The Parity of Elders in the PCA is a Great Idea: Overture 1—Not So Much
Overture 1 proposes to increase the attendance of Ruling Elder commissioners at the PCA General Assembly in relation to the number of Teaching Elders.
While parity of number among elders is an elusive goal, it should be vigorously pursued so that the historic foundation of grass roots Presbyterianism in the PCA is not lost at the court of GA. Instead of changing our BCO with the insufficient fix proposed in Overture 1, the elders of the church should work... Continue Reading
Women Serving On PCA Committees and Agencies? One More Time with Feeling
Five presbyteries have presented the same-worded overture (8, 14, 19, 21, and 32) asking the PCA to allow women to serve on the permanent committees and agencies of the PCA.
It seems like a manifest incongruity with the general principles of Biblical polity to place women and unordained men in the position of acting as nominated representatives of presbyteries on committees and boards of the General Assembly as they would be placed in a position alongside of men who are acting in those committees in... Continue Reading
PCA Missouri Presbytery Report on Inquiry into South City Church
Inquiry into events surrounding the use of facilities for a meeting at South City Church in January 2019.
This matter, falling under the provisions of BCO 13, is an inquiry and not a formal judicial investigation. An inquiry is conducted for the express purpose of making a presbytery aware of the facts of a situation that has raised questions or concerns. Conversely, an investigation is defined in BCO 31 and may lead to... Continue Reading
Attendance of Teaching Elder and Ruling Elder Commissioners at the General Assemblies of the PCA from 1973 to 2018
The average PCA TE commissioner enrollment over 46 years was 765.0, and the average RE commissioner enrollment was 327.0 over that same period.
The percent participation of RE commissioners has decreased over every 10-year period since the first GA in 1973. In the first decade of the PCA, an average of 42% of the commissioners at the annual GA were REs. Since the 40th GA in 2014, the average RE participation at the GA of 302.7 was only... Continue Reading
Westminster Presbytery (PCA) Report to Investigate the Teachings of the Revoice Conference
Westminster Presbytery (Presbyterian Church America) adopted its Committee Report on the Revoice Conference on March 9, 2019.
The counsel and teaching of the Revoice conference is, for the most part, in grave error and is spiritually reckless and destructive (as we have fully documented). The church must support, encourage, and empower people to repent from and put to death their LGBT identities, attractions, desires, and/or actions with the help of Christ. And... Continue Reading
Central Carolina Presbytery Study Committee Report on 2018 Revoice Conference
The Presbytery voted to “receive the committee’s report and commend the report to the churches and the denomination.
At its May 28, 2019 stated meeting, the PCA Central Carolina Presbytery heard the report of its ad interim study committee appointed on November 12, 2018, “to explore the 2018 Revoice Conference and to report its findings to Central Carolina Presbytery and recommend any action that the Presbytery might take.” The Presbytery voted to “receive... Continue Reading
A Brief Review of the Missouri Presbytery Committee Report on Revoice and “Gay Christians”
The Committee to Investigate Memorial Presbyterian Church for Hosting the Revoice 18 Conference only found errors in poor judgment; they found nothing erroneous that “strikes at the vitals of religion.”
All sins are heinous, but some sins are more heinous than others. Homosexual desire is no less forgivable, but it is more pernicious. If there is no resignation of ordained PCA officers who claim to be gay homosexuals who practice celibacy, then there will be no hope of peace and unity in the PCA. ... Continue Reading
Missouri Presbytery AdHoc Committee to Investigate Memorial and Revoice Report
At a called meeting on May 18, 2019, Missouri Presbytery met to receive the report of our Ad Hoc Committee to Investigate Memorial Presbyterian Church and Revoice.
We would ask readers to take care to not represent this report as an endorsement of Revoice, because our Presbytery does not understand itself to be endorsing Revoice by the actions it took at the May 18 meeting. As we say candidly in the report, we have concerns about where Revoice is going, and even... Continue Reading
Update on Charges Against Dr. K. Scott Oliphint
The Presbytery of the Southwest of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) voted to dismiss all four charges that had been filed against the Rev. Dr. K. Scott Oliphint.
The presbytery then immediately determined not to institute judicial process on all four charges, since all four charges relied on essentially the same documentary evidence. A vote was held, and the presbytery passed the ultimate motion to dismiss all four charges. On Friday, May 3, 2019, the Presbytery of the Southwest of the Orthodox... Continue Reading
An Amendment to Increase Ruling Elder Eligibility for the PCA General Assembly
The intent of the overture is to increase the eligibility of PCA ruling elders to attend the General Assembly.
The Northwest Georgia Presbytery has sent an overture to the 2019 General Assembly asking to change BCO 14-2 to read: “The General Assembly, which is a permanent court, shall meet at least annually upon its own adjournment. It shall consist of all teaching elders in good standing with their Presbyteries, and ruling elders as elected... Continue Reading
