Affirmation of Faith

This Affirmation of Faith was written for the Mid Council Leaders’ Gathering of the Presbyterian Church (USA) in Baltimore, October 2019. The text is drawn from the Confession of ‘67, Belhar, Barmen, and the Brief Statement of Faith. Feel free to use with credit.

We believe in one living God, who is infinite, incomprehensible, wise, and free.

We believe in Jesus, a Palestinian Jew, who lived among his own people and shared their needs, temptations, joy and sorrows. He expressed the love of God in word and deed and became a sibling to all, though this led him into conflict with religious aspirations and national hopes.

We believe in the working of God’s Spirit, a binding force for unity which guides us in our pursuit of eradicating separation, enmity, and hatred between people and groups.

We reject the false doctrine that the church should abandon this message for its own pleasure or to adapt to changes in prevailing ideological and political convictions. Therefore, we must speak with one voice in this matter today. We may not keep silent, since we believe we have been given a common message to utter in a time of common need and temptation.

We believe that in doing this we are a part of God’s work, because in life and death we belong to God.
Amen.