The Presbyterian Church (USA) is a part of the family of
Reformed churches found all over the world. Reformed churches have their beginning in the Protestant
Reformation of 16th century Europe. Martin Luther is credited
with starting the Reformation movement that swept Germany
and quickly spread to other European countries. Luther's followers
were called "Lutherans" because of their adherence
to his popular
teachings about the Bible and Christian faith. Soon other
reformers
in various European countries picked up on new Reformation
doctrines
and began refining them as always happens during a fresh new
wave of thought. Most notably among these new reformers was a
Frenchman by the name of John Calvin who was working in Geneva,
Switzerland at the time. His ideas were based on Luther's, but he
modified them and wrote them in a book entitled "The Institutes of
the Christian Religion". In order to distinguish his movement from
the "Lutheran" movement,the name "Reformed" was given to
Calvin's part of the Reformation teaching. Later on, a young
Scotsman named John Knox studied under Calvin and took the
Reformed faith back to Scotland with him. When early settlers came
from Scotland to America, they brought their faith with them. The
Presbyterian Church (USA) is descended in large part fromScottish
Presbyterianism. Some of our major beliefs include: The
Sovereignty
of God, the Lordship of Jesus Christ and the presence of the
Holy Spirit to believers. We affirm that we are called into the service
of Christ's church to proclaim the gospel ("good news") of
salvation to all who will receive Christ as Lord and Savior. We accept the Bible as God's word and believe that it contains all
that is needful for Christian faith and practice. We take part in the
common life of the church by meeting together for Worship, Prayer
and study. We enjoy a warm fellowship among our church family
and we reach out to others in acts of service and compassion. We
believe in living responsibly in the world and exercising faithful
stewardship over all that God has given us. Presbyterians recognize
two Sacraments -- Baptism and the Lord's Supper. Each particular
church is governed by a board of Elders who have oversight of the
church and it's mission. We have periodic classes for those who
wish to inquire further into what it means to be a Presbyterian. We invite you to contact us for
further information about our church.
