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 | 1861: The denomination split on north/south lines over the issue of the preservation or abolition of human slavery. |
| Circa 1925: The church was able to weathered a second serious crisis: the Fundamentalist - Modernist controversy. The denomination was divided whether to retain to traditional, historical beliefs, or to absorb modern beliefs concerning biblical inerrancy, inspiration of the authors of the Bible, the search for the historical Jesus, the existence and nature of Hell, etc. A commission, organized in 1925, successfully avoided a denominational schism. Some liberal ideas were accepted by the denomination. |
| 1972-3: 260 congregations totaling over 41,000 members left the Presbyterian Church in the United States (Southern) because of an internal liberal/conservative controversy. This conflict generated many disagreements, largely over the inerrancy of the Bible and the ordination of women. A number of presbyteries left: the Warrior Presbytery in Alabama, the Westminster Presbytery in Virginia and East Tennessee, and the Vanguard Presbytery at large. 1 Many high-profile conservative Presbyterian ministers left, including Dr. D. James Kennedy, of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church, and Dr. Larry Roff of Knox Theological Seminary. They formed the National Presbyterian Church. |
| 1974: The National Presbyterian Church changed its name to the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). |
| 1982: The Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod, joined the PCA. |
| 1983: The United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America and the Presbyterian Church in the United States merged to produce the The Presbyterian Church (USA). This healed the major split in the denomination which occurred at the start of the Civil War. |
The World Almanac for 2004 reported that the PCUSA had 3.4 million members and 11,142 congregations. The denomination is divided among 171 presbyteries. The more conservative Presbyterian Church in America [PCA] has about 307,000. There are also seven smaller Presbyterian denominations of which the largest has about 85,000 members. 2 Like many other mainline Protestant denominations, the PcUSA has been losing members for the past 40 years. 3 Their net recorded loss between 2002 and 2003 was 46,658 members:
| Some conservative members believe that the loss is related to the church's continuing, two-decades long, discussion of equal rights for gays and lesbians, including both homosexual ordination, and recognition of holy unions for same-sex couples. |
| Many believe that the drop is caused by the denomination's inability to attract younger members. Youth may well be discouraged, in part, by the denomination's rejection of gays and lesbians as equal members with full rights. |
Recent conflicts:
During the late 1990's and continuing to the present time, internal conflict within the church over beliefs and practices has intensified. The main sticking points seem to be homosexuality and salvation: specifically:
| Whether whether gays and lesbians in committed relationships can be considered for ordination. |
| Whether ministers should be allowed to hold holy union ceremonies for committed gay and lesbian couples. |
| Whether a path exists for personal salvation that does not involve Jesus. |
Currently, the denomination is seriously split in three ways:
| Within each congregation, between religious liberals and conservatives. |
| Between urban and rural congregations. |
| Between "liberal" areas of the country, like the northeast, and "conservative" areas, like the southern states. |
There appear to be only three possible future scenarios:
| The denomination might persist as it has in the past, with continuing debates causing dissention in the church for many years into the future. |
| The church might split into two denominations as it did in the past over the morality of human slavery. |
| The church might develop some form of local option in which individual presbyteries would decide matters of procedure for themselves. |
General statements on homosexuality 1976 to the present:
There have been many declarations by the Presbyterian Church (and its predecessor denominations) relating to the nature of sexual orientation, and whether gays and lesbians should be allowed to marry. Most arose from General Assembly meetings:
| 1976: The United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (UPCUSA) passed a resolution to "reaffirm our adherence to the moral law of God...that...the practice of homosexuality is sin...Also we affirm that any self-righteous attitude of others who would condemn persons who have so sinned is also sin." They directed "...that a task force be established...to study Christian approaches to Homosexuality, with special reference to the ordination of avowed practicing homosexuals." |
