(From the November 1991 issue of Presbyterian Survey, predecessor of Presbyterians Today,
with minor changes to update the material and the IDs of the writers.)

What is it like to be a Presbyterian?

If you've ever wondered what it is that makes Presbyterians and the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) the way they are--whether you're a Presbyterian or not--the mini articles that follow are for you.

These little articles won't tell you all the answers. Probably not even all the questions. But possibly they'll help newcomers get started finding out more about these people called Presbyterians, and what they believe and do, and why. And if you're a longtime Presbyterian, maybe the articles will be a refresher course that you didn't know you needed.

(Click to enlarge) Illustrations by Tim Williams

In any case: Even though the subjects are serious, the intention is to make serious subjects more interesting by talking of them in a lighter-than-usual vein.

Perhaps You Shouldn't Be a Presbyterian

Doctrine, politics, and money are reasons often given for not joining a Presbyterian church

By Gary W. Demarest

What began as a casual conversation between two strangers on an airplane quickly became an intriguing and stimulating encounter. When my identity as a member of the Presbyterian clergy emerged, the dialogue between us took a profoundly serious tone.

"Nothing personal, Reverend, but I was raised in a Presbyterian family. In fact, my grandfather was a Presbyterian minister. But I checked out a long time ago, and frankly, even if I were to get back into a church, it sure wouldn't be Presbyterian!"

He clearly wanted to play some old tapes and unload some long pent-up feelings, and over the next two hours he expressed anti-church and anti-Presbyterian feelings that could be grouped under three general  headings. His reasons could well serve as the basis for study and reflection by those considering or preparing for membership in a Presbyterian congregation.

Doctrine

"I don't like being told what I have to believe." "To me, it doesn't matter what you believe about God or Jesus, just as long as you lead a good life. I got fed up with all the hypocrites in the church, including my own folks."

This translates as a rejection of doctrine and dogma, and a thorough pluralism in which one view is as valid as another.

While we Presbyterians don't tell people what they have to believe, we are certainly committed to being forthright in affirming what we believe. In fact, we have always required some kind of public profession of personal faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, accompanied by baptism, as the basic requirement for membership, as well as for ordination.

The opening words of our Form of Government state our essential belief without ambiguity: "All power in heaven and earth is given to Jesus Christ by Almighty God, who raised Christ from the dead and set him above all rule and authority, all power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. God has put all things under the Lordship of Jesus Christ and has made Christ Head of the church, which is his body."

If you don't want a church that is unmistakably clear about its belief in the uniqueness and finality of Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, you really shouldn't be a Presbyterian.

Politics

"The Presbyterian Church is too involved in politics. I believe in the separation of church and state."

Translated, this is a rejection of the church's involvement in such things as peacemaking, social witness policy, and social justice engagement, including non-violent protests. This begs the question of the relationship between the personal faith that we affirm and the public square in which we live. Is the Kingdom of God a realm concerned primarily or exclusively with the life to come, or does the reign of God have something to do with the here and now as well?

We Presbyterians trace our roots to a stubborn group of people who grounded their theology in the sovereignty of God in all of life and creation. Central to our theology, says our Book of Order, is "the affirmation of the majesty, holiness, and providence of God who creates, sustains, rules, and redeems the world in the freedom of sovereign righteousness and love." Such a faith in the sovereignty of God has always insisted that there is no area of life, private or public, outside of the realm of God's active love and justice.

To be sure, we're much better at getting into controversies over these issues than we are at living with them, and we need a lot of improvement in demonstrating our unity in the midst of our differences. But we're at our best when we keep all six of the "great ends of the church" in healthy tension.

If you don't want a church that is as serious about public faith as it is about personal faith, you really shouldn't be a Presbyterian.

Money

"It seemed like all they ever talked about was money." "The only time anyone ever came or showed interest in me was when they wanted money."

We had better recognize that a church that only shows personal interest in people during stewardship and fund-raising drives is programming itself for failure. The church exists to serve people, not to bleed them.

But if Jesus was right in saying, "It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35), the church will not serve people well if it does not challenge and enable them to break the destructive grip of acquisitive greed, the most widespread epidemic of our affluent culture.

The church that only talks about money in regard to its own needs may succeed in achieving its fiscal goals, but it will most likely be an abject failure in helping its people discover the joys of "a faithful stewardship  that shuns ostentation and seeks proper use of the gifts of God's creation" (Book of Order). A great challenge to the church in the midst of affluence is to talk more, not less, about the meaning of money in ways that will serve the needs of people of affluence to break the power of their bondage to greed and wealth.

If you don't want a church that talks freely and openly about the responsible and joyous stewardship of money (as well as time and talent), you definitely shouldn't be a Presbyterian. But the flip side of this coin is clear: If you want to be a part of a band of adventurers bound together by a common love for Jesus Christ, struggling with what it means to live out that love in the public square, and risking extravagant generosity for the sheer joy of pleasing God by helping others, you just might want to be a part of the Presbyterian family.

Gary W. Demarest, formerly associate director for Presbyterian evangelism in the General Assembly offices and now retired, is serving as interim pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Santa Barbara, Calif.