Our Parish - Mission & Vision - Smiocbristol

Mission and Vision

Our mission is to remain strong in our faith and to seek salvation. We are called to be the living presence of Jesus Christ and His Kingdom. While maintaining continuity with the living traditions of the Church, we seek to understand and address the issues which Orthodox Christians in the UK face in their daily lives. Another part of our mission is to interpret the good news of Christ in the cultural context we live in. LOGOS SPERMATIKOS is a phrase used by Justin martyr meaning seed bearing the word (Christ). Through this he tries to affirm the existence of the seed of revelation in Christian cultures. We strive to understand and live out the will of God in our everyday lives through prayer and worship and to apply the teachings of our forefathers in the modern day world. so that the mission and ministry we undertake in Jesus’ name can make a real difference to the way in which people live their lives.

The mission of the church is...

based on the Great Commission in Matthew 28:18-20, “All authority has  been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing  them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all  things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” This  Gospel portion records Jesus commissioning his Disciples to certain specific mission. Primitively it is  to establish the Kingdom of God on earth in turn uniting the whole of humanity. The core of Jesus’ mission is to bear witness to the only true God, the Lord of all creation, whom he has seen, and thus  to reveal him to the world by his words and works. An important aspect of our faith today is to bear  witness to the pre-existence of Christ. This means, we need to present Christ Jesus as the revealer of  the one God by virtue of his oneness with that God who created all things and hence as the one who  loves and cares for all human beings.

Furthermore, our vision is to look forward, focusing on the future of our church. We nurture the next  generation, instil in them Christian values and widen their understanding of the faith of the church.  We achieve this through activities like Sunday school and OVBS. The church helps to guide them  through their growth and creates opportunities for them to use their talents in a way that is pleasing  to God.

We find our inspiration and hope in the mission of Jesus, encompassing this we strive to be the light  that guides others helping them to find their faith in Jesus.

We look at the bigger picture reflecting  on how our actions today will impact the world in the future and to live in harmony with God’s  creation within the sphere of divine forgiveness and grace. We work towards the sanctification of  ourselves to develop a fellowship (koinonia) with God and fellow beings.