Presbyterians have influenced my faith. While in seminary, I served as Youth Director at First Presbyterian Church in Duncanville, Texas. More recently, I served as Director of Education at First Presbyterian Church in Naples, Florida. Both congregations are affiliated with the Presbyterian Church, U.S.A. (PCUSA), the largest Presbyterian denomination in the United States.
According to the PCUSA website, “Some of the principles articulated by John Calvin remain at the core of Presbyterian beliefs. Among these are the sovereignty of God, the authority of the scripture, justification by grace through faith and the priesthood of all believers.”
It is estimated that there are over five million Presbyterians in the United States including just over two million in the PCUSA.
So What?
The greatest contribution the Presbyterian tradition has made to my faith is an emphasis on church order. One significant example of order in the PCUSA is The Book of Order, which gives the rationale and description for the organization and function of the church at all levels. The Book of Order is divided into three sections: Form of Government, Directory for Worship, and Rules of Discipline.
- How does conducting the organizational life of a local congregation in an orderly manner positively contribute to the effectiveness of a given local church in ministry and mission? What documents and/or tools does your congregation or tradition utilize and how are these helpful? How might they be reformed or contextualized for even greater value in your congregation?
- How transparent and accessible are the processes in place for government, worship, and discipline within your local community of faith? Are there norms and standards and are these applied consistently or are numerous exceptions made for every rule?
- How do you balance the need for order with the need to be reformed and always reforming? Does your congregation tend toward the former or the latter? How might an intentional emphasis on the weaker of these two options strengthen the congregation?