What Presbyterians Believe

Presbyterians affirm basic convictions of the faith with all Christians. We believe in one God, known in three persons. The Creator of all things and the Father of all humanity; Jesus Christ, His Son, our Lord and Savior; and the Holy Spirit, the source of strength and comfort to all Christians. We believe that through our dynamic interaction with the Biblical message, God's will and way is revealed to us. We believe that the church is the body of Christ. We are God's people gathered to worship and sent to serve by sharing the good news of the gospel in word and act. We believe that God holds all creation in His hands. God's will is to be sought in every facet of life, public and private, personal and corporate, national and international. We believe that humanity sins and rebels against God. However, God is loving and forgiving, offering healing and reconciliation to all who will accept. We believe that the victory of rebirth and eternal life is made certain through the risen Christ.

Baptism is the sign and seal of unification into Jesus Christ. In Baptism, we die to what separates us from God and are raised to newness of life in Jesus Christ. Baptism points us back to the grace of God expressed in Jesus Christ, who died for us and who was raised for us.

Baptism is received only once. As there is one body, there is one Baptism. The Presbyterian Church (USA) recognizes all Baptisms with water in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit administered by other Christian churches.

The Baptism of children witnesses to the truth that God's love claims people before they are able to respond in faith. God's' faithfulness needs no renewal. Human faithfulness to God needs repeated renewal. Baptism calls for decision at every subsequent stage of life's way, both for those whose Baptism attends their profession of faith and for those who are nurtured from childhood within the family of faith.

Communion is the sacrament instituted by our Lord Jesus known as the Last Supper. During his earthly ministry, Jesus shared meals with his followers as a sign of community and acceptance. In his last meal before his death, Jesus took and shared with his disciples the bread and wine and commended this act as a means of remembering and proclaiming his death. On the day of his resurrection, the risen Jesus made himself known to his followers in the breaking of bread. The apostle Paul delivered to the early Christian Church the tradition and commanded his followers to share the bread and cup as a remembrance. In remembering, believers receive and trust the love Christ presented to them and to the world and manifest the reality of the covenant of grace in reconciling and being reconciled with God and each other in justice and in peace.

The Sacrament of the Lord's Supper is offered on specific Sundays of the Christian year. It is also taken to those who are unable to physically attend the communion service. It is open to all those who believe in Jesus Christ; membership in the Park Ridge Presbyterian Church is not a requirement for participation.

In conclusion, Communion is a remembrance of the one, Jesus of Nazareth, our true Lord and Savior, who offered up himself, by himself, upon the cross, once for all. Communion is a perpetual remembrance of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ in his death, the sealing of all benefits unto true believers, and the believer's spiritual nourishment and growth in him. At the Lord's Supper, children and adults gather at His table where the bread and the cup remind us of Christ's sacrifice so that we form a bond and pledge communion with Jesus Christ, and with each other, as members of his mystical body.