To which Christian denomination does ASA belong?
Great question. The better question: in what part of the Christian Church? Indeed, there is only one Church, as Christians have proclaimed for 1700 years: one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church (Nicene Creed). Saint Paul says powerfully, there is one body and one Spirit, one God and Father of all (Ephesians 4:5-6).
At ASA, we seek always to acknowledge this and, pained by the divisions that exist, we pray for the major shepherds of the “Church Universal”. Nonetheless, we are in a specific part of the Church: the Anglican Communion, whose province in the United States is known as the Episcopal Church. The Anglican Communion has a shepherd, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby. The Episcopal Church has a shepherd, our “Presiding Bishop”, Michael Curry. At a local level, our Diocese has a shepherd, Mariann Budde.
The different parts of the Universal Church can be distinguished by the gifts that they believe Jesus has bestowed. There are many Bible-only churches. We are definitely “Bible-based”, but we are not “Bible-only”. Why? The Bible, the specific collection of books through which we believe God speaks to the Church, did not come to be as such until the late 4th-century (after the Nicene Creed was produced!). We lean also on Tradition (the living Church) from which the Bible emerged. Tradition came very early to believe in other amazing gifts called sacraments.
In summary, at ASA, we believe the following,
What about the political involvement for which the Episcopal Church has become known in many places? At ASA, we value the church as a community that welcomes all people, where viewpoint diversity is considered a blessing. (ASA Values Statement). Why? As the same Statement says,
Jesus’ “kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). The course of action for Christians in the political sphere, therefore, is not always obvious and may lead to different political perspectives amongst parishioners. We are certainly not removed from the world, as we are called to love “in truth and in action” (I John 3:18). Because we may have different understandings of how to “act justly” (Micah 6:8), as a church, we choose to minister primarily in our immediate community and we pray that each parishioner go forth, formed by our common faith and according to the dictates of individual conscience, to make the world a better place.
Great question. The better question: in what part of the Christian Church? Indeed, there is only one Church, as Christians have proclaimed for 1700 years: one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church (Nicene Creed). Saint Paul says powerfully, there is one body and one Spirit, one God and Father of all (Ephesians 4:5-6).
At ASA, we seek always to acknowledge this and, pained by the divisions that exist, we pray for the major shepherds of the “Church Universal”. Nonetheless, we are in a specific part of the Church: the Anglican Communion, whose province in the United States is known as the Episcopal Church. The Anglican Communion has a shepherd, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby. The Episcopal Church has a shepherd, our “Presiding Bishop”, Michael Curry. At a local level, our Diocese has a shepherd, Mariann Budde.
The different parts of the Universal Church can be distinguished by the gifts that they believe Jesus has bestowed. There are many Bible-only churches. We are definitely “Bible-based”, but we are not “Bible-only”. Why? The Bible, the specific collection of books through which we believe God speaks to the Church, did not come to be as such until the late 4th-century (after the Nicene Creed was produced!). We lean also on Tradition (the living Church) from which the Bible emerged. Tradition came very early to believe in other amazing gifts called sacraments.
In summary, at ASA, we believe the following,
- God continues to speak through Scripture and the Tradition of the Church. As we seek to let God share Himself with us and speak through us, we too embody Tradition.
- The shepherds (Bishops) of the Church are connected through a spiritual lineage to the first Apostles of Jesus.
- In the mystery of the Incarnation, God became human, and touches us in a special way through the sacraments--which are unique encounters with God and channels of grace.
- We are surrounded by an invisible cloud of witnesses, of saints, who accompany us on our journey.
- God’s mercy must be shared lavishly, and so we respect the individual journey of each pilgrim, and so open our doors to all.
What about the political involvement for which the Episcopal Church has become known in many places? At ASA, we value the church as a community that welcomes all people, where viewpoint diversity is considered a blessing. (ASA Values Statement). Why? As the same Statement says,
Jesus’ “kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). The course of action for Christians in the political sphere, therefore, is not always obvious and may lead to different political perspectives amongst parishioners. We are certainly not removed from the world, as we are called to love “in truth and in action” (I John 3:18). Because we may have different understandings of how to “act justly” (Micah 6:8), as a church, we choose to minister primarily in our immediate community and we pray that each parishioner go forth, formed by our common faith and according to the dictates of individual conscience, to make the world a better place.
