WHO
ARE THE DISCIPLES?
The Disciples believe God is calling them
to be a faithful growing church. Learn more about this diverse denomination.
Added to FaithandValues.com
in July 2002.
The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is a community of
about 850,000 Christians in 3,800 congregations in the United States and
Canada. Two groups of frontier Christians came together in 1832 to form
the foundation of today's Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). They shared
the view that people should not be excluded from fellowship in the church
because they didn't adhere to a particular human-made creed. They used to
say there is "no creed but Christ." Today's Christian Church
(Disciples of Christ) still thinks that way. We study the Bible to deepen our
connection to God through Jesus Christ, and to discover what God wants us to
do.
We believe that God is calling the Christian Church (Disciples
of Christ) of the 21st century to be a faithful, growing church that
demonstrates true community, deep Christian spirituality and a passion for
justice. Our mission is to be and to share the good news of Jesus Christ,
witnessing, serving and loving from our doorsteps to the ends of the
earth. We are devoted to strengthening our congregations for this
mission.
Many Disciples have conservative views. Many others
have liberal views. But we share the belief that we are united in our
faith that "Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, the Savior of
the World.
Two really important things to Disciples are communion and
baptism. We celebrate communion, or the Lord's Supper, each time we get
together to praise God. We like it when there are a lot of different
people at communion. We believe that Christ heals the pain of human separation
around the communion table.
People who become Christians in a Disciples congregation do a
couple of things. First, they say "I believe that Jesus is the
Christ, the Son of the Living God, and I accept him as my personal
Savior." Then, usually on another day, they are baptized - that is,
they are dunked fully under water in a small pool right in the church.
When they come up they are new people in Christ and their congregation pledges
to support them and help them grow into a deeper relationship with God through
Jesus Christ. People who have been baptized in another way in another Christian
tradition are welcome. They don't have to be dunked to get in.
Disciples' congregations own their own property and have full
control of their budgets and program. They decide whom to call as a
pastor. Pastors may be men or women.
The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) does a lot to help
people in need in North America and around the world. It also is very
active in developing relationships and ministries that try to bring together
Christians from a variety of traditions.