Hope Church Town Hall Meeting

On Sunday, July 21, at 6:30 pm a Town Hall meeting for all members and attendees of Hope Community Church will take place.

It is our sincere desire to see Hope Community Church be an effective testimony of Jesus Christ as we connect and serve with each other and our community.

It is common for there to be some conflict during the normal operation of a church and is typically dealt with using the scriptural principles of kindness, patience, forgiveness and love.  On occasion, more serious matters arise.

As the Board has worked towards restoration with both justice and mercy, we find ourselves reluctantly moving into the realm of discipline as laid out in our by-laws after having attempted all avenues of Christian counsel and brotherly admonition.

We appreciate your patience as we have worked hard to be quick to hear, and slow to speak on the matter. This has been challenging as this process has extended over a board election process that saw a significant change in board personnel, and a requirement for new Board members to perform the due diligence required to ensure that all attempts at restoration have been made.

The purpose of this Town Hall meeting is to provide some information and to allow a mature and honest discussion about this conflict so we can move forward.

For your reference, we include Article 6 – Membership, Section 6.1 from our Constitution:

Persons desiring to become members of this local church shall give credible profession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour. They shall give evidence of compliance with the biblical standard of Christian practice and manifest spiritual growth by giving evidence of the fruit of the Spirit: "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self- control" (Galatians 5:22,23 NIV).

They shall refrain from "acts of the sinful nature: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery, idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like" (Galatians 5:19-21 NIV). Sexual immorality shall be interpreted to mean common-law marital relationships, pre-marital and extra-marital sexual relationships (1 Corinthians 6:15-18; 7:1-2; 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8; Hebrews 13:4), and all forms of homosexual activity, along with other practices deemed inexcusable for Christian conduct, and which place a person under God's judgment (Romans 1:26-2:11).

They shall indicate a desire to live in harmony with this body of believers, shall accept the doctrinal standards as set forth in the Statement of Fundamental and Essential Truths, and shall be regular financial supporters of this local church.

We encourage you to attend this Town Hall to participate in this process and look forward to seeing you there!

Blessings,

Hope Community Church Board