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St. George\u2019s church in Lowville is progressive. <\/em>They don\u2019t believe anything in particular, other than the sanctity of diversity<\/em>: you can make the Bible say anything you want<\/a>, so long as you don\u2019t think it is actually true:<\/em><\/p>\n Unity in diversity St. Paul was clear about this.\u00a0 A Christian community, which he called the Body of Christ, is the sum of its members\u2019 gifts and abilities. We may each interpret our faith in our own way.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Even better, you don\u2019t have to be a Christian, since Jesus is merely a doorway to something more important: the sacred in our lives, <\/em>an elevated state that can also be reached through other religions:<\/p>\n Our theology is broadly compatible with that of the organization Progressive Christianity.\u00a0 We accept the life and teachings of Jesus Christ as a doorway to greater awareness of the sacred in our lives.\u00a0 However, we accept that other faith traditions can offer insights into sacred wisdom.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n I\u2019ve saved the best until last: we aren\u2019t sinners! There is no judgment. We don\u2019t need saving. We don\u2019t need a Saviour.<\/p>\n We don\u2019t need a church. Oops.<\/p>\n Coming to church on Sundays should be a joy, not a duty. The modern Anglican perspective is that we are worthy to be in God\u2019s presence, not \u2018miserable sinners\u2019.\u00a0 That is why we make our Sunday worship joyful, not gloomy.<\/p>\n Like the followers of St. Francis of Assisi, we stress the goodness and joy of the natural world.\u00a0 We celebrate our physicality as part of our sacredness, which mirrors the coming into the world of Jesus Christ as Son of God.<\/p>\n Like us, Franciscans follow whats (sic) called an alternative orthodoxy, and reject the doctrine of Original Sin.\u00a0 That is the belief that we were all born sinful, awaiting and expecting punishment from a vengeful and judgemental God. The idea comes from a particular reading of the book of Genesis Chapter 3, which describes the disobedience of the mythical first people. Instead we believe that God\u2019s Spirit of goodness and love is present within us from the moment of our creation.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" St. George\u2019s church in Lowville is progressive. They don\u2019t believe anything in particular, other than the sanctity of diversity: you can make the Bible say anything you want, so long as you don\u2019t think it is actually true: Unity in … Continue reading
\nTo write \u201cWhat we believe\u201d does not mean that every member of the parish must have the same beliefs.\u00a0 That would be inconsistent with our position that Christians must interpret Scripture for themselves.<\/p>\n