A Statement of Faith (1940)

Preamble

It is the purpose of this Statement to set out briefly and simply the substance of the Church’s faith. No attempt is made to answer all the questions which devout men may reasonably ask in regard to God and man and salvation. But we believe that we have included what is essential to the life of the Church. If our purpose were apologetic we should have to use more of the language of modern science and philosophy. Because our purpose is affirmative we have as far as possible adopted rather the language of Scripture, a language which matches the supreme facts it tells of, God’s acts of judgment and of mercy. The Church’s faith is the unchanging Gospel of God’s holy, redeeming love revealed in Jesus Christ. It is declared in Scripture; it is witnessed to both in the creeds of the Universal Church and in the Confessions of the Reformed Churches; and it is formulated for a specific purpose in our Basis of Union. But Christians of each new generation are called to state it afresh in terms of the thought of their own age and with the emphasis their age needs. This we have attempted to do for the people of The United Church of Canada - seeking always to be faithful to Scripture and to the testimony of the Universal Church, and always aware that no statement of ours can express the whole truth of God.

I. God

We believe in God, the eternal personal Spirit, Creator and Upholder of all things.

We believe that God, as sovereign Lord exalted above the world, orders and overrules all things in it to the accomplishment of His holy, wise, and good purposes.

We believe that God made man to love and serve Him; that He cares for him as a righteous and compassionate Father; and that nothing can either quench His love or finally defeat His gracious purpose for man.

So we acknowledge God as Creator, Upholder, and Sovereign Lord of all things, and the righteous and loving Father of men….

[A Statement of Faith continues. Download the complete statement below.]

United Church doctrine formulated as the 20 articles in the 1925 Basis of Union—the church's "constitution"—was amplified in the Statement of Faith in 1940.

The 20 Articles of Doctrine; A Statement of Faith, 1940; A New Creed; and A Song of Faith are now recognized as standards subordinate to the primacy of scripture in the doctrine section of the Basis of Union. (See The Manual, pages 11-28).