Our Identity Statement
The identity statement of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) states: “We are Disciples of Christ, a movement for wholeness in a fragmented world. As part of the one body of Christ we welcome all to the Lord’s Table as God has welcomed us.”
We practice unity and inclusion at the Lord’s Table
All are welcome to the Lord’s Table for the sake of mission and for the sake of the world as the one family of God. We do this by celebrating communion every Sunday.
We Confess that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior
We affirm that Jesus is the Christ, the son of the Living God. We believe that the avenue of one’s salvation is through the humbling of one’s self before God, seeking forgiveness of one’s sins and accepting Jesus Christ as lord and savior. As the Apostle Paul tells us in Romans 10:9-10 “If you confess that Jesus is Lord and believe that God raised him from death, you will be saved. For it is by our faith that we are put right with God; it is by our confession that we are saved.”
We practice believer’s baptism by immersion
We believe that baptism is most appropriately experienced at an age of discernment in which one personally understands what it means to make a personal commitment to God by accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
Although we accept other forms of baptism, we practice baptism by immersion believing that it is symbolic of the old self-centered life dying and a new life of trust in God beginning. The Apostle Paul tells us in Romans 6:3-4: “For surely you know that when we were baptized into union with Christ Jesus, we were baptized into union with his death. By our baptism, then, we were buried with him and shared his death in order that just as Christ was raised from death by the glorious power of the Father, so also we might live a new life.”
We are a movement for Christian Unity
We honor our heritage as a movement for Christian unity by cooperating and partnering with other faith communities to work for bringing about wholeness – healing and justice – in the world. As the Apostle Paul encourages us in Philippians 2:2: “Complete Top of Form my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.” This is what it means to be “ecumenical.”
We study scripture
We are called to study and read scripture for ourselves. We critically and thoughtfully study scripture while taking into account the history and background-the context-in which it was written. As Paul expressed to young Timothy in II Timothy 3:16-17: “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction for right living, so that the person who serves God may be fully qualified and equipped to do every kind of good deed.”
We answer God’s call for justice
We move to answer God’s call for justice particularly in the areas of care for the earth, the challenges for women and children, poverty and hunger and immigration. We seek to do this work in cooperation with other people of faith.
Statement of Faith
As members of the Christian Church,
We confess that Jesus is the Christ,
the Son of the living God,
and proclaim him Lord and Savior of the world.
In Christ’s name and by his grace
we accept our mission of witness
and service to all people.
We rejoice in God,
maker of heaven and earth,
and in God’s covenant of love
which binds us to God and to one another.
Through baptism into Christ
we enter into newness of life
and are made one with the whole people of God.
In the communion of the Holy Spirit
we are joined together in discipleship
and in obedience to Christ.
At the Table of the Lord
we celebrate with thanksgiving
the saving acts and presence of Christ.
Within the universal church
we receive the gift of ministry
and the light of scripture.
In the bonds of Christian faith
we yield ourselves to God
that we may serve the One
whose kingdom has no end.
Blessing, glory, and honor
Be to God forever, Amen
