Dear Stated Clerk,
Thank you for your willingness to listen to my thoughts and concerns regarding the serious doubts I am having about the Presbyterian Church USA and my continuing ability to serve within it as an Ordained Elder.
I consider the members of the First Presbyterian Church here in Uvalde to be my friends and church family. Because of this, it makes my deliberations about asking the session of my church to lay aside my election as an ordained elder of the PCUSA extremely difficult. While there have always been differences between the members of this church and the previous PCUSA church where my wife and I were once members, the First Presbyterian Church of Temple, Texas, I never doubted that my brothers and sisters in Christ were sincere in their faith and made a genuine effort to respond to God’s grace and mercy with their utmost abilities. We didn’t always agree but despite our differences we listened to one another and respected each other’s ideas.
That being said, over the years, when I followed the decisions, words and actions of the higher levels of the Presbyterian Church specifically, the General Assembly and to some extent the Presbytery, I have been saddened, angered, and grieved over the interpretations of scripture and the churches efforts to support and promote leftist and socialist political agendas within the arena of the United States Federal Government.
For example, a few years ago, I was horrified to find the PCUSA signed on with a number of other church denominations supporting the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act also know as Obamacare.
About that same time frame, I asked a pastor who served as the Interim Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Uvalde about actions the PCUSA has taken to promote and further secular political agendas and he told me that this type of political activism happens all the time.
Read more at http://callofthereal.blogspot.com/2014/08/my-letter-to-mission-presbytery-of-pcusa.html
19 Comments. Leave new
I read the letter and would challenge a points made by Mr. Robinson. I was at the General Assembly and, as near as I could recall, every time someone called for prayer, the moderator/vice moderator stopped what the group was doing, and we prayed. I thought this was a wonderful thing, and I don’t want any further misinformation put out there about what the GA did or did not do in Detroit.
God has called me to renounce my membership, my ordination as elder, my lifetime membership in PW, and resign as organist. I have deep and unique ties to FPC Mabank, TX, that began 56 years ago at the death of my mother, and continued through baptisms, first communions, marriages, ordinations of my son and myself, deaths of parents and my husband, and a whole host of friends. It is my deep conviction that God will not bless PCUSA, nor any church under its umbrella. Satan has a foothold and it has a trickle down effect. It breaks my heart. I have heard and felt the Holy Spirit at times at FPC Mabank, but that has become a very faint echo. God calls us to repent and turn back to Him. That’s my prayer for PCUSA as I shake the dust from my feet.
To Mr. Michael Robinson:
Excellent letter…
Jan, I agree.
I don’t think he was referring to plenary … but this indeed happened in some committees when members wished to refer to Scripture.
I just hate what’s happening to us a once great denomination. It’s a shame. We went from being somewhat middle of the road where we could all live together and now to this, people leaving in droves.
Que the theme music from the movie Exodus.
I can’t speak for other committees, but 13 was soaked in worship and prayer. I was thankful for it!
***I just hate what’s happening to us a once great denomination. It’s a shame. We went from being somewhat middle of the road where we could all live together and now to this, people leaving in droves.**
Surprise, surprise, surprise, and what made you think an apostate organization who itself is its own authority would want to live under a rainbow type of umbrella??
If you or I believe in traditional marriage, 1 man with 1 woman for a lifetime calling homosexuality of all kinds throwing in transgender an abomination, than we can be called HOMOPHOBES, and one day be jailed as a felon if these type of people get there way, and why not, look at Sodom and Gammorah.
Is not this behavior Perversion???
Jan, I have done the same.
Thank you, Mr. Robinson, for your thoughtful letter. I too am struggling with the decision of what path to take – I’m afraid that I must resign my positions as music director, organist, treasurer, and elder, and leave the church. I’m not completely surprised, having investigated the denomination before I joined five years ago, but I did not fully realize how appalling the situation is and how intrusive the actions of GA will be. The more I read, the more I feel convinced that this is Devil’s work. But where to go? I live in a somewhat isolated coastal area, there are few options here, and other church choices are half a day’s journey distant.
