Beliefs
"Where the Scriptures speak, we speak; where the Scriptures are silent, we are silent."
FORMATION
The national development of the Christian Church began in the early 1800's. The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) can be said to be the first developed and formed on the North American continent. The local Church had its beginnings in the 1920's when Dothan was still a relatively new town.
CATCHPHRASES
The next is a list of some of the early statements to quickly state some of the some of our deepest beliefs:
"All people are God's children."
"Where the Scriptures speak, we speak; where the Scriptures are silent, we are silent."
"Not the only Christians but Christians only."
"In essentials, unity, in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity."
WHY IS THERE A PARENTHESIS IN THE NAME?
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
We credit the name to the early beginnings of two movements joined into one. The Barton Stone group of Kentucky preferred being Christians. The Alexander and Thomas Campbell group of Pennsylvania preferred the Disciples name. The choice was to use both.
RED CHALICE!
Why is a red chalice featured? The red denotes vitality, spirit, and sacrifice. The cross reminds us of St. Andrew. Tradition says he chose such a cross so he would not die on the same type cross on which Jesus was crucified. But why choose St. Andrew's cross to represent on the chalice? He was considered the first missionary as he first brought men to be disciples of Christ. The St. Andrew cross is the national cross of Scotland and thus reminds us of our Church's deep Scottish-Presbyterian roots.
The Chalice also serves as a reminder of Christ's request to observe Holy Communion. We do so during each Sunday Worship Service. The Communion is open to all Christ's believers because He is the host at the Table.