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The PCA takes the following position on [[homosexuality]]: "Homosexual practice is sin. The Bible teaches that all particular sins flow from our rebellious disposition of heart. Just as with any other sin, the PCA deals with people in a pastoral way, seeking to transform their lifestyle through the power of the gospel as applied by the Holy Spirit. Hence, in condemning homosexual practice we claim no self-righteousness, but recognize that any and all sin is equally heinous in the sight of a holy God."<ref>{{cite news|title=PCA Statements on Homosexuality|url=http://www.starwire.com/partner/Article_Display_Page/0,,PTID23682_CHID125044_CIID1620134,00.html|accessdate=28 November 2012|newspaper=PCANews|author=PCA General Assembly|year=2009}}</ref>
The PCA takes the following position on [[homosexuality]]: "Homosexual practice is sin. The Bible teaches that all particular sins flow from our rebellious disposition of heart. Just as with any other sin, the PCA deals with people in a pastoral way, seeking to transform their lifestyle through the power of the gospel as applied by the Holy Spirit. Hence, in condemning homosexual practice we claim no self-righteousness, but recognize that any and all sin is equally heinous in the sight of a holy God."<ref>{{cite news|title=PCA Statements on Homosexuality|url=http://www.starwire.com/partner/Article_Display_Page/0,,PTID23682_CHID125044_CIID1620134,00.html|accessdate=28 November 2012|newspaper=PCANews|author=PCA General Assembly|year=2009}}</ref>
In the Presbyterian Church in America, ministers, ruling elders, teaching elders and deacons are men only in obedience to the New Testament standards, through women have a wide range of use in the churches.[http://www.westpca.com www.westpca.com]


=== Polity ===
=== Polity ===

Revision as of 08:28, 29 November 2012

Presbyterian Church in America
File:PresbyterianChurchInAmericalogo.jpg
ClassificationProtestant
TheologyReformed evangelical
GovernancePresbyterian
AssociationsNorth American Presbyterian and Reformed Council; National Association of Evangelicals; World Reformed Fellowship
RegionUnited States & Canada
OriginDecember 1973
Birmingham, Alabama
Separated fromPresbyterian Church in the United States
Merger ofincorporated the Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod in 1982
Congregations1,771[1]
Members351,406[1]

The Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) is a Presbyterian church that strives to be faithful to the teaching the Bible, and to actively carry out the Jesus command to make mature disciples among all people and to labor upon the theologically foundation of the foundation of the Protestant Reformation.www.kkchurch.org/about

History

Background

The PCA formed as part of a major realignment among U.S. Presbyterians, who had been divided on regional grounds since the Civil War between the southern PCUS and the northern-based (though it had grown to have congregations in all 50 states) UPCUSA. Yet the two regional denominations were also internally divided between theological liberals and conservatives. As momentum slowly built towards unification of the two regional denominations, conservative pastors and lay leaders became alarmed by the PCUS's drift from orthodoxy and historic confessional and biblical standards of the church. By the 1970s, conservative pastors in the PCUS began to plan an exit from the denomination. This was the Presbyterian Churchmen United formed by more than 500 ministers and ran 3/4 page statements of their beliefs in 30 newspapers.[2] They sought to reaffirm the Westminster Confession of Faith as the fullest and clearest exposition of biblical faith and to call all pastors and leaders to affirm the inerrancy of Scripture. As a result they also felt the church should disavow the ordination of women.[3]

The Southern Presbyterian church was a conservative reformed witness until 1950s, when liberalism took control. Conservative Presbyterians questioned the denominations relationship with the World Council of Churches and the National Council of Churches and also expressed growing concerns over the planned union with the United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America. [4][irrelevant citation]They believed that the presbyteries violate the Westminster Confession of Faith by receiving ministers who refuse to affirm the Virgin Birth and the bodily resurrection, while denying membership to faithful ministers. Conservatives criticized the Board of Christian Educations published literature and believed that the denominations Board of World Missions no longer places its primary emphasis on carrying out the Great Commission. [5]

Founding and expansion of the PCA

In December 1973, delegates from 260 congregations (over half of them from Mississippi, Alabama, and South Carolina) with a combined communicant membership of over 41,000, that had left the PCUS gathered at Briarwood Presbyterian Church in suburban Birmingham, Alabama, and organized the National Presbyterian Church. After protests from a UPCUSA congregation of the same name[6][failed verification] in Washington, D.C., the denomination at its Second General Assembly (1974) called itself the National Reformed Presbyterian Church, then adopted its present name the next day. In its founding date the PCA consisted of 16 presbyteries.

