Our Beliefs
Mission, Vision & Values
Mission
The members of Eden Church worship God and strive to follow Christ’s example by welcoming all, seeking God’s wisdom, growing spiritually, caring for each other, enriching our neighborhood, and sharing the good news of God’s creative and unfolding work in the world.
Vision
Our vision is to grow in spirit, fellowship, and number by offering many opportunities for spiritual growth; by becoming a more culturally diverse congregation; by strengthening our capacity to serve our neighbors; by caring for each other as Christ cares for us; by inviting others to be a part of our community of faith; and by working to transform individual lives and our community through the power of God’s love in human action.
Values
In order to fulfill our mission and realize our vision, Eden Church strives to embrace and express the following core values:
Worship and spiritual practice that are both traditional and contemporary
Religious education for all that is grounded in a progressive theology
Caring relationships that honor differences and foster unity and growth
Enriching experiences for children and youth in our church and community
Programs and partnerships that serve those in need while addressing the root causes of social problems
Being a true sanctuary that nurtures and protects all participants, especially the most vulnerable among us
Belief & Action
Eden United Church of Christ is a diverse and growing congregation. At Eden, people of all ages and backgrounds join together to grow spiritually, do good in the world, and develop healing and nurturing relationships. We are an LGBTQIA+ Affirming church and a Sanctuary congregation.
Ours is a welcoming church, where you will not be told what to believe. We feel that the way we treat one another is more important than holding uniform beliefs. And, while the Bible is important to our faith, it is not the last word. We believe that God is Still Speaking through science, nature, personal experience, the arts, other faith traditions, and more.
Demographically speaking, we are a “magnet church,” which means that we draw participants who reside in communities beyond Eden’s zip code. Current members and friends commute from as far north as Oakland and as far south as Newark, and from as far west as San Francisco and as far east as Livermore. The majority live in Castro Valley, Hayward, San Leandro, and San Lorenzo.
We consider ourselves a liberal church, in that we strive to be generous, broadminded, and tolerant of many views. Our members represent a broad spectrum of Christian belief, from the traditional to the unconventional. We welcome all people, without imposing the need for all to be alike. At Eden United Church of Christ, you’ll meet:
Believers, seekers, and agnostics
Conventional Christians and questioning skeptics
Persons across the spectrum of gender
Identities and sexual orientation
The discouraged and the hopeful
Those of all races, ethnicities, and cultures
Those of all classes and abilities
At Eden, we are on a journey together to understand and live God’s truth for our lives.
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Eden United Church of Christ is an Open and Affirming (“ONA”) Congregation of the United Church of Christ.
In 1995, we joined a growing number of progressive church congregations that have been recognized by the UCC Coalition for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Concerns for our commitment to being an inclusive faith community.
Our year-long study process conducted in the early 1990s led to the adoption of our ONA statement, and ultimately to recognition by the Coalition. Our ONA Statement appears in the heading of our Sunday worship bulletins and reads as follows:
We believe that all people are children of God; that persons of all ages, races, and sexual orientations are parts of our increasingly diverse culture; and we welcome all persons into the full life and ministry of this church.
Eden’s Cabinet adopted a resolution in 2004 supporting our Senior Minister’s decision to provide premarital counseling and to preside at rehearsals and weddings for same-gender couples, following principles and practices similar to those that she has applied in ministry with couples of the opposite gender for many years.
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United Church of Christ
Eden United Church of Christ traces its roots to 1865, when Eden Congregational Church was established to serve the Haywards and the Eden Area. In 1952, Eden extended its ministry by helping establish new congregations in Danville and South Hayward, reflecting its longstanding commitment to community outreach. In 1960, the congregation voted to join the newly formed United Church of Christ (UCC), embracing the 1957 merger of the Congregational Christian Churches and the Evangelical and Reformed Church. And in 1995, Eden Church voted to become an early Open & Affirming congregation of the UCC. Today, Eden remains a proud congregation of the UCC—an inclusive and diverse community of Christians united by faith in Jesus Christ and committed to building a just world for all.
