About Our Mission to the Church & the World

According to the Book of Common Prayer, the mission of the Church "is to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ."  Recognizing that all baptized persons are ministers in the church, St. Bernard’s Church seeks to cultivate in her members a sense of not just belonging or being members of a faith community, but a sense of calling to mission and ministry. 

Our mission to the wider Church and to the world centers on worship, fellowship, Christian formation and community outreach. Jesus Christ is the Head of the Church, and as we gather for worship at the altar, for fellowship, for education and formation, and engage in community outreach we recognize Jesus at the center of who we are and all we do. 

We are a eucharistically nourished people who find renewal each week in the liturgy, music and teaching of the Anglican tradition. Spiritually we are renewed and refreshed as we encounter the risen Christ in the Sacrament of our Lord's Body and Blood.  From this place of spiritual vitality we seek to serve others in the ever widening circles of our families, our neighbors, the surrounding communities, the nation and the world.

Saint Bernard’s especially seeks to nurture a commitment to the mission of our diocese under the leadership of our bishop The Right Rev. George E. Councell. We encourage parishioners to engage in service to the Conover Parishes of the Somerset Hills, the Episcopal Churches of the Watchung Convocation, and the Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey, headquartered in Trenton.

WHAT WE ARE ABOUT

After a devestating fire in October 2004, and the lengthy rebuild of

our worship space, th people of Saint Bernard's Church joyously returned to worship in the restored church building on March 23, 2008--appropriately enough, The Sunday of the Resurrection.  In September 2008 the Rev. William F. Feus was called as the new rector of the parish, and his focus has been on rebuilding the "real church," ekklesia.  Ekklesia, the Greek word translated church, refers not to brick and mortar but to flesh and bone--the people who are called by God to follow Jesus and be his disciples in the world.  What we are about is being the church: being light in a dark world and proclaiming the Good News of God in Christ in thought, word, and deed. 

We invite you to join us on this exciting, transformational journey!

_____________________________________