We seek to nurture disciples of Christ to be active witnesses in the world to the good news of God’s transforming grace in Christ Jesus our Lord.
We affirm that all are made in the image of God, and we welcome all whom God calls into the life, worship, work, and leadership of this congregation regardless of cultural heritage, skin color, gender, age, ability, socio-economic status, sexual orientation, circumstances, or previous condition of life.
OUR CORE CONGREGATIONAL VALUES
We are a passionate community of believers, who by the power of the Spirit, are growing in faith as we serve Christ in the world
We seek to keep Christ relevant in our daily lives and to offer compelling witness to him by spreading God’s message of grace, love, and hope in our community
We are a welcoming and accepting community that nurtures people by investing in their journey of faith, wherever it begins
We claim and value our Presbyterian heritage and connections
We develop and engage in diverse partnerships to accomplish effective ministry and mission
We explore God’s word together and seek to glorify God in our lives and worship
OUR CURRENT CONGREGATIONAL FOCUS PRIORITIES
SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT – It is important to grow our faith, and to be together in Christ. This includes:
Worship, prayer, proclamation of the Word, and celebration of the Sacraments
We seek to learn and grow in Christ, who equips us for spreading the good news to others
COMMUNITY – Being together as a congregation strengthens our relationship with Christ and one another. This includes:
Creating a warm and inviting place for worship and fellowship
Supporting each other through caring and nurturing, both in times of need and of celebration
Encouraging inclusion and participation; helping each other discover our gifts
MISSION AND SERVICE – Jesus directs us to love God, and to love others. This includes:
Reaching out to others to proclaim the good news, in our words and deeds
Serving others in our community; including those that have experienced injustice or are underserved
Speaking out for justice and righteousness in an imperfect world
Seeking partnerships to extend our local mission beyond our community
OUR CORE BELIEFS:
The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) states its faith and bears witness to God’s grace in Jesus Christ in the creeds and confessions found in our Book of Confessions. While these confessional statements are subordinate standards, subject to the authority of Jesus Christ, the Word of God, as the Scriptures bear witness to him, in these statements, we declare to our members and to the world: who and what we are, what we believe, and what we resolve to do in the world.
Found in our Book of Confessions, the Brief Statement of Faith was adopted by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in 1991 to celebrate our common faith and calling. As a congregation of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), New Hanover Presbyterian Church affirms this statement of faith as being representative of our core beliefs:
A BRIEF STATEMENT OF FAITH*
In life and death we belong to God.
Through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the love of God
and the communion of the Holy Spirit,
we trust in the one triune God, the Holy One of Israel,
whom alone we worship and serve.
We trust in Jesus Christ,
Fully human, fully God.
Jesus proclaimed the reign of God:
preaching good news to the poor
and release to the captives,
teaching by word and deed
and blessing the children,
healing the sick
and binding up the brokenhearted,
eating with outcasts,
forgiving sinners,
and calling all to repent and believe the gospel.
Unjustly condemned for blasphemy and sedition,
Jesus was crucified,
suffering the depths of human pain
and giving his life for the sins of the world.
God raised Jesus from the dead,
vindicating his sinless life,
breaking the power of sin and evil,
delivering us from death to life eternal.
We trust in God,
whom Jesus called Abba, Father.
In sovereign love God created the world good
and makes everyone equally in God’s image
male and female, of every race and people,
to live as one community.
But we rebel against God; we hide from our Creator.
Ignoring God’s commandments,
we violate the image of God in others and ourselves,
accept lies as truth,
exploit neighbor and nature,
and threaten death to the planet entrusted to our care.
We deserve God’s condemnation.
Yet God acts with justice and mercy to redeem creation.
In everlasting love,
the God of Abraham and Sarah chose a covenant people
to bless all families of the earth.
Hearing their cry,
God delivered the children of Israel
from the house of bondage.
Loving us still,
God makes us heirs with Christ of the covenant.
Like a mother who will not forsake her nursing child,
like a father who runs to welcome the prodigal home,
God is faithful still.
We trust in God the Holy Spirit,
everywhere the giver and renewer of life.
The Spirit justifies us by grace through faith,
sets us free to accept ourselves and to love God and neighbor,
and binds us together with all believers
in the one body of Christ, the church.
The same Spirit
who inspired the prophets and apostles
rules our faith and life in Christ through Scripture,
engages us through the Word proclaimed,
claims us in the waters of baptism,
feeds us with the bread of life and the cup of salvation,
and calls women and men to all ministries of the church.
In a broken and fearful world
the Spirit gives us courage
to pray without ceasing,
to witness among all peoples to Christ as Lord and Savior,
to unmask idolatries in church and culture,
to hear the voices of peoples long silenced,
and to work with others for justice, freedom, and peace.
In gratitude to God, empowered by the Spirit,
we strive to serve Christ in our daily tasks
and to live holy and joyful lives,
even as we watch for God’s new heaven and new earth,
praying, Come, Lord Jesus!
With believers in every time and place,
we rejoice that nothing in life or in death
can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. Amen.
* Copyright © 1991 by the Office of the General Assembly, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). This document is part of the Presbyterian Book of Confessions, which is Part I of the Constitution of the Church. Used with permission.