Within a few years the church grow to include more than 500 congregations and 80,000 members.

During the 1970s, the denomination added a significant number of congregations outside the South when several UPCUSA churches in Ohio and Pennsylvania joined. This move was precipitated by a case regarding an ordination candidate, Wynn Kenyon, denied by the Pittsburgh presbytery because he refused to support women's ordination (a decision upheld by the UPCUSA General Assembly).

Dozens of churches from the Midwest become part of the Presbyterian Church in America leaving the Synod of the West of the PC(USA). Dissenting conservative Southern Presbyterian Churches joined the PCA till the early 1990's. [7][dead link]

Merger

In 1982, the PCA merged with the Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod, with 25,673 communicant members and 482 ministers in 189 congregations in the United States as well as in a few Canadian provinces. Discussions had begun in 1979 with the RPCES, which had itself been formed in 1965 by a merger of the Reformed Presbyterian Church in North America, General Synod (which maintained a direct historical tie to the Scottish Covenanter tradition) and the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (an offshoot of the Bible Presbyterian Church and not the current denomination by that name). The RPCES brought to the PCA a more broadly national base of membership with a denominational college and seminary. Previously, the PCA had relied on independent evangelical institutions such as Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson, Mississippi and Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia.

The PCA had originally invited three denominations to the merger, including the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, but by the early 1980s only the RPCES remained as a willing and viable merge partner. The merger was called Joining and Receiving. When a sufficient number of RPCES and PCA presbyteries voted in favor of the plan, the final votes occurred at the respective annual meetings, both held in Grand Rapids: the RPCES Synod voted to join the PCA on June 12, 1982 and the PCA General Assembly voted to receive the RPCES on June 14. The Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod agencies and committees were united with their PCA counterparts. Moreover the history and historical documents of the RPCES were incorporated into the PCA. Who graduated from Covenant College and Seminary were also officially recognised. [8]

In 1986 the PCA again invited the Orthodox Presbyterian Church to join them, but without success.

In 1983 several PCUS churches that had not joined the PCA in 1973 opted to join the PCA instead of merging with the UPCUSA into the current PC(USA); others joined the recently-formed Evangelical Presbyterian Church, unrelated to the 1950s and 1960s body of that name). A clause in the Plan of Union between the two mainline bodies allowed dissenting PCUS congregations to refrain from joining the merger and to join a denomination of their choosing.

Doctrine and practice

The Presbyterian Church in America motto is "Faithful to the Scriptures,True to the Reformed faith, Obedient to the great commission of Jesus Christ". The PCA professes adherence to the historic confessional standards of Presbyterianism: the Westminster Confession of Faith, the Westminster Shorter Catechism, and the Westminster Larger Catechism. These secondary documents are viewed as subordinate to the Bible,[9] which alone is viewed as the inspired Word of God.[10]

As might be expected given Presbyterianism's historically high esteem for education, the PCA has generally valued academic exploration more highly than revivalist traditions of evangelicalism. Apologetics in general and presuppositional apologetics has been a defining feature with many of its theologians and higher-ranking clergy, and many also practice "cultural apologetics" (pioneered by authors like Schaeffer) by engaging with and participating in secular cultural activities such as film, music, literature, and art in order to win them for Christ.

Additionally, the PCA emphasizes ministries of mercy such as outreach to the poor, the elderly, orphans, American Indians, people with physical and mental disabilities, refugees, etc. As a result, the denomination has held several national conferences to help equip members to participate in this type of work, and several PCA affiliates such as Desire Street Ministries, New City Fellowship, and New Song Fellowship have received national attention for their service to the community at large.

Social issues

The PCA takes the following position on homosexuality: "Homosexual practice is sin. The Bible teaches that all particular sins flow from our rebellious disposition of heart. Just as with any other sin, the PCA deals with people in a pastoral way, seeking to transform their lifestyle through the power of the gospel as applied by the Holy Spirit. Hence, in condemning homosexual practice we claim no self-righteousness, but recognize that any and all sin is equally heinous in the sight of a holy God."[11] In the Presbyterian Church in America, ministers, ruling elders, teaching elders and deacons are men only in obedience to the New Testament standards, through women have a wide range of use in the churches.www.westpca.com

Polity

The PCA maintains the Presbyterian church government set forth in its Book of Church Order. Local church officers include teaching elders,ruling elders and deacons. Church government is exercised at three levels: the session, which governs the local church; the presbytery, a regional governing body, and the general assembly, the highest court of the denomination.[12] The PCA does not have synods, which some other groups have either as the highest court or as an intermediate court between presbyteries and the general assembly.

