We welcome all people on their journey of faith, regardless of age, physical condition, race,
gender identity, sexual orientation or class, and support each other in our ministries
to one another, the community, and the world.
ABOUT EPWORTH
UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
Our Mission/Vision
Our mission is to come together to worship, to study, and to live out God’s love so that we strengthen our Christian faith, develop a creative, supportive community, and encourage each other in our many ministries.
We strive to put our faith into action, reaching out to others in need–locally and globally–supporting justice for all people, as we meet needs together in a changing world. We affirm our United Methodist heritage, seek to understand and celebrate our many differences as well as the ties that bind us, and we strive to be a fully inclusive church.
Reconciling Statement
We welcome all people on their journey of faith regardless of age, physical condition, race, gender, sexual orientation, or class, and support each other in our ministries to one another, the community, and the world.
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Since 1995, Epworth United Methodist Church has been part of the Reconciling Ministries Network, a national grassroots organization that mobilizes United Methodists of all sexual orientations and gender identities to transform our Church and world into the full expression of Christ’s inclusive love.
Sanctuary Church Declaration
We are called by God, scripture, tradition, and our life together to live out our faith in our relationships in the world.
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We are called to act on our principles that all people have inherent worth regardless of their national origin, citizenship or legal status.
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We are called to stand with those suffering injustice and to work to change the systems causing it.
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We see and reject the vilification and criminalization of immigrants across the globe as antithetical to our faith and our moral commitment to justice.
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Therefore Epworth United Methodist Church, Berkeley, declares itself a Sanctuary Church, standing in solidarity with immigrants and other organizations working on their behalf.
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Adopted by the congregation on November 29, 2018
Mission Statement for Racial Justice
As a community called Epworth living in the grace and mercy of God, trusting in the healing and liberating example of Jesus, and guided and strengthened by the power of the Holy Spirit, we commit ourselves to being an anti-racist, justice-seeking church and to living out our enduring, always evolving understanding of what this means.
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We celebrate racial and ethnic diversity and value the wholeness, power, and vibrancy made possible in community equally shared and shepherded by all. As an intentionally multi-racial and multi-ethnic community of faith, we recognize the importance of listening to the Holy Spirit for inspiration in our enduring work for racial and social justice.
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We acknowledge the painful truth of historical and contemporary racism--including the sins of slavery, genocide, displacement, exploitation, land theft, internment, violence, separation and harm to families, financial and health disparities, stigmatization and legalized discrimination which continue to impact Black, indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC) in our church and in our community. We recognize that racism manifests in interpersonal and systemic ways, and that the impacts of racism are insidious, pernicious and often unacknowledged. We know that race and ethnicity affect our lives and our decisions in an ongoing and overarching way, and that each of us walks through the world impacted differently.
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We walk humbly, understanding we are continuing a mission for racial liberation, justice and equality carried forward by many who have come before us and in solidarity with larger social movements for racial justice.
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We ask God’s guidance as we commit to centering the many racial and ethnic identities and voices in all aspects of our congregational life for the continued development of Epworth as a spiritual home and sanctuary for all people.
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Adopted by church conference action on December 7, 2021