Open Hearts ~ Open Minds ~ Open Doors
THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH, SIMI VALLEY
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Open Hearts ~ Open Minds ~ Open Doors THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH, SIMI VALLEY
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What We Believe
The United Methodist Church, Simi Valley, is a Connectional Church within the global network of United Methodists which is commonly known as The United Methodist Church.
The foundation of our Christian life as United Methodists is faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. We believe in God the Almighty and in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, and in the Holy Spirit, alive and working in our lives each and every day. We believe that Jesus is God in human form sent to remind us of our connection with God and to redeem us from our lives of sin and death.
We believe that Faith in God is a journey. Sometimes it's easy going with a smooth straight path, sometimes it's a bumpy and difficult road, but it is always growing and renewing and transforming our lives.
Interwoven in this faith journey is our theological journey - our increasing knowledge of God and our relationship with our Creator and with our Redeemer Jesus Christ, and in discovering God's will at work in us through the Holy Spirit.
As United Methodists, our theological journey is informed in four ways:
As John Wesley believed - "the living core of the Christian faith was revealed in Scripture, illumined by tradition, vivified in personal experience, and confirmed by reason." (From The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church, 2002, page 77.)
Our primary reliance in our faith journey and theological investigations is in the Bible. It is the testimony of God's connection with our ancestors and with us, collectively as a church, and individually. We believe very strongly in daily Scripture reading, meditation and prayer on these scriptures, and we incorporate Scripture study through Christian Education for all ages and levels of interest.
Tradition is our dependence on the many Christian witnesses through the ages who provide examples for us of Christian living, and who have provided sources of information, music, writings and prayers that assist us in our faith journey.
Our own experiences in life are also important in our faith journey. We have an opportunity to use our scripture readings, prayer, and worship to inform our lives and the lives of others. Our experiences of joy, sadness, anger, determination, all can find expression through our belief in the one who governs our lives.
Reason is also an important part of our faith journey. We take all these things that have been listed before - Scripture, tradition, experience - and we mold from these, and our own careful thought and consideration, a strong and vibrant faith that is expressed in our family, church, community and world.
This just a short summary of our beliefs. Attending a Membership class will help you with additional information and reading material on this subject.
Want to know more about the structure of The United Methodist Church? See UMC Structure.
To discover how our beliefs are expressed through our mission and ministry we encourage you to browse through this website.
For some additional information, check out the links below.
Have any questions? Email us! mailto:svumc@pacbell.net |
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NOTE: All links are underlined and will take you to pages within our site and to other pages on the world wide web. We test our links regularly. If you find a malfunctioning link, please email us so we can make corrections!
We'd love to hear from you - with
suggestions, questions, news... Let us know what's on your mind! Send mail to
Debbie Post, Webservant, svumc@pacbell.net.
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