[Ephesians 4:3]

Recent years have seen a rising conversation about Jesus and politics in the United States. It is not a conversation that has been going well, and has been increasingly shaped by anger, hatred, vitriol and fear. These are not the fruits of the Spirit that we expect to see characterizing the activities of Jesus-followers. It pains us to see the breakdown of Christian unity, and the damaging effects this has on the church and her witness.

Some people are drawing up battle lines and forming groups whose key differentiating identities are rooted in matters public policy, preferred ideals about American cultural identity and norms, and most worrying of all: alignment with a political party and its cultural and ethical vision. We are reminded of Jesus saying, “my kingdom is not of this world” (John 18), and Paul explaining to the Corinthians ‘when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings? ... you are still worldly,’ and censuring them for taking an identifying label other than Jesus.

Each of the political parties exemplify some policies and practices that align deeply with God’s heart, and are worthy of our affirmation and support. But each of the political parties also exemplifies many policies and practices that are deeply at odds with the heart of God, and we would deny them our affirmation and support. This doesn’t mean we believe all Jesus-followers should simply disengage from the political system. We can be grateful for the heritage of Christian influence in our culture and how it shapes some of public life. Furthermore, engaging with local and national politics can be one way that Jesus-followers can bring Jesus’ influence into public life, just as God’s heart for justice means that people who follow Jesus should be bringing more justice into their communities through their life and actions.

However, how our convictions line up with the possible ways we could engage public life is incredibly complex and nuanced. In fact, in a diverse group of people like a church congregation, shaped by different experiences, and with different callings affecting which concerns are in the foreground of each person, we would expect to see a diversity of ways people are engaging – and this is healthy. So, in our church, we expect to find varieties of people who choose to vote, and who do not; who vote in different ways and for different reasons; and who champion different causes through different means. And if we are a healthy church, these varieties should walk together in unity, and help us to learn from one another as we all seek to live out these complexities in a way that honors Jesus. 

So, A Jesus Church wants to be able to talk about how Jesus’ mission, values and ethics interact with things going on in our world. But this is never an attempt to align with one party – we align with Jesus alone. Nor is it an attempt to choose only one cause – God is bigger, and his mission more variegated than single issue in ethics or politics. We will embrace the diversity and complexity of our congregation choosing unity and keeping Jesus first.

[Galatians 3:28]

A Jesus Church is committed to bringing God’s heart for reconciliation and justice to all aspects of injustice due to race and ethnicity. The Bible is clear: God’s heart breaks for the oppressed and marginalized, and He hears their cry. This includes where oppression is due to race and ethnicity. The consistent cry of the Bible is to love justice, and mercifully step into the pain of others with humility (Mic 6:8) – it is what Jesus did for all of humanity, and all of his disciples are called to follow his example. Racial injustice is one of many areas of justice we should care for.

God is building a diverse, multi-ethnic church. In Revelation chapter five we see the many cultures, languages and ethnicities of humanity united in the worship of God. The Kingdom of God will reflect the beauty and creativity of God in this diversity, and this vision ought to inspire us to embrace and learn from diversity now as we seek to glorify God and carry out his gospel mission.

Sadly, the United States has a deep history of the unjust treatment of non-white minority peoples and cultures that caused great harm, and continues to affect us today. There are continuing instances of interpersonal racism, but also aspects that are cultural, social and structural. We recognize that these issues affect us inside the church, not just in the world. A Jesus Church has not been perfect in our interaction with issues connected to race and ethnicity in the past, and we still have lots of room to grow.

A Jesus Church is committed to gospel-centered approaches to caring for the oppressed, using our voice and influence to contribute to doing justice, and bringing Jesus into situations that need healing and reconciliation. The problems are complex, and the way forward can also be complex. We do not take a stance on particular public policies, although there are people in our community whose calling involves them engaging these issues in the public sphere. It saddens us to see Christians fighting over simplifications and caricatures of the issues. These things need to be engaged with gentle humility and patient wisdom. There is much learning to be done.

We want to be the sort of community that grows beautiful unified diversity that reflects God’s vision for humanity. To be a place where we learn well how to learn from others, to show compassion, to work for healing and justice, and to experience transformative reconciliation. We want to be the sort of community who, when our city is facing problems connected to race and ethnicity, can be looked to as an example of what is possible with Jesus, and a light to lead the way.

To do this we want to grow in our diversity and allow that diversity to affect us. We celebrate the growing diversity of our congregation as our local demographics have been changing. We are prayerfully asking God to grow that diversity into our leadership, so that non-majority voices can enrich A Jesus Church and our capacity to catch Jesus’ heart. We recognize that this process has obstacles, so we are intentional about listening and looking for opportunities.

If you are a person of color, or passionate about racial justice, please talk to a leader. Know that if you have any hurts that you want to bring into pastoral care, they will be met with compassion. If you have anything to share we would love to listen. And if you want to get involved, we would love to get to know you and build relationship with you - please talk to us!

[Psalm 68:5]

It grieves our heart that for a long time people who have faced painful and hard circumstances and decisions around conception, pregnancy, miscarriage, birth and abortion have often had to navigate them without access to care, compassion and community in the church. The church should be a resource to those in need, but instead it has often denied those in need when abortion is a part of the story. This ought not to be so. Jesus did not deny prostitutes or tax collectors access to himself; ethics was not a precondition of connecting with Jesus. It is the other way around: connecting with Jesus is the way into ethical transformation.

We want to be like Jesus and embody his love in a way that those facing ethical dilemmas, or who have not yet learned aspects of the way of Jesus, can still find welcome and compassion. If you have had an abortion, or are wrestling with issues around a pregnancy and fertility, we will not jump to judgements or stigmatize you. We want to hear your story. There is a place for you to worship with us as you work out how Jesus would have you respond, and we’d like to be a community where you can belong and find support as God works in you to heal, reconcile and restore.

We do believe that a child in the womb is a life made in the image of God, and as such it is valuable. The loss of a life should be grieved as a painful evil. We recognize that this is especially hard for those who have had to choose abortion to protect a mother’s or twin’s life. But it is also especially hard for those who are learning the way of Jesus and have abortion in their past. We want to make pastoral support and God’s comfort available to these people.

There are sometimes incredibly difficult circumstances where the painful possibility of abortion is a part of someone’s considerations. We will always advocate for protecting and preserving a child’s life whenever possible – we think it aligns with God’s heart. But we also recognize that someone facing these challenges needs practical, emotional and spiritual support. We want to be the sort of church where people can find the support that enables them to do the hard thing of saying ‘no’ to an abortion, and navigate their way through what Jesus will lead them to do instead.