It sounds as if Michael Robinson has not yet reached a conclusion as to his course of action – I hope we will know what he plans when he has decided.
My wife and I have left our 25 year affiliation with a PCUSA church, and she resigned her position on the Session. We understand the desire of gay couples for rights under man’s law, but reject the thought that such unions should be sanctified in a Service of Worship or by an ordained minister. Entirely unbiblical!!!
My wife and I have made the difficult decision to leave our church home of 20 years for many of the same reasons. The bottom line is that the PC(USA) stopped following the Scriptures years and years ago. We stayed for the past decade hoping and praying for a miracle and change of direction from the denomination..but it was only a matter of time that this happened. Abortion on demand, the biased anti-Israel stance and gay marriage are all symptoms of a church that is more interested in being an arm of the DNC than being a body of Christ followers.
We have spent the past 6 weeks worshipping at other local churches and have been thrilled to hear the gospel preached without all the controversy that is the PC(USA). I am committed to my friendships and relationships with those who remain at the PC(USA) – but I for one feel free.
I have done the same.
Requests were made to read scripture and it was voted down.
What did you pray for??
this doesn’t surprise me. even in the Catholic Church these days there are some liberal priests to be found, one in my local church in particular i have personally heard refer to Biblical truths as less than that, saying they are not to be taken literally. although we talk about it sometimes rather lightly, this has become a serious issue for those of us who live in small isolated communities where there simply aren’t many options available. speaking from my experience virtually all of the Christian so called churches in my community have gone flaming liberal. it’s impossible to find a group here that believes in sound Biblical doctrine any more. the question now becomes what to do when there’s no place to turn, that’s the direction this is all headed.
Here it is November and I have returned to this website to read this letter and the comments several times. Michael, you have written a heartfelt and thoughtful letter. I have been patiently waiting for PCUSA to make a U-turn and refer to scripture and our rich christian history and heritage rather than bending to the pressure of current culture in making difficult decisions. Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts. I couldn’t have said it better and it has helped me conclude that I must face a decision that I have been putting off.
The PCUSA must rethink their decision about redefining marriage as between two people. As you, the Church leaders, read all of these Christian and Biblical-truth responses, can you not see how badly your new decision has affected the membership? You have cowered down to the level of the world and have stopped teaching Biblical truth. As leaders, you have become the world. As Christ has led me to write this, as you have stopped believing in the Bible truth, then you have stopped believing in Christ and have reached the level of atheists. You do not believe. For myself and my family, we agree with everyone above and will be leaving the Church next week. Thank Heaven for First Presbyterian Church of San Antonio who has stood firmly against this redefinition and has gone against PCUSA for your decision.
Since PCUSA has bowed to the pressures of the liberal gay agenda, you have adopted their view rather than that of God and Christ. You should be the firm foundation rising above the world and should teach what God has ordained.
For one, I am so disappointed in the PCUSA Church. You have become atheist in my opinion and I for one will not tolerate this in my Christian life.
Sincerely,
Curt Wesley
To all who read this who think that what the PCUSA has done in saying that marriage is between two people, usually male and female, I would ask you to explore in some depth just one question: What was God’s purpose in creating the institution of marriage?
According to Genesis, the first “reason” was that “It is not good for man (Adam) to be alone.” That is, human beings are made for community. Why? Not just because we get lonely, but because it is well nigh impossible for a human being to be all that God intended a given person to be if he / she is not interacting with other human beings.
SO, again, what is the purpose of Marriage? Read Ephesians 5. If the purpose is somehow similar to (NOT the same as!) the purpose of Christ’s relationship to the church (which is the sanctification of the church), living in a covenant relationship with one another, then why, please answer me, does gender make one bit of difference in terms of the purpose? I welcome cogent answers.