Our Beliefs: Core Beliefs
Introduction: If you read much of the "Our Beliefs" section, you might get the impression that "The Journey" at Drakes UMC is unique and divergent from the journey of other churches. That is not necessarily true, since we share the same foundation and share many of the same beliefs. Perhaps the difference is in how we articulate this topic. Before you explore our differences and emphasis, let's explore our common/core beliefs.
Apostle Creed: We recite this just about every Sunday, because it is a concise description of our beliefs and it is shared with other denominations and a host of believers that came before us since it's original penning in 390 A.D. The first half of this describes the key events involving God, Jesus and the Holy Ghost capturing our historical beliefs. In the second half, we have our lived-out beliefs, which starts off with our belief in the Holy Ghost or Holy Spirit as described in the Scripture. This Spirit is a light unto our feet so as to guide us each day and a source of our spiritual gifts that are manifested within the church. It goes on to say that the Church is holy (set apart) and universal (catholic), where the Church or Body of Christ is composed of believers from all denominations. We believe that we are all saints, washed in the blood of Jesus, and that we are to form a community of believers for the purpose of building each other up and for living out our new life in Christ Jesus. We believe that we are a new creation in Christ where the old self which was full of sin has been forgiven. And that the ultimate reward coming from this forgiveness is for us to join Christ in heaven where we live in a resurrected body for eternity.
Being Methodist we have two sacraments:
- Baptism which is an outward proclamation of a new life in Christ Jesus, where either the individual proclaims this or a parent proclaims to raise a child in this manner. In either case, the congregation pledges to support this person in their journey.
- Communion which is the celebration and remembrance of the sacrifice of our Lord's Body and Blood on the hill named Calvary. It is a solemn remembrance that should be approached with a heart of humility and confession. As in all United Methodist Churches, the Lord's Table is open to all believing Christians who are good standing with their brother and the Lord. We celebrate this on the first Sunday of each month.