Beliefs and Values
Our beliefs are not just words on a page, or something we believe solely with our minds. We enact our convictions, we pray them–and at our best–our beliefs shape us into people who act in love, hope, and faith as witnesses to the truth and participants in the reality that God desires,
a reality of peace, justice, and compassion.
We believe in God the Father
We are unashamed in our belief in a loving, life-giving, liberating God who created the universe and created us for love. We believe that God yearns to reconcile all things to God, and that we are called to witness and participate in that reconciliation. We believe that God is one, and that God is perfect Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
We believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God
We believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the perfect revelation of who God is. All things were created through Christ and by him all things are sustained (Colossians 1:15-17). Fully God, Jesus became human. He entered in solidarity with every aspect of humanity, and took upon himself the sins and suffering of this world. We believe that Jesus was crucified for our sins and rose again on the third day. Christ conquered death through death, and by his resurrection he opened for us a way to eternal life. Christ ascended into the heavenly realm, and will one day return to set everything right.
We believe in God the Holy Spirit
Jesus sent his Spirit to lead us, to comfort us, and to energize us to witness to God’s power. In baptism, we are sealed by the Spirit and marked as Christ’s own forever. We become a member of Christ’s body, the Church. The Spirit is what binds the universal church together and connects to all Christians in every time and place, living and dead. We believe in the resurrection of the body, and that through Christ and by the power of the Spirit God will reconcile all creation to God.
Our beliefs shape our values, as we strive to enact our faith
and be followers of Jesus.
We value belonging
You are not just welcome here, welcome implies that we own this place and that you can come visit. You are indeed more than welcome here, but we focus on belonging. We belong to Jesus and everyone belongs in God’s house. You have a place at the table and your presence enriches our common life immensely.
We value our neighborhood
Our church inhabits a particular place, Penn Wynne, and we value and cherish our neighborhood. We seek to love our neighbors and serve our community. We take our spiritual responsibility to this place seriously.
We value diversity
God did not make us all the same. This is a place where diversity of all sorts can belong. We strive to be a place where differences are celebrated, but divisiveness is overcome. We long to be a place for all kinds of diversity, ethnic, socio-economic, political, age, gender, sexual orientation.
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth;
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.THE APOSTLE’S CREED