Anybody here a member of a "Church of Christ"?

[Barb D]

I'm trying to find out what they believe, and not having much luck with Google. I did learn that the "United Church of Christ" and the "International Church of Christ" are not the same as the "Church of Christ." I get the impression that it is not so much a denomination as a group of independent churches.

Does anybody know where there is some kind of standard "Church of Christ" statement of faith or listing of doctrines?

I did find this web page with "answers to questions" which seem to be from a member of a Church of Christ, but I don't know if this is just his opinion or standard CoC doctrine.

http://www.goodfight.com/leon/

 

[stacy347]

I am and this is the link to the main website which also has links to find a local congregation in your area.
http://church-of-christ.org/

And you are absolutely right, there is no denomination here, it is teachings from the Bible in basically the most traditional sense. I have heard lately that some of the congregations have begun adding other sorts of lessons and have become a bit more charismatic, so to speak, but this is the exception and not the rule. I hope you find what you are looking for.

 

[Barb D]

I am and this is the link to the main website which also has links to find a local congregation in your area.
http://church-of-christ.org/

And you are absolutely right, there is no denomination here, it is teachings from the Bible in basically the most traditional sense. I have heard lately that some of the congregations have begun adding other sorts of lessons and have become a bit more charismatic, so to speak, but this is the exception and not the rule. I hope you find what you are looking for.

Thanks, Stacy! I tried "churchofchrist.org" and came up with a specific church. Didn't occur to me to try dashes! And this web page did not come up in the first few pages of google results.

ETA I was wrong; it was on the first google page but somehow I missed it.

 

[Carl]

Once you get to the Church of Christ, there are still 2 divisions within it. The Church of Christ noninstrumental and the Church of Christ (Christian Church) which does worship with the instrument.

 

[janette]

I'm trying to find out what they believe, and not having much luck with Google. I did learn that the "United Church of Christ" and the "International Church of Christ" are not the same as the "Church of Christ." I get the impression that it is not so much a denomination as a group of independent churches.

This is correct, and because all leadership is at the independent level you'll often find minor differences in the congregations.

The basic is a fundamental belief that trys to follow the new testament church. At least their interpretation of it. They believe baptism is essential and in full immersion when someone is ready to make the commitment to God/Jesus. The men as a leader of the church is also pretty set. Women teach each other and children but for example a woman wouldn't be teaching a class with a teen boy that has been baptised.

There are differences that make groups divide and form additional groups. Music is one, whether to allow instruments or not. Eating in the church building, and another group that doesn't have sunday school but wants the parents to do the teaching.

As with any organization there are bad people sometimes in leadership positions but that doesn't and shouldn't color the perception of all the people.

 

[Barb D]

Once you get to the Church of Christ, there are still 2 divisions within it. The Church of Christ noninstrumental and the Church of Christ (Christian Church) which does worship with the instrument.

The web page Stacy referenced has a paragraph on their http://church-of-christ.org/who.html]doctrine page [/URL] about not using musical instruments during worship. (See quote below.)

Do you know if there is a web page for the other branch? Or is this decided by individual churches?

As a result of the distinctive plea of the church - a return to New Testament Faith and practice - acappella singing is the only music used in the worship. This singing, unaccompanied by mechanical instruments of music, conforms to the music used in the apostolic church and for several centuries thereafter (Ephesians 5:19). It is felt that there is no authority for engaging in acts of worship not found in the New Testament. This principle eliminates the use of instrumental music, along with the use of candles, incense, and other similar elements.

 

[SteeleTig]

I am a member of the United Church of Christ, my maternal grandfather was a UCC minister. I don't know where to point you to read about the specific beliefs of UCC but I can tell you if you are familiar with other denominations UCC is most similar to Presbyterian.

I can tell you UCC is liberal, their ad campaigns speak of acccepting everyone, old, young, healthy, infirm, all races, sexual preferences, etc.

Edit: I just found my fave UCC website, www.stillspeaking.com you can see some of the UCC TV ads on there and read more about the church. Also the main website is www.ucc.org

 

[Barb D]

I am a member of the United Church of Christ, my maternal grandfather was a UCC minister. I don't know where to point you to read about the specific beliefs of UCC but I can tell you if you are familiar with other denominations UCC is most similar to Presbyterian.

I can tell you UCC is liberal, their ad campaigns speak of acccepting everyone, old, young, healthy, infirm, all races, sexual preferences, etc.

Just clarifying ... "United Church of Christ" is not the same thing as "Church of Christ". Their web page makes that clear.

 

[Kirby]

I would look in your local phone book for the names of the Church of Christ and non-denominational churches. Once you have those, you can google their web sites. Many churches are on the web now.

 

[SteeleTig]

Just clarifying ... "United Church of Christ" is not the same thing as "Church of Christ". Their web page makes that clear.

Correct, but the OP asked if anyone was a member of "a" Church of Christ, not just "the" CoC and they specifically mentioned UCC so I was trying to help with info.

Edit: just saw you are the OP!

 

[floridafam]

My parents church (the one I grew up in) was UCC but they left the UCC last year because it was becoming too liberal. Oh, the stories I could tell about what happened.

I was always under the impression that the Church of Christ was very conservative.

 

[Carl]

http://www.christianchurch.net/
Here is a good example of what the Christian Church (independent) believes.
This is the kind of church that I used to attend before changing to the Methodist Church.

 

[Buckalew11]

My parents visited a CoC when they spent winters in FL. There was no instruments and they didn't believe in the Trinity at that church. Like Carl, I believe they ended up attending a Methodist church in FL because it was very different from what they were used to.

Good luck, it all gets very confusing!!

 

[Kirby]

http://www.christianchurch.net/

I attend an independent Christian church and that exactly describes our beliefs.

 

[goofyshell]

To the op: I am a member of the Church of Christ and I'm not sure exactly what you are looking for, but there is no document other than the Bible that I base my beliefs on. I believe that God instructs us to follow the Bible and only the Bible. I also believe Christ's death did away with the old law (Old Testament) and now we are only bound by the new testament. (That is why we don't use musical instruments, worship on Saturday or offer animal sacrifices!). If you have any other questions, feel free to ask.