 Essentials A presbytery dares to say there are some By John H. Adams The Layman Volume 36, Number 5 Posted September 12, 2003 The Presbytery of San Diego, undaunted by the notion that there are no longer any essential tenets in the Presbyterian Church (USA), has decided that there are – and that candidates for the ministry of Word and sacrament will be examined and prepared accordingly.
Even though the “essentials” described by San Diego are anchored in the Book of Order – particularly Chapter 2 – they have come under attack from the left flank of the Presbyterian Church (USA). The Witherspoon Society called them the “new fundamentalism” and said, “While anyone being ordained must ‘sincerely receive and adopt the essential tenets of the Reformed faith,’ the Presbyterian church has resolutely refused to specify what those ‘essential tenets’ are.” Despite the fact that the Presbyterian Church (USA) is – on paper – a confessional church, the Witherspoon Society and other liberals virulently oppose anything that resembles requiring candidates for ordination to commit to orthodoxy. The paper includes citations from Scripture, the Book of Order and The Book of Confessions on a number of key issues, including the authority of Scripture; God (trinity, creation, providence and sovereignty); original sin; the incarnation of Jesus Christ; the atoning work of Christ; and salvation by grace through faith. It also focuses on the Reformed distinctives of election, covenant, sacraments, sanctification and the work of the Holy Spirit, the priesthood of all believers, the mission of the church and stewardship. Each doctrine is presented in the form of the Barmen Declaration, with a description of the orthodox teaching of the Christian faith and a refutation of aberrant theology that conflicts with orthodoxy. For instance, in the section on Scripture, after quoting the Book of Order, the Bible and the confessions, the presbytery’s paper refutes arguments that undermine the authority of Scripture and declares “what is not affirmed,” including “Any doctrine –
In essence, the presbytery is trying to reclaim essentials that the denomination’s leaders, in some ways, have officially abandoned. Even a preface to The Book of Confessions – a preface that was never authorized by the vote of the required two-thirds of the presbyteries to become part of the constitution – says the essentials are not essential. That 20-page preface, titled “Confessional Nature of the Church Report,” says, “The ordination question that asks for commitment to the ‘essential tenets’ of the confessions brings freedom in the church at several levels. Ordained persons are free to be ‘instructed,’ ‘led,’ and ‘continually guided’ by the confessions without being forced to subscribe to any precisely worded articles of faith drawn up either by the General Assembly or by a presbytery.” In other words, the preface suggests, the “essentials” are optional. The Presbytery of San Diego suggests otherwise. The Book of Order still requires that candidates for the ministry answer affirmatively the following question: “Do you sincerely receive and adopt the essential tenets of the Reformed faith as expressed in the confessions of our church as authentic and reliable expositions of what Scripture leads us to believe and do, and will you be instructed and led by those confessions as you lead the people of God?” But the 1997 General Assembly declared that there are no essential tenets – or at least none that Presbyterians must subscribe to in order to qualify for ordination, despite clear references to such tenets in the Book of Order, which says essential tenets “guide the church in its study and interpretation of the Scriptures; they summarize the essence of Christian tradition; they direct the church in maintaining sound doctrines; they equip the church for its work of proclamation.” Describing its “Essential Tenets” paper, the presbytery says it adopted “this summary of the essential tenets of the Christian faith and of our Reformed distinctives for use in our churches, committees and presbytery. It distills the 300 pages of The Book of Confessions to a helpful summary – six essentials and seven distinctives. It was initially developed by our Committee on Preparation for Ministry.” The presbytery says its summary will be used:
“First, because ‘theology matters’ – to quote the most memorable phrase from a recent General Assembly. What we believe – the content of our faith – matters. If it matters, we should be able to articulate it and to explain how this truth stands against the competing truths of the world. “Second, because there is considerable confusion in our denomination. We are in the midst of a theological crisis – the result, in large measure, of a long neglect of our foundational truths. Our church is ordaining people who do not know or believe the essential tenets expressed in our confessions – such as the doctrine of the Trinity, a Nicene Christology, the doctrine of Atonement, or the conviction that people need salvation in Jesus Christ. In addition, PNCs are nominating pastors and CPMs are presenting candidates for ordination who cannot articulate a basic theology that reflects a knowledge of or appreciation for our confessions or the Bible.” The presbytery says it will not use its summary of essentials as a guillotine. “Our tradition has always respected a candidate’s right to declare scruples – to identify areas in which she or he can express Biblical dissent with points of doctrine. Accordingly, presbytery and its delegated committees have the authority and responsibility to discern and assess whether this professed dissent is a ‘serious departure’ from the confessional standards or within the acknowledged freedom and latitude of our theology.” But the statement does address a growing crisis in the church, caused by people who do not subscribe to a Reformed understanding of the faith. “We are not called to challenge anyone’s sincerity as a Christian or to dispute their right to believe what they choose,” the document says. “But when a person chooses to be an ordained Presbyterian, they must in good faith and with a clear conscience receive and adopt our confessional identity. We do not have the right to pick and choose the foundational truths we will believe in, with the expectation that other foundational truths can be ignored or will soon be changed. That is bad faith.” The presbytery’s “Essential Tenets and Re-formed Distinctives” is available online at www.presbyterysd.org/publications.html. |
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