We, as persons in need of redemption through Jesus Christ and who seek his presence in our lives and in congregation with one another, acknowledge before Christ and by witness of our signature to this Charter, that we form St. Andrew by the Sea, A Community Church.
St. Andrew by the Sea, A Community Church (hereinafter “The Church”) is a nonhierarchical, non-denominational Protestant church that maintains that every member is called to ministry. This congregation is self-governing and selects and calls its own pastoral leadership.
While members of The Church embrace a wide diversity of theological positions, its beliefs can be summed up in the following statement:
The Church acknowledges as its sole head, Jesus Christ, Son of God and Savior. It acknowledges as kindred in Christ all who share in this confession. It looks to the Word of God in the Scriptures, and to the presence and power of the Holy Spirit, to prosper its creative and redemptive work in the world. It claims as its own, the faith of the historic Church, expressed in the ancient creeds and reclaimed in the basic insights of the Protestant Reformers. It affirms the responsibility of the church in each generation to make this faith its own in reality of worship, in honesty of thought and expression, and in purity of heart before God.
In accordance with the teaching of our Lord and the practice prevailing among Christians, it recognizes two sacraments: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper or Holy Communion.
All are welcome into the unifying experience of Christ, and this congregation welcomes into membership people from a diversity of religious backgrounds.
The Charter members of The Church recognize their historic connection with Methodism and their familiarity with its Wesleyan roots.
They NEVERTHELESS desire to form a non-denominational Protestant Church in the form of historic community Churches in which their experience of Christ may be enriched.
DONE IN CONVENTION THIS THE 23rd DAY OF AUGUST 1998