Comparison to other Presbyterian denominations

The PCA is more socially and theologically conservative than the larger PC(USA). The PCA requires ordained pastors and elders to subscribe to the theological doctrines detailed in the Westminster Standards, with only minor exceptions allowed, while the PC(USA)'s Book of Confessions allows much more leeway. The PCA ordains only men who profess either traditional marriage or celibacy, while the PC(USA) allows the ordination of both women and non-celibate gays and lesbians as clergy.[13] Like the PC(USA), however, the PCA accommodates different views of creation[14] and strives for racial reconciliation.[15] The PC(USA) speaks predominantly for pro-choice on abortion, the PCA is unilaterally pro-life, believing life begins at conception. The PC(USA) is a major supporter of the World Council of Churches and The National Council of Churches. The PCA has no participation in either organization. In the PCA all church buildings belong to the local church; in the PC(USA) the church property owner is the presbytery.[16]

The PCA is generally less theologically conservative than the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (which split from mainline Presbyterianism much earlier), but more conservative than the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (which split from the mainline more recently), though the differences can vary from presbytery to presbytery and even congregation to congregation. The PCA, as mentioned above, does not acknowledge the ordination of women as teaching elders (pastors), ruling elders, or deacons; the EPC considers this issue a "non-essential" matter left to the individual ordaining body. While most OPC congregations allow women only to teach children and other women in Sunday school, some churches in the PCA allow women to do anything a non-ordained man can do. While the OPC and the PCA both adhere to the Westminster Standards, the OPC is generally more strict in requiring its officers to subscribe to those standards without exception. Nonetheless, the two denominations enjoy fraternal relations and cooperate in a number of ways, such as sharing control of a publication company, Great Commission Publications, which produces Sunday school curricula for both denominations.

Statistics, affiliations, and agencies

The PCA is one of the faster growing denominations in the United States, having experienced steady growth since its founding in 1973.[17]

As of December 31, 2011, the Presbyterian Church in America had 1,771 churches (includes established churches and new church plants) representing all 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and 5 Canadian provinces. There were 351,406 communicant and non-communicant members. The PCA has 80 presbyteries or regional governing bodies.[1] The greatest concentration is in the states of the Deep South, with more scattered strength in the Upper South, the upper Ohio Valley, and the Southwest. Two-thirds of PCA churches and members are found in the Southeast, and 25 churches are in the metro Atlanta area.[18][failed verification] Further, close to 160 chaplains in the military and in the military bases and hospitals are maintained by the PCA in various parts in the world.

Additionally, the denomination has its own agency for sending missionaries around the world (Mission to the World). Through Mission to the World about 600 foreign missionaries are working in about 60 nations. Mission to North America serves PCA churches and presbyteries through the development of evangelism and church planting in Canada and USA. An average of 3 new churces are planted in a month in the 2 nations and currently has 300 mission churches in the United States alone. More than 40% of all congregations are less than 25 years old, due to church planting.[19] The PCA puts into the field the worlds largest presbyterian mission force.[20]

Theological institutions

The PCA has its own ministry to students on college campuses (Reformed University Fellowship), its own camp and conference center (Ridge Haven in Brevard, North Carolina), and its own liberal arts college (Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, Georgia, near Chattanooga, Tennessee) and seminary (Covenant Theological Seminary in Saint Louis, Missouri). The PCA also publishes its own denominational magazine, byFaith.

Headquarters

The church maintains headquarters in Lawrenceville, Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta. The site was once the headquarters of the PCUS, but all offices of the united PC(USA) were moved to Louisville, Kentucky in 1988. The PCA Ministry Buildings in Lawrenceville is the location from which the ministries of the denomination are coordinated. These ministries are Mission to the World, Mission to North America, Christian Education and Publications, Administrative Committee and Reformed University Fellowship.

Relationship with other Reformed churches

The PCA is a member of the North American Presbyterian and Reformed Council (NAPARC), an interchurch body representing traditional denominations in the Calvinist tradition, and The World Reformed Fellowship which is a worldwide organisation of Churches where reformed, presbyterian and reformed baptist denominations, congregations and individuals can also participate. [21] It is a member of the National Association of Evangelicals. The Presbyterian Church in America enjoys fraternal relations with the Orthodox Presbyterian Church.

