Author: Administrator

  • Calvin, Ecumenism And Justice

    Calvin, Ecumenism And Justice

    Both essays were given as addresses to the “International Consultation on the Impact of Calvin’s Social Thought in Reformed Witness.”

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  • Introductory Guide To A Brief Statement of Faith

    Introductory Guide To A Brief Statement of Faith

    A guide written for the understanding of “A Brief Statement of Faith,” which was approved by the 202nd General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in 1990.

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  • A Brief Statement of Faith

    A Brief Statement of Faith

    In 1983 the two largest Presbyterian churches in the United States reunited. The “Plan for Reunion” called for the preparation of a brief statement of the Reformed faith for possible inclusion in The Book of Confessions. This statement is therefore not intended to stand alone, apart from the other confessions of our church. It does not

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  • Growing Up Theologically

    Growing Up Theologically

    In Theology and Worship Occasional Paper No. 15, Leanne Van Dyk develops a lively metaphor for thinking theologically. Growing Up Theologically spins out the process of organic growth as an imaginative way of understanding ourselves as people who can and do reflect on Christian faith and life, and who can mature in our theological thinking.

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  • Social Witness In Generous Orthodoxy

    Social Witness In Generous Orthodoxy

    George Hunsinger asserts that the polarity of “progressive politics and traditional faith” is not true to the gospel and not true to the church’s own tradition. More directly, Hunsinger demonstrates that the Presbyterian Church’s new “Study Catechism” embodies theology and social witness together in fidelity to the gospel. Social Witness in Generous Orthodoxy — Theology and

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  • A Church Of The Word And Sacrament

    A Church Of The Word And Sacrament

    Since the reformation, “Word and Sacrament” have been identifying marks of the church.  What happens to the church when sacraments are marginalized and word is relativized?  This essay, originally presented as an address to an international reformed consultation, calls for a church in which Word and Sacrament are present in fullness.

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  • Peace, Unity, and Purity?

    Peace, Unity, and Purity?

    From the Publisher’s Note: The Theological Task Force on Peace, Unity, and Purity of the Church was created by the 213th General Assembly (2001) in a denominational context of polarization.… In the pages that follow, you are invited to engage this process of consideration via the ruminations of three leaders of the church. It is my hope that these

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  • Rebuilding The Presbyterian Establishment

    Rebuilding The Presbyterian Establishment

    Have we structured our life together in a way that serves our best aspirations? Do the current institutional arrangements of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) help us flourish? Of the many things we carry with us from previous generations of Presbyterians, do they all continue to work well – or is it time for some of

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  • The Shape Of Pastoral Ministry

    The Shape Of Pastoral Ministry

    Occasional Paper #13 reprints two significant essays that are no longer readily available. “The Maceration of the Minister” by the late Lutheran theologian Joseph Sittler is an incisive, sympathetic analysis of the plight of ministers. “The Teaching Authority of the Minister in the Reformed Tradition: A Contemporary Proposal” by Richard R. Osmer, the Thomas W.

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  • Thinking Theologically About The Church

    Thinking Theologically About The Church

    In this paper, Burgess explains what thinking theologically about the church looks like and what its sustaining 6 sources will be.

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  • Identity, Polity, Praxis

    Identity, Polity, Praxis

    In this essay Paul Hooker Hooker calls us to hear and respond to the questions we face in this time of intense transition — starting with one of the most basic questions: “who are we called to be?” Hooker points to resources we have at hand to help us formulate strong answers to that question.

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  • Ordination And Authority

    Ordination And Authority

    As Presbyterians we find ourselves in a place of enduring contention as to who should be ordained without a clear conception of why we should be ordaining anyone. And if we are unsure of the nature of ordained ministry, we certainly will be unclear as to how the ordained exercise authority. Because we live in

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