Against the decision of the 220th General Assembly of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church to dissolve the Second Presbytery of the A.R.P.C. – and all associated Index #11 decisions tethered thereunto – without first upholding the giving of the ‘due process’ that is required to be given, per the A.R.P.C. Book of Discipline, to those presbyters and select groups of presbyters specifically named in Index #11 of the published reports that were submitted to Synod (2024).

A previous General Synod had appointed a Special Committee to Investigate Second Presbytery’s Handling of Certain Allegations Against A Minister. The Special Committee reported to the 2024 Synod. The report expressed multiple challenges including the massive nature of the case and the difficulties in dealing with members and officers of Second Presbytery. The Committee completed its investigation and presented twenty events that had happened, two of which were deviations from the Book of Discipline, while the others touched on lack of requested records and how matters were processed by the Presbytery. Following the report to Synod, the Committee’s recommendation was approved: “That Second Presbytery be dissolved as of September 1, 2024.” It was against this action of General Synod that two Complaints have been filed.

COMPLAINT #1
To: The Principal Clerk of the General Synod of the ARP Church
We the undersigned, being members in good standing of Second Presbytery under the jurisdiction of the ARP General Synod, file this Complaint, pursuant to Book of Discipline 5.13.
On June 12, 2024, the General Synod voted to dissolve Second Presbytery, effective September 1,2024. This action was beyond the constitutional authority of General Synod.
Form of Government[1] 12.22 states: “The General Synod shall advise Presbyteries in its processes, but not the outcome, of the actions of the Presbyteries, in order to: A. Organize, receive, divide, unite, transfer, dismiss, and dissolve Presbyteries in keeping with the advancement of the Church ….” (Emphasis added.)
It is clear that the General Synod does not have the authority to initiate and execute the dissolution of a Presbytery. Rather, the General Synod shall advise a Presbytery if a Presbytery pursues dissolution and requests the advice of General Synod (FoG 12.22.B.).
Moreover, Second Presbytery is a corporation under the South Carolina Nonprofit Corporation Act and with the South Carolina Secretary of State (See attachment)[2]. As such, the corporation must be dissolved pursuant to either South Carolina Code of Laws Title 33-31-1401 or 33-31-1402 (See attachment), and the action by the ARP General Synod on June 12,2024, did not comply with either section. Therefore, the action of the ARP General Synod is unlawful, illegal, and unjust.
The Executive Board of the General Synod should declare this Complaint an emergency, pursuant to Manual of Authorities and Duties p. 13, and vacate the decision of the General Synod dissolving Second Presbytery.
Respectfully submitted,
Anthony R. Locke [email protected]Peter Waid [email protected]Brion Holzberger [email protected]Jonathan Cook [email protected]Bill Smalley [email protected]John Cook [email protected]RJ Gore [email protected]

