Statement of Faith

The Statement of Faith adopted by St. Stephen’s Academy is limited to primary Christian doctrine, which is considered to be central to all Christian denominations, and which sets Christianity apart from other faiths. The following Statement of Faith is taken directly from the St. Stephen’s Academy bylaws:

  1. We believe the Bible, consisting of the Old and New Testaments, is the inspired and only 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, His virgin birth, His sinless life, His miracles, His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, His bodily resurrection, His ascension to the right hand of the Father, and His personal return in power and glory.
  4. We believe that, for the salvation of lost and sinful men, regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely necessary.
  5. We believe that a person is justified through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone.
  6. We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a godly life.
  7. We believe in the resurrection of both the saved and the lost – they that are saved, unto eternal life, and they who are lost, unto eternal damnation.
  8. We believe in the spiritual unity of believers in our Lord Jesus Christ and His church.

The school believes that this statement of faith is a summary of the Gospel of Jesus Christ found in the scriptures, and that it is consistent with the expression of the Gospel in the Westminster confessional standards. St. Stephen’s Academy is a ministry of Evergreen Presbyterian Church, which is a congregation in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). Officeholders in the PCA are required to subscribe to the Westminster Standards. While the standards are widely accepted among the regular members of the PCA, subscription is not required. From its inception, St. Stephen’s has been built on a foundation which put scripture first, but which acknowledged the Westminster Standards as a faithful summary of the scriptures. Our curriculum reflects these priorities. While we eagerly accept students and families from other evangelical traditions, from other religions, and from outside the Christian faith, we are a ministry of a confessional church. We ask that our families understand this, and that they come here understanding who we are.

The Evergreen Session, which oversees St. Stephen’s Academy, adheres to the Westminster Standards.