ABOUT OUR CHURCH

OUR HISTORY

The vision of Unity Church of Jesus Christ is to: Embrace God, Embrace People, Embrace Service.

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THE BEGINNING

Unity Church of Jesus Christ grew out of the merger of two small fellowships; the Ministries of Life Fellowship, which met house-to-house in the State College area, and the Black Christian Fellowship, which met on the Penn State University campus.  Rev. Gerald Loyd, a graduate student at Penn State during this time, pastored both groups.  The two groups officially merged on April 10, 1977, to become, Unity Christian Ministries.  The name was later changed to Unity Church of Jesus Christ based upon the inspiration found in Psalm 133, “Behold how good and pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity…”

Under the leadership of Pastor Loyd and his wife Margie the congregation grew.  In 1983, Unity purchased a warehouse previously used for mining safety training.   Through the diligent work of the members and God’s faithfulness, the site was renovated into a place of worship. The first service was held on November 10, 1985. Unity Church continued to grow and new congregations were planted by members of the State College parent church in Williamsport, Spring Mills, Indiana, and Johnstown, PA.  The church in Indiana continues to thrive to this day.

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TRANSITION & GROWTH

While Unity has experienced many blessings from God, we have also overcome times of great sorrow and difficulty.  Nineteen Ninety was a time of transition for the Unity Church family.  Harold McKenzie became the senior pastor of Unity Church of Jesus Christ in State College and the other satellite churches became independent congregations under the pastors who were leading them at the time.  Though independent, the congregations in State College and Indiana, maintain a cooperative, supportive relationship. 

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Under the direction of Pastor McKenzie and a dedicated leadership team, Unity rebounded. While encouragement came from many people to move to a larger facility, in 2014 God confirmed to Pastor McKenzie the need for unity to “enlarge our tents” (Isa. 54:2). In 2016 the congregation began the two year With Faith We Can fund raising campaign. During that time the building known as church home and sanctuary to the Unity family for more than 30 years was sold and the current facility was purchased.

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WHOW WE ARE NOW

Unity continues to have a great impact for the Kingdom in the State College community and on Penn State University’s campus.  Pastor McKenzie and the leadership team believe that as we walk in the vision that God has given us, He will continue to do marvelous things.  It is our desire that as people visit our congregation, they will encounter a community of believers committed to worshiping the Lord, sharing His love, building one another up, and spreading the Good News.  It is our hope that through this encounter they will experience the life changing presence of our heavenly Father in a profound and unique way.