Ethos

Our Identity

St Paul's is an evangelical Anglican church in the Diocese of London.

Individually and as a community we long for renewal through the Holy Spirit, so that we can know and experience more and more of the amazing and unconditional love of God in Jesus, and be channels of that love to others. We seek to know and to share the joy and fullness of life that Jesus came to bring and to be partners with him in the transformation of his world. Our ministry and mission is shaped by an orthodox understanding of Christianity as revealed in the Holy Scriptures, set out in the catholic creeds and to which the historic Anglican formularies bear witness.

Our theological position falls within the open evangelical tradition of the Church of England. In essence this means we are:

Committed to:

• the final authority of the Bible in all matters of belief;
• the uniqueness and finality of Christ, the Son of God;
• the free gift of eternal life for humankind only through his death on the cross and resurrection;
• the need for personal acceptance of Christ;
• the teaching of Scripture as the normative ethical framework and guideline in human relationships, upholding faithfulness in marriage between a man and a woman in lifelong union, and abstinence for those not called to such marriage; and
• the mission-shaped calling of the church.

Open to:

• the insights of biblical scholarship;
• the renewing presence and power of the Holy Spirit;
• new patterns of worship, prayer and liturgy;
• learning from other Christian traditions, including those in the developing world;
• the ordained ministry of women; and
• playing a full part within the structures of the Church of England.

Our Core Values

In the early autumn of 2011 we reviewed and revised our core values, the things which guide how we do things at St Paul's. In joyful response to God's unconditional love, we aim to live by the following values:

Christ-centred -

giving Jesus priority and seeking his glory in all we do.

Biblical -

dependent on and inspired by God’s life-giving, Spirit-breathed written word.

Prayerful -

confident that things happen when we pray, and seeking God in every aspect of our lives.

Relational -

a welcoming community in which to encounter God as we belong, learn, grow and use our gifts together.  

Missional -

passionate about communicating God’s loving heart for the world.

Risk-taking -

a courageous community willing to embrace the challenge of change.

We are committed to maintaining our distinctively Christian ethos by ensuring that Christians, as volunteers and staff, are appointed to those positions, which we have agreed, require Christians to fill them.