Carriage Hill is an independent fellowship of Christians who have met in East Lansing for over 35 years. We have no ties to any denomination, and we claim no name other than “Christians.”

However, Carriage Hill is part of a tradition that began in England and Ireland in the 1820’s when believers began to question the established practices followed by denominational churches of the time. They studied the Bible to find answers to questions such as: Why are there restrictions on fellowship with others from different denominations when we are all believers in the same Lord? Why is it necessary to have ordained clergy present when celebrating communion? Why is the worship of God formal and lifeless when it should be joyous and vital?

As these believers searched the Scriptures, they discovered three Biblical principles that led to a new way of meeting together. First, they discovered the principle of the fellowship of the saints. This means that everyone who has placed faith in Christ for salvation is a Christian and is a member of the one body of believers, the church, despite ethnic or economic differences. The second principle is the priesthood of all believers: that all Christians are priests and have direct access to God through Christ, the only mediator. All believers, not just a class of ministers, are gifted for service by the Holy Spirit and minister to others with those gifts. Third, they saw the pattern of the New Testament church in which believers met together under the authority of local elders for the purposes of teaching and fellowship, the breaking of bread and prayer.

Because we continue to follow these simple Biblical principles of gathering, as do many other local churches throughout the world, Carriage Hill may look quite different to you. We meet in simplicity with an emphasis on worship in the breaking of bread and on Biblical teaching. We employ the gifts of every Christian to build up and serve each other under the direction of multiple elders. And we welcome any Christian who chooses to fellowship with us. We extend this welcome to you today.