The mission of Hillside Community Church is a simple one: love God and love people.
Why?
Because Jesus taught that love is center of everything. It’s that to which the whole of scripture points. It’s the only worthwhile measure of our lives. It’s the only thing that can change us and our world for the better.
And so, our work as Jesus’ followers is to ground our lives more and more in that love.
At Hillside Community Church, we don’t have a checklist of beliefs that you need to sign off on in order to participate. Rather, we gladly welcome all who are interested in exploring the way of Jesus! These are the major ideas that inform our worship and community life:
We believe in God who has created all that is, God who has come into human life and taken on its joys and sorrows in the form of Jesus the Christ, and God who continues to intercede in history in the form of the Holy Spirit.
We recognize and love each individual as a child of God. We welcome, respect, support, and lovingly encourage people of every race, ethnicity, creed, class, gender, sexual orientation, age, and physical and mental ability to join us on our journey of faith.
At Hillside Community Church, we take the Bible seriously, not literally. In the very human words of scripture we listen for God’s voice speaking to us in our current circumstances.
In our denomination, each church has full freedom of belief and action. We have no bishops, cardinals, or popes that govern what we say or do. Our accountability is first to God and then to each other, as those committed to knowing and loving God in the way of Jesus.
Worship is about loving God. We believe that this time of prayer, song, and reflection helps us listen for God’s voice speaking to us and bringing us alive both individually and as a community.
Service is about loving people. We believe that serving others in love is our highest calling as followers of Jesus’ way. At Hillside, we follow Jesus in our commitment to serving those on the margins: the poor, the hungry, and the overlooked.
A lot of progressive Christian communities excel at the important work of deconstruction, helping folks break free of the false and harmful religious messages they’ve been exposed to. At Hillside, we go one step further, offering a positive, constructive, biblically grounded vision of the Christian faith – the faith that Jesus actually taught and lived:
We believe in the boundless love of God, expressed through Jesus Christ.
We listen for God’s Word in prayer and scripture, and we celebrate the Spirit pervading all creation.
We believe in engaging with people authentically, as Jesus did, treating all as made in God’s image.
We stand with the outcast and oppressed, seeking peace and justice, and preserving the church’s prophetic voice.
We walk humbly with God, acknowledging our shortcomings and seeking to understand others.
We base our lives on the faith that in Christ all things are made new and that we are loved beyond our wildest imaginations – for eternity.
We claim the sacredness of our minds and hearts, caring for our bodies, and taking time for prayer, reflection, worship, and recreation.
We act on the faith that we are born with meaning and purpose:
To love boldly, serve faithfully, and live joyfully in God’s ever-extending realm of love.
