What We Believe

 

The Faith of the United Church of Christ

 

The United Church of Christ is a very unique denomination in that it brings together in one body, the beliefs, and traditions of most major Christian Faiths in the United States.  Through our Evangelical and Reformed churches, we are linked directly to the Lutheran and Reformed strands of the Reformation and of the early European immigration and our nation's frontier ministries. Through the Congregational Church, we can trace our beginnings to the English Reformation, the Puritan movement, and the arrival of the Pilgrim's on Plymouth Rock. The Christian Church (Congregational Christians) brought the traditions of Methodists, Presbyterians and Baptists into the mix. Since the merger in 1957, we have received people and churches and traditions from a very wide variety of Christian experiences, and it's been a very heady and varied mix of theological and cultural understandings. That makes for some very interesting discussions.

The churches of the United Church of Christ are made up of congregations across the full spectrum of faith and belief, from liberal to conservative and everything in between. There is no one "theology" or "belief system" to describe us. Our Statement of Faith is exactly that, a common statement held by our members It is not intended to be either a creed or doctrine, and it is certainly never to be used as a test of one's faith. It is important to remember that the United Church of Christ is made up of thousands of churches just like ours, and that every one of them is filled with good and caring Christians who take their faith seriously. But we do cover a wide and diverse range of theological perspectives. And yet, there must be an essential core of beliefs that are necessary in order for us to call ourselves "Christian." To discover who we are as a United Church of Christ, it is important to look at the foundational documents of our faith. The first of these, always, is the Bible. We are, always have been, and always will be a Biblically inspired church. Add to this, our centeredness in Christ, our history and traditions, and the faithful men and women, pastors and laity, who work to make the faith an important part of our world today, and you begin to know the depth of faith that we claim as our own.

 

 Return to top of page  

The Apostles' Creed

 

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

 I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
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,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and 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.

From the English Language Liturgical Consultation, 1988.

 

Return to top of page  

The Statement of Faith of the United Church of Christ

in the form of a doxology

 

We believe in you, O God, Eternal Spirit, God of our Savior Jesus Christ and our God, and to your deeds we testify:

 You call the worlds into being, create persons in your own image, and set before each one the ways of life and death.

 You seek in holy love to save all people from aimlessness and sin.

 You judge people and nations by your righteous will declared through prophets and apostles.

 In Jesus Christ, the man of Nazareth, our crucified and risen Savior, you have come to us and shared our common lot, conquering sin and death and reconciling the world to yourself.

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

 You call us into your church to accept the cost and joy of discipleship, to be your servants in the service of others, 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.

 You promise to all who trust you forgiveness of sins and fullness of grace, courage in the struggle for justice and peace, your presence in trial and rejoicing, and eternal life in your realm which has no end.

 Blessing and honor, glory and power be unto you.

 Amen.

 

Return to top of page  

The Preamble of the Constitution of the United Church of Christ

 

The United Church of Christ acknowledges as it's sole Head, Jesus Christ, Son of God and Savior. It acknowledges as kindred in Christ all who share in this confession. It looks to the Word of God in the Scriptures, and to the presence and power of the Holy Spirit, to prosper its creative and redemptive work in the world. It claims as its own the faith of the historic church expressed in the ancient creeds and reclaimed in the basic insights of the Protestant Reformers. It affirms the responsibility of the church in each generation to make this faith it's own in reality of worship, in honesty of thought and expression, and in purity of heart before God. In accordance with the teaching of our Lord and the practice prevailing among evangelical Christians, it recognizes two sacraments: Baptism and the Lord's Supper or Holy Communion.

 

 Return to top of page  

The 1907 Covenant of the First Congregational Church of Nekoosa

The covenant by which this church exists as a distinct body and which every member accepts, is as follows:

Acknowledging Jesus Christ to be our Savior and Lord, and accepting the Holy scripture as our sufficient rule of faith and practice, and recognizing the privilege and duty of uniting ourselves for Christian Fellowship, the enjoyment of Christian ordinances, the public worship of God, and the advancement of his kingdom in the world, we have in the sight of God and invoking his blessing, solemnly covenanted and agreed with each other to associate ourselves to be a church of the Lord Jesus Christ, as warranted by the word of God.

We enter into covenant with the members of the Church Universal in an endeavor to forsake sin and practice righteousness, and with them pledge loyalty to Jesus Christ, his teachings, and way of life. We engage to cultivate the spirit of penitence and faith; to study diligently the scriptures; to be faithful in secret prayer; to maintain and encourage family worship; religiously to observe the Sabbath; and to seek the help of God that we may keep this covenant to the end.

We, moreover; bind ourselves by covenant to this Church, to walk with it in observing the sacraments; in attending its meetings for worship on the Sabbath, unless providentially hindered; to watch over its members in love; to seek its purity, peace and up building; to be humbly submissive to its government and discipline and gladly loyal to its plans and policies of work, as also to those of the Body of Churches with which it is in fellowship so far as all those are comfortable to the Gospel; counting it as a privilege to be subject to that authority which Christ Himself established in His Church.

We also promise that we will support the social, financial, educational, benevolent and spiritual interests of this Church; that we will work with its members to extend the Kingdom of Christ in the world, and to make this Church a power for good. Relying on God's grace and help, we do thus faithfully covenant and engage.

 

Quoted from the Manual of the First Congregational Church, Nekoosa, Wisconsin, 1907. By-laws, article II - Covenant.

 

 Return to top of page  

From the Nekoosa UCC Constitution and By-laws

 

Article III – Policy

This church acknowledges Jesus Christ as its head and finds in the Holy Scriptures, interpreted by the Divine Spirit through reason, faith and conscience, its guidance in matters of faith and discipline. . .

Article IV - Doctrine
This church recognizes the Bible as the sufficient rule of faith and practice, and holds that living in accordance with the teaching of Jesus Christ is the true test of fellowship. Each member shall have the undisturbed right to follow the Word of God according to the dictates of their own conscience, under the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. The following statement of faith, therefore, is not a test but an expression of the spirit in which the church interprets the Word of God.

FAITH
We believe in God, infinite in wisdom, goodness and love; and in Jesus Christ, God's son, our Lord and Savior, who for us and our salvation lived and died and rose again and lives evermore; and in the Holy Spirit, who takes the things of Christ and reveals them to us, renewing, comforting and inspiring the souls of all.

COVENANT
We are striving to know the will of God as taught us in the Holy Scriptures, and in our purpose to walk in the ways of the Lord, make known or to be made known to us. We hold it to be the mission of the church to proclaim the gospel to all humankind, exalting the worship of the one true God and laboring for the progress of the knowledge, the promotion of justice, the reign of peace, and the realization of human faith and fellowship. Depending, as did our forbearers upon the continued guidance of the Holy Spirit to lead us into all truth, we work and pray for the transformation of the world into the sovereignty of God; and we look with faith for the triumph of righteousness and the life everlasting.

 

 Return to top of page