Anyone, from any religious background is welcome as long as there is mutual respect for others' beliefs.  We resonate strongly wiith the idea of belonging before you believe.  We don't believe that God expects us to have everything figured out before we join the fellowship of Jesus-followers we call the Church which He created.  In fact, we believe that most of the time, He expects us first to experience the love and acceptance of Jesus through other believers.  This experience then naturally opens the door for us to embrace the life in Christ we've observed and participated in.  

Why are we a part of a denomination?

First, we believe that denomations are a natural expression of the variety of ways people experience life with God through Jesus Christ and Holy Spirit.  They ought not to be seen as divisions within an erstwhile unified church.  Just as there are now over 7 billion unique individuals on our planet, our experiences of God are as particular and varied as we are.  Denominations are simply groups of people who have found some commanality of experience and have chosen to join together in worshiping God in those shared experiences.

Second, we believe that by being a part of a denomination we are able to multiply our Kingdom-impact in our world.  This happens through the institutional structures which support misisonaries in over 157 nations, over 22 undergraduate and post-graduate educational institutions worldwide, a publishing house which supplies four different denominations, as well as the general structure of the church including providing support and accountability for local churches and pastors through the network of leadership and organizational structures.

Why are we a part of the Church of the Nazarene

We have chosen to be a part of the Church of the Nazarene because we find that in beliefs and practice we have much in common.  We identify strongly with its Wesleyan-Arminian theological heritage, its 20th century origins among the urban poor, and its life-affirming emphasis on the fullness of life offered through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.  We also resonate with its latitude on issues not essential to salvation in Christ which have become so divisive for many other faith systems, such as the relationship between faith and science.