WHO
WE ARE
Carpinteria
Valley Baptist Church is an independent Baptist church that
is in association with the General
Association of Regular Baptist Churches, formally affiliated
in February, 1967. The church began in the early 1960's as a
Home Bible study in Santa Barbara.
It moved to the Women's Clubhouse in Carpinteria on Dec. 8,1964.
The first church service and Sunday school was held on March
14, 1965. The church moved into its current location on April
1, 1969 with its first public service on Easter Sunday.
They rented the building until, in 1971, the congregation was
able to purchase the current property. Under the leadership
of Pastor Dan M. Caldwell, the 70 member congregation dedicated
the Victorian church building Sunday evening, March 19, 1971.
The current building was built in 1880 in Santa Barbara by a
Methodist Church. In November 1892 it was cut into three sections
and moved along the coastline on horse-drawn flatbed wagons
twelve miles to its current location at the corner of Maple
Avenue and Eighth Street. The original stained glass windows,
memorializing prominent pioneers, survives to the present day
with minimal damage. It is one of the few historical landmarks
of the community that still stands.
More important than the history of the building, however, is
the history of our faith. Carpinteria Valley Baptist Church
remains true to the historical integrity of biblical doctrine
as taught not only by the founders of this congregation, but
also as taught by our Baptist forefathers, and Bible-believers
throughout church history.
We
do not accept contemporary efforts to incorporate modern philosophy,
psychology, and relativistic thinking into Christian teaching.
We understand that there is a Universal Church, but it is yet
future, not currently manifested, and that is through the Local
Church that God works today. We reject ecumenical efforts to
unite churches that do not share a common faith and biblical
interpretation.
We believe the primary cohesive of society is the family. We
endeavor to encourage and equip the family to be strengthened
by promoting families to worship as a unit. The family is too
often divided into generational segments, dividing an already
divided family. We provide children's ministries through Sunday
School, Awana,
and assorted other activities, but feel it is important that
the family worship God together. Parents have the opportunity
then to teach by example what it means to worship God.
We attempt to implement the spiritual gifts God has provided
to each believer according to His will, and therefore are not
to be sought, only discovered and developed. We understand that
these gifts are not given for personal benefit, but for the
benefit of others. Therefore, we encourage the "one another's"
of Scripture and the stewardship of serving one another.
