What We Believe

The “Pres” in Pres House is short for Presbyterian. Pres House is a ministry of the Presbyterian Church, U.S.A., a denomination that is part of the Reformed tradition.

If you’re familiar with Presbyterian churches, you might notice some familiar things at Pres House: music, architecture, etc. But we work hard to make Pres House feel like a home for everyone. You don’t need to be a Presbyterian — or even a Christian — to find your place at Pres House.

Pres House is an “open and affirming” community. This means LGBTQ+ folks are fully embraced as part of our community. We celebrate queer identities and experiences, draw on the richness of queer theology in our preaching, and welcome queer folks to lead in worship, serve on our staff and student leadership team, and otherwise shape our life together. We also have a special small group for queer students called Queerly Beloved.

If you identify as LGBTQ+, our motto — “Bring ALL of who you are!” — applies to you, too.

We eat together a lot. We eat dinner during worship every Sunday, then box up the leftovers and put them in the fridge for you to eat on Monday. We have TWO full kitchens, and we make full use of them for small groups and special events.

Why is food so important at Pres House? We believe that at the table, God’s grace is tangibly present in every bite, reminding us that we are more than bodies with brains attached; we are embodied creatures in need of love, community, and pleasure.

We ask a lot of questions at Pres House. Jesus was the same way. He asked over 300 questions in the gospels, and of the nearly 200 questions he received, he answered less than 30.

We believe that our questions, doubts, and uncertainties are fertile ground for spiritual growth. Pres House is a place where all your questions — and the stories behind them, even the painful ones — will be treated with dignity. Here, you won’t have to search for answers alone.

In Luke 4, Jesus announces that he has been anointed to bring good news to the poor and freedom for the oppressed. We want our community to follow in Jesus’ footsteps. We don’t shy away from talking about topics like white supremacy, politics, capitalism, reproductive rights, and climate justice, but we also believe that talking isn’t enough. We want to do something about it, and we want to do it together.

Is the Bible literally God’s word? Is hell real? Why does God allow suffering? What about other religions?

There’s a lot more we could talk about here, but at Pres House, we believe these kinds of questions are best answered in conversation. No two people are alike, and we all have something to learn from one another. We invite you to bring ALL of who you are into the conversation and shape what we believe!