COMPLAINT #2
Per:  The A.R.P.C. Book of Discipline, 5.12-13.
RE: Against the decision of the 220th General Assembly of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church to dissolve the Second Presbytery of the A.R.P.C. – and all associated Index #11 decisions tethered thereunto – without first upholding the giving of the ‘due process’ that is required to be given, per the A.R.P.C. Book of Discipline, to those presbyters and select groups of presbyters specifically named in Index #11 of the published reports that were submitted to Synod (2024).
This June 2024 dissolution decision by the General Synod also effectually served as an “act” (per B.O.D. 5.12) of roadblock – whereby the potential allegations named in Index #11 do not just suffer ‘a neglect of prosecution’, but will forever be unprosecutable once the court to which the alleged offenders are primarily/directly amenable is dissolved. For a court of the church (viz., the General Synod) to neglect to encourage the upholding of an application of the Standards of the A.R.P.C. church (viz., the Book of Discipline) in the present and/or to inhibit any legitimate future application of said church standard unto the published instances of known/stated offence (in Index #11) – before it chooses to dissolve a presbytery – is a serious error that merits a reversal of Synod’s improper ‘dissolution decision’ of Second Presbytery.
Filed by: Rev. Jack Van Dyk, Northeast Presbytery – A.R.P.C. Date: July 8, 2024
GROUNDS (the “supporting reasons and evidence” – B.O.D., 5.13.A) for this COMPLAINT:
The matters of legitimate ecclesiastical discipline, contained in the Index #11 report that was supplied to all delegates of the 2024 General Synod, simply cannot be overlooked. Many of them involve Second Presbytery functioning as the court of ‘original jurisdiction’. Any dissolution of that court places all potential and alleged offences outside of the mandated ‘original jurisdiction’ prescriptions of the A.R.P.C. Book of Discipline. An ‘automatic transfer of allegations’ stipulation – to some other court of the church, upon dissolution of any ‘court of original jurisdiction’ – is simply not found in the A.R.P.C. Book of Discipline. Dissolving Second Presbytery leaves ‘unfinished business’ unfinishable.
The integrity of the court must be maintained so long as there are publicly named real and/or potential ‘outstanding offences’ yet to be prosecuted. The Report itself leaves no room for doubt that matters of serious offence and grave import are before the court. From start to finish, a total of twenty items are enumerated as being the foundational merits upon which the recommendation that Second Presbytery be dissolved rests. More than mere trifles, or singular ‘irregularities’, the Standards of the A.R.P.C. are cited as what was being violated time and time again.
“Serious errors were made at every turn . . . ” (emphases mine)
“The Lord has not been honored . . . ”
“The Standards of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church have been exploited . . ”
Some form of the phrase “deviation from our Standards” is found no less than seven times on page 2 of this Index (#11) alone.
Furthermore, Index #11 assures the reader that: “The following events all happened in time and space, and therefore, the court must contend with the reality that they present.” (Index 11, page 2, paragraph 2). Fair enough. But isn’t the court ALSO REQUIRED to ‘contend with the reality’ that both the Scriptures and the A.R.P.C. Book of Discipline present? Both of these documents specify quite clearly how the assured “reality” of Index #11 is to be dealt with. And neither of these documents state that it is to be by ‘the dissolving of a Presbytery’. That administrative act was an unjustifiable substitute for the requisite (biblical) ‘gold standard’ prescription of: confrontation, repentance (or ‘censure’), confession, forgiveness, restitution, and restoration. In like manner, the 2024 General Synod’s corpus of ‘Index #11 decisions’ created an inadvertent(?) bypassing of a following through to a judicial conclusion what is also clearly prescribed in its very own ecclesiastical standards – namely, the A.R.P.C. Book of Discipline.
When the 2024 General Synod received Index #11, a long list of what was purported to be thoroughly investigated matters (and what was, therefore, to be trusted as being confirmed ‘facts’), it ought to have immediately sought to enforce an application of the Book of Discipline to those matters – before any decision was made to dissolve Second Presbytery. It is odd that Second Presbytery is faulted, in item #1 of Index #11, for something that the 2024 General Synod itself backhandedly committed when it voted to dissolve Second Presbytery – namely, a failure to appropriately apply 4.2.A of the Book of Discipline in the face of known viable allegations.
However, the ultimate self-indictment that befell the 2024 General Synod – in its decision to receive Index #11, and to then subsequently vote to dissolve Second Presbytery – is found in the last six words of that Index (right before its Recommendations):
“ . . God’s Word has not been followed.”
IF this statement really is true, then why is the A.R.P.C. Book of Discipline not first being applied – to ALL matters of legitimately real and/or potential allegations in this Report – before the dissolving of Second Presbytery takes place? When were the ‘due process’ rights, of all of the members of the A.R.P.C. that are named in this Index #11, afforded to them – before this Index #11 ‘verdict’ of guilt was pronounced (and the ‘penalty’ of ‘dissolution of the Presbytery’ thus imposed)?
It was an error of the 2024 General Synod to have both ‘decided’ and ‘acted’ against Second Presbytery before a proper application of the Book of Discipline could be made to so many alleged violations of both Scripture and the A.R.P.C. Standards.
A REDRESS OF THE ERROR: That, upon further review, all decisions made regarding Second Presbytery – on the basis of the stated Index #11 ‘grounds’ for doing so – at the 2024 meeting of General Synod are now determined to have been made in a manner that was procedurally ‘out of order’ and/or constitutionally ‘in error’ with respect to the explicit prescriptions stated in Scripture and/or the A.R.P.C.’s Book of Discipline (as noted by the specific reasons stated throughout the ‘GROUNDS’ section above) and that all Index #11 decisions regarding Second Presbytery are thereby now rendered ‘null and void’.
AN APPENDED PLEA FOR EXPEDITED ACTION:
The Book of Discipline requires that this Complaint be taken up by General Synod (or its Executive Board) “at its next stated meeting” – OR: “at a called meeting prior to” (5.13.A).
Convenience and expediency may incline the Executive Board of General Synod to simply ‘wait’ (until the next Stated meeting to take up this matter). However, in light of the fast-approaching September 1, 2024 ‘dissolution of Second Presbytery’ date – at which time almost all of the alleged offenders and alleged offenses contained in Index 11 will automatically pass beyond the reach of biblical justice per the A.R.P.C.’s Book of Discipline Standard – it is essential that the Executive Board of General Synod hold a Called meeting within the next few weeks for the purpose of responding to this Complaint. The relationship of the dissolution date – to the date of the next stated meeting of General Synod (or even of a Stated meeting of its Executive Board) – catapults this matter (of evasion of ecclesiastical discipline and avoidance of ‘due process’) into the category of a denominational ‘emergency’. It should be declared as such by the Executive Board – inasmuch as it has occasionally made said declaration regarding a number of other matters over the course of these past 2-3 years – and then dealt with them accordingly.
In light of the above circumstance, please do honor this very reasonable request for immediate action.

[1] The Form of Government is a governing document of the Standards of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church.
[2] This certification can be found at https://businessfilings.sc.gov/BusinessFiling/Entity/Profile/6aafe746-2276-429a-9aa5-b83e09e9e256

Related Posts:

Dowling has been active in the Southeast Alabama Presbytery. He has served as Presbytery Moderator twice, on several committees and commissions, including judicial commissions, and the Nominating Committee for past 12 years. At the General Assembly level, Dowling has served on the Overtures Committee for 14 years straight, chairing it twice. He has also served on the Committee on Constitutional Business (CCB) and for the past 8 years on the Standing Judicial Commission (SJC).

