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OUR BELIEFS

 

The United Church of Christ embraces a theology heritage that affirms the Bible as the authoritative witness to the Word of God, the creeds of the ecumenical councils, and the confessions of the Reformation. The UCC has roots in the “covenantal” tradition — meaning there is no centralized authority or hierarchy that can impose any doctrine or form of worship on its members.

 

Christ alone is Head of the church. We seek a balance between freedom of conscience and accountability to the apostolic faith. The UCC therefore receives the historic creeds and confessions of our ancestors as testimonies, but not tests of faith.

 

We are a community of faith that seeks to respond to the Gospel of Jesus Christ in word and deed. We are a church that has affirmed the ideal that Christians do not always have to agree, to live together in communion. Our motto –“that they may all be one”– is Jesus’ prayer for the unity of the church.

 

Two words are often used to describe the United Church of Christ: freedom and responsibility. We have been described as “a church that is independent and subject to no temporal authority; but equally a church that is the servant of all and minister to everyone.”

 

Freedom, responsibility, and covenant form the core of the UCC Constitution. These traits also impact individual members of the church. Each member has the freedom and responsibility…with the leading of God’s Spirit, the use of one’s mind, the devotion of one’s heart, and the guidance of the historic traditions of the universal church…to work out a faith that is meaningful to her or him.

 

IF…

 

…you understand that faith is a matter of mind as well as heart, and that taking the Bible seriously means it cannot always be taken literally

 

…you know that God’s love embraces all persons equally, no matter their gender, race, or sexual identity

 

…you believe that Christ calls us to be nothing less than global citizens, that social expression of love is justice, and that spiritual concerns are inseparable from commitment to the natural world

 

…you’ve wished for a more open and embracing community of faith to nurture your spirit and raise your children

 

THEN…

 

…we invite you to join us at St. Michael’s UCC and explore all the ways that God is still speaking.

 

CLICK HERE FOR A LINK TO THE “GOD IS STILL SPEAKING” WEB SITE

 

 

 

United Church of Christ Statement of Faith

Adapted by Robert V. Moss

 

We believe in God, the Eternal Spirit, who is made know to us in Jesus our brother, and to whose deeds we testify:

 

God calls the worlds into being, creates humankind in the divine image, and sets before us the ways of life and death.

 

God seeks in holy love to save all people from aimlessness and sin.

 

God judges all humanity and all nations by that will of righteousness declared through prophets and apostles. In Jesus Christ, the man of Nazareth, our crucified and risen Lord, God has come to us and shared our common lot, conquering sin and death and reconciling the whole creation to its creator.

 

God bestows upon us the Holy Spirit, creating and renewing the church of Jesus Christ, binding in covenant faithful people of all ages, tongues, and races.

 

God calls us into the church to accept the cost and joy of discipleship, to be the servants in the service of the whole human family, to proclaim the gospel to all the world and resist the powers of evil, to share in Christ’s baptism and eat at his table, to join him in his passion and victory.

 

God promises all who trust in the gospel forgiveness of sins and fullness of grace, courage in the struggle for justice and peace, the presence of the Holy Spirit in trial and rejoicing, and eternal life in that kingdom which has no end.

 

Blessing and honor, glory and power be unto God.

 

Acknowledgement: Much of the information presented above has been adapted from various United Church of Christ publications.

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