A church in Burbank taking God seriously, ourselves not so much
what we believe
In many ways WestPres Church in Burbank is a unique congregation. Oh yes, we know, EVERYONE says THEIR church is unique. Trouble is that most people are unique for all the wrong reasons.
We THINK we are unique, because we do what many churches don’t. We have the Bible as our authority, and grace as our guiding principle.
Many churches have the Bible as their authority WITHOUT grace, or the inverse.
If we have authority without grace there will be no allowance and acceptance of our humanity, no lifting up of the beauty of the soul. Sure, the authority will give you a framework, but if there is no grace too often that framework can easily become a gallows.
If on the other hand, we have grace without authority there will be no there, there, and the church will descend into platitudes and rainbows.
Our belief is that we read the Bible as working manual. Written by men, and perhaps one woman [hit us up on that one if you come around], over a period of 1,500 years, primarily Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek, with a smattering of Latin thrown in there. God was not the writer; God was, and is, the inspirer. Therefore, the writers articulated their experience of God and his creation through the lens of their moment in history.
So, that’s the beginning of what we believe.
If you want more particulars . . . let’s talk.
We THINK we are unique, because we do what many churches don’t. We have the Bible as our authority, and grace as our guiding principle.
Many churches have the Bible as their authority WITHOUT grace, or the inverse.
If we have authority without grace there will be no allowance and acceptance of our humanity, no lifting up of the beauty of the soul. Sure, the authority will give you a framework, but if there is no grace too often that framework can easily become a gallows.
If on the other hand, we have grace without authority there will be no there, there, and the church will descend into platitudes and rainbows.
Our belief is that we read the Bible as working manual. Written by men, and perhaps one woman [hit us up on that one if you come around], over a period of 1,500 years, primarily Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek, with a smattering of Latin thrown in there. God was not the writer; God was, and is, the inspirer. Therefore, the writers articulated their experience of God and his creation through the lens of their moment in history.
So, that’s the beginning of what we believe.
If you want more particulars . . . let’s talk.