Steve Dowling, a ruling elder at Covenant PCA in Auburn, Ala., was elected Moderator of the 51st Presbyterian Church in America General Assembly meeting in Richmond, Va, June 10-14, 2024.
Steve has been married to Laura for 38 years, and they are blessed with nine children: 5 boys and 4 girls; seventeen grandchildren, 9 boys and 8 girls, and with two more on the way.
Dowling joined the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) in 1991, when he and his family joined New Life PCA in Ithaca, NY. He was ordained as an elder in 2003 at a church plant, New Life PCA in Stafford, Virginia (now Hope of Christ). After a their move to Auburn, Ala., Dowling and his family joined Covenant PCA, where he was elected an elder in 2011, and has served as the Clerk of Session for past 11 years.
Dowling has been active in the Southeast Alabama Presbytery. He has served as Presbytery Moderator twice, on several committees and commissions, including judicial commissions, and the Nominating Committee for past 12 years.
At the General Assembly level, Dowling has served on the Overtures Committee for 14 years straight, chairing it twice. He has also served on the Committee on Constitutional Business (CCB) and for the past 8 years on the Standing Judicial Commission (SJC).
Steve received his undergraduate degree from Auburn University, earned graduate degrees from the University of Arkansas and Rensselaer Polytechnic University, and taught at Cornell University from 1990 to 1995.
Dowling served in the United States Marine Corps from 1974 to 2001; he is a decorated combat veteran.  Promoted 10 times, Steve rose from Private to Staff Non-commissioned officer to Lieutenant Colonel, the rank at which he retired. During his service Steve became skilled in the management of all facets of production, logistics, and the supply chain, including the automation of management information systems. Expert manager of technical programs and projects.  Led as many as 850 subordinate managers, technicians, mechanics and clerks in the creation of expeditionary infrastructures and precision logistics efforts in support of combat operations around the globe.
Dowling is presently the Vice President for Digital Velocity Managed Services at CDW. He specializes in the exploitation of emerging and disruptive technologies, and helps CDW’s clients develop, retain, or change IT capabilities so they align with business logic. He formerly served as the Vice President for Public Cloud computing at Sirius Computer Solutions, a company acquired by CDW for its services excellence in 2021, and in that capacity he developed and deployed a Full-Lifecyle Cloud Services capability that produces services in any way clients want to consume them.
Through all of these providences God has prepared Dowling to serve the PCA as Moderator, as well as the other courts of the Church.
Related Posts:

The issue before Mid-America Presbytery of receiving a same-sex attracted minister, Greg Johnson, and the congregation he serves (Memorial Church in St. Louis) into the EPC has raised severe distress throughout the EPC. Documents are beginning to work their way through the EPC, often advocating for Greg Johnson’s reception or taking a position against the NRP overture. We offer this Open Letter in the spirit of free speech and as an attempt to balance the discussion which has already begun. In fact, we believe it is imperative to offer an alternative document supporting the NRP overture, so that GA Commissioners will be able to make an informed decision on this serious issue.

The New River Presbytery (NRP) has presented a unanimous overture to the 44th General Assembly that would amend chapter nine of the Book of Government to add this clause:
“Men and women who identify as homosexual, even those who identify as homosexual and claim to practice celibacy in that self-identification, are disqualified from holding office in the Evangelical Presbyterian Church.” 
This Open Letter is written in support of this overture. The issue before Mid-America Presbytery of receiving a same-sex attracted minister, Greg Johnson, and the congregation he serves (Memorial Church in St. Louis) into the EPC has raised severe distress throughout the EPC. Documents are beginning to work their way through the EPC, often advocating for Greg Johnson’s reception or taking a position against the NRP overture. We offer this Open Letter in the spirit of free speech and as an attempt to balance the discussion which has already begun. In fact, we believe it is imperative to offer an alternative document supporting the NRP overture, so that GA Commissioners will be able to make an informed decision on this serious issue.
We also believe adopting the NRP overture would align the EPC Book of Government with the teaching of Scripture and the Westminster Standards on homosexuality. The letter contains four sections, each providing reasons why a same-sex attracted person should be prohibited from ordination:

The Old Testament priority of sexual purity in the priesthood as a model for ministerial ordination;
The New Testament understanding of sexual ethics, temptation, and qualifications for church office;
The teaching of the Westminster Standards on the moral law, concupiscence, sanctification, and the heinous sin of homosexuality; and
Lessons from mainline Presbyterian history on the ordination of celibate homosexuals.

We earnestly plea that the EPC be discerning on this issue, which brought apostasy to the mainline church. We believe deferring the NRP overture to a committee for study would be a mistake — sending the message that the EPC is uncertain about a matter for which it has had certainty for 44 years. If the overture passes at the Assembly, it will descend to the presbyteries, and congregations will have an opportunity to express an informed opinion in their presbytery.
We believe every presbytery should weigh in on this overture now.
Nate Atwood, St. Giles Presbyterian Church (Charlotte, NC); Moderator, 29th General AssemblyRufus Burton, First Presbyterian Church (Martinsburg, WV); Stated Clerk, New River PresbyteryDon Fortson, Reformed Theological Seminary (Charlotte, NC) retired; Author, Liberty in Non-Essentials: The Story of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church

Related Posts:

Don was a committed churchman. As an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), he served pastored churches in Savannah, GA, Virginis Beach, VA, Blacksburg, VA, and Narrows, VA. In 2003 he started Metokos Ministries, which focused on consulting full time with small churches on revitalization and officer training. He served a number of terms on the PCA Committee on Christian Education and the Standing Judicial Commission.

Don Keith Clements, 85, of Blacksburg, VA, was called home to glory on Wednesday, June 5, 2024. He was born in Detroit, MI, on August 28, 1938, to the late Russell and Julia Mench Clements. He was preceded in death by his wife, Esther A. Clements.
Don served 22 years in the Navy, twelve years enlisted with two tours of Vietnam, rising to the rank of Chief Petty Officer. He re-entered the Navy in 1976 as a Chaplain several years after seminary. He retired from his service in 1985.
He received a Master of Divinity in 1974 from Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis MO; he received a Doctor of Ministry in 1989 in Adult Education from Gordan Conwell Theological Seminary in MA.
Don was a committed churchman. As an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), he served pastored churches in Savannah, GA, Virginis Beach, VA, Blacksburg, VA, and Narrows, VA. In 2003 he started Metokos Ministries, which focused on consulting full time with small churches on revitalization and officer training. He served a number of terms on the PCA Committee on Christian Education and the Standing Judicial Commission. Don was also active in ministries in the presbyteries in which he served.
Dr. Dominic Aquila, Editor of The Aquila Report, recalls when Don called him in early 2008 with the idea of beginning a web-based magazine. Not only did he have the idea for this magazine, but he had a name to call it: The Aquila Report (TAR). We launch this venture with the first series of articles in May 2008, experimenting with several formats to find the best way to provide news and articles for members primarily in the Reformed and Evangelical family of churches. Don was a visionary and he and I worked long and hard to launch TAR so it could its place to provide a significant service to the wider church.
Don is survived by his daughters, Stephanie Clements, Susannah Clements, and Sarah Clements, and granddaughters, Nora Hein and Alexandra Hein.
Graveside services will be conducted Monday, June 10, 2024, at 11:00 A.M. in the Draper Valley Presbyterian Church Cemetery, with the Rev. Taylor Rollo officiating.
In lieu of flowers donations may be made to PCA Ministerial Relief Fund, at https://genevabenefits.org/
Related Posts:

