As a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America... 

• we believe that all people are imperfect and are saved (made right with God) by God’s grace and God’s grace alone, through Christ. There is no special prayer you need to pray, no special state of mind you need to achieve and no good deed you need to perform.

• we believe that through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God became one of us and took upon himself the sin and suffering of all the world. God did this to demonstrate God’s love for us.
• we believe that we receive the gift of grace by faith alone on account of Christ. We live in the tension of still being sinful but trusting that we are forgiven and that God is at work in us. The gift of grace expresses God’s unconditional love, and in response to that love we are set free to live gratefully and lovingly.

• we believe we are a church that is deeply rooted and always being made new. Our roots are in Scripture and a collection of writings called the Book of Concord. We’re a church that strives to be faithful to the gospel and work toward more justice and wholeness in the world. We are equipped to live and serve in the world with all its complexities, tensions and ambiguities.

• we DON'T believe that you are born or are baptized Lutheran, but if you participate in the Lutheran tradition, you identify as a Lutheran Christian.

The History of the ELCA

The Lutheran movement was born as a reform effort in the heart of the medieval Christian church in Europe. The framework for our beliefs began in the 16th century, in what became known as the Protestant Reformation. 

An important date in the Lutheran tradition is Oct. 31, 1517, when a German monk named Martin Luther started a movement known as the Reformation. He insisted the Bible showed that salvation could not be earned or bought, which was contrary to church teachings at the time. Luther believed salvation was a gift and a sign of God’s never-ending love.

American Lutherans trace their roots back through the mid-17th century, when early Lutherans arrived from Europe, settling in the Virgin Islands and present-day New York.

The ELCA was formed in 1987 when three Lutheran churches merged to form one denomination. The American Lutheran Church (ALC), the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC), and the Lutheran Church in America (LCA) came together to form the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

Scriptures, Creeds & Confessions

The most influential documents for our church are the holy scriptures of the Old and New Testaments (commonly called the Bible); the Apostles’, Nicene and Athanasian Creeds. 

Other influential documents for our church were written by Martin Luther and other 16th century reformers. These are compiled in the Book of Concord. Key writings there include the Augsburg Confession and Martin Luther’s Small Catechism. 

Teaching for a Life of Faith

Every Sunday in worship we hear God’s word from the Scriptures, pray as Jesus taught and come to the Lord’s Table expecting to receive the mercies that the Triune God promises. Throughout the week, we continue to live by faith, striving to serve others freely and generously in all that we do because we trust God’s promise in the Gospel. In small groups and at sick beds, in private devotions and in daily work, this faith saturates all of life

As Martin Luther explained in the Small Catechism: the Holy Spirit “calls, gathers, enlightens and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth and preserves it in union with Jesus Christ in the one true faith.”