United Methodism is, and always has been, about having faith in Jesus, and then putting our faith into action.
We believe following the way of Jesus means using our hands, feet, minds, belongings, and resources to partner with what God is doing to bless, help, and heal our community and our world.
We believe in being a community for ALL people. God’s Kingdom is diverse and inclusive! All are welcome to participate fully in the ministries of Central.
We believe God always acts first, with unconditional love and grace, seeing the best of what we could be. We want to grow in our awareness of God's grace in our own lives and to see all people through God's eyes.
We believe in asking questions, listening well, communicating with each other, freely disagreeing sometimes, and loving each other regardless.
All our beliefs are anchored in the Methodist/Wesleyan understandings of Scripture, Tradition, Reason and Experience. If you'd like to read more about UMC theology, mission and history, you can begin by taking a look at our Foundational Documents.
Here are some thoughts on what it means to be a Christian in the Methodist tradition:
In his book Why I Am a United Methodist, UMC Bishop William Willimon writes:
"I find that United Methodism has five great gifts to offer our troubled, but still blessed and beloved-by-God world:
(1) Stress on the need for a personal, experienced relationship with Christ.
(We can know Christ, not just know about him.)
(2) The need for structure, discipline, and form in meeting the challenges of living a Christian life today.
(Some things are too important to be left to chance.)
(3) The importance of lifelong journey and self-examination, assisted by others, in developing our lives in Christ.
(We can grow and be better people than we are right now.)
(4) The refusal to separate spiritual needs from human, material needs.
(God loves whole persons, not just detached “souls”.)
(5) The stress upon the church, its proclamation, sacraments, and other “ordinary means of grace” against our rampant individualism and subjectivism.
(Religion — the Christian one, that is — is not a private affair.)