The Torn Veil is a community of Christians consisting of those who profess and choose to live according to the teachings and life example of Jesus Christ. We are not a separate church. We are not a physical Church. We are more like a tether or link between churches. We encourage participation in church. We encourage individual spiritual growth in relationship to God.
Locally, in Pittsburgh, we meet for fellowship a couple times a month. At Simple Supper we share a meal and our impressions about a set of scriptures. We also meet in coffee shops to visit and chat.
We are not expressly Protestant, Catholic or Orthodox. Our members belong to any of the many churches and denominations that exist. Among churches, there are doctrinal differences, so we do not set doctrinal standards.
As a group, we renounce the right to reject anyone who agrees to learn and demonstrate the unconditional love of God. While as individuals, it is expected that those among us will hold dissenting views, we resolve to love and accept one another within the context of the Torn Veil.
Our group does not discriminate race, creed, age, gender, gender identity, sexual preference or religious practice.
We do not set standards but acknowledge the role of the Holy Spirit in and among us to draw, teach and nurture each of us in Christ. We do not judge, label or stigmatize.
While we acknowledge that God, Faith and Spirituality are not unique or limited to Christianity, we choose to identify ourselves as Christian because we follow the teachings of Jesus Christ.
We resolve to:
- Love instead of fear
- Edify and not destroy
- Support and not abandon
- Live a life of love
We have agreed to unite because:
- In nearly every congregation, there are those who feel disenfranchised.
- In nearly every congregation, there are those who feel they cannot be honest or completely be themselves.
- There are Christians who grieve because people they love do not feel welcome or free to participate in the body of Christ.
- There are many who have walked away from the body of Christ because they feel rejected by the body.
- There are many who have walked away from the body of Christ because they disapprove of the anger, hate, bigotry and narrow-mindedness of other Christians.
- We believe that God has purpose and is glorified in the vast diversity we find in the Body of Christ. That God is bigger than our perceptions of him and there is much to be learned by the differences in our perspectives and experiences.
- No one group, doctrinal orientation, or set of commonly held beliefs has the right to determine that those who are not among them are not Christian. No one has the right to deny anyone else the right to a personal, vibrant, experiential relationship with Jesus and his Body.
