About Our Church
Mission Statement:
“ The West Charleston Church of the Brethren: a community committed to continuing the work of Jesus.”
About the Church of the Brethren:
Established in 1708 in Swarzennau, Germany by Alexander Mack and seven other folks who were baptized by trine immersion in the Eder River as consenting adults. These people became known as a people of the Book, and tried to follow as best as they could that which they read in the Scriptures- specifically, that which they found in the teachings of Jesus and in the New Testament. It was important for them that they come to understand and interpret scripture as a community.
Values important to us:
Our faith in Christ comes not only at the point of ‘making a decision of faith', but much of our faith hinges upon relationships: our relationship to God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and one another.
Some of the values we hold to be important regarding those relationships include the following:
- Service
- Simple Living
- Simplicity in Worship
- Generosity of grace, time, forgiveness, and self
- Priesthood of all believers
- The New Testament is our basis of faith and practice. It is here that we realize that Christ came to have a saving relationship with all people; therefore, we will try to welcome all those who come to us.
- We will be intentional at growing in our understanding and practice of our faith in Jesus. Toward that end, we encourage gathering regularly for worship, study, and small group involvement where we work to seek the mind of Christ together.
- When others come to us, we will do our best to help them find and grow in a personal relationship with Jesus.