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I often tell people that if you lose your way in Reformed Tradition (read Presbyterian) theology, you can always go back to square one, which says, in essence, this: God is sovereign. Or -- in wording I prefer now because most of us have no experience living under a sovereign -- God is gloriously free.I thought about that the other day when I read something Pope Francis said in a book he co-authored in 2010 as Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio. Speaking about how he would converse with an atheist, Bergoglio wrote: "I would not tell him that his life is...

One of the largest Presbyterian Church (USA) congregations in the United States is presently weighing the possibility of leaving the denomination due to theological differences.First Presbyterian Church of Houston, founded in the early nineteenth century and with an estimated 3,600 members, voted earlier this year to enter a discernment process over the possibility of seeking dismissal.James T. Birchfield, senior pastor at First Presbyterian Church, told The Christian Post that the congregation wants to consider where they stand in relation to the views of PC(USA)."Our congregation is attempting to discern the best place – the best denominational relationship – that...

This is a request for information assistance. Last night, I received a disturbing email from a longtime friend and pastor from my hometown church, which is breaking from the corrupt, mainline Presbyterian Church (USA), like many others are doing. Apparently PC (USA) has asked the congregation for an exorbitant sum of money, and is threatening the church manse and other property in an effort to force the congregation back into the corrupted fold. I've been out of the Presbyterian loop for a while but want to help, and so I'm wondering if anyone has any specific information about what is...

The National Catholic Reporter has once again proved that its nickname, the National Catholic “Fishwrap,” is well deserved. On Wednesday, NCR printed a column in which columnist Bill Tammeus (who, oddly enough, isn’t Catholic, but a Presbyterian elder) referred to the unborn child as a “bundle of cells” and questioned why the Roman Catholic Church has exerted so much energy trying to stop abortion, as opposed to the death penalty. After all, says, Bill Tammeus, “in the matter of abortion, we have a bundle of cells that one day may be born.” On the other hand, in the case of...

Members of Pittsburgh Presbytery expressed grief and frustration with three churches that recently voted to leave the Presbyterian Church (USA) without going through the constitutional process for doing so, while the church's national moderator, who coincidentally was at their regular meeting Thursday, said he had offered to meet with leaders of those churches and two others that are pursuing the formal process for leaving. Representatives from only one of the five, later identified as Bellefield Presbyterian Church in Oakland, agreed to meet with the Rev. Neal Presa. About 140 churches are in the countywide presbytery. Recently, Mt. Lebanon United Presbyterian...

An unholy alliance of gun prohibitionists, politicians, and certain church groups is pushing a so-called documentary called "Trigger: The Ripple Effect of Gun Violence" that will air on certain NBC owned and affiliated stations. The documentary is part of the Horizons of the Spirit series which airs on that network. The documentary is presented by the National Council of Churches and was produced by the Presbyterian Church USA. The documentary features such gun control luminaries as Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY), Colin Goddard, and Dr. Garen Wintemute talking about how "gun violence" (sic) impacted their lives. In the United States more...

According to a recently released survey, support for same-sex marriage among Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) members and pastors has considerably increased since 2005. In research conducted by Presbyterian Research Services and published in October, the number of PC(USA) members and pastors supporting the denomination redefining marriage grew. In 2005, 23 percent of PC(USA) members supported same-sex marriage; in 2012, the number had increased to 34 percent. Among pastors, support for same-sex marriage in 2005 was at 35 percent; in 2012, it is at 49 percent. Jack Marcum, coordinator of Research Services at Presbyterian Mission Agency and author of the published findings,...

Pittsburgh Presbytery is poised to vote on a plan that would allow congregations to leave the Presbyterian Church (USA) with their buildings if they first engage in an open discernment process and negotiate a settlement with the presbytery. [SNIP] Over the past decade the Presbyterian Church (USA) has lost 195 theologically conservative congregations in disputes over biblical interpretation and sexual morality. Up to 600 are estimated to be in process to follow them, according to The Presbyterian Lay Committee, a conservative group. The denomination has 1.9 million members in 11,000 congregations. In 2007 Pittsburgh Presbytery lost three congregations to the...

The First Presbyterian Church Adult Education Program, partnering with the Peace Islands Institute (formerly the Interfaith Dialog Center of New Jersey), will once again hold its popular series on the Qur'an and its teachings beginning Sept. 16. The eight-week program will cover Muslim culture, history and traditions and will present a unique educational opportunity to read the Qur'an in an environment designed to promote respect and mutual understanding of all faiths and cultures. All faiths are invited to participate and the program is free. The First Presbyterian Church in Rutherford, in an effort to bring people of different faiths together,...

Davidson College in North Carolina has become the first university in the nation to prevent Chick-fil-A from being served on campus. A liberal arts college in North Carolina has become the first in the nation to prevent Chick-fil-A from being served at campus events over the restaurant's indirect support of pro-family groups perceived by some as “anti-gay.” The student organization that controls student funds at Davidson College made the decision last week to prevent the sandwiches from being served at a series of events called “After Midnight,” when students circulated a petition expressing outrage over a Chick-fil-A’s owner’s monetary donations...

