s an interesting theological reflection. See whether you agree.

Highlights from the Columns

“Let’s Have Some Real Talk!”—In “Faith Matters,” Rev. Sandra Campbell on the honest talk we need to deal with race and other issues.
“The Power of a New Thought”—In “Healing, Science, and Spirituality,” Dawson Church on the difference a “new thought” can make in this era of lockdowns and job loss.
“The Paradox of Power”—Peter Bolland discusses the Jewish teaching that we are morally obligated to heal the world, in “A to Zen.”
“Reflections on the Pandemic”—The Jampolskys say with a virus at large, this is no time to let stress weaken your immune system, in “Attitude Is Everything.”
“From Broadway to Butterworth”—You will want to share Rev. Ken Daigle’s beautiful story of his journey into Unity via the HIV/AIDS pandemic, from “Expressions.”
“God’s Place in the Pandemic”—Rev. Tom Shepherd, D.Min., answers a reader who asks about COVID-19, “What is God trying to teach us by sending plagues?” from “Good Questions.”

Note: Take a look at page 12, with the gorgeous new Rise Into Your Power card deck and calendar based on the Unity 12 powers. You’ll want both.

We’ve all heard about the benefits of meditation. Less stress. Longer life span. Sharper memory. Greater happiness. Lower risk of cancer, heart disease, and diabetes. So why isn’t everyone meditating?

The answer is that meditation is hard. When you sit down and close your eyes, “Monkey Mind” takes over and it’s impossible to still your thoughts. Research shows that most people have tried, but given up. According to the US National Center for Health Statistics, only about 14% of the population has a regular practice.

Along with other researchers, for years I’ve been looking for a way to make meditation effortless for novices. We’ve studied the brains and bodies of master meditators using tools like EEGs and MRIs. We know exactly what their brain wave, muscle tone and breathing patterns look like.

One day I had a flash of inspiration. I wondered, “What would happen if a non-meditator sat, breathed, and relaxed exactly the same muscles as a meditation master?” I tried it myself, then with friends, then with large groups of people. The results were astonishing. People dropped into a deep meditative state in 4 minutes or less — no training or belief required.

Here’s one example:

'All I can say is WOW! I have been meditating often for the last year and have NEVER experienced what I just did while following the audio for EcoMeditation. I spend probably 99% of my day full of anxiety, frustration, fear and anger—just overall burnt out with parenthood and life. I was doubtful I’d have any type of enlightened experience and even kept hearing in my head, “You’re just wasting your time, you can’t get to that place inside of you, you’ve tried a million times before.” But when I sent the beam of love from my heart, I instantly started laughing and tears of pure bliss came out of my eyes. It was absolutely amazing and I will be doing EcoMeditation every day. Feeling that love and bliss is my dream. Thank you again!!!!!'
-Toni Tombleson

All Toni and other people did was follow the 7 simple steps below.

Researcher Judith Pennington hooked people up to an advanced EEG, and reported these results (Pennington et al., 2019):

EcoMeditation produced extraordinarily high levels of Gamma Synchrony. In two days, many participants acquired elevated brain states normal