The History of Unity of Beaverton

Two separate groups came together to form what is today called Unity Church of Beaverton:  the West Side Unity Church and the Church of Truth and Metaphysical Library.

West Side Unity Church

West Side Unity, a church with 25 members, was initially run by Rev. Larry Miller in 1976 in the Portland federation.

In 1978, Westside Unity moved into an office building in the Sylvan.  The congregation grew so rapidly, it then moved into a theater in Washington Square, but growth once again forced a move to the Ace of Clubs Bridge Center on Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway.

Ultimately, Larry and his minister wife, Vicki Brown, moved to Washington State and, after a year without pastoral leadership, the church welcomed Rev. Barry Knowles.  She remained at the church for over eight years until health issues forced her retirement in 1993.

Church of The Truth

Today’s Unity of Beaverton Church originally was Church of The Truth, an independent New Thought group with no connections to any larger denomination.

In the early 1950’s, the group met at the Masonic Temple in downtown Portland.  The group acquired our current building at Fifth and Angel Streets in 1960.  Congregants extended an interest-free loan to the church to purchase the property.  The 25-year mortgage, however, was paid off in three years.  At the time, the active name on the front of the building was “Church of Truth and Metaphysical Library.

Back in the ‘50’s, while the Church of Truth was meeting elsewhere, our current sanctuary was being constructed as part of a Seventh-Day Adventist Church with a footprint of just under a half-acre.  The original finished sanctuary included hand-carved lighting fixtures. 

In 1960, the building was deeded over to the first New Thought Church in Beaverton, Oregon.  At that time the backdrop behind the lectern was put into place with the lighted lotus.  And, tucked quietly behind our backdrop today is the original baptismal font of those early days.   This lotus (or mandala) will celebrate its 50^th Anniversary in 2010!

The Merge

In 1985, Church of The Truth merged with West Side Unity, also a New Thought group affiliated with Unity School of Christianity in Missouri.  The Unity School of Christianity had been renting various spaces in southwest Portland prior to the merger.  The newly combined congregation adopted the name Unity Church of Truth while Rev.  Knowles remained until 1993. During this period our church parking lot was paved, the adjacent Youth Education building was purchased, the church became debt-free and weekly attendance reached as many as 150.

Like many other churches during mergers and redirection, ours experienced an era of turbulence.  Following the retirement of Rev. Knowles, various church factions nearly voted to disband.  But, after prayerful deliberation, they decided to stay together.  The final component in our transitional process was set in place with the hiring of Rev. Ed Townley who had been working in Portland with a non-traditional Unity ministry called Spirit Expressing.  The two churches merged and called themselves Unity Church of Beaverton.  The hope and intent was to allow Unity Church of Beaverton to establish a new identity while honoring the principles of New Thought.

Today and Into the Future

Through many challenges and reaffirmations over the past decade, Unity of Beaverton has grown in spirit and become a vibrant leader of the community.  Through prayer and blessings, we have become a strong and caring family, invested in our future through our energetic Youth Education program, developed one of the area’s most passionate and creative music programs, and we have become a successful partner in various outreach endeavors such as the Food Pantry, 12-step recovery programs and ecological Earth care issues.  As we prepare for growth tomorrow, we truly love the church we are today.