Jesus is at the center of our life at St. John’s. We know him as God’s son and as the most transparent revelation of God’s loving character and purpose. Jesus shows us how much God loves us, how far God is willing to go to save us, and how humanity behaves when restored to harmony with God.
God is the Divine Trinity of Father, Son, Holy Spirit: We say ‘Father” because Jesus used this intimate word when conversing with God the creator. God has revealed the Divine Self as the Creator of all things, as Jesus the Messiah, and as the Holy Spirit. All three work in concert as one God with one purpose, i.e. to raise us into the eternal, mutual, loving life of God.
Creeds:We proclaim the ancient core teachings of the universal church using the Apostles, and the Nicene Creeds. Whenever we worship, we proclaim a Creed because they are faithful anchors for faith in the storm of life. Of course we know that the Creeds raise many questions; conversation and questions are always welcome! The church as a community proclaims the Creeds so don’t worry if you are not ready to say it just yet.
Bible: We listen for God’s word in the Bible. On Sunday we have three readings from scripture and a Psalm, because we believe our access to the living God is through the Bible brought to life in community by the Holy Spirit. Without the Bible we would have no clue about God or why we should trust the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob at all. Of course, the Bible is a library of books and also raises lots of questions. We delight in those conversations.
Worship is how we give thanks to God for all the abundant gifts of this life and most of all for the gift of Jesus. Our worship is a sacrifice of our time and attention in thanks to God and a time to heal, fill, inspire, and nurture our souls in faith. After all, we could be doing so many other things on Sunday morning! Instead, we give ourselves to God in response to God’s gift of life. Worship at St. John’s is warm, welcoming and energizing.
Holy Communion is celebrated every Sunday. Jesus gave us a promise that he would be present wherever two or three gathered in his name and in the breaking of the bread. We believe that Jesus is true to his word and present in the bread and wine of Communion. Jesus is the bread of life who feeds our souls and shares his divine life with us so we may be eternally connected to God. All are welcome at Communion.
LGBTQIA+ people are full, equal, and beloved in the Body of Christ at St. John’s Episcopal Church. All Sacraments, roles, and fellowship are available to queer Christians here.
Marriage: At St. John’s we believe that marriage is a gift from God for the mutual benefit of each partner as equal image-bearers of God. We believe that submission to our partner is a two way street and that ‘headship’ of the family is shared. We also embrace the single life and put no stigma on divorce.
Sacraments: Because Jesus instituted the Eucharist and participated in Baptism, we hold these two Sacraments as entirely reliable conduits of God’s unbreakable love and grace. We offer Baptism for people of all ages. Your baptism in another church is totally valid here. Because we are a mix of Protestant and Catholic, we also offer five other Sacramental rites for various stages of life: Confirmation, Marriage, Reconciliation of a Penitent (private confession), Sacrament of the Sick, and Anointing at the time of death.
Our church is strictly non-partisan: Secular notions of party and ideology are not our concern, we are, however, passionately concerned about the well being of our community and how social policies support or detract from that well being, especially for the most vulnerable. The Bible offers us a vision of mercy and justice that we will speak to from time to time. All of us must examine our commitments against the teaching of the Gospel, sometimes they will be affirmed, sometimes challenged.
