Dear Cornerstone family,
Next week the national meeting of the Presbyterian Church in America will take place in Memphis, TN. Rev. Tony Giles and yours truly, along with two of our ruling elders, Mr. Ron Moffatt and Mr. Jim Payne, will be attending as commissioners this year.
If this is your first Presbyterian church to be a part of, let me give you a brief—very brief—crash course in Presbyterian government. Historically, there are three ruling bodies, or courts, in Presbyterian polity. First, there is the Session which is the name given for the ruling body of a local church (e.g. the eldership of Cornerstone Pres). Second, there is the presbytery, which is the name given for the ruling body of a particular region. The presbytery is made up of all the teaching elders (pastors) and commissioned ruling elders from each member church in that region (e.g. Nashville Presbytery) Lastly, there is the General Assembly. This is the name given for the ruling body of the entire denomination. It’s made up of all commissioned teaching elders and the prescribed number of ruling elders from every church in the denomination.
Once a year the General Assembly (GA) of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) meets together for worship, discipleship, fellowship, and to conduct the business of the church. Before I attended my first General Assembly (GA) in 2005 as a seminary student, I wondered, “What happens at GA?” For simplicity sake, let me identify four main purposes of the GA.
First, GA is where our denominational organizations and agencies like Mission to the World, Mission to North America, Covenant College, Covenant Theological Seminary, Reformed University Fellowship, etc. meet yearly with pastor and elder representatives to submit budgets, make personnel changes, give reports on ministry health, and address other pertinent matters of business relating to their organization or agency.
Second, GA is a time for pastors and elders to receive ongoing education and training for the work of ministry. Every year there are dozens of seminars led by ministers, counselors, and scholars on a vast array of theological, historical, and practical subjects. (Our own Nancy Guthrie will be speaking at a couple of women’s events at GA this year!)
Third, GA is also a time for the whole denomination to come together for worship and fellowship. Each day’s session of GA is closed with a worship service, and the breakfast, lunch, and dinner slots are reserved for organized and casual opportunities for pastors and elders to spend time together in fellowship.
Fourth, the leading purpose of the GA is to address mission critical denominational matters of business. This includes, but is not limited to, matters of theological, cultural, and ecclesiastical importance to the denomination and its churches. As always, there are a number of significant matters of business facing the GA this year.
As per usual, I will pull together a brief summary of highpoints and key actions within a week or two of GA. In the meantime, if you have interest in learning more about the business of GA, please visit pcaga.org and click through the GA Overtures links. Most importantly, please take time to lift up the commissioners of GA and the PCA specifically this week. May all that is done bring glory to God (Heb. 10:22; 1 Cor. 10:31)!
Your servant,