Promoting the importance of Reformed, Christian education has been a life-long passion of Dr. Kortenhoeven. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Dordt University and his doctorate in Higher Education Leadership from Azusa Pacific University. He has served schools and colleges for 33 years in Florida, California, and Colorado, with the last 20 years being in leadership roles at both the high school and college levels.

The Providence Christian College Board of Trustees and the Presidential Search Committee have announced the appointment of Dr. Steven B. Kortenhoeven as the 4th president of Providence, located in Pasadena, California.
Dr. Kortenhoeven, a founding staff member of Providence, was the college’s first Dean of Student Life and Assistant Professor of Education. Since those early years at Providence, his passion for the mission of Providence and service to the college has remained constant, serving on college committees and on the Board of Trustees.
Promoting the importance of Reformed, Christian education has been a life-long passion of Dr. Kortenhoeven. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Dordt University and his doctorate in Higher Education Leadership from Azusa Pacific University. He has served schools and colleges for 33 years in Florida, California, and Colorado, with the last 20 years being in leadership roles at both the high school and college levels.
Over three decades of leading in Christian education has earned Dr. Kortenhoeven the respect of his colleagues and the communities in which he served. He is known for wisdom and stability, providing a strong foundation for schools to grow and students to flourish under his leadership. The board of trustees unanimously believe that Dr. Kortenhoeven’s leadership is exactly what the college needs now as we embark into a season of growth and financial stability.
John Jansen, Chair of the Presidential Search Committee, said the following:
“I am delighted that after several years of searching Steve recognized God’s leading. His capabilities, experience as a life-long educator, along with his love for Christian higher education makes him a great fit as Providence’s next President. The fact that Steve also has maintained a strong relationship with Providence over the years made it obvious to the Committee that Dr. Kortenhoeven was the right man for the job.”
Steve and his wife, Donna, live in Denver, Colorado and have five grown children and one daughter-in-aw. Education has always been an important part of the family ethos, and each of the children are either currently working in education or enrolled in higher education.
Steve and Donna enjoy discovering new hikes, reading, traveling to see their children, playing pickleball, and golfing. They are eager to return to the West Coast to embrace the work God has placed in front of them.
The Board of Trustees would like to thank the Presidential Search Committee for their committed work, prayers, and wisdom through the process of this national search.
Related Posts:

In keeping with the journalistic tradition of looking back at the recent past, we present the top 50 stories of the year that were read on The Aquila Report site based on the number of hits. We will present the 50 stories in groups of 10 to run on five lists on consecutive days. Here are numbers 1-10.

In 2023 The Aquila Report (TAR) posted over 3,000 stories. At the end of each year we feature the top 50 stories that were read.
TAR posts 8 new stories each day, on a variety of subjects – all of which we trust are of interest to our readers. As a web magazine TAR is an aggregator of news and information that we believe will provide articles that will inform the church of current trends and movements within the church and culture.
In keeping with the journalistic tradition of looking back at the recent past, we present the top 50 stories of the year that were read on The Aquila Report site based on the number of hits. We will present the 50 stories in groups of 10 to run on five lists on consecutive days. Here are numbers 1-10:

Russell Moore Loses His Religion

It is important to remember that three months before his departure, a Southern Baptist task force determined that Moore’s organization was “a source of significant distraction from the Great Commission work of Southern Baptists.” The report cited things like participating in the partially Soros-funded Evangelical Immigration Table, filing an amicus brief to support a mosque, failing to support the religious liberty of California churches during Covid-19, and a general tone of condescension and unresponsiveness. Moore’s opposition to President Trump was only factor in determining mission drift. [2] This lack of self-awareness on Moore’s part can almost be considered the theme of his book.

A Philosopher’s Guide to the Overtures Presented to the PCA General Assembly

In what follows, I take a different approach. I give my frank assessment of the overtures in the hopes that, even if you disagree with me, you can better formulate reasons for why you do so. I also, at times, offer an analysis of different issues surrounding the overtures. This approach will, I hope, be helpful to anyone interested in current issues facing Christians everywhere.
8 PCA GA 50: Summary of 20 Key Events & Highlights
Overture 29: Passed Presbyteries 79-1. An Officer’s view of Indwelling Sin, Actual Sin, and Sanctification matter. This is the language that was approved to BCO 16.4: “Officers in the Presbyterian Church in America must be above reproach in their walk and Christlike in their character. While office bearers will see spiritual perfection only in glory, they will continue in this life to confess and to mortify remaining sins in light of God’s work of progressive sanctification. Therefore, to be qualified for office, they must affirm the sinfulness of fallen desires, the reality and hope of progressive sanctification, and be committed to the pursuit of Spirit-empowered victory over their sinful temptations, inclinations, and actions.”

