Free Republic

President Trump has now fulfilled his disastrous promise to pull the United States out of the Paris Climate Agreement. The agreement represents decades of work by both Democratic and Republican administrations to achieve a common goal: bringing every country of the world together to tackle the climate crisis, the existential threat of our time. President Trump surprised no one with his decision to withdraw from the agreement. It is yet another reckless choice in line with his steps to rollback our bedrock environmental laws, which have cleaned up our water and our air for decades. But that doesn’t minimize the...

If you are reading this July 4, 2015 post as an ordained minister, you can simply turn to Loraine Boettner’s book “The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination,” Chapter 28, Section 7, on page 383 for what I am about to write. Don’t have the book in your pastoral library! Go out and buy the book immediately, and let the following quotations be a incentive to do so. Or if you are reading this national holiday post as a member in a Presbyterian church, borrow the book by Boettner on “The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination” from your pastor, turn to Chapter 28,...

I recently listened to a lecture by a pastor, Tim Keller from New York, who argued that white people need to apologize to blacks for the sin of their fathers’ racism...... Keller says, “I mean I still hear it, though especially years ago when I lived in the South. I heard white people say, ‘Yeah, it’s a shame what slavery did, but I never owned any slaves so why in the world does anybody think that I as a white person now had any responsibility to that community over there at all? I didn’t own slaves.’ But here is Daniel...

At the 2016 October meeting of the North Florida Presbytery, the moderator appointed an ad hoc study committee to examine issues pertaining to same sex attraction in light of a recent ruling of the Nashville Presbytery Committee on Judicial Business. In January of 2018, the North Florida Presbytery voted unanimously to receive the committee’s report. The report answered eight key questions. Below are those questions and summary statements of the committee’s report which can be read in full here. 1. What are the origins of same-sex attraction? Same sex attraction is a result of Adam’s original sin, the fall of...

Andrew White, the son of former Gov. Mark White, and a member and elder in a PCA church, is running for Texas governor as a democrat candidate. White, 45, is an elder at Christ the King Presbyterian Church in Houston, a conservative congregation that is a member of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). In recent days, he has taken heat from other Democrats for being personally against abortion, though he has said he recognizes that abortion remains legal and that he would not try to change that if elected governor. According to online policy papers, PCA opposes same-sex marriage...

One of the silliest arguments made by some Paris Accord supporters is that pulling out of the accord would weaken the U.S.' global leadership because more than 140 countries, including North Korea signed on to it. Seriously? I'd like to ask them why the United States wants to follow the lead of North Korea on any matter. Truth be told, we should always do the exact opposite of whatever North Korea is doing. In addition, this "everyone else is doing it so should we" argument reminds me of something my mother used to say, "Should you jump off the bridge...

Was it wise for President Donald Trump to pull the United States out of the Paris climate agreement? The President offered mostly economic reasons for his decision. Although they’re important, it’s also important to know whether there’s good scientific basis. As some critics reason, “So what if the economy booms? What if the earth dies?”So here’s a 15-point summary of relevant facts, mostly scientific but some economic:1. Global average temperature has risen and fallen cyclically, driven by cycles in solar energy output, solar magnetic wind output, galactic cosmic ray influx (moderated by solar magnetic wind), ocean cycles, cloudiness (influenced...

For sheer hilarity and hyperbole it's hard to beat a recent headline on a Washington Post editorial opposing President Trump's decision to remove the U.S. from the nonbinding and unenforceable Paris climate agreement. "Trump turns his back on the world," it screamed. A close second goes to the headline on a New York Times piece by columnist David Brooks: "Donald Trump Poisons the World." Dishonorable mention goes to former presidential adviser David Gergen, who said on CNN that Trump had committed "one of the most shameful acts in U.S. history." The secular progressives have again revealed their diminished capacity, which...

New arts program will connect student artists to PA Turnpike New partnership, Art Sparks, will develop public art created by local students HUMMELSTOWN, PA. (March 30, 2017) — Today, the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) and Pennsylvania Council for the Arts (PCA) announced a new partnership that connects student artists with art being developed for stops along the PA Turnpike. The new program, called Art Sparks, will utilize the PCA’s Arts in Education residency program to develop student-created, original pieces of art for Turnpike service plazas across the 550-mile system. These public art pieces will be on display in service plazas...

“Covenant College has elected to forfeit the Women’s Tennis USA South Conference championship match, scheduled for April 17, 2016. The championship match takes place on a Sunday, and as an institution owned and operated by the Presbyterian Church in America we observe the Sabbath by not competing in athletic events on Sunday. This conviction is clearly stated in our Student Handbook and is informed by the Bible, the Westminster Confession of Faith, and the PCA Book of Church Order. In national tournaments, the NCAA makes accommodations for institutions that do not compete on a particular day for religious reasons. Bylaw...

