Our Beliefs

NonReligious Church (NRC) 

Statement of Beliefs

NonReligious defined– We are defining religion as the structure organizations have created to preserve belief systems. We believe that the unintended result of religious structure has the potential to squelch an individual’s ability to discover for themselves what they choose to believe. Typically, religious structure tells you what you must believe to align yourself with their denomination, sect, theology, or doctrinal statement. Here at NonReligious Church, we are designing an atmosphere of significantly less structure that allows individuals to construct their own belief system, so they can make informed choices without being rushed or judged. As an inclusive community, we invite anyone to take this spiritual journey with us. The values presented below provide a framework for our beliefs, but there is no requirement for you to align yourself with any of the values below for you to journey with us. 

The limited structure that NonReligious Church will operate within involves four values: 

1. COMMUNITY   

2. PRAYER  

3. THE SPIRIT OF GOD  

4. THE GUIDANCE OF THE BIBLE.

· COMMUNITY– We believe that God uses people to offer guidance, love, acceptance, and wisdom as we experience community together. To achieve this goal, NonReligious Church is dedicated to gatherings where we eat together, discuss, learn from each other, pray together, and enjoy camaraderie within an emotionally safe environment devoid of judgment. Some other values of the NRC community are: enjoying music together, serving and helping others and working alongside each other with a spirit of cooperation. In our discussion times, individuals are encouraged to share their current beliefs respectfully, but we discourage anyone from demanding that others must agree. Coming from a first-person perspective allows others the dignity to weigh that viewpoint, and therefore come to their own conclusions, in their own timeframe. 

· PRAYER– Prayer is a conversation with God and includes asking for guidance as well as sharing our innermost thoughts, fears, and desires. Prayers can be spoken or unspoken. They can be communal or individual. NRC will also incorporate music, creative expression, and meditation times to facilitate personal communion with God, as an individual’s concept and understanding of God evolves. We believe that one of the purposes of prayer, is to align our will and desires with God’s. When this happens, we can experience a sense of peace, thankfulness and a closer relationship with God which overflows into our relationships with each other.

· THE SPIRIT OF GOD – We believe that The Spirit of God is neither a man nor woman. God, who in essence is The Father, Son (a.k.a. Jesus) and The Holy Spirit is infinitely more knowledgeable and powerful than humankind. God is love and can be discovered in all things created. We believe that God’s Spirit witnesses to our own spirit in vastly individual ways. Ultimately, we trust The Spirit of God, and the guidance of the Bible, more than we trust in human reasoning or compelling arguments in these matters and we encourage individuals to respond to God’s Spirit in their own unique ways and timeframes with dignity and respect.

· THE GUIDANCE OF THE BIBLE – We believe that all Truth is God’s Truth and can be found, in various forms, in different religions, cultural beliefs, philosophies and schools of thought. NRC believes that the Bible has value for us and can be one of the main sources of truth when constructing personal beliefs. It is within the pages of the Bible that we find teaching about who God is, who Jesus is, and how the Spirit of God works. It is from the Bible where we learn about The Good News (The Gospel) - that Jesus is the means of salvation for all humanity, and that through Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, we can have a reconciled relationship with God. These biblically based beliefs have the potential of influencing our worldview as well as how we interact with others. The Bible is also useful for correction, helping us create values and living lives that express God’s love. We will present the teachings of scripture with an understanding that individuals choose to embrace what they decide to believe in.  We encourage respectful and calm discussions about differing views as we travel together on this spiritual journey.