| 1977: The UPCUSA emphasized "the need of the Church to stand for just treatment of homosexual persons in our society in regard to their civil liberties, equal rights, and protection under the law from social and economic discrimination." |
| 1978: The UPCUSA formally welcomed gays and lesbians as members only; they are not eligible to be elevated to the level of elder, deacon or minister. They stated that homosexuality was "not God's wish for humanity...Even where the homosexual orientation has not been consciously sought or chosen, it is neither a gift from God nor a state nor a condition like race; it is a result of our living in a fallen world". They called upon their members to "work for the passage of laws that prohibit discrimination in the areas of employment, housing, and public accommodations based on the sexual orientation of a person." However, the Assembly did not extend such prohibition of discrimination to their own clergy: They concluded that "...unrepentant homosexual practice does not accord with the requirements for ordination set forth in" the UPCUSA constitution. The task force created in 1976 submitted their report to the Assembly, who recommended that it be distributed as a study document. Copies can still be obtained. 3 |
| 1980: The Presbyterian Church in the United States (PCUS) resolved that the church "should be open to more light on what goes into shaping one's sexual preferences and reexamine its life and teaching in relation to people who are seeking affirmation and needing acceptance and who are apparently not free to change their orientations." |
| 1983: Church merger occurred between the PCUS and the UPCUSA. |
| 1985: All homosexual acts were declared as inherently sinful, regardless of the nature of the relationship or degree of commitment. |
| 1988: The General Assembly commissioned a report to examine all aspects of the church's approach to human sexuality. |
| 1991: The report of the Special Committee on Human Sexuality was issued. It was titled "Presbyterians and Human Sexuality 1991." The majority concluded that the church should consider homosexuals and their relationships exactly as it considers heterosexuals and their relationships. General Assembly documents indicate that no decision was made on either report; neither the majority nor the minority position was accepted. 4 |
| 1992: A resolution was proposed that would have expelled all gay and lesbian
members from the church and send them to other denominations. It did not pass. A number of
Presbyterians signed a Declaration of Conscience which reads in part:
|
| 1993: The General Assembly called for a 3 year study and dialogue on human sexual behavior and ordination. |
| 2000: On 2000-DEC-6, 113 presbytery executives and other
officers signed "A Call to the Church." It
acknowledges an attempt by the Presbyterian Coalition, the Covenant
Network, and the More Light Presbyterians to sit down
together and "seek the mind of Christ Jesus for our life in the
PC(USA)." They continue:
2001: The initiative "A Call to the Church." which was created by presbytery executives and other officers was welcomed by the gay-positive Covenant Network 6 and More Light Presbyterians. It was rejected by the five Presbyterian Coalition leaders involved in the Coalition-Network Bible study meetings. They issued a statement saying: |
"Involvement in the issues of our day and church, including meeting with those with whom we disagree, has never been, nor is it now, about our way, or their way, or some other third way which might be mutually satisfying. Rather it is about Christ's way. Alone. Therefore, we have not, and we will not, engage in any search for an alternative to Scripture's clear and plain teaching." 7
Internet and media references:
- Krista Ramsey, "Doug is calm at center of church storm", Cincinnati Enquirer, 1997-NOV-1
- "The World Almanac and Book of Facts," World Almanac Books, (2004), Page 610.
- "The Church and Homosexuality," (1978). Publication #OGA-88-042. It can be ordered for $1.50 + S&H by phoning 1-800-524-2612. It is important to realize that this document is partly based on scientific knowledge of human sexuality as it existed in 1978. Much has been learned since.
- "Presbyterians and Human Sexuality 1991," Publication #OGA-91-001. It can be ordered for $5.00 + S&H by phoning 1-800-524-2612.
- "113 Presbytery executives call for a way out of sexuality debates," PCUSA News, 2000-DEC-21. It is available online at: http://www.covenantnetwork.org/
- "Covenant Network welcomes Executive Presbyters' call to the church," at: http://www.covenantnetwork.org/
- Jerry L. Van Marter, "Vote on same-sex union amendment will be close, early returns indicate. Presbytery executives' 'third way' proposal gets mixed reaction," 2001-JAN-23, at: http://www.concordtx.org/
Copyright © 1996 to 2006 incl. by Ontario Consultants on
Religious Tolerance.
Latest update 2006-APR-14
Author: B.A. Robinson
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