Our Mission
“Welcoming neighbors into the loving family of the living God.”
These 10 words capture our mission, or purpose, as a local church. These 10 simple words capture some big truths about who we are!
Welcoming
Just as Christ welcomes us, we welcome others with open arms.
Neighbors
God created every human and everyone everywhere warrants our love and respect.
Into the Loving Family
We are here for each other, passionately committed to each other’s well-being.
Of the Living God
God is active and present, loving and leading us in our everyday lives.
Our Values
St. Michael’s is a "Five-S" Church, meaning we are committed to being (1) scriptural, (2) sacramental, (3) spirit-filled, (4) sacrificial, and (5) salvation-focused.
These 5 S’s communicate the kind of church we are, what is important to us, and what is behind the scenes motivating us. Below is more about what we mean by these five motives.
+ Scriptural
- The Bible is our foundation.
- This is demonstrated by our commitment to the authority of God’s Word.
- The Scriptures, meaning the books of the Old and New Testament, are more than literature to us. They are the words of God to us, and shape how we live our lives and interact with others and our culture.
+ Sacramental
- Christ is really with us.
- This is demonstrated by our centering around Holy Communion every Sunday.
- The sacraments are physical or earthly ways that God comes to us, in particular through water (at baptism) and bread and wine (at communion). God also comes to us through many other means, including confession of sin, confirmation, marriage, ordination, and anointing for healing.
+ Spirit-Filled
- God is living in us and leading us.
- This is demonstrated by our openness to God’s leadership in worship.
- God’s Holy Spirit is His very presence that lives in every Christian and exists to teach us, comfort us, and equip and empower us for service. Christians seek to both exhibit the character of Jesus (the fruit of the Spirit) and the ministry of Jesus (through the gifts of the Spirit).
+ Sacrificial
- We invest time and resources in God’s purposes.
- This is demonstrated by our tangible investment in missions and service to others.
- Sacrificial living is birthed from a conviction that life is meant to be lived not just for our own happiness, but for the spiritual vitality, freedom, and joy of others. Sacrificial living is marked by patient waiting on God’s leadership, self-sacrifice, and generous forgiveness.
+ Salvation-Focused
- Everyone needs to hear about Jesus.
- This is demonstrated by our commitment to ground everything we do in helping as many as possible find salvation in Christ.
- The salvation that Jesus Christ brings is freedom from the penalty of sin (forgiveness), freedom from the power of sin (growth in Christlikeness), and freedom from the fear of death (assurance of eternal life).
These “Five-S” values are drawn from the history and culture of the earliest Christians. The Book of Acts, 2:42-47 states:
“And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.”
Learn more about what the Five-S’s mean for St. Michael’s and other churches in our Diocese.
What We Believe
Most importantly, the Anglican Church, and St. Michael’s, believes in “that Faith which has been believed everywhere, always, by all.” We believe what the global Christian Church believes, across denominational lines. The Lambeth Quadrilateral is a statement of the four core beliefs that reach across those lines (the centrality of the Bible, the value of the Creeds, the power of the Sacraments, and the oversight of ordained Bishops).
Additionally, there are three historic creeds, or statements of faith, that summarize the shared Christian faith. These serve as our lens for interpreting the Holy Scriptures:
The Apostle’s Creed
The Nicene Creed
The Athanasian Creed
We also affirm the need to clarify other Scriptural beliefs not specified in the Creeds, since these beliefs also shape our relationship with God. The founding theology of the Anglican Church can be found in the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion, as written and interpreted by the English reformers of the 16th to 17th centuries.
Other Resources
The Jerusalem Declaration is a short statement about how Anglicans are grappling with difficult modern issues.
The ACNA Catechism is a helpful summary of Christianity in a Q&A format. It can also be read here.
The Anglican Way is a readable full-length book on Anglican beliefs and worship.
Our beliefs also shape the way we worship (our liturgy), which you can read more about here.
Learn more about where our local church family came from and the meaning behind our name.