Herndon says he is a ‘big tent’ Presbyterian The Presbyterian Layman Volume 33, Number 3 Posted May 22, 2000 John Herndon The Rev. John Herndon III, pastor of Fellowship Presbyterian Church in Huntsville, Ala., describes himself as a big-tent Presbyterian. He says he wants to build bridges between those who have strongly held opinions. Herndon opposes changing the denomination’s ordination standard and allowing ministers to perform same-sex “holy unions.” “I would try to strongly persuade people to return to the standard that we have. There are some absolutes in life. The Gospel is not a democracy. Sometimes we get so caught up in equality that we lose sight of those things. Maybe God will have a different revelation for us at some time, but there appear to be no additional insights.” Herndon says he believes the denomination has “spent entirely too much time and energy on this particular issue. It is not the only crucial issue that the church faces. We have a lot of churches no longer proud to be Presbyterian. We have churches that are surviving and not thriving. We have places where exciting and innovative ministries are taking place. We need to begin to tell those stories. Those stories can become empowering. They can move from revival to vitality.” He calls Scripture “the standard by which we measure everything we do.” The grandson of a minister, Herndon is a second-career pastor who received his master of divinity degree from Louisville Theological Seminary. He was a mental health administrator for the state of Georgia and an administrator and researcher in the aerospace program. Herndon, his wife Tommie and their seven children were named “Family of the Year” by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. For a detailed profile of John Herndon, click here.

Respond to this article

Home · News · PLC Publications · The Presbyterian Layman Online Reviews · Archives · History of the Lay Committee · Feedback · Links