INTRODUCTION

The following statements are indicative of some of the central truths of our faith.  We have agreed together that they reflect our present understanding as we have been enlightened by the Spirit of God who is "The Teacher Within."  It is He who interprets to us the written testimony of the Scriptures, the living testimony of our fellow believers, the authority of the church, and the individuality of our personal experiences, thus enabling us to know and obey the voice of our Heavenly Father and to follow the example and teachings of Jesus Christ, His eternal Son.

GOD

 God is personal, and in His love manifests himself to humanity in a number of ways.  We may know Him as our heavenly Father, Creator of Heaven and Earth; as Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, who died to redeem us from sin and arose to bring us into new life; and as the Holy Spirit who is our Teacher and the one who provides us with inner strength.  Through the mystery of Trinity, these three are also one.
 

HUMAN NATURE

 Humankind have been created by God, and in that creation are good and like Him.  That likeness is diminished, distorted, and perverted by sin, but can be restored by an individual experience of regeneration.

SIN
In its most basic form, sin is the willful decision to reject the presence and guidance of our Heavenly Father and to attempt to control our own destiny without relating to Him.  All of humanity has an inborn predisposition toward sin, and only through Jesus Christ can this rebellious tendency be conquered, restoring us to a right relationship with God.

THE CHURCH
 The church is a voluntary association of believers who are joined together by the Spirit of God to function as the Body of Christ.  Every believer is endued by the Spirit with one or more spiritual gifts and is responsible to exercise those gifts for the mutual growth and development of the body.  This is the true meaning of ministry.  Quakers reject the idea of an ordained clergy or priesthood, affirming the New Testament doctrine of the priesthood of every believer.  Pastoral ministry is only one of the many ministries of a church, and has the primary function of equipping and enabling the individual believers to recognize and exercise their spiritual gifts and to function effectively in their own unique ministries.
 

THE MEETINGHOUSE
 God does not dwell in buildings built by human beings, no matter how elaborate or ornate.  His presence is found in the life of the individual believer and in the corporate life of His church.  Therefore, the building in which the church meets is not a holy place, the modern version of the Jewish temple, but is a gathering place or "meetinghouse" which the church members may use for worship, community service, or any other expression of their spiritual gifts through their various ministries.

CHRIST'S RETURN
We affirm the scriptural promise of the personal bodily return of Jesus Christ.  Though there are differences of interpretation as to the precise sequence of events related to that return, we await His coming with hope and anticipation.

THE SCRIPTURES
The Bible is inspired by God and is the written record of God's revelation to mankind.  Quakers insist that enlightenment by the Spirit is essential to accurate interpretation and is consistent with serious academic education.

SALVATION
 Salvation may be discussed in a variety of ways, using a number of different religious terms.  It is essential that one move beyond simply parroting religious phraseology and enter into an actual encounter with the living Christ.
 Justification, regeneration, and the new birth are all terms which relate to the individual experience in which a person initially encounters Jesus Christ and chooses to follow him.  As a result of that encounter, he or she will repent of the past life of sin and accept God's gracious offer of a relationship with Him through a faith commitment to Jesus Christ.  At the moment of that commitment, the Spirit of God comes into the life of the believer, cleansing from sin and enduing that person with the life-giving and empowering presence of God Himself.  This experience is referred to as the "baptism of the Holy Spirit, and is the reality of which the rite of water baptism is a symbol.  The living presence of God that is to be experienced in the fellowship of these spirit-filled believers is the true communion of which the rite of the Eucharist, or "The Lord's Supper," is a symbol.  Friends do not corporately practice the symbolic rites of baptism and the Lord's Supper, believing that the reality is more significant than any symbol.  We do, however, allow for the individual believer to participate in these experiences if they are so led by the Spirit.
 It is vitally important to realize, however, that entry into a relationship with God is not an end unto itself, nor is it "fire insurance" by which one may escape the judgment of hell.  It is rather the beginning of a life-long process of obedience to God and spiritual growth that is often referred to in religious terminology as "sanctification."

ETERNITY
 Friends believe that the dead will one day be bodily resurrected to the eternal judgment of either heaven or hell.