You may not be able to quote it verbatim, but perhaps the stated vision of Park Avenue Church rings a bell.
We will be a vibrantly Christ-centered, multiracial, multi-ethnic, intergenerational instrument of transformation, actively engaged with our urban neighborhood and our world.
To create a framework for organizational decision-making, the Park Avenue Church Leadership Board recently took an additional step to adopt guiding principles – four in total – and presented them at our charge conference on January 17. Together with our vision statement, these principles reflect who we are as a congregation and who we want to become. They are not intended to communicate all we believe but how we desire to behave and minister to each other.
Of course, there’s much to do to implement them in our life together (some of that work has already begun). And truth be told, we must acknowledge that we approach them with humility because we know we are a work in progress and desperately need God’s help to be faithful.
May God, by the Spirit of Christ within and among us, continue to inspire our imaginations, challenge our assumptions, and empower our actions as we seek to live out these guiding principles at Park Avenue UMC.
So, for this space, I only offer them to you in brief form and invite you to reflect on this question: Put yourself in the shoes of a newcomer to Park and ask yourself, in what ways would these guiding principles be immediately noticeable?
Park Avenue UMC is committed to these guiding principles
1. God's first call to LOVE. Following Jesus' invitation to love each other as we are loved, we seek to practice loving God, each other, and ourselves. When aware of our actions that do not model God's love and call of reconciliation, we strive to recognize where we have fallen short and restore relationships we have harmed. 2. RADICAL BELONGING. Rooted in a love modeled after Jesus, we seek to set an example of the diversity of the kingdom of God. We aim to cultivate an organizational culture of radical belonging and gracious welcome for all persons in all that we do. 3. SERVING our neighbors while expanding our regional reach. While PAUMC reaches people from the Twin Cities and beyond, the church was founded and located in our South Minneapolis neighborhood. We believe our most significant impact remains in relevant service to our immediate community. 4. Being a community of HOPE AND HEALING. In our practice of trusting the God of hope and wholeness with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength, we seek to be a church of hope and healing, justice and reconciliation in a hurting and fragmented world.
Breathe Love,
Pastor Gregg
