Revised: 23/03/2026

This article summarises who we (Bethany Evangelical Church) are, what we believe and what Church Membership involves. Please ask the pastor/elders for any additional information, and/or if you want to ask to become a Member. See 'Contact Us' page. 

Who are we?

Bethany Evangelical Church is the gathering of Christian believers who have been meeting in the current chapel at Rowms Lane, Swinton since 1923. Our doctrinal distinctives are in alignment with the historic & conservative faith statements of evangelical movements seeking to be Bible based and Christ centred. We are therefore resistant to liberal or ‘prosperity gospel’ movements. However, we humbly seek to be strong on sound Bible teaching but with a passionate warmth for the LORD and to be a loving, caring and outreaching community. 

Bethany has been through hard times with the closure of the mines, the economic and demographic changes to the area. We are a work in progress from a small base! However, all churches, big or small are works in progress, and our LORD is able and we are moving forward in faith. Thank you for reading this booklet and considering Membership with us. Please ask the pastor any questions. God bless. 

We are an independent evangelical church:

Independent means that we are not part of any denominational structure. We do highly value inter-church fellowship where possible and one way we express this is through our affiliation to the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC). This is a family of over 600 churches in the UK with the same commitment to the core Christian beliefs. 

Evangelical means that we believe the Bible to be God’s Word and our final authority for what we believe & practice. We believe that all the Bible is God’s Word and useful to us. (2 Timothy 3:16) We don’t claim to be a perfect church and there are different denominations and variations of practice amongst the wider Christian community. However, evangelical means that we hold firmly to non-negotiable and foundational Christian beliefs as summarised at the end of this booklet (The statement of faith). We believe that the Bible contains the unique message of how a person is put right with God – Salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. This is truly good news! The word evangelical therefore has to do with the good news! Not only do we believe the good news, but we also aim to share it (Matthew 28:19-20). 

The ultimate purpose of any Christian is to bring glory to God as we delight ourselves in the Lord, trusting Him for salvation, and obey Him with thankful hearts (Psalm 37:4). But Christians are not designed to live for God by themselves, but as part of a local and active community of believers who meet for a variety of reasons, including: (see Acts 2:42) 

• To worship God
• To study the Bible
• To pray
• To share fellowship and communion (the Lord’s Supper)
• To be a Family expecting visitors! [Acts 2:47]

Why Church Membership?

Every Christian, through the spiritual new birth, is a member of the world-wide Christian family. But in the New Testament, the pattern is that local Christians met in their localities, committed to each other in local churches.

Many churches seek to find a way of distinguishing between those who informally attend a church as a visitor, regularly or frequently and those who want to be committed to a church, wanting to get involved, accepting its leadership and pastoral care. 

People join a local church in different ways e.g. 

• Those well-known & converted whilst attending the church services – discipled, baptised and added to the membership. 
• Christians who move to the area from other churches and want to get involved. 

We take Safeguarding seriously [Safeguarding Policy currently in development], so giving time, around 6 months, to get to know each other is a recommended practice. It also gives time to ask questions, study the Bible’s teaching on church life and check if prospective members have left unresolved issues in a former local church.

These are a few reasons why here at B.E.C. we adopt the system of the pastor / elders interviewing, teaching and then commending membership applicants to the current membership, with the aim of joyfully acknowledging new members!

Conditions of Membership:

Membership is only open to those who:

1. Profess repentance towards God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
2. Bear evidence by their lives to the reality of their profession.
3. Accept the church’s Basis of Faith contained in this booklet.
4. Have been interviewed, by the pastor / elders of the church and subsequently recommended for Membership.
5. Accept the pastoral care and authority of the church pastor / elders.
6. Agree to respect and support the general ethos and outlook of the church.

Privileges of Membership:

1. Members will receive particular spiritual care and prayer from the church leaders. (Becoming a Member is in effect saying, ‘I accept and want the spiritual care & leadership of this church’ as opposed to just wanting to attend.)
2. Members can attend church membership meetings, to contribute ideas to the life of the church.
3. Leadership and teaching roles in the church are only open to Members.

Expectations of Members:

1. Be present as frequently as possible (health permitting) at the Sunday services and midweek prayer and Bible study meetings.
2. Pray for and accept the leadership of the church; pray for fellow members, for the work of the church, and to join in corporate prayer times.
3. To use their gifts and time as available to serve in the life and activities of the church.
4. Support the church by regular financial contributions ‘as the Lord has prospered them’ (1 Cor. 16:2).
5. Avoid unkindly criticism of fellow members, to promote and pray for the spirit of Christian love and unity in the church, and to regard as strictly confidential all matters pertaining to the private business of the church. (e.g. in pastoral matters / prayer requests that are given in confidence)
6. Show practical care and support for members where they are able.

Please note: All the Bible is the Word of God and to be held with respect and regarded as our final authority for what we believe & practice. We are sad that not all groups and churches would agree on this – and see this as a sad departure from the historic Christian Faith. We seek to always be humble and respectful where disagreements are about non-essential – ‘secondary’ issues. 

There are Bible teachings which are essential for a person to be saved (e.g. What a Christian is, and how a person gets right with God; the Person and nature of God and in particular His Son, Jesus Christ). There can be no give-and-take on these core Biblical beliefs.

There is also clear and unequivocal teaching on Christian living in the Bible – that we must aim to live holy lives. We cannot give way on the principle need for the church to honour God with Christlike speech and godly behaviour. (Hebrews 12:14)

The Eldership will seek God’s help to faithfully preach and teach the Bible. On some subjects such as prophecy & end time events there are a variety of views in any congregation. We don’t require all Members to agree on secondary issues, and we don’t make these issues conditions of membership. However, it is important that Members respect the teaching ministry of the church leaders and lovingly agree to disagree where there are differences in views. 

We can still be healthy Christians, love each other and hold to a variety of views in such areas whilst rallying together on the ‘primary issues’. 

Please see our Statement of Faith on the 'Beliefs and Practices' page:

All churches affiliated to the FIEC hold to traditional beliefs on male eldership in the church and traditional views on marriage. Please see https://fiec.org.uk/who-we-are/beliefs for further details or ask the pastor / elders for a printed copy.