Keryx Prison Ministry
Statement of Faith
1. We believe the Bible to be the inspired, infallible, authoritative Word of God.
2. We believe that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
3. We believe in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His
miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, in His bodily
resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father, and in His personal return in
power and glory.
4. We believe in the forgiveness of sin, the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting.
5. We believe in the spiritual unity of believers in our Lord Jesus Christ.
GUIDELINES FOR CLERGY IN KERYX
Keryx is totally interdenominational. This fact must be kept in mind at all times.
There are sensitive areas with various denominations that all parties must respect.
In Keryx because of its totally interdenominational character, there is no communion service during team formation, or during the weekend.
The rules of the communion policy should be announced during the first two team meetings. The rector is the appropriate person to make the announcement.
It is very important for clergy team members to attend team meetings. Team community cannot be built otherwise.
Always remember there are many team members attending every team meeting who are also very busy.
No matter how many times you have given a talk, your talk must be critiqued by the rector. He is responsible for all the talks during the weekend. Further a team cannot be properly prepared if they do not know what the clergy are going to say on the weekend.
Clergy should know what talks, meditations or worship services they are responsible for no later than the third team meeting. The rector is responsible for making these assignments.
The outlines and guidelines for the talks, meditations and services must be followed by everyone.
If assigned, you are to sit at a table as a part of that table family - you are not the table leader, so do not dominate the table.
Do not allow yourself to become a source book or an answer man at the table.
Counseling, reconciliation, confession --- these are your most important tasks during the weekend.
Clergy should respond to a call for counseling at any time, except there is no counseling during your talk.
Participate at the table, help build the table community, and please take an active role in creating the posters.
No denominational proselytizing during the weekend. Any request for baptism, instructions, etc. must be referred to the prison chaplain.
Please stay with the team at all times. Do not separate yourself particularly at the team quarters during the weekend.
We all should be particularly sensitive to the position that some Christians have toward drinking and smoking.
For some of the participants, this may be their first encounter with Christianity. We must be careful not to overpower them and thereby scare them away.
There are specific beliefs, practices and traditions that make each denomination unique. In Keryx we come together and minister in the thing that all Christian denominations have in common, the love of Jesus Christ, and
we keep our differences out of the weekend.
LISTEN, LISTEN, LOVE, LOVE!
