HI, NICE
TO MEET YOU.

OUR MISSION.

GATHER. A new faith community is an open invitation for people who have no church home to find a place of belonging.  Those who have never been churched or who were disenfranchised from church are especially welcomed.  We seek people of differing spiritual understandings and experience.  You need not be Lutheran or even a professed Christian, for that matter, just a person who recognizes the need for a spiritual community and a willingness to offer yourself in shaping it. 

LOVE. Central to our self-understanding as a new faith community is that we are called to love. Our motivation is simple:  God loves us and having been loved and knowing what it is to be loved, we are compelled to love others.  

SERVE. Love is a verb.  It finds its deepest expression in action.  We recognize within our faith community our own need and brokenness as human beings.  We discover an affinity with all people when we acknowledge our common dependence upon others for help.  We seek to be sensitive to the needs of the Palm Springs community and will do whatever we can to address those needs:  issues surrounding poverty and homelessness; issues of equality and human rights; issues of human dignity and respect.  God’s work, our hands.

OPENAFFIRMINGEMBRACING.

All people are loved by God and we are called to love one another.  River Of Hope is a full inclusion faith community.  Regardless of status, economic condition, or political affiliation, we celebrate all people of race, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expressions.

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We intend to be more than open and affirming, we are embracing of all people, recognizing that within us all is the divine spark of the Creator.  Each of us has gifts to share with one another. Diversity makes our community richer in spirit and kinder in heart.  We seek equality for all and will strive to be an example of this within the Palm Springs community and beyond.

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If you are a believer, a doubter, a seeker, or a non-believer looking for a community — you have a place here.

If you own, rent, or have nothing at all — you are welcome here.

If you are fully abled, disabled, or a person of differing abilities,

if you have regrets, fears, addictions, or afflictions — you have a place here.

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All who are wise and all who are confused, all who have found love and all who have lost it, all who celebrate this welcome statement and all who fear it — are welcome here.

For these are just some of the things that make you who you are:  the person God loves. Come as you are and be celebrated for who you are. The time is now. Your place is here.

AFFILIATION.

A Partner Community

River Of Hope is anchored in partnership with Hope Lutheran Church in Palm Desert.  Shared resources, staffing, and spiritual encouragement fortify our efforts at a successful launch. www.hopepd.org

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A Mission Congregation

We are part of the Pacifica Synod, a geographical area of our larger Lutheran church.  Pacifica drives our efforts and guides the overall vision of our mission. www.Pacificasynod.org

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A Congregation of the ELCA

We fall under the umbrella of the largest Lutheran family in the country, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, nearly 10,000 congregations across the 50 states, Caribbean and U.S. Virgin Islands. www.ELCA.org

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