MOUNT PLEASANT - It's a long way from Tipperary, Ireland, but John Dominic Crossan has traveled that way to become an expert on the historical Jesus. Crossan will bring his expertise to Mount Pleasant on Aug. 18 and 19 as scholar in residence at First Presbyterian Church. Crossan's recent book, "The Power of Parable," will shape the focus of three lectures Aug. 18. At 2 p.m., he will speak on "Types of Old Testament Parables" and at 3:30 p.m. on "The Challenge Parables by Jesus." The evening lecture, "The Gospels as Parables about Jesus," will begin at 7 p.m. Crossan...

The largest Presbyterian group in the US is considering divesting from three major global companies over the Israeli military’s use of their products in the Palestinian territories. The proposal before the Presbyterian Church (USA) has outraged many Jewish groups, who sent representatives to the church’s national assembly in Pittsburgh this week to lobby against the measure. Divestment supporters say the targeted companies — Caterpillar Inc., Hewlett-Packard Co. and Motorola — are profiting from Palestinian suffering. The American Jewish Committee, a public policy group, has said the proposal demonizes Israel and threatens Christian-Jewish relations. Debate and vote were scheduled for late

Same-sex marriage continues to be a major dividing point among members of the Presbyterian Church (USA) as the issue moves closer to a vote this week by the denomination’s governing body. The 220th General Assembly is expected to address the subject of gay marriage and the church before its biennial conference wraps up on Saturday in the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, Downtown. Groups on opposing sides of the debate met separately on Tuesday as the church’s committee on Civil Union and Marriage Issues considered proposals both for and against gay marriage. A church survey released in February showed that...

As the Episcopal Church's governing body gathers this week, members are preparing to discuss church recognition of same-sex couples living in committed relationships. "We anticipate that the church will approve a rite for blessing same-gender relationships," the Right Rev. Sean Rowe, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northwestern Pennsylvania, said. .. "I do plan to authorize same-gender blessings in this diocese," Rowe said in a letter to members before the convention. The Episcopalians aren't alone in considering same-gender issues this month. At the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) General Assembly, commissioners are considering whether marriage is between "a woman and a man"...

Days after President Obama announced his support for same-sex marriage, the Presbyterian Church's Northern California governing body refused to rebuke a retired minister for marrying gays and lesbians when it was legal in California. The Presbytery of the Redwoods, which governs churches from the Golden Gate Bridge to the Oregon border, voted 74 to 18 Tuesday to reject the church's official denunciation and instead support the Rev. Jane Adams Spahr, who had been found guilty by an ecclesiastical court of violating the Presbyterian Constitution and her ordination vows for marrying 16 same-sex couples

Presbyterian church representatives refuse to rebuke former San Rafael pastor in gay marriage dispute In an unprecedented defiance of a church judicial commission, representatives of Northern California Presbyterian churches Tuesday refused to rebuke a retired pastor for marrying 16 same-sex couples when gay marriage was legal in California in 2008.The 74-18 vote on a motion opposing the censure of the Rev. Jane Spahr came at a meeting of the Presbytery of the Redwoods at the First Presbyterian Church in San Anselmo."Love and justice have come together here," Spahr, 69, said after the vote. "I think this is going to help...

he congregation as First Presbyterian Church in Colorado Springs has officially voted to leave the Presbyterian USA denomination. The church plans to switch to a more conservative denomination called the Evangelical Covenant Order Of Presbyterians. Leaders say its because of scriptural conflicts and the decision to allow openly gay ministers to be ordained. 95.5% of those who voted said First Pres.should leave Presbyterian USA. There is also a financial aspect to the split. The congregation must pay $650,000 to keep worshiping in their church. It will be paid over a five-year period to their regional governing body Pueblo Presbytery. The...

Two of Buffalo's most venerable mainline Protestant churches are in discussions to share space, staff and ministries -- with one of the congregations possibly selling off its buildings and moving into the landmark structure of the other congregation. Leadership of Trinity Episcopal Church on Delaware Avenue revealed the surprising proposal, which also involves First Presbyterian Church, in a letter this past weekend to Trinity church members. The proposal calls for First Presbyterian, the city's first congregation, dating from before the War of 1812, to sell its buildings on Symphony Circle and move to the Delaware campus of Trinity, which was...

I had just learned that our church in Seattle is leaving the Presbyterian Churches USA into a new organizing body called The Evangelical Covenant Order of Presbyterians. Two of the largest churches in the Seattle area, also Presbyterians are sponsers this effort. I haven't been able to figure out from their website if The Fellowship of Presbyterians is the same organization. (www.fellowship-pres.org ) It is also rumored that this exudus from Presbyterian Churches USA was a rebellion aganinst their recent vote to allow gays to become ministers. But there is nothing in their website that mentions this. Does anyone have...

A break-off group from the Presbyterian Church USA (PCUSA) launched a new conservative evangelical fellowship during a meeting in Florida in mid-January. The name of the new denomination is the Evangelical Covenant Order of Presbyterians (ECO), which came together in response to the severe liberalization of the PCUSA over the past several years, particularly its decision last year to allow the ordination of openly homosexual clergy (see The New American’s coverage). The new denomination will be under the umbrella of another recent entity, the Fellowship of Presbyterians, which was launched last year in response to concerns among clergy “about the...