At University United Methodist Church, we believe God's love embraces all creation and that every person bears the image of God. As followers of Jesus Christ in the Wesleyan tradition, we seek to grow in love for God and neighbor, nurture meaningful relationships, and participate in God's ongoing work of healing and transforming the world.
Our mission, Feeding God's People: Body, Mind, and Spirit, expresses our conviction that faith encompasses every dimension of life. We are a community of believers, seekers, and questioners learning together what it means to follow Christ in a changing world.
We believe God's grace is freely given and continually at work in our lives. In the Wesleyan tradition, we understand grace as God's loving presence that reaches toward us before we recognize it, welcomes us into deeper relationship with God, and transforms us throughout our lives.
We call this prevenient, justifying, and sanctifying grace. Through grace, we are invited into a lifelong journey of growing in love, compassion, and holiness.
Wherever you are on your spiritual journey, God's grace is already at work.
We believe Jesus Christ reveals the depth of God's love through his life, teachings, death, and resurrection. Jesus' ministry of healing, reconciliation, and solidarity with those pushed to the margins shows us what love looks like in action.
We seek to follow Jesus' greatest commandments: to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind, and to love our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22:37–39).
Following Christ means growing in compassion, extending hospitality, building relationships across differences, and participating in God's work of reconciliation and renewal.
We take the Bible seriously as a sacred witness to God's relationship with humanity. We seek to understand Scripture within its historical and cultural contexts, drawing on the wisdom of Christian tradition, thoughtful reasoning, and our lived experiences.
We believe the Holy Spirit continues to deepen our understanding through theological reflection, scientific discovery, the arts, the natural world, and encounters with people whose experiences differ from our own.
Questions are welcome here. We value curiosity, respectful dialogue, and the wisdom that emerges when we explore faith together. We also recognize that people of other religious traditions have profound insights into truth, compassion, and the sacred.
We celebrate the beautiful diversity of God's creation and affirm the sacred worth of every person, regardless of race, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, ability, economic circumstance, or spiritual background.
University United Methodist Church is a member of Reconciling Ministries Network (RMN), a movement working for the full inclusion, affirmation, and participation of LGBTQ+ people in the life and ministry of the Church.
Our commitment to reconciliation grows from our conviction that every person bears the image of God. We celebrate LGBTQ+ people and families, affirming their relationships, gifts, and calls to leadership and ministry.
As a congregation that has also identified as a Safe Haven church, we seek to offer a community of welcome, dignity, and care.
We believe our differences enrich our shared life, and we grow in faith through relationships that cross the boundaries that too often divide us.
We embrace the Charter for Compassion, a global movement that brings people of different religious, spiritual, and ethical traditions together through a shared commitment to compassion, justice, and human dignity.
The Charter calls us to treat others as we wish to be treated, alleviate suffering, respect diversity, and recognize our shared humanity. It challenges us to examine how our actions and institutions affect others and to work toward a more compassionate and peaceful world.
Rooted in Jesus' commandment to love our neighbors as ourselves, we seek to live these principles through interfaith relationships, community partnerships, advocacy, and mutual care.
Compassion is more than a feeling; it is a commitment to how we live together.
In the Wesleyan tradition, we understand Christian discipleship as a lifelong journey toward Christian perfection—not perfection without mistakes, but the ongoing transformation of our hearts and lives toward love of God and neighbor.
We encounter God's transforming grace through prayer, worship, Scripture, baptism, Holy Communion, Christian fellowship, and acts of mercy and justice. These practices, known as the means of grace, nurture our relationships with God and one another.
We believe personal spiritual growth and the well-being of our neighbors are inseparable. As we grow in love, we discover new ways to care for one another, challenge injustice, and participate in the flourishing of creation.
We believe faith is expressed through both personal devotion and social responsibility. Following Jesus calls us to care for our neighbors, confront injustice, and work toward a world where all people can flourish.
Through ministries addressing food insecurity, clothing needs, environmental stewardship, education, and community well-being, we seek to build relationships grounded in dignity, solidarity, and mutual care.
We also recognize that compassion calls us beyond meeting immediate needs. We are called to examine and challenge the systems that contribute to poverty, discrimination, exclusion, and environmental harm.
We seek to serve alongside our neighbors, recognizing that every person has gifts to share and that transformation happens through relationships.
Throughout Scripture, God is described through many images and metaphors: Creator, Father, Mother, Shepherd, Rock, Refuge, Wisdom, and Spirit. Each offers a glimpse into the mystery of God, yet no single image can fully express the divine.
At University UMC, we intentionally use expansive language for God in our worship, prayers, music, and teaching. We recognize that language shapes how we understand God, ourselves, and one another.
By drawing upon the richness of biblical imagery, we seek to honor the fullness of God's presence and create space for people whose experiences of faith and religious language may differ.
We continue to worship the Triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—while embracing the many scriptural images that reveal God's love, wisdom, creativity, and nurturing care.
Our language reflects a conviction at the heart of our faith: God is greater than any single image, description, or human understanding.
We seek to serve alongside our neighbors, recognizing that every person has gifts to share and that transformation happens through relationships.