The mission of the Church
“The mission of the Church is to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ. The Church pursues its mission as it prays and worships, proclaims the Gospel, and promotes justice, peace, and love. The Church carries out its mission through the ministry of all its members.”
--Book of Common Prayer, p. 855
The calling of Grace Church, Amherst
Grace Church is a continuing embodiment in the world of the divine fellowship of the Holy Trinity, reflecting its love, hospitality, and justice among our membership and in our life and work together.
We seek to deepen our sense of identity as the risen Body of Christ and to share the divine life of the One who shares our humanity. As we more fully live this truth--that we are one with Christ--we are drawn into the very heart of the Trinity, where our individual and corporate lives are marked by effusive love, tenderness, trust, and admiration.
The goals of Grace Church
- To reflect the divine hospitality of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in all our ministries, and especially in our welcome to newcomers
We seek to reflect the hospitality of God, the Three-in-One, in our worship, in our education programs, in our stewardship, in our pastoral care, in our outreach, and in our parish life. We renew our commitment to fully incorporating newcomers into the whole fabric of our life at Grace. - To appreciate that our life in Jesus Christ emanates from a core of peace and stillness in the Spirit
We commit to praying at all our gatherings that the life of Christ in us will be revealed in our words and work together, and that we become less scattered and fragmented in our efforts. The Christian life is marked not by anxiety, but by peace; not by fragmentation, but by integration. We see wholesome conflict as an invitation to go deeper into love for God and each other. - To focus on outreach projects that deepen our relationships with those in need
We hope to concentrate on three or four outreach projects that will allow more of our membership to develop deeper and more meaningful relationships with those in need. We will give preference to those outreach agencies that require our direct face-to-face involvement (e.g., Habitat for Humanity, Five Talents, and a new ministry run from Grace Church to which God may be calling us). - To begin the rebuilding of our space, in gratitude for all God gives us, and to welcome all into our life together
We will embark in earnest on a process of refurbishing our Sanctuary, our Undercroft and Chapel, the Connector and the Old Rectory, so that these spaces may more amply reflect our gratitude for all God gives us and that they may be completely welcoming to persons of any age and physical ability. We hope to involve ourselves directly and creatively in the physical labor of rebuilding our church. - To serve by example and in our liturgy as a beacon of life and hope in our community and beyond
Through our common life and witness at Grace Church in Amherst, we want to be a beacon of hope not only to our local community, but to our Diocese and to the Episcopal Church everywhere as it struggles with the issues that threaten to rend its beautiful and diverse fabric.
The Vestry and Rector urge the commissions, committees, and all ministries of Grace Church--in love and with thanksgiving for their ministries--to bear in mind in all their undertakings the mission of the Church, the calling of Grace Church, and the goals before us in the coming years.
--Adopted by the Vestry, May 2004