We believe that, because of God’s deep love for all people, Jesus was sent to earth to live among us. Through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, the fractured relationship between God and humankind was restored.

We celebrate and value diversity and the inclusion and participation of everyone who walks through the doors of Wellspring.

Who is Wellspring and what is your theology?

This is, of course, quite a difficult question to answer. With a 126 year history we can tell you that we are not the same church that we were when we started. We are not even the same church that we were a year ago. Naturally its difficult to verbalise our identity in one page or so and we know that each person’s response would be slightly different. We hope these answers give a comprehensive, albeit shorthand, answer.

Who is Jesus according to Wellspring?

Wellspring is, first and foremost, a church that is dedicated to knowing, loving, and serving Jesus Christ. And, because this probably doesn’t differentiate us from a lot churches out there, we thought we’d explain that a little more.

We hold to the same view about who Jesus Christ is as the church has done for two thousand years. We believe that he was born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. On the third day he rose again. These words are taken from the Apostle’s Creed (something that we ascribe to we will talk about more elsewhere). We believe that Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection restored the fractured relationship between God and humankind and that both parties delight in this restoration!

If we have a criticism of the Creed (and many do) it is that it should speak more to Jesus’ life. We believe that Jesus lived in perfect relationship with God and served as a perfect example to us. Jesus was one who loved those that society felt it difficult to love. Jesus was a voice for those that may have been silenced. Jesus was one who welcomed and created space for those that, often, religious leaders of the day would not have welcomed or created space for. We believe that Jesus did all of these things willingly and delightfully. Jesus example of sharing meals together (even with people whose life experiences are different to our own) has grounded us as being a community that does life together. Even when it gets messy. Jesus’ example of self-giving love all the way through his life, with special attention paid to those that so often found themselves excluded, is the cornerstone on which we wish to build our church.

Who are we?

It is with those pieces in mind that Wellspring has put a particular emphasis on a radical welcome to everyone. We recognise that this is an area in which many churches, ourselves included, have failed. We believe that this exclusion grieves the heart of God and it is a posture that we, as a church, are repentant of.

For a long time, we shared that ‘We receive all whom Christ receives’. It is a beautiful statement but one that we think needs some clarification. To us at Wellspring, we want you to know that you are welcome to come as you are: Your age, ability, wealth, sexuality, gender identity, race are all part of your story and, therefore, something that we honour. We believe that every single one of you is created in the image and likeness of God: that is something to be celebrated. Each one of your voices gives us a better understanding of God and God’s love for us. We know that our church is richer and more reflective of the Trinitarian love of God because of our diversity, not in spite of it. We celebrate the inclusion and participation of everyone who walks through the doors of Wellspring.

If you are someone who is carrying some hurt from previous church experiences please know that you are not alone. Being part of the healing process for people who have been wounded is one of the great privileges Wellspring carries. We understand that trusting churches can be hard. But we would be honoured if you took a chance and helped us show you that we are worthy of that trust.

Thank you for being here.