Our Theological Foundations

Who We Are

Disciples of the Way Fellowship reflects the unanimity and singularity of the Apostolic and Patristic Church, embracing both Protestant and Catholic traditions, as well as a multiplicity of expressions of worship and practice.

We are not a denomination in the ordinary sense — one born of historic division over doctrine and practice. Rather, we understand ourselves as an expression of the organic unity Jesus Christ originally established in His Body, the Church: a return to unity based on the recovery of the essential oneness of the ancient, medieval, and contemporary church.

Standing within the Celtic spiritual tradition, our life together was formed by a convergence of three great historical expressions of Christian faith and practice:

• Evangelical
• Charismatic
• Liturgical / Sacramental

This convergence sits at the center of who we are.

The Three Streams

We believe, as Evangelicals, that the Holy Scriptures are the inspired Word of God, containing all things necessary for salvation and godly living. We are committed to faithful reading, studying, teaching, and preaching from the Scriptures — a wellspring for spiritual maturity. We embrace the Evangelical distinctives of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, a holy life, and a commitment to evangelism and mission.

We believe, as Charismatics, that we are to remain open to the work of the Holy Spirit. God's people have always been a spiritually gifted people — from the Apostles to the modern church, endowed with a power beyond themselves, the power of the Holy Spirit. We anticipate His presence and His work through spiritual gifts, in both our worship and our daily acts of service.

We believe, as those formed by the Liturgical and Sacramental tradition, that we stand in unity with the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. At the very center of our worship, we are historically liturgical and sacramental. We retain the historic Creeds, the episcopacy, and the threefold ministry, and our worship is best expressed and informed by the various Books of Common Prayer.

We draw our worship practices and liturgy from across the centuries — from the rich and ever-evolving tradition of Catholic faith and practice, to the influences of the Protestant Reformation.

Our Doctrinal Foundation

Disciples of the Way Fellowship affirms:

• The priority of Holy Scripture as the source of our knowledge of God
• The doctrinal guidance of the Catholic Creeds — the Apostles', Nicene, and Athanasian
• Salvation as, in the final analysis, the gift of God's grace, freely given
• Liturgy that is faithful to Scripture and embodies the Church's worship across the centuries
• The historic episcopate — the order of bishops — as a sign of the unity of the one Church of God
• The threefold ministry of bishop, presbyter (priest), and deacon, adopted by the Church since primitive times
• The two Gospel sacraments of Holy Baptism and Holy Communion, ordained by Christ for regular use in the Church
• The unity of Word and Sacrament in the Service of Holy Communion
• The ongoing need for regular preaching and teaching from the Holy Scriptures

Our Basis for Christian Unity

We articulate our basis for Christian unity in terms drawn from the historic Chicago-Lambeth Quadrilateral (1886/1888):

1. The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, as "containing all things necessary for salvation," and as being the rule and ultimate standard of faith.
2. The Apostles' Creed, as the Baptismal Symbol; and the Nicene Creed, as the sufficient statement of faith.
3. The two Sacraments ordained by Christ Himself — Baptism and the Supper of the Lord — ministered with unfailing use of Christ's words of institution, and the elements ordained by Him.
4. The Historic Episcopate, locally adapted in the methods of its administration to the varying needs of the nations and peoples called of God into the Unity of His Church.

Taken together, these four marks are not abstractions but the concrete shape our convergence takes. The Evangelical stream anchors us in Scripture as our rule of faith. The Liturgical and Sacramental stream forms us through the Creeds we confess and the two Sacraments we receive — not mere symbols, but the means by which Christ Himself meets His people. The Charismatic stream reminds us that this sacramental life is not inherited formality but living encounter with the Spirit who animates Word, water, bread, and cup alike. The Historic Episcopate safeguards this whole inheritance across generations, adapted to the needs of the people God is gathering here.

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