Via Church is the Cathedral Church of the Via Apostolica Canada movement.
Via Apostolica Canada is part of the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. Our vision is to see a people that are impassioned for Jesus, his church, and his world; a church that listens to Christ in the Scriptures, is connected to Christ by the Spirit, and communes with Christ through the Sacraments; a church whose roots go deep into our past but whose branches stretch far into our culture; a church whose faith is real, whose hope is solid, and whose love is unfeigned.
We believe that Church is meant to be amazing, actually, better than amazing – Glorious. In a culture and age where the Church can appear to be anything but glorious, Via Lethbridge is a group of regular, imperfect people who are profoundly committed to build towards and see the promise of Jesus - to see his Bride, radiant and glorious, presented to himself in splendor (Eph. 5:27). Perhaps we are idealistic, but we are convinced that he desires his Church to be glorious with something of His own glory (2 Thess. 2:14). A glorious Church is set apart only for him and is incomprehensibly united to him – one with him. It is entirely mystical, otherworldly and entirely uncommon. Jesus Christ is our head and he loves his Church, in all her shapes and sizes, just as he loves himself (which is a lot!). He is wholeheartedly involved, relentlessly pursuing her, and delights in nourishing and cherishing her (Eph. 5:29). We understand that the Church isn’t and has never been perfect, but we can’t think of a better endeavor to give our lives towards. We would love you to join us in pursuit of this Church’s vision: “Building God’s Dream – a Glorious Church.”
This vision begs the question, “what does glorious look like?” Great question and I’m glad you asked it!
A Glorious Church looks, sounds, and acts like Jesus! John 1:14, writing of the Incarnation of Jesus, says this, “and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Jesus is the “radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature” (Heb. 1:3), and whoever is united with Christ, “ought to walk in the same way in which he walked” (1 John 2:6).
Our mission in life is, by the grace of God, and the empowerment of his Holy Spirit is to walk in the way of Christ. To be committed to what he is committed to, prioritizing what he prioritized. As we looked to the Gospels and the ministry of Jesus, we were led to five main priorities, which we call, “The Five Passions of Jesus.” Which are: Presence, Teaching, Community, Calling, and Mission.
These passions determine everything we do as a Church and we at Via Church Lethbridge, exist to welcome God’s Great Presence, to teach His Glorious Gospel, to love one another with His love, to see every Christian walk in their calling, and to see a harvest of souls locally & globally, through all of the above.
So, however glorious or perhaps inglorious your Church experience has been, look to Jesus. He wholeheartedly loves his Bride and dreams of a day where she is radiant and glorious, far exceeding any of our expectations.
Stephen Barbour, Lead Pastor