Presbyterians meet in Memphis, seal deal on ordaining women

Commercial Waters ^ | 24 Jun 2011 | David Waters

[Cronos]

A small but fast-growing Presbyterian denomination meeting this week in Memphis resolved long-standing theological and constitutional conflicts over the ordination of women that have vexed and divided evangelical Christians for decades.

A record-setting 460 delegates to the Evangelical Presbyterian Church's 31st General Assembly voted to allow congregations to call women to ordained ministry, even if their presbytery (governing body) objects for theological or doctrinal reasons....

[Cronos]

This doesn't bode well

[Cronos]

seriously — how are these guys related to the PCA?

[Gamecock]

Seriously? They ain’t.

They are more akin to the PC(USA). Sadly more so than I thought.

[Cronos]

ok. I just looked up on their website and it says that the EPC is a form of New School Presbyterianism while the PCA is Old School. Old School can be the best....

[wideawake]

The EPC are a body of Presbyterians who held back from the merger that created the PCUSA because they objected to the liberalism of the PCUSA.

They upheld the full Westminster Confession as their standard of faith.

Put simply, they were and considered themselves to be, a conservative Presbyterian alternative to the PC(USA). They are unrelated to the PCA.

Basically, the Presbyterians in the US were split between the PCUS (mostly Southerners) and the UPCUSA (mostly Northerners). The conservatives split from the PCUS in 1974 forming the PCA. Then, in 1981, when the merger between the PCUS and the UPCUSA was in motion, the conservatives split from the UPCUSA and formed the EPC.

[Cronos]

Let's hope they don't get pushed into voting for gay marriage sometime down in the future. Perhaps I'm wrong, but history seems to show that any denomination that first allows a pastoress, sooner or later allows gay married lesbian pastoresses. Am I just making up a non-existent relationship? Leave aside theology, church governance, but is this inevitable that if you allow female priests/pastors, sooner or later gays are allowed? I see it even among the Jewish groups

But I wonder if that's flawed logic -- what do you guys think, is it possible to stop at just pastoresses/priestesses? Leave aside theology and church governance.

[Cronos]

Basically, the Presbyterians in the US were split between the PCUS (mostly Southerners) and the UPCUSA (mostly Northerners). The conservatives split from the PCUS in 1974 forming the PCA. Then, in 1981, when the merger between the PCUS and the UPCUSA was in motion, the conservatives split from the UPCUSA and formed the EPC.

And the original PCUSA split into the CPC, PCUS and OPC. The OPC broke into the BPC and I thought the EPC, while the CPC got split into the CPC and the CPCA and the UCPA and some from the CPC rejoined the original PCUSA before it split.

[Hawthorn]

>> the original PCUSA split into the CPC, PCUS and OPC <<

And soon we’ll see the QPC, the LPC, the HoPC, the HePC, the BiPC and the TrPC, not to mention the APC and countless others — “tu-lips” and “three” lips, four-pointers and three-pointers, maybe even a few zero-pointers. What fun!

[wideawake]

Actually the other EPC split from the BPC, which had split from the OPC (itself a split from from the original PCUSA - which should not be confused with the current PC(USA), a different body). That EPC eventually merged with the PCA. The EPC of this article is not the same as the EPC that split from BPC.

[wideawake]

There is no flaw in the logic. The inversion of sexes in any important area of life leads inexorably to further inversions.

[Cronos]

wideawake: Basically, the Presbyterians in the US were split between the PCUS (mostly Southerners) and the UPCUSA (mostly Northerners). The conservatives split from the PCUS in 1974 forming the PCA. Then, in 1981, when the merger between the PCUS and the UPCUSA was in motion, the conservatives split from the UPCUSA and formed the EPC.

Cronos: And the original PCUSA split into the CPC, PCUS and OPC. The OPC broke into the BPC and I thought the EPC, while the CPC got split into the CPC and the CPCA and the UCPA and some from the CPC rejoined the original PCUSA before it split.

wideawake: Actually the other EPC split from the BPC, which had split from the OPC (itself a split from from the original PCUSA - which should not be confused with the current PC(USA), a different body). That EPC eventually merged with the PCA. The EPC of this article is not the same as the EPC that split from BPC.

Ah, I was a bit confused, I thought the EPC mentioned here was the EPC of the BPC after it came from the OPC from the PCUSA before that became the PCUS and then remerged to become the PCUSA and PCA.

[ReformationFan]

Truth. I was in the EPC at one time but I left for the PCA over 10 years ago. It looks like I made the correct decision.

[Salvation]

Anglicans first -— then the Anglicans are coming to the Catholic Church.

Lutherans were next -— now the Lutherans are coming to the Catholic Church.

Presbyterians now -— will they also come to the Catholic Church? I think they will.

BTW, I predicted that the Presbyterians would be next.

Now my prediction is that we will see this happening in Baptist and evangelical churches as well.

Finally they will pressure the little private Bible churches.

Will everyone end up coming to the Catholic Church where this will not happen?

[Salvation]

Let me re-phrase that last question.

Will everyone end up coming to the Catholic Church where this ordianing of women priests will not happen?

[fwdude]

Will everyone end up coming to the Catholic Church where this ordianing of women priests will not happen?

It won't happen in many CHRISTIAN, non-Catholic Churches. The Catholic Church doesn't have a lock on biblical practice.

[Salvation]

You’ve got to admit, though, that so far my predictions have been right on.

It will happen. Hang around.

[fwdude]

What predictions? That the "mainline" churches would go apostate? That has never been a secret; not in the past 50 years. Everyone could see that once a little doctrine was compromised that the whole structure would fall.

Evangelical Christian Churches will never apostatize to this level - or they will cease to be Christian Churches.

[aimhigh]

It will happen. Hang around.

Considering the number of gay priests in the Catholic church, what are they merging with?

[Salvation]

This thread is about ordaining women which will not happen in the Catholic Church.

[wideawake]

The newsworthy aspect of this is that the EPC is not a mainline, but is a group that split from the mainline on biblical grounds. The cancer is metastasizing.