The first worship services were held Sunday for Transformational Life Center at 6263 E. Thomas Road, Mesa. Led by the Rev. Shari Franklin, an ordained Unity minster, the church meets 5 p.m. Sundays in space leased from Mesa Palms Seventh-day Adventist Church.
The new ministry is affiliated with the Association of Unity Churches International, consisting of more than 900 churches.
Franklin previously served as the minister of two churches in Texas, first in Austin, the other outside of San Antonio. She has served more than nine years in the Valley teaching classes and workshops in churches, officiating at wedding ceremonies and volunteering around the Valley for nonprofit groups. They include Save the Family, Patchwork Lives Giving Circle and the Arizona Interfaith Movement. Besides speaking to world religion classes at Scottsdale Community College, Franklin has presented a weekly radio and Internet program, “Let There Be Light,” for two years on KFHX (1620 AM) and www.kfhx.com. It can be heard 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Monday. Because it is also aired over the Internet, Franklin calls it a “ministry without walls.”
“The objective of the program is to offer a message of inspiration and encouragement along life’s journey,” she said.
Next month, the church will have Christmas Eve services at 6 p.m. and a New Year’s Eve service at 7 p.m. The pastor calls Unity “positive and practical Christianity” that uses biblical teachings “focused on using the inspirational wisdom of the Scriptures in daily life.”
For more information, see the church’s Web site, www.unitytlc.org.
