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Covenant of Churches

Covenant of the Upper Coquetdale Churches Together
Signed 28 March, 2004.  Re-affirmed annually.

‘For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.  For in the one Spirit we are baptised into one body – Jews or Greeks, slaves or free – and we were made to drink of one Spirit’
1 Corinthians 12 vs 12 &13

  • We are the body of Christ. In the one Spirit we are baptised into one body. Let us then pursue all that makes for peace and builds up our common life.
  • We, the Churches of Upper Coquetdale, acknowledge the unity of our faith in God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
  • We acknowledge the unity of our discipleship through baptism into Christ.
  • We acknowledge the Word of God in the Old and New Testaments, discerned under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, as our common authority.
  • We value the diversity of our traditions within the unity of our faith.

Therefore we commit ourselves to work together in faith and love, building on these foundations by:

  • Joining together in prayer, worship and fellowship at least once a month.
  • Sharing in Christian witness and service, through projects such as Alpha courses, shared pastoral care and outreach to the rural community.
  • Making available to each other our various resources and spiritual gifts.
  • Consulting together about any new initiatives of the individual churches, so as not to do separately what might better be done together.
  • Exploring how we may live, work and worship ever more closely together.
  • Annually recommitting our churches to this covenant and setting the ecumenical agenda for the coming year.

Further, we commit our churches to hold the aims and aspirations of this Covenant in the forefront of their minds and to consult together when future ministerial appointments or organisational arrangements are being made.

 

There follow signatures of:

The Church of England: All Saint’s, Rothbury; St Michael & All Angels, Alwinton; St Andrew’s, Thropton; St Mary the Virgin, Holystone; Christ Church, Hepple; St Mary’s and All Angels, Alnham; the Vicar and the Bishop of Newcastle.

Roman Catholic: St Agnes, Rothbury; All Saints, Thropton; the Priest and the RC Bishop of Hexham & Newcastle.

United Reformed Church: Rothbury; Thropton; the Minister and URC Moderator of the Northern Synod.

Armstrong Hall Christian Fellowship.