The Beginning, 1918
The College of Divine Metaphysics was organized in 1918 as the realization of a dream held by Dr Joseph Perry Green,
one of the early pioneers in the Metaphysical movement
in America. In order to raise money to establish the
College, Dr Green traveled from city to city, giving
lectures and holding classes. Many of our alumni gained
their first knowledge of Metaphysics in those early gatherings.
Dr Green
With courage born of great
faith, Dr Green ventured into unknown territory to teach
the standard of Truth. But through his journeys around
the country, he began to realize the impossibility
of personally reaching the many people who were ready
for his message of Truth. Perhaps there would be only a few in one town, a dozen or more in another, but those
interested were far separated from one another;
covering the expense of bringing the message in person
became too great a challenge. Yet Dr Green knew many
people around the country were ready for the Divine Metaphysics message.
Out of this need, and the earnest desire in the minds
of many people, the College of Divine Metaphysics was
born. This same human appeal has kept it in continuous
operation ever since. Circumstances have retarded progress
from time to time, but through each experience, the
College emerged stronger than ever.
In 1925, Dr Green assigned
the extension work to Dr William H. Woodfin who, at
that time, was Director-General of the Church of Divine
Metaphysics. Dr Greens schedule kept him for
some time in California, and when he decided to remain there, he resigned from the Presidency of the
College.
1920 to 1945
On April 15, 1925, Dr Woodfin was elected to fill the office of Director when Dr Green
resigned. Dr Woodfin held this position until his death
on April 23, 1945. In the first seven years, the Institution
had not grown much; it had become apparent that if the
school was to fulfill its purpose and become an important
factor in the Metaphysical movement, some changes in
program and methods of operation must be made.
With the training and experience
gained in his many years of organization work, Dr Woodfin
concentrated the full
force of his logical mind to the task. He first sought
to establish a policy that would be stable and permanent
for the purpose of creating confidence and assurance
among the students. Next, he moved to broaden the influence
of the school and to bring it to the attention of those
most interested.
It was a long, arduous process. Inadequate equipment and
lack of funding added to the difficulty. Only
firm determination and an unquenchable faith in the
rightness of what he was doing kept Dr Woodfin
at his desk.
Little by little he laid the
foundation for a country-wide movement. At no time during
the long term of his Administration did he swerve or
deviate from his ideal for teaching sound principles
of Truth. There were times when a compromise with principle
seemed to promise greater financial returns, but he
held true to his ideals and to the course that ultimately
led the College to its goal for expansion.
1945 to 1977
As years passed, it became increasingly
important that the school own its home, and a building
was purchased in June of 1944. It housed the College
work and was well adapted to its needs. After Dr Woodfin
passed away, his secretary, Dr Ruth M. Hurley, became
president. She continued the work of the College until
Dr. Henry Carns became president.
In the late 1950s, Dr Henry
A. Carns became the Colleges fourth president
at its location on Illinois Street in Indianapolis,
Indiana. In 1969 the College moved to N. Delaware
Street, Indianapolis. For over twenty years Dr Carns
propagated the message for which the College stood;
as a result, the school's message found its way to Metaphysical
students not only in the U.S., but around the world.
1977 to 1991
On December 1, 1977, Dr Henry
A. Carns retired. At this time, the College and the
Church of Divine Metaphysics closed in Indianapolis.
In 1978, the Alumni Association of the College of Divine
Metaphysics of the Church of Divine Metaphysics was
incorporated in the State of California as a nonprofit
religious and educational corporation. The Association
resumed operations of the College under its fifth president,
Dr Joseph A. Garduno of Glendora, California, with Dr
Virginia Means of Pasadena as the College Vice-President
and Advisor. In 1990, Dr Joe's
daughter, Penelope Privette, began serving as the school
secretary.
1991 to 2006
In 1991, Dr Garduno
engaged Ann Gordon (a CoDM student and author) to edit and update the College
courses and promotional materials. Dr Ann was a teacher,
consultant, copy editor, and published author; she has
a Bachelor's degree in English, a Master's degree in Computer
Information Systems, and a Ph.M. degree from the College
of Divine Metaphysics. In the year 2002, she built
the school's first website to help spread the word about the courses and
programs offered by the school.
After Dr Means passed away, Dr Ann expanded her role to
become the College Advisor as well as the Webmaster. In
2006, she became the Vice-President of the school,
in charge of the Online Division. Throughout the remainder of his tenure, Dr Joe taught the students who communicated through postal mail while Dr Ann taught the students who communicated through email.
2007
In 2007, Dr Garduno moved
back to New Mexico, to the land where he had been born and raised.
He moved the main office of the College with him to New Mexico. Dr Gordon remained in Utah, headquarters of the Online Division.
2018 to 2022
In January 2019, right after the school turned 100 years old, Dr Joe passed away and was buried near his home in New Mexico. At that time, Dr Ann became the college's sixth President. She licensed the church and school as a non-profit in the State of Utah and began serving all students, those using postal mail as well as those online. In 2020, she expanded the school's outreach to those incarcerated in U.S. prisons. Between 2020 and 2022, the school enrolled over 60 inmates, many of whom earned a degree or certificate.
2023 to Present
In 2023, the Business Division of the State of Utah advised the Church pesident that a non-academic, sectarian school like ours could not use the word "College" or "Institute" in our title and could not grant degrees. To remain licensed in the state, the school had to change its name and drop the degee program. To comply, we renamed the school "Divine Metaphysics Mastery" and expanded our Certificate options.
Incorporation
In the State of Missouri, the Church of Divine Metaphysics incorporated the College of Divine Metaphysics as a spiritual (religious) educational institutionin 1918. They renewed the license in the State of Indiana
in 1928, and in the State of California in 1978. In 2023, the Church incorporated Divine Metaphysics Mastery and established the correspondence school in Utah under the new name.
Click here (or on the insignia)
to learn about the college seal.
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