Our Statement of Values by Rev. Amie Vanderford

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We strive to live together in loving and healing community in the model of Jesus’ life and ministry, and to live “on earth as it is in heaven.”

We believe that in order to truly love one another in community we need to practice the following relational values which provide safe space to develop deeper relationships:

Compassion, honesty, authenticity, vulnerability, respect, honoring one’s own boundaries and the boundaries of others - both physically and emotionally, and participating in conflict resolution when disagreements and hurts arise. 

We practice the acceptance of others’ whole selves through replacing judgment with curiosity and assumptions with clarifying questions. This fosters an environment where those of us who don’t check a ‘normal’ box can feel comfortable being ourselves in a world where social norms often crowd out our ability to be fully ‘real’. 

We request that you always ask before initiating a hug or other physical contact with another person, inc. children, as we believe in honoring the sanctity of boundary-making for every person over his/her/their own body, and we do not know what an innocent contact might trigger.

We define ‘sin’ as those words & acts that harm/break relationship with ourselves, others, and God. We believe in both grace with accountability, and mercy with restorative justice.

We marvel that each and every person is wonderfully and uniquely made in God’s own image, and that God’s image covers all of the magnificent diversity therein, whether in age, gender, ethnicity, language, country of origin, sexual orientation, economic status, or abilities. 

We know that God is bigger than any of our interpretations, and so we will often use the gender neutral pronouns They/Them/Theirs or God/God-self/Creator to refer to God. Because of the history of dominantly male pronouns for God, we will also lift up the female pronouns for God from time to time.

Our approach to biblical studies will be by acknowledging the authority of the texts while also asking questions of these texts through studying the contexts under which they were written, along with how they might apply to us in our current contexts. All doubts, questions, and concerns are welcome in discussions.

We name that evil is most spread in our world through the insidious nature of individualism and competition which are lauded as cultural achievements. We name that these values have separated us from our God-created relational natures, dividing us, and causing loneliness, isolation, and increased mental illness. 

We believe that in the face of divisive and oppressive systems of power, the most revolutionary thing we can do in the face of these problems is re-join one another in deep and loving community, not just meeting at worship times, but throughout daily life, to re-create our communal family of neighbors, where we look out for each other and each other’s families. It takes a village to heal what ails us! We can be Christ in Community.

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Check out our interview with New Church Ministry and Pastor Amie's blog post on becoming a trauma informed community for the National Benevolent Association.

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