On The Helsinki Commission and Andrew Brunson
The U.S. Congress’ Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (Helsinki Commission) held a hearing this morning on American-Turkish relations (the hearing starts around the 14:00 minute mark), with a focus on the imprisonment of American and EPC pastor Andrew Brunson, who has been held on fabricated charges since last year’s failed coup. Brunson’s daughter Jacqueline Furnari was one of the testifying witnesses…
On Turkey Playing Politics With Andrew Brunson
The politicization of the Christian faith in the U.S. has nothing on what is happening in Turkey: In September, Mr. Erdogan held out the possibility of releasing an American pastor, Andrew Brunson, who was detained almost a year ago in the wake…
On Nicene Orthodoxy and Marriage
Last week James K.A. Smith kicked off a discussion on the use of the term ‘orthodox’ to describe the traditional Christian position on marriage and sexuality. Wesley Hill has a decent post rounding up the relevant articles in the ongoing…
On the EPC, World Communion of Reformed Churches, and Declarations on Justification
On July 5th the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) signed the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (JDDJ). The JDDJ is a document originally crafted and signed between the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and the Roman Catholic Church…
On Exceptions and the Binding of Conscience
A few years ago I was sitting in a presbytery meeting of the PCA where several candidates for ordination were under examination. All had taken exception to the Westminster Standard’s prohibition on recreation on the Lord’s Day, and those exceptions had been accepted by the presbytery. A few members of the presbytery informed the candidates that though the exceptions were granted, they were not allowed to teach them as they contradicted the confession. This elicited a large amount of discussion from the gathered presbyters, and the overwhelming consensus reached, and later affirmed at a following meeting after consultation with the PCA’s stated clerk, was that in granting the exception, the presbytery was allowing the candidates to teach what they believed. To do otherwise would be to bind their conscience to something they did not believe scripture commanded, which in turn would violate the Westminster Standards.
In other instances, I have seen candidates take exceptions where they affirm paedocommunion or reject that divorce is permissible under any circumstances. In both cases the candidates stated that they would bind their own conscience and refrain teaching these positions. My observation is that the presbyteries approved them only because of those assurances, although I know pastors who voted against allowing either exception or ordination on the grounds that you cannot forbid a minister from teaching what they believe…
