What's up with the Name?

Woke – Woke is a word full of connotations. We want to recognize that upfront and unpack why we think this is a valuable term for our church. Historically, woke is a term that was utilized by African Americans to recognize that they had become aware of oppressive and unjust systems that exist within society. This term gained popularity in the wider culture following the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson. It has crossed cultural boundaries and become more of a blanket term for awareness of social issues. Many now think that to identify as woke is to also reject Christianity (what in our community can sometimes be seen as a religion of the oppressors). We want to push back against this paradigm while simultaneously inviting those that identify as woke into the life-giving community of the church. Woke is not just a term, but a group of people (the majority in this community) and we long for this group and all those in our community to not just be awakened to the social issues around them, but also to the good news of the gospel. Woke Bridge Community Church is not a social justice initiative. We are a church built upon Christ as our rock and the good news of the gospel. But the gospel and the kingdom of God are big and wide and invite all those who are weary to come and experience the newness of life, renewed relationship with God and with our neighbor.

Bridge – Our identity as a bridge is foundational to who we are at Woke Bridge. We want to recognize first that the best and true bridge is Christ – the only way God and man can be reconciled. As we grow in our relationship with the bridge, Christ, we want to extend that bridge to those around us. We want to be a bridge between people in the Ferguson/Florissant community: between the “woke” and the unawakened, between black and white, rich and poor, young and old, church and other than church people. We want to intentionally build relationships across divides. We want to connect to our community, to its schools, its organizations, and its businesses. We want to be a creator and model of unity and reconciliation as we follow the true unifier and true reconciler, Jesus.

Community – We are, in our very identity, a community of believers. Additionally, we are a church in a community and for the community – we are called to those around us. Through both our words and our actions, we want to share and spread hope with those in the Ferguson/Florissant area and beyond. We want to be connected to the heartbeat of this community, that Ferguson/Florissant members, regardless of their background, may say that they are
glad Woke Bridge is here.

Church – Fundamentally , we are a community of people built upon the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus and called to renewed relationship with him and others. Even though the word has plenty of baggage for many we are in relationship with, it is fundamentally what we are called to be. Jesus Christ is the head of the church, and in all we do, we seek to honor and follow him.