Charles and Myrtle Fillmore came from completely different backgrounds, each developing their own assortment of traits and gifts which later combined to create a pathway to enlightenment, enriching the lives of countless others.
As a child, Charles Fillmore lived in the wilderness of pre-statehood Minnesota, where his father was a trader to the Chippewa Indians. A hip injury he sustained in an ice-skating accident was treated with primitive remedies to heal the resulting bone infection, leaving him with pain and difficulty walking for the rest of his life. He received little schooling and was, essentially, self-educated and, indeed, a self-made man.
Myrtle, on the other hand, was raised in relative affluence, attended Oberlin College, received a higher level of education than what was common for women of that time, and became a teacher.
During the 1880s, Charles Fillmore achieved abundant success during a real estate boom in Kansas City. He even contributed greatly to the laying out of the city. The Fillmores had become truly affluent and had the world by the handle. However, the financial boom collapsed, devastating the finances of the Fillmores. In addition, Myrtle had tuberculosis and was not expected to live more than six months. At that time, it was believed that tuberculosis was hereditary, and there was a history of the disease among Myrtle’s ancestors.
This was a tremendously unsettling time for the Fillmores, but for Myrtle, it was enormously more compelling as she faced what appeared to be a tuberculosis death sentence.
These horrendous developments launched the Fillmores on a quest – searching, listening, reading – seeking solutions. Eventually, their quest brought them to an auditorium where Dr. E. B. Weeks, a student and lecturer from the Emma Curtis Hopkins School was delivering a lecture.
There are those who contend that living within each of us is that quiet but powerful essence where the answers lie, where true guidance and inspiration await our discovery. It could be said that the heart-rending situation Myrtle was facing heightened the awareness, the receptivity of her inner essence. It is unknown what E. B. Weeks said during that lecture. Was it his words or the fertile ground within the heart of Myrtle Fillmore? What we do know is that the words Myrtle Fillmore heard in that auditorium sparked her inner essence and bolted her out of who she had been. She said she left that lecture a changed woman. The affirmation she carried with her from there and throughout her life is, “I am a child of God and, therefore, I do not inherit sickness.” An affirmative prayer empowered by absolute and total belief. In two years of prayer and meditation, Myrtle healed her body of tuberculosis and lived another forty years. No doubt the Nazarene would have told her, “Your faith has saved you.”
When others in need asked her about her healing and she explained, they asked if she would pray with them. Word spread, and friends gathered to form small prayer groups. Many experienced healing. The prayer groups became known as The Society of Silent Help which eventually became Silent Unity, today a 24/7 prayer ministry using affirmative prayer to provide others with faith, courage, and strength.
What we have learned of Myrtle Fillmore indicates that she was a loving, feeling individual, a holistic thinker guided by imagination, feelings, visualization, and intuition. Charles, on the other hand, was an analytical, intellectual kind of person, a linear thinker, dealing with facts and logic. He was skeptical of these New Thought ideas at first but saw the great benefits Myrtle was experiencing. Although it took longer, Charles also experienced a measure of healing of his withered leg, eventually discarding his cane and braces. The Fillmores’ quest grew into a movement and spread worldwide.
It is as if Myrtle Fillmore gave birth to this movement by virtue of her receptiveness to the message, uttered by E. B. Weeks and her subsequent healing. Charles, with his enquiring mind and writing skill, carried the movement forward to worldwide recognition and following.
Today we all face the unrelenting challenge of the coronavirus pandemic. For over a year we have experienced every kind of devastation including the loss of millions of lives. It is far too easy to take our cue from all of those out-there developments and be overtaken and filled with fear and despair. It seems more important than ever to look at the story of the Fillmores and recognize what exactly turned things around for them. Yes, they engaged in a quest for a solution. But it seems clear that the powerful, receptive essence within intuitive Myrtle Fillmore was the fertile ground where the words of Dr. E. B. Weeks could take hold. We all do have that same powerful inner essence. Whether we are analytical like Charles or intuitive like Myrtle, we have the ability to be still and know. Myrtle Fillmore proved conclusively the power of faith-filled prayer and meditation. This is available to all of us now. We cannot change the devastating conditions of the out-there, but we can change our own situation by shifting our focus from all of that out-there to our inner essence. And Unity is here to help. Silent Unity is there, and although Unity gatherings are now virtual, they are just as potentially powerful. It is all about what we hold within as we seek.
Sunday morning service with Unity of the Seacoast may be found on Facebook at ten o’clock bringing messages of hope and inspiration. Join us in meditation as we sit in the silence and simply let go of the out-there and experience the blessings available.
Myrtle found it, and so can you,
That something within
To guide you through,
Be still and let,
Be still and know.
Love and Light!
Frank Barron