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Becoming a Member At Advent you will find no gatekeepers, no litmus tests. America idealizes self-sufficiency or rugged individualism. However, at Advent we believe no person is complete without others. The church is a "community of memory" that ties us to other christians throughout the world and through time. When sorrow or doubt overwhelms one of us, the community remembers who we are and holds us before God. Likewise, our joys are all the richer because they are shared with others. Although people seek a connection to structures of meaning, they draw away when those structures are too rigid. Often, churches and other institution seem to imply that the answers they give work only for those who belong, or they impose standards that must be rigidly applied. People want to be encouraged to ask their own questions and find their answers, with the assurance of a tradition that supports them on the way. The Episcopal Church believes that God gave us intelligence and intends us to use it. At Advent, we don't have all the answers, but we encourage you to ask the questions. So how do I become an Episcopalian . . . a member of this congregation? If you were baptized in an Episcopal church (or have joined one in the past), that means you can request a Letter of Transfer (our church office will write and request one, if you would like). If you were baptized in another denomination, the office will request a record of your baptism from the church where you were baptized. If you can't remember where you were baptized, or can't find the church, or for some other reason we cannot find a record, if you or a family member remembers an approximate date, we will enter that in our records. You are then a member of Advent. If you would like to be a member in good standing (eligible to vote in parish elections), you must attend church at least three times in a year, and contribute (time and/or money) to the work of the congregation. We will be more than happy to supply you with a pledge card, which has a space to record you pledge of time and talent as well as money. If you want to become an Episcopalian to be able to take part in Diocesan and national church governance, or just to make clear that this is the denomination in which you wish to live out your faith, you can be confirmed or or received into the Episcopal Church. If you have never been confirmed (made an adult by profession of faith) in this church or any other, you would be confirmed by our bishop. If you have been confirmed, our bishop would receive you into the Episcopal Church. If you have been confirmed and/or received in the Episcopal Church, and would like to restate your adult profession of faith, you can reaffirm your baptismal vows before our bishop. |