You Can Always Tell
a Presbyterian . . .
By William R. Phillippe

It's true. Studies done among all varieties of Christians show that Presbyterians tend to study and know more about the Bible and their faith than most. Not surprising, since Presbyterians make their beginning with the teaching of John Calvin who started it all (all the Presbyterian heritage, that is) by writing a study guide on the faith. He called it Institutes of the Christian Religion and dedicated it to King Francis I of France. That's because John Calvin believed the king needed to be informed in the faith--a characteristic for which Presbyterians have been famous or infamous ever since.

The Presbyterian constitution acknowledges this need for an informed believer. It points out that Presbyterians affirm, above all else, the power, holiness, and love of God who creates, sustains, rules and redeems the world.

So what do Presbyterians believe? Some main beliefs are:

Their salvation is assured through faith in Jesus Christ. Therefore:

God calls them for service to others.
They discover this calling in a disciplined study of both the Old and New Testaments.
This study leads them to promote and practice a life that nourishes all other life on the planet God has provided, and to work for the fullest possible sustainable life for all God's other children, wherever they live on the planet.

Presbyterians believe that Jesus, a Jew from Nazareth, is a model of what God intended all humanity to be like. A high target to aim for? Sure. Presbyterians frequently aim higher than they reach (but more about that later).

By studying Scripture these same Presbyterians discover that Jesus followed in the long line of prophets, and that he taught the sovereignty, love and justice of the creator God that Abraham and Sarah had discovered many centuries before. Calling Jesus Lord, Presbyterians attempt to follow him--at a considerable distance, sometimes (but more on that later, too), and attempt to live their daily lives for others.

Now for the "later" promised above: Presbyterians confess that they and all God's children fall short of what God intends. They spend a good deal of time confessing, and some of them feel that the whole crowd has a lot to confess about. They know that they too often seek to deny God, and too often draw back from fulfilling their responsibility in society. They know that instead of breaking down the walls of anger and hate and hostility, they participate in building walls and denying freedom and fullness. But in their bones they know God forgives and restores. Even renews and revitalizes. It is very important for them to know this. They believe it is equally important for you to know it, too.

The congregation is the place where Presbyterians worship this creating and forgiving God, who demonstrated a magnificent concern for the world and its people by sending a Son into it. They think of the Presbyterian Church as part of the Son's church. Participating in baptism and the Lord's Supper (some call it Communion and mean the same thing), they somehow understand God's promise that they--and all believers--will never be alone or abandoned. In this extended family called the congregation they learn to heal and care for each other, and try to demonstrate that God's wondrous love is meant for everyone.

Funny thing: Presbyterians aren't content with that. They're always going beyond their congregational family--too far beyond, some people think--to act out that mind-boggling love they've discovered. Because, to repeat, they have learned that all the peoples of the world are God's people and therefore are to be given healing and care.

The world that Presbyterians worry and stew about (all this, remember, traces back to the prolific writer/teacher named John Calvin) includes the political world, the economic one, and all the social structures and all the human needs. So they are rarely content to worship and study, and leave it at that. They go out into these worlds and try to make them more humane. More like God intended them to be.

Presbyterians are filled to the brim with hope, although plenty of them don't act like it and some don't even look like it. They can't help it because the Spirit of God at work inside them bubbles out in all those activities described above. Those and more.

Presbyterians believe a lot more than just these things. They believe in grace, for example. But there's no room to tell about all their beliefs here; it takes a while for even Presbyterians to explain it all. But inquire about it. It's worth the time.

William R. Phillippe, who served a number of interim pastorates, was formerly interim director of the denomination's Committee on Social Witness Policy. Now retired, he is parish associate at the Old Presbyterian Meeting House in Alexandria, Va.