MINISTRIES
Our Ministry Structures We embrace a deep theology of the Church through practices where the goal is to be respectful, intelligible and always welcoming, in order to draw people to the Well that is Christ.
Balance of institution and organism. All healthy communities, even families, have laws, structure and leaders. The church is also an organism. We are the Body of Christ, the people of God, and therefore the Church is organic at its core. God’s mercy and his call upon his people to help renew his good creation lead to an outward stance toward the world. We are not only a people called into something – the institution – but we are called in order to be sent out on mission to renew the world. The history of the church calls us back to this important balance.
God calls leaders. Deep church learns from the Great Tradition that officials – elders and deacons – have been an essential part of the church from the start (Acts 14:23).
Worship as a means of grace. Tradition reveals that the church is not just a voluntary society but an actual means of grace. Although worship occurs seven days a week, there is something special about the weekly gathering on Sunday. The public reading and teaching of the Word play a special role in feeding, empowering, correcting and inspiring the followers of Christ.
Cultivate our Friends contributions to the Great Tradition. In many ways our statements of faith do not appear to be that different from those of other evangelical Christian churches. In fact, many of the historic testimonies of the Friends church have become integrated into the general stream of the history of the modern church. Yet there are still contributions in Friends practices that brings vibrancy to the expressions of faith in our movement. These include: the potential for all of life to be sacramental; affirmation of gifts for ministry in all believers; the indwelling of the Holy Spirit; the all-sufficiency of Christ in baptism and communion; the Lord’s guidance in church decision making; our peace testimony; and transformation unto righteousness at salvation.
Tradition is profoundly relevant. To be ancient is to be profoundly relevant. The deep church is biblical, missional and embraces the best of Church tradition.
Organic practices - We believe that the North American church has become one of the most segregated institutions in operation today. Since we are a community, we want to act like one and encourage families to gather together during small group meetings, worship services and mission and service projects. The Well is committed to creating an environment that makes this feasible and acceptable. Some might say that The Well is going to be OK with a certain amount of chaos.
Balance of institution and organism. All healthy communities, even families, have laws, structure and leaders. The church is also an organism. We are the Body of Christ, the people of God, and therefore the Church is organic at its core. God’s mercy and his call upon his people to help renew his good creation lead to an outward stance toward the world. We are not only a people called into something – the institution – but we are called in order to be sent out on mission to renew the world. The history of the church calls us back to this important balance.
God calls leaders. Deep church learns from the Great Tradition that officials – elders and deacons – have been an essential part of the church from the start (Acts 14:23).
Worship as a means of grace. Tradition reveals that the church is not just a voluntary society but an actual means of grace. Although worship occurs seven days a week, there is something special about the weekly gathering on Sunday. The public reading and teaching of the Word play a special role in feeding, empowering, correcting and inspiring the followers of Christ.
Cultivate our Friends contributions to the Great Tradition. In many ways our statements of faith do not appear to be that different from those of other evangelical Christian churches. In fact, many of the historic testimonies of the Friends church have become integrated into the general stream of the history of the modern church. Yet there are still contributions in Friends practices that brings vibrancy to the expressions of faith in our movement. These include: the potential for all of life to be sacramental; affirmation of gifts for ministry in all believers; the indwelling of the Holy Spirit; the all-sufficiency of Christ in baptism and communion; the Lord’s guidance in church decision making; our peace testimony; and transformation unto righteousness at salvation.
Tradition is profoundly relevant. To be ancient is to be profoundly relevant. The deep church is biblical, missional and embraces the best of Church tradition.
Organic practices - We believe that the North American church has become one of the most segregated institutions in operation today. Since we are a community, we want to act like one and encourage families to gather together during small group meetings, worship services and mission and service projects. The Well is committed to creating an environment that makes this feasible and acceptable. Some might say that The Well is going to be OK with a certain amount of chaos.