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American Baptists believe that the local congregation is the fundamental unit of mission and our priority as a denomination is to affirm, support, and challenge congregations as they live out their mission in "Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
American Baptist congregations are called by God through Jesus Christ to be communities of faith:
- Empowered by the Holy Spirit to live as witnesses and agents of God's love and justice in the church and in the world
- Vital in worship
- Dynamic in proclamation
- Effective in teaching
- Loving in fellowship
- Faithful in stewardship
Compassionate in service.
Because this is God's call to all churches, it needs to be considered through the lens of American Baptist heritage and present distinctives as a people who are evangelical, ecumenical, multi-racial, mission-minded, committed to social justice, and informed by a global perspective.
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