Final Tally From PCA Presbyteries on Overture 15

O15 was one of three overtures presbyteries considered in 2022-23 on the topic of sexuality. Overture 29 (O29) and Overture 31 (O31) passed in a supermajority of presbyteries and will come to the floor of GA this summer, where a simple majority vote of commissioners will amend the BCO with their language. Two sexuality overtures—Overture 23 (O23) and Overture 37 (O37)—failed to reach the two-thirds threshold in 2021-22.

Tell the PCA’s Magazine to Issue a Retraction

As fallible humans we all sometimes succumb to haste, emotion, and the influence of others, especially the media, whose sole occupation lies in seeking to get us to believe its narratives and to think and act along its preferred lines. Add in the rigors and tedium of pastoral and publishing work and mistakes are apt to happen sometimes, even large ones. In such cases a little public or private contradiction that seeks to set one right is justified, provided it is moved by charity and expressed courteously.

My Complicated Feelings about Tim Keller

It was his focus on the eternal issues of life—of issues of meaning—that really hooked me. Nowhere else was anybody I knew talking about these things in the way that Tim was. He illustrated his points through philosophy, art, pop culture and yes, the Bible. But it was a Bible I had never been introduced to, despite attending church and Sunday school every weekend of my childhood. He brought it alive and showed how it was actually relevant to my life.

4. The PCA’s Denominational Magazine Goes Political: A Rejoinder to David Cassidy’s “Prayer and Work in the Face of Violence” at By Faith Online

This is the social justice gospel exposing itself openly, without modesty and without regard to how repulsive it is to the many other PCA members who believe in the spirituality of the church (Col. 3:1-3), the prudence of minding one’s own affairs rather than those of other communities (Prov. 26:17), and the propriety of an armed citizenry (Neh. 4:7-23). It has nothing to do with the duties of Cassidy’s office, not anything to do with our denomination or its faith: it is contemporary urban political preference presented as edifying Christian teaching, a coercion to agree masquerading as earnest Christian appeal.

Scott Sauls, Author and Nashville Pastor, Placed on Indefinite Leave of Absence

Sauls’ standing as a pastor will also be reviewed at an upcoming meeting of the Nashville Presbytery. According to the denomination’s rules, he is considered a “teaching elder” whose status as a minister is overseen by that local presbytery. That presbytery will have the final say over the length and conditions of Sauls’ leave. 

Actions of the 50th PCA General Assembly

In the report of the Review of Presbytery Records, the Assembly approved the recommendation that Metropolitan New York Presbytery appear before the Standing Judicial Commission to adjudicate several matters pertaining to proceedings on the Lord’s Day. The Assembly also approved the recommendation that Northwest Georgia Presbytery appear before the Standing Judicial Commission to adjudicate a matter pertaining to the approval of calls and installation of three candidates.
And the number one story on The Aquila Report for 2023:

COVID-19 Reflection

Actions of massive significance call for significant accountability. Self-reflection is a good spiritual discipline, also for church leaders. Did we engage in spiritual abuse when we turned away faithful worshipers? Were we condescending toward mask-wearers seeking to protect vulnerable family members? Did we demand submission to civil government on matters better left to individual conscience? I for one am still bothered by the restrictions we did place on our own congregation. Couldn’t we have simply let sincere Christians make up their own minds on timing and masks and everything else? Did we lord it over the flock? Did we succumb to fear?
Related Posts:

In keeping with the journalistic tradition of looking back at the recent past, we present the top 50 stories of the year that were read on The Aquila Report site based on the number of hits. We will present the 50 stories in groups of 10 to run on five lists on consecutive days. Here are numbers 11-20.

In 2023 The Aquila Report (TAR) posted over 3,000 stories. At the end of each year we feature the top 50 stories that were read.
TAR posts 8 new stories each day, on a variety of subjects – all of which we trust are of interest to our readers. As a web magazine TAR is an aggregator of news and information that we believe will provide articles that will inform the church of current trends and movements within the church and culture.
In keeping with the journalistic tradition of looking back at the recent past, we present the top 50 stories of the year that were read on The Aquila Report site based on the number of hits. We will present the 50 stories in groups of 10 to run on five lists on consecutive days. Here are numbers 11-20:

A Response to: “Music at the GA and the PCA”

What all those times of worship at our General Assemblies have had in common every year was enthusiastic congregational singing, from metrical psalms to classical hymns to contemporary songs.  All of that made the recent article, that was so critical of the singing at the Assembly, to be so very disappointing.

Are Evangelicals Selling Their Souls for Israel?

With this in mind, it’s hard to believe the numbers are exaggerated. In fact, the situation could be much more dire. The question Evangelicals must answer is this, “Can Christians continue to support Israel’s wholesale slaughter of civilians without losing their soul?” The question should be answered with all haste because a genocide is taking place right before our evangelical eyes. Evangelicals need to come to terms with the reality that the modern nation state of Israel in not biblical Israel. Zionist Israel is a secular political entity unrelated to biblical Judaism.

The Train is Leaving the Station

Stanley dismissed Biblical texts against homosexual behavior as “clobber” verses and said, “If your theology gets in the way of ministry—like if there’s somebody you can’t minister to because of your theology—you have the wrong theology.” This is not a misunderstanding. This is a trajectory that points to the Unconditional Conference and two speakers married to other men on the platform. This is a clear and tragic departure from Biblical Christianity. The conference has not been held yet. No doubt there will be a good deal of conversation once it has been held.

The Two-Kingdoms Theology and Christians Today

First, the kingdom of God and the institutional church are wrongly equated by 2K advocates.  There is a rough consensus among New Testament scholars that the kingdom of God is a much more comprehensive reality than the institutional church, and this misidentification of the church and the kingdom has all sorts of unfortunate results, such as confusion over the nature of “kingdom work” and the silencing of Christians from speaking to societal issues.

