ANGLICAN

Beliefs & Practices

Scripture, Creeds & Confessions

WHAT WE BELIEVE

As Anglicans, we see ourselves as part of the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic church. With roots going back to the early church, historic Anglicanism is a branch of the catholic church that was reformed in the 16th century. Specifically, we hold to the following:

  • The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be God’s Word written, containing all that is necessary for salvation.

  • The orthodox Christian creeds, namely the Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Athanasian Creed together with the Chalcedonian Definition.

  • The Thirty-nine Articles as containing foundational doctrine of the Church agreeing with God’s Word and as authoritative for Anglicans today. 

  • The Anglican sacramental and liturgical heritage as an expression of the gospel, and the 1662 Book of Common Prayer as a true and authoritative standard of worship and prayer, to be translated and locally adapted for each culture. 

  • The Jerusalem Declaration as charting a way forward that promotes and protects the biblical gospel and mission to the world, solemnly declaring the beauty of orthodoxy which underpins our Anglican identity.

OUR AFFILIATIONS

Denomination & Diocese

Harbor Anglican Church is a member of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) and is in the Diocese of the Rocky Mountains (DRM).

OUR PRACTICES

Anglican Distinctives

Biblical

With special emphasis on the reading and study of God’s Word, we believe the Bible is to shape our imaginations, worship, values, practices, and common life. We believe all Scripture is God-breathed and proclaims Jesus Christ as Lord who was crucified and risen for the salvation of the world.

Sacramental

Seeing the two dominical (meaning of the Lord) sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper as foundational to our life in Christ and his Church, we believe God graciously extends his forgiveness and life to us through the created, ordinary means of water, bread, and wine. Renewed by God’s grace, we are then led to see all of creation as a gift that participates in its Creator.

Liturgical

Rooted in the rhythms and beauty of worship that have been shaped over the centuries, we are a liturgical church that practices holistic Christian formation that involves the head, the heart, and the body, emphasizing imagination as well as information, and producing disciples with gospel-shaped desires. We believe that liturgy is a form of hospitality, enabling people from all walks of life to participate together in worship. Anglicans around the world use what is called the Book of Common Prayer, which is most simply “the Bible arranged for worship” and helps direct our worship and practices.

Communal

In all of life, be it highs or lows, from welcoming a child into the world, to burying a loved one, to praying the Daily Office, to journeying through church year, we seek to live out our faith together and not as isolated individuals.

Missional

Following in line with the Apostles, we are a sent people. We’ve been given a commission to carry on the work of Jesus, spreading the news of his resurrection and reign as far and wide as possible. To be missional is to understand that we exist as an outpost of God’s kingdom for the sake of others.