State of the Church’ to be focus of conference in Omaha
The Layman Online, August 12, 2003
In the wake of the ordination of an openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church, and amidst calls within the Presbyterian Church (USA) for same-sex unions, open communion and partial-birth abortions, a Confessing Church Movement continues to attract supporters for its firm stand against cultural accommodation.
Those issues and others concerning the State of the Church will be discussed during a press conference at 3 p.m. Friday, August 15, at Covenant Presbyterian Church in Omaha. The church is located at 15002 Blondo Street.
The latest numbers show that the Confessing Church Movement is comprised of 1,295 congregations, representing 429,728 members in 45 states and Puerto Rico. The average size of a Confessing Church is 332 members.
Those congregations represent 11.6 percent of the 11,142 churches in the denomination and 17.3 percent of the 2.49 million members. The grassroots movement is growing at an average of 1.5 churches and 495 members per day.
Those congregations have approved resolutions that affirm three major tenets of the Christian faith:
- That Jesus Christ alone is Lord of all and the way of salvation.
- That holy Scripture is the Triune God’s revealed Word, the Church’s only infallible rule of faith and life.
- That God’s people are called to holiness in all aspects of life. This includes honoring the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman, the only relationship within which sexual activity is appropriate.
The resolutions also urge churches and presbyteries not to ordain any person who cannot abide by or affirm any of the three standards.
The movement received national attention when it was endorsed and publicized by the Presbyterian Lay Committee, which publishes The Layman with a readership of 1.3 million. The committee also issued its own statement urging like-minded Presbyterians to join the movement.
In addition to the press conference, Parker T. Williamson, chief executive officer of the Presbyterian Lay Committee and editor in chief of its publications, will preach and teach during the Teaching and Worship Conference on August 16-17 at the church. The conference, which is open to the public, will broadcast the 11 a.m. worship service Sunday live on KCRO Radio 660 AM.
“Pastors and elders are feeling compelled to take a public stand on the church’s historic witness,” Williamson said. “They believe they must confess the faith at a time when their denomination’s leadership has compromised it.
“This is not the first appearance of the Confessing Church,” said Williamson. “At pivotal points in history, when institutional church leaders have seriously accommodated the church’s witness to an unbelieving culture, the Confessing Church has emerged. The culture sanctioned by many of the Presbyterian Church (USA)’s elected and staff leaders is a culture of disbelief. Many of our leaders have so accommodated their views to the postmodern worldview that they no longer proclaim the gospel. And in the name of ‘diversity,’ official church councils sanction their unbelief.”
The Confessing Church Movement continues to grow as individuals and congregations big and small are taking a stand by proclaiming confessions. They include, for example, such large congregations as the 5,300-member First Presbyterian Church in Orlando, the 1,694-member First Presbyterian Church in Baton Rouge, La., and the 1,200-member Advent Presbyterian Church in Cordova, Tenn.; medium-size congregations such as the 750-member First Presbyterian Church in Vicksburg, Miss., and the 258-member Prospect Presbyterian Church in Prospect, Pa.; and even small congregations such as the 25-member Brandt Memorial Presbyterian Church in St. Louis, Mo.
“The Presbyterian Lay Committee believes that this movement is the work of God’s Holy Spirit. Our board has declared that it is fully behind these churches,” Williamson said, “and we will support them any way we can.”
For more information, contact Kevin McDonald, Associate Pastor, Covenant Presbyterian Church, 15002 Blondo Street, Omaha, NE 68116, (402) 498-9000