The United Episcopal Church embraces the divine truth that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior, the Supreme Head of His Body— the Church. That church is both Catholic and Apostolic. That means we are a Sacramental church in the traditional time honored way. We believe that the sacraments are “of the church” in the double sense that they are “by her” and “for her”. They are “by the Church”, for she is the sacrament of Christ’s action at work in her through the mission of the Holy Spirit. They are “for the church” in the sense that the sacraments make the church, since they manifest and communicate to men, above all in the Eucharist, the mystery of communion with God, who is love, one in three persons. The church, forming, as it were, one mystical person with Christ the head, acts in the sacraments as an organically structured priestly community.

                We profess that the sacraments of the new law were instituted by Jesus Christ, our Lord. The sacraments are “powers that come forth” from the Body of Christ, which is ever-living and life-giving. They are actions of the Holy Spirit at work in his body, the Church. They are “the masterworks of God” in the new and everlasting covenant.

                The Apostolically ordained ministry (priesthood) guarantees that it is Christ who acts in the sacrament through the Holy Spirit for the Church.

                The saving mission entrusted by the Father to his incarnate son was committed to the apostles and through them to their successors: they receive the Spirit of Jesus to act in his name and in his person. The ordained minister is the sacramental bond that ties the liturgical action to what the apostles said and did and, through them, to the words and actions of Christ, the source and foundation of the sacraments.

                The real purpose of the sacraments is to sanctify men, to build up the Body of Christ and to give worship to God alone. Because they are signs, they also instruct. They not only presuppose faith, but by words and objects they also nourish, strengthen and express it. That is why they are called “sacraments of faith”.

                As Anglicans, we then accept the components of the faith revealed; the Scriptures, Creeds, Councils, Sacraments, Worship, Ministry, and Tradition. We believe that all of the components are like strands of a rope; a unity which holds the church together. In this belief we share a Catholic ideal way of faith.

                The Reformation of the 16^th century was the most comprehensive and far reaching effect to return the Christian faith to its legitimate roots of faith and practice. We accept the English Reformation as that which diligently sought the true sources of faith and discredited the many corruptions and distortions of the Middle Ages. Actually, the Articles of Religion found in the Prayer Book were written not as a statement of faith, but to deal with the above mentioned distortions and corruptions of the medieval church.

                We do not, however, accept the theology of the Continental Reformation or its uncatholic effort which tried to discard the fundamental principles of the historic faith along with the abuses.

                We do not accept private innovations intruding into the Church’s teachings. We honor Luther, Calvin, Knox and others for their efforts to explain the faith, but do not accept them as having prophetic abilities to speak for God.

                We do celebrate the historic faith-fundamental form of Christianity; its faith, worship, teaching, devotions and life with joy and love and with real thankfulness and real confidence. We believe this catholic approach to be the most comprehensive and satisfying expression of gratitude for God’s unlimited love and mercy.

                We do believe God has given us a special position as a “bridge church”—a bridge between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism. We proclaim a living way of faith and worship that believes in every persons right to life, honor traditional marriage between a man a woman and practice financial policies that allow local ownership of local property (Church, parish house, etc).

                The United Episcopal Church of North America, while coming from the American arm of the Anglican Communion and having our apostolic succession from these bodies, does not belong to either of these organizations nor shares their extreme liberal views on morals and their abandonment of orthodoxy.

                We are a church truly catholic and evangelical in scope and embrace a broad base of ceremonial practice inherent in the Historic Anglican Tradition.  We are just what you are looking for in a faith community. 

THE WORD OF GOD
The Scriptures are the unerring Word of God. God's plan for mankind is authoritatively proclaimed in the Scriptures of the Bible. The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the rule and ultimate standard of faith. We believe that the Old and New Testaments are the record of God's revelation of Himself to mankind and that they contain all things necessary for salvation. Whatever is not found in Scripture, nor can be proved by Scripture, is not required to be believed.

THE SACRAMENTS
Sacraments are a gift of grace ordained by God. A sacrament is defined as an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace. We are a Sacramental Church. The Sacraments are there to strengthen us at all the milestones of our lives, to fill us with God's grace and enhance our spiritual relationship with God. The seven Sacraments are: Holy Baptism, Holy Confirmation, Holy Communion, Holy Reconciliation or Penance, Holy Anointing of the Sick, Holy Matrimony and Holy Orders. The five other Sacraments have their basis in the Scripture and Apostolic tradition, especially through the teachings of the early fathers of the church. The seven Sacraments of the Church are as follows:

THE HOLY TRADITION
The Historic Creeds are the tenets of Christian Faith. We hold to the first seven Ecumenical Councils of the undivided Church. Our core beliefs are cleary stated in The Apostle's Creed and The Nicene Creed. These Creeds are short statements of belief which contain the fundamental tenets of Christianity. The Apostle's Creed and The Nicene Creed were vital components of the ancient Church. They remain central to the Christian faith today and continue to protect us against false and misleading doctrines. The Nicene and Apostle's Creeds are an integral part of every worship service of our church.

The Nicene Creed

I BELIEVE in one God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, And of all things visible and invisible:

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God; Begotten of his Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, Very God of very God; Begotten, not made; Being of one substance with the Father; By whom all things were made: Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, And was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the Virgin Mary, And was made man: And was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried: And the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures: And ascended into heaven, And sitteth on the right hand of the Father: And he shall come again, with glory, to judge both the quick and the dead; Whose kingdom shall have no end.

And I believe in the Holy Ghost, The Lord, and Giver of Life, Who proceedeth from the Father and the Son; Who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; Who spake by the Prophets: And I believe one Catholic and Apostolic Church: I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins: And I look for the Resurrection of the dead: And the Life of the world to come. Amen.

The Apostle's Creed

 

I BELIEVE in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth:

And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord: Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, Born of the Virgin Mary: Suffered under Pontius Pilate, Was crucified, dead, and buried: He descended into hell; The third day he rose again from the dead: He ascended into heaven, And sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty: From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Ghost: The holy Catholic Church; The Communion of Saints: The Forgiveness of sins: The Resurrection of the body: And the Life everlasting. Amen.

Apostolic Succession is historically legitimate. The United Episcopal Church is an Anglican branch of the One Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church which was established by our Lord, Jesus Christ. We continue in the faith and practice taught by His Holy Apostles and the early Church and which are recorded in Scripture. We believe in the truth and historical legitamcy of Apostolic Succession. From our founding Bishop to our current Presiding Bishop, all clergymen of the UECNA are ordained in a direct, unbroken line reaching back to the Apostles themselves.