Danger from Within: A Warning from the Book of Jude

We need to be aware of what the main things and the plain things are so that we can set theological alarms in our hearts and minds. Because these false teachers creep into our churches, our ministries, and our Christian schools, we need pay attention and measure everything we hear by the standard of God’s Word.

Shannon Harris Kissed Truth Goodbye

Shannon seemed to be an eager and vivacious woman trying her best to live up to manmade commands without experiencing a life built on Biblical Truth.  As with so many young men and women who have shared this experience, Shannon has chosen to identify as a victim seeking truth and wisdom from within herself. She sees God, if there is one, is a complete killjoy who wants to squash your dreams and thwart your liberty.  Shannon, now free from this bondage, has begun her crusade to liberate everyone else.

A Biologist Explains Why Sex Is Binary

When biologists claim that sex is binary, we mean something straightforward: There are only two sexes. This is true throughout the plant and animal kingdoms. An organism’s sex is defined by the type of gamete (sperm or ova) it has the function of producing. Males have the function of producing sperm, or small gametes; females, ova, or large ones. Because there is no third gamete type, there are only two sexes. Sex is binary.

PCA Minister, Rev. Harry Reeder, Briarwood Senior Pastor, Killed in Car Accident

Briarwood Executive Pastor Bruce Stallings released this statement to AL.com: “It is with a deeply heavy heart that I communicate to you that our Lord has called Pastor Reeder home through a car accident. Please pray for Cindy, Jennifer, Ike, Abby and their entire family as well as our staff and church family as we all grieve this tremendous loss together. But we do not grieve without hope because we know our pastor is with His Savior and has been received by grace with – ‘Well done My good and faithful servant.’’’
12 Rick Warren Knows Exactly What He Is Doing
Rick Warren and Saddleback have done us the service of showing their hand. They want to persuade us to abandon what the Bible teaches and follow them in another direction. How will we respond in New Orleans?

An Overview of “Embracing the Journey”: A Ministry For Parents of LGBTQ Children

In early 2020, Saddleback pastor Chris Clark and his wife, Elisa, co-founded a Saddleback chapter of Embracing the Journey, a ministry for parents of LGBTQ children, with long-time Saddleback members, Doug and Shauna Habel. By the end of 2021, an ETJ newsletter revealed that Saddleback was hosting four ongoing ETJ support groups and one small group.
Related Posts:

In keeping with the journalistic tradition of looking back at the recent past, we present the top 50 stories of the year that were read on The Aquila Report site based on the number of hits. We will present the 50 stories in groups of 10 to run on five lists on consecutive days.  Here are numbers 21-30.

In 2023 The Aquila Report (TAR) posted over 3,000 stories. At the end of each year we feature the top 50 stories that were read.
TAR posts 8 new stories each day, on a variety of subjects – all of which we trust are of interest to our readers. As a web magazine TAR is an aggregator of news and information that we believe will provide articles that will inform the church of current trends and movements within the church and culture.
In keeping with the journalistic tradition of looking back at the recent past, we present the top 50 stories of the year that were read on The Aquila Report site based on the number of hits. We will present the 50 stories in groups of 10 to run on five lists on consecutive days. Here are numbers 21-30:

Parents And the Apostasy of Covenant Children

Among what these principles teach is that when a parent loves his family first and foremost, he neither loves God nor his family aright. One loves his children above God by pursuing their happiness rather than their Godliness, their respectability rather than their need for righteousness in Christ. Even to seek equally both happiness and Godliness is to deny God. It is to deny the primacy of a biblical pursuit of God, and that all blessings beyond knowing Christ are incidental to seeking first the kingdom of God. It’s to pursue God’s favor apart from thirsting after Christ. What can be more subtly idolatrous for the Christian?

Blasphemy in the Presbyterian Church in America: A Reflection before the General Assembly

Does he believe sexual immorality is shameful (Eph. 5:12) and corrosive (1 Cor. 6:18) and ought not to be discussed, or does he believe that being a ‘[insert sin here] Christian’ is just another form of Christian experience? Does he believe that it is blasphemy to associate Christ’s holy name with enduring sin and to make that sin central to one’s identity, experience, personhood, or ‘authentic self,’ or does he think it is needless alarmism and decidedly unwinsome to object strenuously to such obviously worldly notions?

Big Eva Says Out with Complementarianism, In with Anti-Fundamentalism

Moore is a former Southern Baptist leader and Gospel Coalition council member who is now the editor of Christianity Today magazine. The mere fact that he’s now the editor there shows something is afoot, given that Moore was historically strongly complementarian and Christianity Today has long been egalitarian. As I noted in a previous post, Moore wrote a column in March of this year saying that evangelicals needed to rethink their gender wars. Though obviously in a Moore style rather than a Keller one, it is an almost perfect instantiation of Keller’s framework and strategy. 

Movie Review: Nefarious

There is so much to appreciate about this film, and not just because it’s a good movie. Nefarious is a theologically orthodox explanation about God, the Devil, and the cosmic battle which occurs every day for a person’s soul.

2023 Orthodox Presbyterian Church General Assembly Report – UPDATED

For the election of a new moderator the following were nominated: Rev. Bruce Prentice (Mandon, ND), Elder Bruce Stahl (Wentzville, MO) and Rev. John Shaw (general secretary of OPC Home Missions). After a vote Mr. Shaw was declared elected. Rev. Danny Olinger (general secretary of OPC Christian Education), who had nominated Mr. Shaw, led in prayer for the newly elected moderator.

