Church of the Saviour History and Tradition

The Church of the Saviour is a very different community than the traditional structure of church. In an effort to explain it better to those of you who can't be here to experience it, the following is copied from a bulletin at one of their worship community meetings.

"The Church of the Saviour was founded as an ecumenical Christian church in 1947. Since that time, the structures of our life together have changed shape several time following the leading of God's Spirit. In the period from 1976 to 1995, a number of sister communities formed under the umbrella of The Church of the Saviour. Since October of 1995, we have let go of that umbrella and each of the nince churches existing at that time is now a legally separate entity. Thos who were members in the early 1995 hold a dual membership in one the nine sister communities and in the remaining entity of The Church of the Saviour. New faith communities have also emerged in addition to the nine, such as The Church of the Servant Jesus, which meets during this time.
The basic principles from The Church of the Saviour experience are lived out in churches formed from these roots. These include serious commitment to following Jesus; a faithful,disciplined life of prayer and scripture study; active, hands-on involvement addressing some area of need in our broken world in response to God's call; and faithfulness to the covenant of one's particular small faith community."

Gordon Cosby founded the church after he returned from WWII envisioning a church that truly worked as the hands of Jesus to alleviate pain and injustice in the world. Something like 40 ministries have arisen from The Church of the Saviour communities. The communities are intentionally small - around 30 members - to allow for deeper relationships and hands-on ministry. One of the main goals of the church is to help each person find their calling in God's Kingdom. That's how so many ministries have started, b/c the church really encourages following God's call in new directions. Worship is held in houses-turned-chapels, a coffeeshop called the Potter's House, a homeless shelter, and various other locations. There's really no pretense and everyone is extremely welcoming. It's just real people worshipping and living their lives earnestly trying to follow Christ.

I want to become a consistent attendee of one of these communities, but I'm still trying to decide which one. I've been to several services, but this morning I went to New Community and it really clicked. Hopefully I'll find a home there. Please pray that I'll be led to the right place.