We call ourselves a progressive church. What do we mean? We are here because we are the expression of a long Christian tradition that began about two thousand years ago. Christianity itself developed out of a long Jewish tradition which we associate with Moses and the prophets. When Christianity began to take root in the Eastern Mediterranean countries there was no consensus regarding the various forms of Church government even though some claimed to be the only authentic way. Honoring many aspects of our heritage, we seek to promote dialog and learning with all the major world religions affirming the commonalities that join us together. Science and the Arts are also integral parts of this effort and we strive to develop a faith perspective that is well grounded in what we know by scientific discoveries as well as being open to the knowledge that an aspiring imagination can bring and encourage you to join us in our quest in a life of meaning, purpose and enlightenment.

The 8 Points

By calling ourselves progressive, we mean we are Christians who...

1. Have found an approach to God through the life and teachings of Jesus.
2. Recognize the faithfulness of other people who have other names for the way to God's realm, and acknowledge that their ways are true for them, as our ways are true for us.
3. Understand the sharing of bread and wine in Jesus' name to be a representation of an ancient vision of God's feast for all peoples.
4. Invite all people to participate in our community and worship life without insisting that they become like us in order to be acceptable (including but not limited to):
   believers and agnostics
   conventional Christians and questioning skeptics
   women and men
   those of all sexual orientations and gender identities,
   those of all races and cultures
   those of all classes and abilities
   those who hope for a better world and those who have lost hope.
5. Know that the way we behave toward one another and toward other people is the fullest expression of what we believe.
6. Find more grace in the search for understanding than we do in dogmatic certainty - more value in questioning than in absolutes.
7. Form ourselves into communities dedicated to equipping one another for the work we feel called to do: striving for peace and justice among all people, protecting and restoring the integrity of all God's creation, and bringing hope to those Jesus called the least of his sisters and brothers.
8. Recognize that being followers of Jesus is costly, and entails selfless love, conscientious resistance to evil, and renunciation of privilege.

Interested in learning what you can do? Come visit Shepherd of the Hills Church for a start. And, read on.

What does American religion look like to you?  Does it look like Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, Rick Warren, and James Dobson?

What does American religion act like to you? Is it the political power of the religious right, the vandalism of anti-abortion protesters, and the legal battles of angry homophobic people?

What does American religion sound like to you? Is it arguments such as the Bible is literally true, my faith is the only true faith and the rest of you are not just wrong, but so wrong you will spend eternity in hell?

If you answered yes to these questions, if that is what religion looks like to you, I ask you to take a deep breathe and hear me out!

Did you know most American Religious people are nothing like what has been described above?  Did you know that only 33% of Americans believe the Bible is the Word of God and literally word for word true.  Did you know that only 27% of Americans believe there is only one true way to interpret their religion?  Did you know that a staggering 70% of Americans believe that many religions can lead to eternal life? Statistics can be found at the Pew Research Center at http://religions.pewforum.or/comparisons

ahhhhhhhhhhh to me that is a breath of fresh air!

So why do we have such a distorted view of American Religion and Religious people? I believe the mainstream media is at least in part to blame for shaping public opinion in this way, and here are my 5 reasons...

1) Check out this story today by MSNBC. "Great Sex Sermon Causes Stir in Rural Town" at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29633627/

If you read this article, and THIS makes MSNBC, no wonder you have a backwards view of religious folks. This is not stirring, this is not interesting, and it most certainly is not NEWS! 

My favorite line of the article being this...  "The controversy is a bit ironic considering the church's overall point is about as straight-laced as they come: That God intends for sex to be enjoyed solely within a heterosexual marriage, and that anything else — adultery, pornography, homosexuality, even "sexual arousal" outside of marriage — is sin."

Check out our recent sermon on sex, VERY different! http://www.christ-community.net/sermons/sermon02_22_09.htm

2) Same-sex Marriage Debate - Through all of the coverage of Prop. 8, the media tried to have a "balanced" perspective. Their idea of balance? One gay-rights advocate vs. one "Christian." 

3) Despite selling millions and millions of books, when was the last time you saw a progressive religious person interviewed on a major news network?

4) Religion is only factored into a news story when there is no other reasoning, when logic is lost. It is the default dummy defense, making religion seem like an irrational motivator. Why do you want to keep to happy gay people from marrying (because the Bible says), why do you want to disregard science not allowing Evolution to be taught in schools and teach Creationism instead (because the Bible says), why do object from stopping the spread of AIDS through the use of condoms (because the Pope says)... dear God!  When the ideas of people seem to only be impacted by their faith when there is no reason, no wonder religion seems irrational! I have ample reasons why I believe the LGBT community deserves equal rights, why evolution should be taught in schools, and why we need to employ intelligent action to fight the spread of disease.  These reasons are not separate from my religious beliefs, they are very compatible and come from the same place inside of me.

5) Sensationalism wins!  And unfortunately crazy sells!

Together, can't we stop the spread of crazy?  We have groups working on this, but here are ways you can help!

1) Support your local progressive religious communities, there are progressive Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, yoga communities all over this country.  Support the work they are doing, and champion their voice. I work at one of them, here in Michigan check us out at http://www.christ-community.net/.

2) Write editorials to your local paper. Get the dialogue started in your community and make your voice known.

3) Support national groups such as The Center for Progressive Christianity (http://tcpc.org), The Interfaith Alliance (http://www.interfaithalliance.org), and great public radio programming like Speaking of Faith (http://speakingoffaith.publicradio.org).  The work these organizations are doing can have a tremendous impact.

4) Speak up! Don't be afraid to share with others that your progressive social views, care of the earth, human rights, etc are strengthened by your religious beliefs. Let's change the dialogue one at a time.

Minister Emeritus Jack Hennings Message on Progressive Christianity and the Scriptures

In a recent sermon, Jack Hennings, Minister Emeritus, offered a helpful perspective. Following are some highlights from that Message.

As Progressive Christians, how do we "hear" the Scriptures? What do we get out of the Scriptures? What does it mean to say that the Bible is the word of God?

In order to answer these questions for ourselves, we need to remember that ‘God is still speaking,’ still revealing God's nature and plan for our lives. We need to ask how God reveals the Loving Spirit in our lives outside of  the Scriptures. At Shepherd of the Hills, we experience the Loving Spirit in our music, our children, our fellowship together just as powerfully as we experience that Spirit in the Scriptures.

Scriptures are stories handed down over thousands of years. Today's stories, like the children's story we  heard today, can also reveal  the Loving Spirit and we can learn from them. Both the formal Scriptures and the contemporary stories have a powerful mythology that attempts to describe a mystery that can't really be described – the character of God.

We are not called or required to take literally the words of Scripture but to listen openly to the Spirit behind the words and ask the questions together. This is the essence of worship.

As Progressive Christians we are called to embrace a tripod of faith: Scripture, Tradition, and Reason (what we believe must make sense). We each, singly and in community, must articulate our vision and live into it.

Scripture calls us to create our own unique vision in response to the Spirit behind the words… to answer the question: How is our life impacted by the grace of the Loving Spirit? (What is the character of God revealed in the Scriptures?)

Our hearts can be opened to a new way of being, a way of peace, a way of justice, a way of sharing the good news of God's love.        

At first the disciples couldn't understand Jesus' message. But they grew to an understanding by asking the questions together and they gathered together time and again and ultimately were transformed. We too seek that transformation.

We need to commit to our vision with all the passion we possess. We are to be forgiving, loving people: we are the instruments of peace, standing for justice throughout the world.

Our world needs healing. Let it begin in and with us.