Schools in the Presbyterian Church in America

With respect to membership, PCA churches with schools are significantly larger. The average PCA church has 230 members on its rolls on average. Churches with schools average 630 members, while those without average 190. They have both more communicant members (500 vs. 148) and non-communicant members (131 vs. 41).

The Rise and Fall of Dispensationalism

As fate—or perhaps providence—would have it, Darby’s premillennial eschatology and the stark intensity of his heaven-earth dualism caught on not just in Southern England, but in America. Reshaped in the hands of other ministers, theologians, and popularizers, his ideas and those of his Plymouth Brethren colleagues would in due time change the trajectory of American evangelicalism and the nation’s culture. The ideas presidents kicked around in the Oval Office can be traced back to his work.

Turning Worship into a Clown Show

Our God, our New Testament God, is a consuming fire and to be approached with awe and reverence, as the book of Hebrews teaches. And those incapable of acting in accordance with that have no place in the pastoral ministry. And the SBC is certainly not poorer for their departure.

Avoiding a Second Civil War

Two competing religions are struggling in a battle against each other for control of our nation’s numerous institutions such as the civil government, the military, education, and even the church. Whatever labels you use for the two sides of the conflict, either wokeism versus traditionalism, or Cultural Marxism versus Christianity, the clash between the two factions is heated and intense.  We call them culture wars, but we need to be reminded that culture is downstream from religion.

How To Kill A Denomination In One Easy Move

If you want to kill your denomination in one easy move that move is to neglect General Assembly.   Those who helped bring in the very things that caused you to send your ruling elders to GA in the first place (Revoice/Side-B, CRT, female line- authority, etc.) are themselves going to be at General Assembly and they are waiting to reengage at the very first indication that our denomination has again attained a false sense of security.
Related Posts:

In keeping with the journalistic tradition of looking back at the recent past, we present the top 50 stories of the year that were read on The Aquila Report site based on the number of hits. We will present the 50 stories in groups of 10 to run on five lists on consecutive days. Here are numbers 31-40.

In 2023 The Aquila Report (TAR) posted over 3,000 stories. At the end of each year we feature the top 50 stories that were read.
TAR posts 8 new stories each day, on a variety of subjects – all of which we trust are of interest to our readers. As a web magazine TAR is an aggregator of news and information that we believe will provide articles that will inform the church of current trends and movements within the church and culture.
In keeping with the journalistic tradition of looking back at the recent past, we present the top 50 stories of the year that were read on The Aquila Report site based on the number of hits. We will present the 50 stories in groups of 10 to run on five lists on consecutive days. Here are numbers 31-40:

Queering Jesus: How It’s Going Mainstream at Progressive Churches and Top Divinity Schools

Queer theology is a mature, established theological subject of scholarship now in its third decade and armed with well-honed arguments that queerness is grounded in biblical texts and classic commentaries. Most newly minted ministers coming out of mainline divinity schools today have some exposure to queer theology, either through taking a queer course, reading queer authors in other courses, or through conversations with queer students and queer professors.

Actions of the PCA General Assembly

The AC continues to make progress with foreign language (Spanish and Portuguese) translations of our Book of Church Order (BCO) to help our church minister to all peoples and generations. The AC facilitates and supports the Standing Judicial Commission, which issues decisions according to how sworn testimony aligns with our Standards. The SJC is not separately funded. 

It Doesn’t Work: Presbyterian Church USA

Since the change of the definition of marriage, the PCUSA seems to have lost all counterbalance to contemporary progressive ideologies. Having lost its conservative contingent, the PCUSA appears to be in theological and moral freefall with few voices seeking to preserve any historic biblical understandings. On the first day of the 2016 General Assembly, the opening prayer was by a Muslim imam offered to Allah.

The Rise and Fall of the Evangelical Elite

It is obvious now, looking back at the post-9/11 and pre-Obergefell era, that the leftward drift of this movement was inevitable. The end of Renn’s “neutral world” and the beginning of a negative world hostile to Christianity began soon after the Supreme Court’s Obergefell decision in 2015  and accelerated rapidly with Trump’s 2016 victory. Changed circumstances undermined the attractive witness model as previously practiced. The neutral-world ethos could not hold in the negative world; the era of open debate was gone.

Tim Keller Called Home to Glory

Some in Christendom resented Keller’s stumbled-upon celebrity. Others hailed him as the C.S. Lewis for a new generation. As for Keller, he stayed focused—there was a gospel to preach, cities to reach, souls to save. Even when he was diagnosed with cancer in June, 2020, he scarcely slowed, continuing to work, write, lead, and think—even amidst the chemo, right to the very end.

Deaconesses in the Presbyterian Church in America

We really don’t have generalizable data on how widespread (or not) the practice [of unordained women serving as deaconesses] is in the PCA. How many churches have deaconesses? How many deaconesses are there in the PCA? The purpose of this project is not to pick a fight, but to shed light, in the hopes that it will lead to more productive debate at PCA General Assembly.

Are There Trustworthy Protestant Universities?

Schools that aim for prestige and “excellence” as the current American regime defines it are most likely to accommodate our culture’s presuppositions. Fewer “prestige” schools embrace a conservative Protestant social teaching that emphasizes marriage, recommends different roles for men and women, and shuns same-sex sex and same-sex marriage. Students interested in becoming doctors or lawyers might choose Baylor, SMU, or Wheaton. On the other hand, schools without signs of American decadence are less descript, their chief virtue being that they fail to promote vice.

Lessons from “The Jonesboro Decision”

What God did in the midst of great suffering was remarkable. God used this situation to knit together a church family, to teach them to wait upon Him, and to show them His goodness even in the midst of great loss and strain. As I talked with one of the “Jonesboro 7” he testified to how God vindicated His word that those who suffer for the sake of righteousness are indeed blessed. The men and their families learned of the sufficiency and kindness of God even in affliction.

