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.

The PC as a denomination was estimated to have 20, 383 ordained ministers, 9, 829 congregations, and 1, 667, 767 members at the end of 2014. Even with that population, the church has experienced some sharp decline in its membership within the past few years. PC (USA) has about three million adherents and its denominational officers are situated in Louisville in the state of Kentucky. PC is a member of World Council of Churches, Christian Churches Together, and World Communion of Reformed Churches.

The Protestant Reformation that occurred during the 16th century is the origin of Presbyterians. John Calvin, a Swiss/French lawyer and theologian began the heritage and theology. The reformed thinking that happened prior to emergence of Calvin was highly solidified by his writing.

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.

There is a constitution for governing everyday operations of PC. There are two sections in the constitution, that is, the Book of Confessions (BoC) and the Book of Order (BoB). The BoC comes first followed by the Book of Order. The belief system of PC is outlined within the BoC. The Outlining is done in form of creeds that instruct and lead leaders.

The Book of Confessions is complemented by Book of Order. The rationale and a description of functions and organization of this church at all levels is given in Book of Order. This description covers all levels in the denomination.




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