Demographics

Most PCA members are white, but the denomination includes hundreds of Korean churches and 8 Korean presbyteries with 450 Korean PCA pastors in the USA and abroad. Several multi-ethnic, dozens of Hispanic American, Portuguese or Brazilian, Haitian, Japanese, African American congregations belong to the PCA and the church begun to build relationships with the First Nations/Native American groups in the United States and Canada.

Notable churches in the PCA

References

  1. ^ a b c Taylor, L. Roy. "Actions of the 40th General Assembly of the PCA" (PDF). Presbyterian Church in America Administrative Committee. p. 4. Retrieved 2012-07-10.
  2. ^ Wallace, W. Jason (October 3, 2011). "Presbyterian Church in America (PCA)". Encyclopedia of Alabama. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessed= ignored (help)
  3. ^ Settle, Paul G. "Our Formative Years: The History of the Presbyterian Church in America, 1973-1993". PCA Historical Center. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  4. ^ www.walnuthillchurch.org
  5. ^ Keys, Kenneth S. "History of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA)". Committee for Christian Education & Publications. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  6. ^ National Presbyterian Church
  7. ^ www.pcanet.org/church directory
  8. ^ Johnson, Bill (June 11, 2012). ""Joining and Receiving:" A Fading Footnote?". byFaith, the online magazine of the Presbyterian Church in America. Retrieved November 7, 2012.
  9. ^ Westminster Confession of Faith . I.10 – via Wikisource.
  10. ^ Westminster Confession of Faith . I.9 – via Wikisource.
  11. ^ PCA General Assembly (2009). "PCA Statements on Homosexuality". PCANews. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  12. ^ The Book of Church Order of the Presbyterian Church in America (PDF) (6th ed.). The Office of the Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America. Chapters 12-14.
  13. ^ Matheson, Alison (May 11, 2011). "PCUSA Votes to Allow Openly Gay Clergy". Christian Post. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  14. ^ "Report of the Creation Study Committee". PCA Historical Center. 2000. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  15. ^ Committee on Mission to North America. "Pastoral Letter on Racism: Approved at the March 2004 MNA Committee Meeting as the Committee's Recommendation to the Thirty-Second General Assembly" (PDF). PCA Historical Center. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  16. ^ Rogers, Michael A. "How does the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) differ from the Presbyterian Church, U. S. A. (PCUSA)?". Westminster Presbyterian Church. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  17. ^ Fraley, Phyllis S (1995). Atlanta: A Vision for the New Millenium. Longstreet Press. ISBN 978-1563522659.
  18. ^ PCA Church Directory
  19. ^ Fraley, Phyllis S (1995). Atlanta: A Vision for the New Millenium. Longstreet Press. ISBN 978-1563522659.
  20. ^ Rogers, Michael A. "How does the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) differ from the Presbyterian Church, U. S. A. (PCUSA)?". Westminster Presbyterian Church. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  21. ^ "About The WRF". World Reformed Fellowship. Retrieved 28 November 2012.

Further reading

  • List of Presbyterian Church in America related articles
  • Loetscher, Lefferts A., The Broadening Church: A Study of Theological Issues in the Presbyterian Church Since 1869. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1954.
  • Smith, Morton H. How is the Gold Become Dim. Jackson, MS: Premier Printing Company, 1973.
  • Smartt, Kennedy. I Am Reminded. Chestnut Mountain, GA: n.p., n.d.
  • Hutchinson, George P. The History Behind the Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod Cherry Hill, NJ: Mack Publishing, 1974.
  • Nutt Rick. "The Tie That No Longer Binds: The Origins of the Presbyterian Church in America." In The Confessional Mosaic: Presbyterians and Twentieth-Century Theology. Edited by Milton J. Coalter, John M. Mulder, and Louis B. Weeks, 236-56. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 1990. ISBN 0-664-25151-X
  • North, Gary. Crossed Fingers: How the Liberals Captured the Presbyterian Church. Tyler, TX: Institute for Christian Economics, 1996. ISBN 0-930464-74-5
  • Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Book of Confessions: Study Edition. Louisville, KY.: Geneva Press, c1999. ISBN 0-664-50012-9
  • Settle, Paul. To God All Praise and Glory: 1973 to 1998 – The First 25 Years. Atlanta, GA: PCA Administrative Committee, 1998. ISBN 0-934688-90-7
  • Smith, Frank Joseph. The History of the Presbyterian Church in America. Presbyterian Scholars Press, 1999. ISBN 0-9676991-0-X
  • Lucas, Sean Michael. On Being Presbyterian. Phillipsburg, PA: P&R Publishing, 2006. ISBN 1-59638-019-5

External links

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