An Enduring Vision for God’s People, The Church

The Vision of God’s Church is to build up the Kingdom of God by sharing God’s healing love with the whole world.

Saint Alban’s Episcopal Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana understands that we are a part of God’s Church. Further we understand God’s eternal vision to build up the Kingdom as experienced by exploring and living into our Baptismal Covenant, our Eucharistic Theology, Responsible Stewardship, and The Great Commission.

Explore and live into our Baptismal Covenant…
Jesus calls us to, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 28:19) Water is the symbol of every Christian’s baptism. Baptism is initiation by Water and the Holy Spirit into God’s Church. Water nourishes us, cleanses us, and binds us together. Thus, baptism binds us together as children of God. The rite of Baptism has us realize that we are all connected and loved by God.

Explore and live into our Eucharistic Theology…
Eucharist very simply means “Thanksgiving”. In the Episcopal Church we promote daily prayer, and on Sunday we celebrate the Holy Eucharist. This is the time when we hear the scriptures, say the creeds and the prayers, pass the peace, and eat the simple heavenly gifts of bread and wine. This action commemorates the last supper and looks forward to the heavenly banquet. In the Holy Eucharist God is mysteriously present in the consecrated bread and wine as our Lord spiritually feeds us. Like the Bread of Eucharist Jesus was Taken by God, Blessed by God, Broken open on the cross, and thus can be Shared by the whole world. The Holy Eucharist further reminds us that we too, as the body of Christ in the world, are called to be Taken, Blessed, Broken open, and Shared by God.

Explore and live into Responsible Stewardship…
Each of us has been given many gifts to be stewards over in life. Gifts of time, talent, and treasure are possessed by all. However, to truly understand and use these resources wisely as a good Christian steward we need to realize first that we are a gift from God back to God. All that we have is ultimately God’s. A good responsible steward realizes this, by the grace of God, and strives to live out Jesus’ words, “Where your treasure is there your heart will be also.” (Luke 12:34)

Explore and live into The Great Commission…
Jesus calls us to, “Go forth into all the World and Preach the Gospel.” (Mark 16:15) Gospel means Good News. The Good News is that through death on the Cross and glorious Resurrection, God mysteriously bridged the gap between the divine and human experience because God loved us first. If we become aware of this love, then we realize it is a love to be shared. Each of us shares God’s love in our own unique way. What more important message is there to share than that God loves us and desires to eternally be with us? God’s amazing love by its very nature is a shared love.