Basic Beliefs
Wicker Park Lutheran Church is a part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The ELCA confesses the Triune God, and we proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. In our preaching and teaching, we trust the Gospel as the power of God for the salvation of all who believe.
ELCA teaching or theology serves the proclamation and ministry of our faith. It does not have an answer to all questions, not even all religious questions. Teaching or theology prepares members to be witnesses in speech and in action of God’s rich mercy in Jesus Christ.
Scriptures, Creeds, and Confessions
The ELCA’s official Confession of Faith identifies the Hebrew Scriptures and Christian Scriptures (commonly called “the Old and New Testament” or “the Bible”); the Apostles’, Nicene and Athanasian Creeds; and the Lutheran confessional writings in the Book of Concord as the basis for our teaching. This Confession of Faith is more than just words in an official document. Every Sunday, we hear God’s word from the Scriptures, pray as Jesus taught and come to the Lord’s Table expecting to receive the mercies that the Triune God promises. You can learn more about worship at WPLC here. Throughout the week, we continue to live by faith, serving others freely and generously in all we do because we trust God’s promises. In small groups and at sick beds, in private devotions and in daily work, our faith saturates all of life.
Life of Faith
The connection to all of life is the clearest demonstration of the authority that the canonical Scriptures, the ecumenical Creeds, and the Lutheran Confessions. The Holy Spirit uses these witnesses to create, strengthen and sustain our faith and the new life we have been given. That life-giving work continues every day, collectively in our congregation and in our individual lives. Because we believe that Jesus’s ministry is centered in radical welcome and a theology of abundance, WPLC has made a couple of public declarations of welcome that shape our life together. We appreciate the ways God has created humanity in a rich diversity that allows our faith to come to life.