The United Methodist Church traces its roots back to its founder John Wesley, an Anglican Priest who lived in England in the 1700’s. His theology incorporated four key components for determining faithful discipleship; scripture, tradition, reason and experience. The United Methodist Church continues to use these four components as a basis for interpreting scripture and addressing contemporary issues as it continually seeks to be faithful to the teachings of Jesus Christ.
We believe God loves each of us unconditionally just as we are, and we also believe God loves us too much to leave us that way. John Wesley understood Christian discipleship to be a lifelong journey seeking continually to grow in faithfulness to God. He also believed God’s Spirit empowered each person on that journey. John Wesley taught that discipleship was most fully expressed as people nurtured their spiritual lives and offered themselves in service to those in need. These two expressions of faith are integral to The United Methodist Church.
Today, The United Methodist Church is a global denomination serving Jesus Christ in ministry around the world. Our focus is to help connect people in relationship with God and assist in the development of disciples for Jesus Christ. As United Methodists, we commit ourselves to abiding by both the Holy Scriptures and the polity developed by the global church. When doing this creates tension within the Church, we attempt to honor the admonition of our founder: “In Essentials Unity, In Non-Essentials Liberty, In All things Charity.”
Our foundational faith understandings are derived from Orthodox Christian tenants and our doctrine is born out of the Protestant tradition. We celebrate open communion and anyone who seeks to live a life faithful to Jesus Christ is welcome to partake. Baptism is offered to everyone, infant to adult. In situations of infant and child baptism, the parents or sponsors answer on behalf of the child, then as a Youth, the child affirms their commitment in Confirmation. In addition, we recognize the baptism of persons from any Christian tradition.