ELIZA SMITH
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  • Examples of Best Work
    • Parables and Power Dynamics
    • Mary as a Surrogate Mother
    • Childhood Anxiety and Ritual Exercises for Coping
    • Liturgy for "Blue Christmas" Service
    • Grief Resource for PV Families
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Statement of Faith

  I believe that God is the ultimate creator, sustainer and redeemer, three in one. God spoke the world into being, creating everything in it. These things include those which can be seen and touched and those that are invisible to the human eye. God breathes all life and guides all growth. God formed human beings with intentionality, creating humans to be distinct and relational. As such, humans are called by God to be aware of and connected to all of God’s creation. God instilled in humans the ability to reason and discern truth, but humans are not all-knowing. In this way, humans are not capable of completely comprehending the divine, though God expresses truth to humans through revelation.

I believe God is the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and that the three persons of the trinity are co-equal, co-eternal, of the same being and of the same substance. I believe that Jesus Christ is one person in two natures, fully divine and fully human. I believe that the life, death and resurrection of Christ reveals who God is, and has always been, to humanity. The life of Jesus is a model for Christian action and accountability, demonstrating justice, mercy and compassion to all of God’s people. The Holy Spirit is God’s continual presence with and among us. By the Holy Spirit, we are reminded that God never separates God’s self from the world, even in times of suffering and tragedy.

Sin is an undeniable part of our nature as humans, and sin is separation from God. We recognize that we are sinful people and confess this sin before God. God’s grace is extended to humanity, never something we can earn, but a gift. Though sin is individual, it is also communal and systemic, for humans together have comprised systems that fundamentally oppose the goodness that God intends for God’s people and God’s earth. The death and resurrection of Jesus reconciles God and God’s people, forgiving human sin.  The resurrection of Jesus overcomes the reality of physical death and declares the revelation of life eternal that God intends for God’s people. 
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I believe that the Bible is the Word of God, written by humans and divinely inspired. The sacraments of baptism and communion are ways in which we, as people of faith, remember God’s covenant promises. Both baptism and communion are visible signs of an invisible grace. Baptism and communion remind us that God chooses us, claims us and calls us to the table of remembrance and renewal. Christian worship involves both praise and response. Worship is both the recognition of the wonder and grace of God and a call to action to serve one another as a response to this tremendous (and undeserved) gift. The work, then, of Christian vocation involves the realization that life, in all aspects, should be an act of worship. When people gather in formal recognition of God’s goodness, providing thanks and praise, we must then depart into the world expressing that same thanks and praise in all that we do.
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  • Home
  • Vocational Discernment
  • Statement of Belief
  • Places I've Served
  • PT Metaphor
  • Spiritual Disciplines
  • Sermons
  • Examples of Best Work
    • Parables and Power Dynamics
    • Mary as a Surrogate Mother
    • Childhood Anxiety and Ritual Exercises for Coping
    • Liturgy for "Blue Christmas" Service
    • Grief Resource for PV Families
  • Resume