ABOUT US
ABOUT
OUR CHURCH
OUR
BELIEF
PLAN YOUR
VISIT
ABOUT
OUR CHURCH
Welcome to our Christ Church website. If you are thinking about visiting, we welcome you with open arms. If you are wondering who we are, here are a few points about the faith community we aspire to be.
First, and most importantly, we are Jesus people. We try our best to follow Jesus, to learn from his teachings, to share and to show his love to others in tangible ways. Our parish mission statement is “To Love others as Christ has loved us.” We sometimes fall short of this goal, but we strive to practice what we preach.
Secondly, we worship God through liturgical worship. This means that we value both the preaching and teaching of the Word of God and the Sacraments that Jesus gave us, particularly, the Holy Communion. Both the Word and the Sacraments are the means through which God connects with us and strengthens our faith. We joyfully embrace traditional liturgical music as well as more modern forms of music to lift our spirits and strengthen our connection to God in worship.
Thirdly, we are striving to impact our wider community by various forms of musical outreach, feeding ministries, school ministries and international medical ministry.
We encourage you to join us sometime soon. If you are looking for a place to belong, we would love to meet you and welcome you. If you want to talk with somebody before visiting, you can call me any time. (Church phone is 330-372-4998.) I am a “people person” and I would love to talk with you. Really.
Or if you prefer, my email is: thomasjohnfurrer@gmail.com if you contact me, I promise to return your message. Really.
God bless,
Rev. Tom Furrer
Interim Rector
OUR
BELIEF
The Nicene Creed
We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
The only Son of God, eternally begotten
of the Father, God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God, begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation, he came down from heaven;
by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate from
the Virgin Mary, and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven and was seated at
the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son.
With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
For us, the Nicene Creed is a perfect summary of our beliefs as Christians. We find, though, as this creed provides so many answers about our faith, it stirs even more questions; questions that have been wrestled with and debated on for centuries. This is part of the excitement of a faith journey. Many of us found that when we started our walk, we sought to understand and remove the mystery of God. We wanted a Wiki-pedia of the Almighty. But as we grow spiritually, we began to realize that we could not know all the answers. That the beauty of God lies in His wondrous and mysterious ways in which He works in our lives. Come, start or continue your faith journey with us.
PLAN YOUR
VISIT
Some Words for the Newcomer
Whether you are a lifelong church-goer or you haven't stepped foot in a church in decades for fear that lightning could strike and burn the place down-First, take it easy on yourself and take a breath. Attending a new church service for the first time can be a nerve-wracking process. The hardest part is crossing the mental hurdle of just getting to the door. Please remember, it's just a visit, not necessarily a lifelong commitment to Christ Church. Apprehensions and anxieties are common and human. We want you to know that we understand. If it helps, you can call ahead, stop in the office, or email our clergy to ask questions, and plan your visit.
So, you have made it through the door and some nice guy handed you today's service leaflet. You have scouted out your "comfort-zone" pew to settle into and spend the next sixty minutes with perfect strangers. What next? Well, don't worry much about the order of service or if you are "doing it right". There is no wrong way to worship God when your heart, mind and soul are seeking Him.
Rather than filling your head with thoughts of: "What are this books and papers in front of me?" "Sing?! When I sing, my dog yelps in agony." "Am I dressed alright?" "What will happen if my kids act up during service?" "I don't have money for the plate, they'll think I'm a bad person." "Will they bible-beat me if I haven't been to a church in a long time?".
Please, know this about us instead: We were all visitors once and experienced similar thoughts and emotions. As followers of Christ, we are to be the Welcoming Committee to God, NOT the Selection Committee. No one is here to judge or inspect you. The job of Judge of Man is already filled and it isn't any one of us in these pews. We are fairly certain of that.
We gather here to praise our Lord and thank Him for all the good he has done.
We gather here to better know Jesus Christ in our lives; how we can better serve Him and others.
We gather here to recharge our souls and lay our burdens down, so we can face the week ahead.
We gather here to feel the Holy Spirit unite us to God and to others, reminding us that we are not alone, but instead are part of His kingdom- now and forever.
We share the Good News that God loves you, no exceptions.
For one hour out of your life, we invite you to sit back and soak in the service. Hear the worship in words and music, and allow yourself to be immersed in the presence of God and His people. Our prayer is that you will come away with the sense of the Spirit moving powerfully through this place. Our hearts are stirred to give glory to God and to continue the mission we are called to do. Welcoming ALL who seek to know Him.
Don't be surprised if people ask you to come back and remember you by name when you return. Strangers become friends, and friends become family rather quickly at Christ Church. May the Peace of the Lord be always with you wherever your journey leads.