Our Philosophy
“Preach the gospel constantly. When absolutely necessary, use words.” – St. Francis of Assisi
“And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” – Micah 6:8
There is a linked pair of profound equations described in the Bible:
(1) We love God by loving people.
(2) If we love in Jesus’ name, we live.
Where is this explained? Not just in a few isolated verses, but in whole sections of Scripture we can read that loving God is inseparable from loving people, and conversely, loving people equals loving God. And to live that way means to taste the adventure - His Kingdom come - that God has invited us into.
In Matthew 25, Jesus is quoted as saying that if we love the “least of these” (those needing clothing, housing, food, etc.), we are actually loving Jesus himself. Likewise, he adds, to not love those means we are not loving him.
Isaiah 58, one of the most vivid and poetic passages in the Bible, starts with God’s distaste with empty religious ceremony, but then promises IF we care for those in need (of clothing, housing, food, etc.), THEN our “own healing will quickly appear...our own darkness will be like the noon day...we will be like a well-watered garden.”
Jesus summarized Isaiah 58 with one phrase: “If you lose your life for my sake, you gain it.” If we love, we live. And in his “inauguration speech” recorded in Luke 4 (a restatement of Isaiah 61), he said, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (a reference to debts being forgiven). When John the Baptist was imprisoned, he asked some of his students to ask Jesus if indeed he was the Messiah. Jesus’ answer? “Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised and the good news is preached to the poor” (Luke 7:22).
According to Jesus, these actions are the validating mark of the Messiah. And thus, they should be the mark of the Messiah in his Church now: healing the sick and caring for the poor.
Friends of Boston Terrace
Since the summer of 2008, we've been hosting a monthly dinner for the residents of Boston Terrace, one of Guilford's three disabled & affordablehousing complexes. We donated a gas grill to kick (and cook) things off, but since then we've had a variety of meals for any resident who wants to join in, from amazing chicken pot pies to secret-recipe meat loaf. Overall, there's been a lot laughter and new friendships.
Storage sheds for local low-income housing
As of May, 2004, we helped purchase and build four wooden storage sheds in Guilford for homes rented to low-income families through a local foundation (the Guilford Interfaith Housing Corp.). We have enlisted the funds and participation of three other local congregations, including St. George’s Catholic Church.
Alpha Course
The Alpha Course is a video-based introduction to the Christian faith produced by Holy Trinity Brompton, an Anglican church in London, England. The course has subsequently been endorsed by nearly all Christian denominations, from Congregational to Catholic, and has been translated into a dozen languages.
Presently, we are not running an Alpha Course, but we may also test out an Alpha-like course called SEEK, which was developed by the staff of the Greater Boston Vineyard. That's now available on DVD as of the spring of 2011.
Farmer's Market
Starting in the spring of 2005, and through the fall of 2007, we supplemented the Guilford Food Bank with fresh fruit and vegetables with our own adjoining "Farmer's Market" two Saturdays of each month from May through September. We often had live music to accompany our two-person team of church members who set up a beautiful table with wicker baskets overflowing with seasonal fruit, fresh vegetables and sometimes quality breads.
Free Oil Changes
Starting in June of 2007, we began offering free oil changes and car "detailing" through a partnership with our local Monro Muffler franchise. The last Saturday of each month through November we served single moms, elderly and a variety of others who received on of our coupons. It's one practical way to show the love of God in a community where public transportation is so meager that one's car has to be well maintained. We are taking a break for the winter and will resume in April of 2008.
