What One Should Know About NJ Presbyterian Churches

By Stephanie Sullivan


The Presbyterian Church is one of the mainline Protestant Christian denominations. The name Presbyterian Church is often abbreviated to PC. The foundation of the church happened as a result of the United PC in the USA (UPCUSA and PC in the USA (PCUS) merging in 1983. The southern and border states were home to most PC in the US churches whereas congregations of UPCUS were in all the states within the country. Currently, NJ Presbyterian Churches fall among the many PC churches that are located in various states in the US.

At the conclusion of 2014, the PC denomination had an estimated 20, 383 ordained ministers, 1, 667, 767 members, and 9, 829 congregations. Despite that big number, the membership of this church has dropped constantly within the last couple of years. There are over three million PC (USA) adherents. The denominational officers of the church are situated Kentucky in Louisville. PC is one among the members of Christian Churches Together, World Communion of Reformed Churches, and World Council of Churches.

The origin of Presbyterians can be traced back to the Protestant Reformation that took during the sixteenth century. The theology and heritage of the church was started by Swiss/French theologian and lawyer named John Calvin. The writing of Calvin played a big role in solidifying much of Reformed thinking that appeared before him.

The rest of Europe had the Reformed movement spread to it from Geneva where Calvin was located. John Knox, a colleague of Calvin started the Scottish Reformation. Knox brought the reformation back home from Geneva. The Reformation moved to America and later the entire world. It is continuing to spread even today.

Many separate and independent denominations have been separated from the main PC church. For instance the Orthodox PC split from PC in 1936. In the recent times, the church has come under a great threat where modern congregations are splitting away because of dissatisfaction with the direction of the church. Denominations that split form their own PC churches to continue with the reformed tradition.

In 1973, the PC in America (PCA) split from PC in the US and has grown to become the second biggest PC in this country. The acceptance of ordained female clergies was the main reason PCA broke off. Afterwards, the Evangelical PC (EPC) split away and in 1981, it was incorporated. EPC does not allow or disallow ordained female priests. Instead, it lets local presbyteries choose on their own.

PC works with a constitution which governs its everyday operations. The constitution is made of two parts. The first part is the Book of Confessions (BoC) while the second part is the Book of Order (BoO). The beliefs of PC are outlined in BoC through a declaration of creeds by which leaders are led and instructed.

The Book of Order acts as a complement for the BoC. The rationale and a concise description of how the church functions and is organized at all levels are found in the Book of Order. The description runs from the lowest levels to the top. Local leaders must keep top leaders informed about issues concerning implementation of constitution.




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