Billy Graham’s grandson Tullian Tchividjian has resigned from his pulpit at Coral Ridge Presbyterian, a high-profile church in south Florida, after admitting he had an affair. He released the following statement to The Washington Post, saying it was on behalf of him and his wife: I resigned from my position at Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church today due to ongoing marital issues. As many of you know, I returned from a trip a few months back and discovered that my wife was having an affair. Heartbroken and devastated, I informed our church leadership and requested a sabbatical to focus exclusively on...

[Editor’s note: The Elder Board of City Church in San Francisco, formerly in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) and now in the Reformed Church in America (RCA), released a statement on changes of how it will minister to those who are considered a part of the LGBT community. This is a response to this statement; the full statement follows the response.] Dear friend, I’m so sorry. Thanks for forwarding this letter from City Church this morning. You’ve been a good friend and I want to speak to you plainly. This stuff breaks my heart. The letter makes it sound...

NEW YORK (RNS) Redeemer Presbyterian Church, one of the most influential evangelical churches in the country led by author and speaker Tim Keller, has partnered with a Mississippi-based school to form a seminary campus in New York City in 2015. The partnership between Redeemer and Reformed Theological Seminary fits in with the desire of evangelicals to plant their flag in large cities such as New York. It also reflects the influence of Reformed theology on evangelical thinking, as well as the impact of megachurches on theological education. And while many seminaries are still suffering declining revenues since the economic crisis...

I’m doing some research around the web and came across Rachel Held’s Evans post on God and the Gay Christian. In there she tells us that she has another post that is in the works about why she changed her mind on God and the gay Christian. Gee, can’t wait. Her testimony and preface for this upcoming post is simply that she has struggled over the issue, she has had many sleepless nights. She has really wrestles with it… therefore, her conclusions must be sound. Here are her words: "Certainly there are many other Christians struggling to make sense of...

While Americans today are roasting hot dogs and setting off fireworks, few will be thinking deeply about the significance of the event we remember, the issuing of The Declaration of Independence by our courageous Founding Fathers. Christians should realize, however, that the ideas enshrined in the founding of our nation and in the Declaration are biblical ideas that are just as important today. Reformed Christians, especially, should see in the language of our Founders the ideas of covenant theology that are essential for us to recover and defend today. With this in mind, let me offer three reasons why the...

Here in Schenectady, NY yesterday, First United Methodist Church hosted a guest preacher/lecturer who forfeited his ministerial credentials for performing a so-called same-sex marriage for his son and partner. His credentials have been reinstated and he is traveling around as a “prophet” calling people to follow the evolving culture. Well, call me a “prophet” who calls people to live in fidelity to the God who made us and knows best how we are designed to function. Here is the text of a letter to the editor which I have submitted to the local newspaper. Dear Editor: GLAAD for some …...

Last week NBC news reported that the “top legislative body of the Presbyterian Church in America” voted to recognize same-sex marriage as Christian in their church constitution. The news report, which was quickly corrected, was confusing the Presbyterian Church of the USA—whose general assembly was meeting in Detroit, Michigan—for the Presbyterian Church in America—whose general assembly was meeting in Houston, Texas. With two Presbyterian denominations with similar names meeting on the same dates it’s easy to understand how a reporter could get them mixed up. So what exactly are the differences between the two? Here are several key differences between...

Some Assemblies chart a new course or make history. The 40-year anniversary celebration of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) founding (at the 42nd GA) probably will not bend the lines of history very much. It was a par-for-the-course General Assembly, which pronounces another resounding “Meh,” to the idealist reformers. As is becoming customary, most of the interesting things took place off the floor as this court of the church has become largely irrelevant for the year-round functioning of the church. Perhaps it is a sign of growth and stability that churches no longer depend much on annual four-day meetings[1]...

Actions of the 42nd General Assembly of the PCA Overtures dealing with homosexuality, pro-life, child abuse, Insider Movement, theistic evolution, and others discussed and voted on Written by Staff | Monday, June 23, 2014 The 42nd General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) has adjourned in Houston, Texas. There were many issues considered including Insider Movements, child abuse, and prayer for Christians facing penalties for their stance on abortion and homosexuality. What follows is an overview of some of the main actions of this year’s GA. Unlike previous years, there was very little discussion or debate over the...

Be it resolved that the Presbyterian Church in America expresses its gratitude to the Lord for sustaining by His grace ministers of the gospel, chaplains, and Christians serving in the public sphere who are experiencing ostracism, penalties, and persecution for taking a Biblically faithful sand for the sanctity of human life and declining to participate in the cultural redefinition of marriage.