Presbyterian?
There are many ways to define a church including doctrine (what we believe and don't believe), associations (who we like and don't like), and even styles (contemporary vs. traditional). We think all of these are important but most of all we want you to meet and know Jesus Christ. The best way to find out who we are is to spend some time with us building relationships.
So, what is a Presbyterian Church? We are an evangelical Reformed protestant church sharing many of the same beliefs as other evangelical denominations. You could say that we are a connectional, covenantal, and confessional denomination. A good concise creed of an evangelical church can be found in the Apostle's Creed.
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, the Maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord: Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; He descended into hell. The third day He arose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.
We want to emphasize the good news of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ as well as holding to the inerrancy of Scripture. By Reformed, we mean that we are connected to the historic church and the doctrinal beliefs recovered by the Reformation. These doctrinal beliefs are expressed in the Westminster Standards (Westminster Confession of Faith, Larger & Shorter Catechisms). One other distinction worth noting is that we are covenantal. We believe that God relates to his creation through two primary covenant promises than run throughout Scripture: the covenant of works (made with Adam) and the covenant of grace (made with Jesus).
By Presbyterian, we describe our representative form of government. We are connected to other churches locally called a Presbytery and we are connected internationally through our General Assembly that meets once a year. These "higher courts" may not "act for" a lower court so we are not hierarchical in our government and neither are we Congregationalists.
Our church is a member of the Presbyterian Church of America whose vision is to be faithful to the Scriptures, true to the Reformed faith, and obedient to the Great Commission of Jesus Christ.
