Who We Are
We are a church of Christ-followers who are committed to turning outwards through acts of service that show our community the real Jesus.
Our Mission
We worship one God - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - who loves and calls us, transforms and sends us:
- to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ,
- to be a caring community, and
- to serve the world.
What does it mean to be a Christian?
Christians are people who believe in Jesus Christ and trust him so much that they have transferred control of their life out of their own hands and into Jesus’ hands.
What does it mean to be a Presbyterian?
Presbyterians, first of all, are Christians. We believe in one God who revealed himself and his plans for us in the Bible and especially through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
As members of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) – 2.57 million strong – we are an expression of Reformed Christianity, a part of the holy catholic church celebrated in the Apostles’ Creed, a people whose roots go back to John Calvin at the time of the Reformation. We are distinctive in our Reformed theology and our 400-year-old form of government, combining the equal values of authority and freedom, order and ardor.
We Presbyterians worship and function in over 11,000 congregations nationwide, served by more than 17,000 active pastors (around a quarter of whom are women), and over 100,000 elders. Local congregations are connected to others in area-wide Presbyteries (173 in the U.S.), and Presbyteries unite in regional Synods (16 in the U.S.). All join together at the national level through the yearly General Assembly.
First Presbyterian Church of Bellevue, with approximately 2,900 members, has a Session (board of Elders), consisting of 36 lay men and women Elders, seven associate pastors, and the Senior Pastor, who serves as moderator. The Session is responsible for the whole life of this church; only major matters such as the call of a pastor or the incurring of church indebtedness are voted on by the entire congregation. The Elders are elected for three-year terms. The Board of Deacons, charged with nurturing the congregation and ministering to those in need, consists of about 150 Deacons, with one-third elected annually for 3-year terms.