Our beliefs at one glance
We accept the Bible as our only creed and hold certain fundamental beliefs to be the teaching of the Holy Scriptures. We share some of our beliefs to show their similarities to those of the Jewish people. Since Maimonides * has written the most commonly accepted doctrines or principles, we have chosen to write our beliefs in parallel with the "Ani Ma'amin" "I Believe" of Maimonides.
It is to be understood that this is not an exhaustive exposition of our beliefs.
| Maimonides' Principles | Our beliefs | |
| 1. I believe that God creates and guides all creatures, and that God alone made, makes and will make everything. | 1. God is the Creator of all things, and has revealed in Scripture the authentic account of His creative activity. In six days God made "the heaven and the earth" and all living things upon the earth and rested on the seventh day of that first week. Thus He established the Sabbath as a perpetual memorial of His completed creative work. | |
| 2. I believe that God is one and that there is no unity that is in any way like God's. He alone is our God, Who is, Who was and Who always will be. | 2. There is one God: ... God is immortal, all-powerful, all knowing, above all, and ever-present. He is infinite and beyond human comprehension, yet known through His self-revelation. He is forever worthy of worship, adoration, and service by the whole creation. | |
| 3. I believe that God is not physical and is not affected by physical phenomenon, and that there is no comparison to God whatsoever. | 3. God the Eternal Father is the Creator, Source, Sustainer, and Sovereign of all creation. | |
| 4. I believe that God is the very first and the very last. | 4. God is self-existent, for He has "life in Himself". He is independent in will and in power. He is omniscient, knowing everything; because He is the first and the last, He knows the end from the beginning. | |
| 5. I believe that to God alone is it proper to pray and it is not proper to pray to any other. | 5. We are called to grow. Therefore, we commune with God daily in prayer, feeding on His Word, meditating on it and on His providence, singing His praises, gathering together for worship. As we give ourselves in loving service to those around us and in witnessing to His salvation, His constant presence with us sanctifies every moment and every task. | |
| 6. I believe that all the words of the prophets are true. | 6. Sent by God to be with His people always, the Ruach Hakodesh extends spiritual gifts to his people, empowers them to bear witness to Mashiach, and in harmony with the Scriptures, leads them into all truth. One of the gifts of the Ruach Hakodesh is prophecy. |
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| 7. I believe that the prophecy of Moses was true, and that he was the chief of all prophets, both those before him and those after him. | 7. The Holy Scriptures, ... are the written Word of God, given by divine inspiration through holy men of God who spoke and wrote as they were moved by the Ruach Hakodesh. In His Word, God has committed to mankind the knowledge necessary for salvation. | |
| 8. I believe that the entire Torah now in our hands is the same one that was given to Moses our teacher. | 8. The Holy Scriptures are the infallible revelation of God's will. They are the standard of character, the test of experience, the authoritative revealers of doctrines, and the trustworthy record of God's acts in history. | |
| 9. I believe that the Torah will not be changed nor will there be another Torah from God. | 9. God, in the person of the Ruach Hakodesh, has revealed Himself through the Scriptures. He wrote them, not with His hands but with other hands, about forty pairs, over a period of more than 1500 years. Since God inspired the writers, God then is the author. | |
| 10. I believe that God knows all the deeds of human beings and their thoughts | 10. Because God is the Creator, He knows the thoughts and motives of every person. Those whom God knows to be truly repentant, He grants eternal life with Him. | |
| 11. I believe that God rewards with good those who observe his commandments, and punishes those who violate His commandments. | 11. The unrighteous dead will then be resurrected, ... but fire from God will consume them and cleanse the earth. The universe will thus be freed of sin and sinners forever. | |
| 12. I believe in the coming of the Messiah and even though he may delay, nevertheless I anticipate every day that he will come. | 12. The second coming of the Messiah is our blessed hope, the grand climax of the "good news". | |
| 13. I believe that there will be a resurrection of the dead whenever the wish emanates from God. | 13. When the Messiah who is our life appears, the resurrected righteous and the living righteous will be glorified and caught up to meet their Lord. |
* Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, (March 30, 1135-December 13, 1204), commonly known by his Greek name Maimonides, was a Jewish rabbi, physician, and philosopher. Many Jewish works refer to him by the acronym of his title and name, RaMBaM. As such, he is occasionally referred to as Rambam.