How Should We Then Repent? A Response to “COVID-19 Reflection”

One of the most obvious perversions of this ecclesiastical overreach was the “administration of virtual communion” by some sessions! In their rejection of first principles, they exchanged the truth of God for a lie and issued declarations that bordered on idolatry. They tried to convince their flock that “virtual worship” was a viable substitute for corporate worship, and many have drunk the “Kool-Aid.”

5 Warning Signs That a Pastor has Not Been Truly Called by God

The greatest evidence of whether your pastor is called by God will be witnessed in his convictions about the doctrine of the church. Does he care enough to discipline wayward members? Is he more concerned about what the church looks like than its holiness and catholicity (the church universal)? Is he more concerned about being relational rather than theological, subjective rather than objective?
Related Posts:

In keeping with the journalistic tradition of looking back at the recent past, we present the top 50 stories of the year that were read on The Aquila Report site based on the number of hits. We will present the 50 stories in groups of 10 to run on five lists on consecutive days. Here are numbers 41-50.

In 2023 The Aquila Report (TAR) posted over 3,000 stories. At the end of each year we feature the top 50 stories that were read.
TAR posts 8 new stories each day, on a variety of subjects – all of which we trust are of interest to our readers. As a web magazine TAR is an aggregator of news and information that we believe will provide articles that will inform the church of current trends and movements within the church and culture.
In keeping with the journalistic tradition of looking back at the recent past, we present the top 50 stories of the year that were read on The Aquila Report site based on the number of hits. We will present the 50 stories in groups of 10 to run on five lists on consecutive days. Here are numbers 41-50:

Targeting Transgenderism: Two Overtures to the PCA 50th GA

In my opinion, the BCO is not the main issue. The issue is not simply women in the pulpit, nor the sexual mutilation of children, nor even the legitimacy of homosexuality (in some form or another).  The issue is transgenderism.  The issue is men and women giving in to sinful impulses that cross the lines that God drew in creation when he created male and female and assigned them their roles in the world he created.

Why Some Evangelicals Are Embracing Racism

Sin is sin, on the right or the left. Kinism is just as evil as critical race theory. So Kinists are not our allies. They’re just as opposed to Biblical views on race as critical race theorists.

A Confession Rejected and a Denomination Undone

For Southern Baptists, adopting a revised and expanded version of the New Hampshire Confession of Faith was not an act of division but a means of ensuring unity. As Mullins explained, he believed it would “clarify the atmosphere and remove the causes of misunderstanding, friction, and apprehension.” The differences between Northern and Southern Baptist Conventions over the past 100 years can be explained many ways—but they cannot be explained apart from the question of confessionalism and the need for doctrinal fidelity.

Officials Charge Retired CRC Pastor In 1975 Cold Case Murder Of Delco 8-Year-Old

Gretchen Harrington, 8-years-old, disappeared on Aug. 15, 1975, while on a walk from her Marple Township home to a Bible school less than a mile away. Stollsteimer said that, at that time, Zandstra served as a reverend at Trinity Christian Reformed Church, one of two churches that Harrington regularly attended. As she walked to Bible camp alone, Zandstra pulled alongside her in a vehicle and offered her a ride, Stollsteimer said.

We Are Already Defeated

Young seminarians are being steeped—in seminary—in an expressive individualism that is contrary to the gospel of Jesus Christ and that will, if it’s not nipped right in the bud, lead actual people into hell.

Why The Gospel Centered Movement Failed

Fast forward to 2020; there’s no need to recap everything but you’ve got Covid, BLM, mask and vaccine mandates, etc – you remember, you were there. Anyway, here we have a key moment in time when the practical instructions of the Bible, God’s laws, become absolutely essential to how the church should respond. Startled and harassed bodies of believers across the world, under pressure to conform on all sides, actually needed to know what to do. They needed to know this in detail, with clarity and with conviction. And because of the lack of attention paid to God’s law, this gospel-centered movement didn’t have a great answer.

Covenant Presbytery Denies Appeal of Jonesboro 7 Finding No Errors in Session Trial

It is a most remarkable providence; if one reads the protest against Presbytery’s action to preserve the church plant, the signers represent the elders from Covenant Presbytery’s wealthiest and most influential churches and committees. Yet the speech of a largely unknown, retired former Arkansas church planter was powerfully used by God to change the course of the debate, save the little church plant from dissolution, and preserve a witness for Himself in Jonesboro.

3 Wrong Reasons to Leave Your Local Church — and 5 Right Reasons to Stay

It’s been commonly said that we don’t choose the people who sit next to us in the pew, but God does. Love requires, in response to the gospel, that we invest in the lives of those who are often most difficult and unattractive to us. It’s one of the saddest things to witness someone throw away their entire local church family for selfish reasons. Is our love sincere and absent of hypocrisy? This is an important question when it comes to church membership.

Retraction Refused: The PCA’s Magazine Stands By Its Claims in David Cassidy’s “Prayer and Work in the Face of Violence”

If this were an isolated occurrence it would be one thing; regrettably, this does not seem to be the case. If one were to summarize the crisis of evangelicalism in America today, he could probably do so best by saying that its internal struggles arise because its institutions do not represent the vast majority of its people, and that their actions do not put into practice the beliefs or preferred actions of those people.

A Political View of the PCA Jubilee General Assembly

Another critical issue was related to the use of the term “pastor” as being reserved for ordained teaching elders.  It seems that the modern evangelical church tends to label everyone contributing service to the Lord’s work as pastor.  From nonordained youth “pastors” to nonordained music “pastors,” it has become a very generic term.  This has contributed to much confusion in the wider church.
Related Posts: