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St. Martin's
was established as a parish Church in the late 1940's.
It is roughly about the same age as the town of Gander. You can
read about our past by navigating to our history page.
Our founding members were in their teens, twenties
and thirties when the Church was built. Many still attend worship.
Because one of the major visible changes in our Church and town
is the aging population, we have a large number of senior citizens
in our worshipping community . Many of our seniors are active and
still hold forth a great love and vision for St. Martin's - The
parish Church which they built and love and has become the Cathedral
of the Diocese of Central Newfoundland.
Thank You for
taking the time to read on!
Early in 2005 a congregational
workshop reaffirmed our Mission Statement:
The Purpose of St. Martin's Cathedral Is: To
be a family of worshipping Christians; where the faith is taught
–where people of all ages can grow in love and commitment to Christ
in an atmosphere of caring, sharing, loving and respect for all
persons; - where opportunity is provided for witness and service
in the wider community.
Here
are some highlights of our Ongoing Ministries, as well as our Goals
and Ideals.
St. Martin's is A Warm
and Welcoming Community!
The opening lines of our
mission statement declare a basic commitment
to welcoming people and inviting them to be part of our family.
A Basic definition of a Christian is: Someone who has been reconciled
to God through Jesus Christ, and who is learning to live the New
Life of God's Reign. We
invite one and all, no matter who you are or where you have
been to join us as we learn together.
We Believe in Lay Ministry
At. St. Martin's people are
involved with every aspect of ministry.
Watching our people at work helps us learn to truly appreciate the
diversity of talent that God has gifted us with within the Body
of Christ. From Administration to Pastoral Care, from Youth Ministry
to Education Events , there are over two hundred active ministers
in our Congregation...and the list is growing. We invite you to
join us,and discover the Gifts God has given you! Please navigate
to our "Programs
" Link to see what we are doing, and the specific forms of
Ministry we share.
We
Provide Training For Ministry-------- We build
leaders!
You
are important Because Christ has called you to a vocation that only
you can do!
We
understand the Scriptural mandate to prepare believers for their
life's work in partnership with God. We KNOW that partnership brings
joy, fulfillment,peace and meaning to every life. We want the best
for the person in the pew.
You
are important because God loves you and
wants the best for your life!
We are excited about helping people of all ages discover the potential
they have, and grow in their gifts. We are learning to be patient
with each other - and to encourage one another to continue training
for ministry throughout our whole lives .
Ephesians Chapter
4: 10 ff. reads: He
handed out gifts above and below, filled heaven with his gifts,
filled earth with his gifts. He handed out gifts of apostle, prophet,
evangelist, and pastors and teacher to train Christians in skilled
servant work, working within Christ's body, the church, until we're
all moving rhythmically and easily with each other, efficient and
graceful in response to God's Son, fully mature adults, fully developed
within and without, fully alive like Christ.
(The Message)
Our Goal is to emulate this direction as closely as possible!
We
have a Great Respect For Tradition
Some may fear that a Church seeking to connect with people
in a fast paced world may "Throw out the baby with the bath
water" and lose all contact with Anglican Tradition.
That
is certainly not the case at St. Martins!
Although our worship is incredibly diverse, our parish
holds fast to traditional Anglican teaching. Our clergy are well
trained in Liturgical History and practice. Our Sr. Choir excels
in leading traditional elements of worship.
When Confirmation Classes , Servers preparation, or any education
event is held ,our people learn of the tradition, practice and ethos
that has made Anglicanism the unique and loving representation of
Christ that it is.
Every Sunday Morning our first service is from the book of Common
Prayer. The Book of Common Prayer is also used for regular services
of Evensong, we will incorporate the Merbeck setting for Sung Eucharist
in the service schedule.
All
of this is balanced with worship that incorporates our young people,and
reaches out to the community we live in.
Our Bishop summarizes
the character of Traditional Anglicanism in this fashion: You want
to belong? Just ask ,and you belong. You want to be forgiven? Just
ask and you are forgiven . No judgments, just acceptance.
That is a powerful Anglican Tradition!
The Church of today needs to envision Tradition more as a Rudder,
Not an Anchor. We use the traditions of the Church a guide
to steer us into the future, and thank God for them.
Concern for the
Culture we share with people.
Churches that simply try to be relevant risk the tendency
to be "trendy".By the same token, Churches that don't
understand the rapid cultural changes around us will be unable to
fulfill the mandate of the Gospel to Go into the world and do the
things Christ has called us to do. For that reason we are "students
of Culture" with the hope of learning today's language so that
we can communicate an unchanging gospel in a radically changed world.
Inspirational Worship The World has Changed dramatically
. In many ways the traditional language of the Church no longer
connects with the way people think,speak and live. The challenge
is to do all we can to help people connect with God as we worship
together.
We are developing an understanding that practical
guidance in how to live a life of faith, (as opposed to rules and
regulations about how to be a good church member) will help people
learn how make sense of life. At It's heart,Christian faith is not
about religion or rites or rituals, but about a relationship. It’s
not about becoming more religious; its about developing and nurturing
a deepening intimacy with God.
Worship is not something the Church does to create conflicts or
preferences. It has everything to do with allowing a congregation
to have an experience of God, and giving individual members of the
congregation the opportunity to offer oneself as a disciple. Worship
is the language of love and response to God’s Grace…not
a display of devotion to inherited traditions.
Love for
Young People The goal of the Church is not survival...but
the fulfilling of Jesus Mandate given to us in Matthew 29. He told
His disciples to Go into the World and Make Disciples,providing
with all the things they need to be a part of the building up of
God's Kingdom. We treasure young people, and thank God for entrusting
us with a role in their lives.
1Ti 4:12 And don't let anyone put you down because you're
young. Teach believers with your life: by word, by demeanor, by
love, by faith, by integrity.
Concern for the
Body Of Christ Understanding our roles as individuals is
important today.This philosophy we hold comes directly from 2 Corinthians,
Chapter 5 :God put the world square
with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start
by offering forgiveness of sins. God has given us the task of telling
everyone what he is doing. We're Christ's representatives. God uses
us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter
into God's work of making things right between them. We're speaking
for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he's already a
friend with you. (The
Message)
We challenge each other with love and respect! You will
find the clergy and leadership of St. Martin's approachable, willing
to listen,share and go the extra mile to
love people.1 peter 3:15
Come
and Join Us!
Please
Use the links on the top of this page to navigate through the various
topics that paint a picture of who we are.
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