Who we are. What we believe.

We are people of Astoria. We eat at the sidewalk cafes. We shop on Steinway and buy souvlaki on the street. We listen to Jazz at the Bohemian Beer Garden. We ride the N and R into the city. We celebrate the diversity of our neighborhood. We love Astoria and pray that God will bless this neighborhood as we work towards it's prosperity and peace.

We are a Christian church. We believe that the Bible is God's word, and that it contains the greatest news we could ever hear: Even though our rebellion and selfishness have separated us from God, He sent His Son Jesus to rescue us and give us a relationship with Him.

So we gather together to celebrate this God and learn more about Him and how we can follow Him with our whole lives. We do this through Sunday Morning services as well as smaller groups that gather in people's homes to study the Bible and pray. (We call these Fellowship Groups). We seek to exhibit our faith in action by generosity, hospitality, and the pursuit of social justice and mercy, as well as proclaiming the good news of Christ.

We are a relatively new church in the area. We have only been around since 2001, but we plan to invest in the lives of the people of Astoria, this neighborhood and bring glory and honor to God for generations and generations to come.

We are a Presbyterian Church belonging to the Presbyterian Church in America. For more specific denominational and doctrinal information, here is a Synopsis of the PCA beliefs and a link to the denominations home page.

“Our Mission is to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ to our neighbors, to welcome them into loving community, and to equip them to glorify God.”

Here are eight core statements that define the church we hope to become:

1) Scripture. (2 Tim 3:16) The Bible is the inspired and inerrant Word of God, the only infallible rule of faith and practice. It contains the whole counsel of God concerning all things necessary for His glory and for our salvation, faith and life. We want to be a church where God's Word is learned, loved, believed and obeyed.

2) The good news is powerful. (Mark 1:15) The gospel is the good news of what God has done to redeem His people through Christ. This story about Christ's life, death and resurrection is the only "power of God for salvation" (Rom. 1:16b). Those who respond to this message with genuine faith are united with Christ, forgiven of their sins, and joined to the community of God's people. This transforms their lives both now and for eternity. We want the power and truth of the gospel to shape all dimensions of our ministry.

3) Diversity. (Psalm 86:9) "All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, o Lord; they will bring glory to your name." God’s eternal plan for history will end in a great multi-cultural worship service. (Rev. 7:9-17) We want to experience a taste of that joy right now. At least 116 nationalities live in our neighborhood, comprising people of all ages and socio-economic backgrouns. We want to be a church that reflects the diversity of our neighborhood, in order that we may fully experience God in all His glory. Only the gospel of Jesus Christ can create on new people out of many.

4) Corporate Worship. (Psalm 96:9-10a) Corporate worship should focus on God and bring glory to him. Worship is to be joyful, culturally relevant and personally meaningful. Healthy worship is both doctrinally sound and emotionally passionate.

5) Prayer. (John 15:13) We are a church that prays. Prayer honors God and God honors prayer. Prayer affirms that we depend upon God for everythingand it gives God glory as He hears and answers our prayers. Prayer enriches the relationship we have with God in Christ and draws closer to him.

6) Justice and Mercy. (Micah 6:8b) Scripture reveals that God cares deeply about the poor, the widow, the orphan and the alien. May in our neighborhood are oppressed or in need of help. We want to honor God by working for justice on their behalf, and by showing them His mercy through tangible acts of love. We want the values of God's kingdom to transform the realities of our neighborhood, and are commited to work and pray toward that end.

7) Holistic Worldview. (1 Cor 10:31b) Every aspect of life matters to God. His plan is to redeem all of creation through Christ. As a church, we shun the false dichotomy between spiritual and secular. We teach God's people to honor Him in their work, in their pastimes, in their neighborhoods, and in their homes.

8) Church Planting. (Matt 28:19-20a) No one church can reach this city. Together with our partner congregation (Grace Fellowship Church of Sunnyside) we are employing the multi-site model of church planting. Our desire is to start many more congregations to reach the various neighborhoods and people groups of Queens.