What do we Believe?
What does the Episcopal Church believe?
A unique aspect of our character as a religious denomination is the
pluralistic nature of our tradition. If asked what Episcopalians
believe that makes us Episcopalian rather than Baptist or Roman
Catholic, the answer is in how we believe more than what we believe. The five affirmations of our Baptismal Covenant describe our core understanding of what we think it means to be Christian. Will you continue in the Apostle's teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and the prayers? We
are not disconnected from history and rootedness We
are not mindless conformists either. We are not limited to answers from
the past because our Tradition is evolving and re-voiced in each new
generation. We
do believe the Christian life involves others in community, with whom
we pledge to pray, and study, and eat, and have fun. In short, we
pledge to come to church. Will you persevere in resisting evil and when you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord? We are not in denial of or na ve about our own capacity for evil, and we are clear about our need to change. We
do not believe that we are condemned for our humanity, we do not hold
ourselves or others under the judgment of perfection, and we proclaim a
message of forgiveness and transformation. We do pledge to live a reflective life, and when we have caused harm, to stop that behavior and seek to amend our life. We are not private about our religion either-sharing faith with others is an essential element of our spiritual growth. We are fundamentally hopeful people, and try to show that with our voices and our actions. Will you strive to serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself? We do not believe that the love of God is available exclusively for Christians or any other human boundary that we set. We
are not mere humanists who believe that the human spirit by itself is
enough to sustain the human community, rather, that God is present in
all creatures. We
do not believe we live only for ourselves, but Will you strive for justice and peace, and respect the dignity of all people? We
do not believe in keeping religions separated from politics, economics
and other public moral concerns and choices that we face. We
do not believe that Christianity should ever be associated with any one
nationality, form of government or national political agenda. We
do not believe that some people are worth more dignity than others, and
will work for a time when all are living in peace, free from racism and
poverty and violence. We are not self-sufficient and capable all on our own of keeping this covenant. We are not passive by-standers waiting around for God to do it all and take care of us either. (this explanation was adapted from the website of Trinity Episcopal Church in Buffalo New York, and used by permission)
in Scripture, and we
are not able to simply throw out pieces of the tradition we no longer
like, but account for it and claim it even if we have been forever
changed from it.
We do not hold to the idea that what we believe is more important than how we live our lives and what we do.
rather that a life lived
in loving service to others is the path to wholeness, and joy, and
meaning.