Who We Are
Our Mission Statement
Our Saint Mark Mission Statement is
Be and Make Disciples.
Our Purpose
As Christ’s church, our purpose is two-fold:
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ Matthew 22: 37-39
What United Methodists Believe
The United Methodist Church, just under 8-million-strong, is a global church that opens hearts, opens doors, and opens minds through active engagement with our world.
John Wesley and the early Methodists placed primary emphasis on Christian living, on putting faith and love into action. They desired to grow as disciples of Jesus Christ. Together they pursued “holiness of heart and life,” which Wesley described as “universal love filling the heart, and governing the life.” The dual emphasis on both what we believe and how we live is essential to United Methodism today and is referred to as “practical divinity.” It has continued to be a hallmark of United Methodism today.
Wesley taught that God’s grace is with each of us throughout our lives. By grace God pursues us, prepares us, justifies us, and then continues grow in and through us as followers of Jesus Christ.
Embracing our Affirmation of Life Together
The Council of Stewards fully adopted the Affirmation of Life Together at our March 2021 meeting.
We invite you to use it as a guide and a reminder of how Christ wants us to live and be together in community under Saint Mark’s big tent of diverse beliefs and personalities. We are one in Christ and one in ministry and mission to the world.
An Affirmation of Life Together
As the people of Saint Mark, we believe in one Triune God. Together, we follow Jesus as Lord.
In response to God’s love for us, we love God and love each other. We recognize that all of faith is a journey; each person’s journey is unique and has value. Our journeys intersect in this place and time.
We believe each person is made in the image of God, and therefore we seek to assume the best in one another. We do not expect uniformity.
We are on one mission together, unified in our purpose to be and make disciples of Jesus.
We believe God created us to be in community. Therefore, we seek to build healthy relationships and encourage one another, for the benefit of all.
We seek to be a people who listen to understand and respond with respect.
When conflict arises, we seek to resolve it directly and timely, talking to and not about one another, and ensuring any feedback offered is constructive.
Sharing life and faith together, we expect each disciple to be growing more and more like Christ. We commit to praying and showing up for one another. We seek to speak and act with kindness.
In all of this, we seek to be a community of grace.
On behalf of the people of Saint Mark UMC, the lay leadership of Saint Mark, inspired by Scripture, and guided by the Holy Spirit, has created this covenant to guide our lives together.