People connect to Beloved through worship, work, and witness.

Worship – participation in the worship and prayer life of the church.

Work – engagement in Beloved’s ministries of study, care, activism, or administration.

Because we are a congregational ministry, the people are the church. We rely on shared leadership to do the church’s work within our walls and beyond it.

Because the community includes economically marginalized people, we realize that not all can contribute money. However, we also know that financial stewardship is essential to the community’s survival. We encourage those who can give to do so from a heart of gratitude and generosity.  

We also recognize and value the partnership of other individuals, movements, and organizations in the work of justice and mercy in the world – and that many people come through our doors for that work.

Witness – affirmation of  the commitment to walk together in the ways of Jesus, creating a community and striving for a world where no one is an outcast and no one is a stranger, where all people are celebrated as precious children of God, where we joyfully share with one another hope for the living, comfort for the dying, dignity for those in struggle, and freedom to ask and to seek and grow more fully into the persons we were created to be.  We do this with the help of God and as a commitment in our personal and communal life.

Our witness reflects the Beloved Community Covenant, a guiding document in our congregational life. We understand that people come to us at different points of their journey of life and faith. We have no doctrinal requirements for participation in the life of the community, but ask of all a living respect for the principles of the Covenant.

People’s connection to Beloved Community Church generally takes one of three forms:

• covenant relationship – those who worship with the congregation as they are able, do the work of the church with their time, talents, and financial resources, and bear witness to the principles of the Beloved Community Covenant. This role is conferred by explicit commitment and ongoing witness. In other congregations, this is often referred to as “membership.” While these people are the lifeblood of the community and collectively have decision-making authority on its behalf, the designation does not confer any special favor or value in the sight of God or one another (for that belongs to us all). It is possible to be in covenant relationship with Beloved and also be a member of another faith community.

• active attender – people who attend worship or other activities of spiritual formation on a regular or occasional basis, but have not claimed an active covenant relationship with the church.
  
  
• the wider Beloved Community – others connected to the life of the congregation in one or more ways. This includes individuals and organizations who:
  • financially support the church, but do not participate in its activities
  • partner in activist, ecumenical, or interfaith work
  • regularly attend Beloved-sponsored events
  • have a historical connection to the church maintained through legacy membership
  • volunteer in the church’s ministries, but do not participate in its activities
  • regularly use our building or outdoor space
  • occasionally attend worship
  • receive spiritual or material care from the congregation or the pastoral team

Together these categories are designed to ensure that everyone finds meaningful belonging and engagement at Beloved, making use of their own spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 12:8-10, Romans 12:6-8) and walking in their own life’s calling.

Anyone who wishes to join in covenant relationship with Beloved Community Church should tell the coordinating pastor of this interest.

Discernment on a spiritual path is a journey. Just as people may choose to enter into a covenant relationship with the church, they may also end it.
Transfer of letter, requested disenrollment, discontinuing participation, and active, persistent causing of harm are all reasons that a person might move from the role of covenant relationship to another category – or might leave the community altogether.

We recognize that over time people will come to Beloved and people will leave it. It is the great joy of this congregation to travel together on our spiritual journeys – and we seek always to do so immersed in faith, integrity, God’s grace, and our mutual accountability to one another.