Our mission is to make and mature disciples for Jesus Christ.
From time to time, the Session, our board of elders, will prepare written reports of how we believe God is speaking to our church today. These reports are to inform the congregation of the position of the church, and to help members in their own discernment.
Church leaders are bound to these positions and cannot teach anything that departs from them. Church leaders are encouraged to engage, challenge, question, and study alternative views as long as this is done for educational purposes and not to explicitly or implicitly teach other views as official position.
Church members are not required to believe or agree with what is presented, that is, to “subscribe,” in order to be part of the fellowship of the church. Our church tradition has always valued a person's right to declare “scruples” – to identify areas in which she or he can express biblical dissent with points of doctrine.
These Session reports are also not to become an excuse to avoid compassion. While we believe these reports represent faithful and biblical responses to the issues presented and will be useful for training, educating, and guiding, we know they also risk being a blunt and inappropriate tool in certain pastoral situations that require sensitivity and compassion.
Definition of Terms
These help clarify what we mean when we use certain words. We will add definitions here as we create and approve them.
Interpretation of Scripture
In Reformed theological tradition, we emphasize teachings such as the sovereignty of God, which has implications on how we understand salvation, election, and evangelism, to name a few. These interpretations of Scripture clarify our understandings of what Scripture leads us to believe and do. We will add interpretations here as we create and approve them.