Guess the denomination was dealing “with bylaws written decades ago, before the denomination’s commitment to using inclusive and expansive imagery for God.” (The term “bylaws” sounds more perfunctory than “constitution,” especially when the “basic unit” of the church is described.) According to a United Church of Christ spokesman, it isn’t news that the liberal Protestant... Continue Reading

“What many of these churches are getting right is that our call is to stand up for the marginalized and be a voice for the oppressed and a friend to the friendless,” said Josh Lee, assistant pastor at Ridge Presbyterian (PCA). “But what they might be missing is that sometimes the church is also called... Continue Reading

“The PCUSA, if we are to move from a model of success to significance, must step back and look at who we are,” Nelson said. The PCUSA must “look at our assets instead of looking at our liabilities, look at our way forward instead of behind, look at our mission instead of our mess.” The... Continue Reading

Editor’s Note: This article spells out in language that a lay person can understand the issues at stake in church property rights, not only in Georgia, but in many other states where the ‘neutral principles of law’ are followed The Presbyterian Lay Committee (PLC) has filed an amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) brief before... Continue Reading

On July 6, the Stated Clerk of the PCA released a statement of the PCA’s Position on Human Sexuality and Ordination. In May, The Aquila Report published a summary of the PCA position on Homosexuality. We have reprinted both documents below: The Presbyterian Church in America: Perspective on Human Sexuality and Ordination by Dr. L.... Continue Reading

The Crystal Cathedral would provide an instant, 3,000-seat architectural landmark at roughly half the $100 million that was estimated for construction of a new site in Santa Ana A new and intriguing prospect for the Crystal Cathedral emerged Wednesday when the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange said it was considering buying the bankrupt church in... Continue Reading

An attendee from the Sudan agreed. “The PCUSA makes a big deal bringing us to these events,” he said, referring to Big Tent. “But the reality is not the case,” he added, pointing out the denomination had only made incremental moves in total diversity. Mainline Presbyterian churches are becoming more racially and ethnically diverse within... Continue Reading

Noblit noted that “probably” the most used and copied witnessing tool Southern Baptists have ever embraced is “Evangelism Explosion,” developed by the late Dr. D. James Kennedy, a Presbyterian and five-point Calvinist. Hundreds of Southern Baptists joined together last week for what was said to be a historic meeting on Calvinism. As leaders pushed for... Continue Reading

The Rev. Robert H. Schuller, who started his ministry in an Orange drive-in theater more than five decades ago, has been voted off the board of Crystal Cathedral Ministries, which has been torn apart by debt and familial disharmony for the last several years. The church has not released information about the board meeting where... Continue Reading

“It’s about Jesus. It’s about a God who calls us by name.” Those words echoed throughout the opening worship service of Big Tent, a convocation of the Presbyterian Church (USA), last week at the JW Marriot in Indianapolis. In his keynote sermon, the Rev. Mark Labberton, a professor at Fuller Theological Seminary, urged the crowd... Continue Reading