I attended worship at First Presbyterian Church in Casper, which is one of the two Presbyterian churches in Wyoming (so far) to secede from the PCUSA to affiliate with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. They retained their grand and lovely building, which was sparsely populated for worship. The service was noticeably more Calvinistic than typical PCUSA worship, mainly in their using part of the seventeenth centuryWestminster Confession of Faith as their Confession Faith, rather than the more commonly used Aposles' Creed, or portions of a more modern statement of Faith. The sermon was about David and Goliath. It is clear that this church sees itself as David, facing the Goliath of modern culture. The pastor announced a large goal: to transform Casper. What particular transformation is needed, or what the result should be was not specified. Since there was a business meeting after worship, I did not stay for coffee hour.
In the evening I attended a movie group from the Shepherd of the Hills Presbyterian Church (PCUSA), where we watched the classic film, The Passion of Joan of Arc. Especially in light of the Pope's visit this week, the film prompted much discussion about how the church, in its various forms, has been complicit in violence. We all agreed that the church has sometimes failed to live up to its calling, and how easy it is for self-righteousness to overwhelm compassion. Then we went out to look at the moon eclipse, but the clouds obscured our vision.
I found the entry on the seceded congregation depressing.
ReplyDeleteI found the 2nd to last line profound. The last line fittingly ironic (providential):
ReplyDeleteWe all agreed that the church has sometimes failed to live up to its calling, and how easy it is for self-righteousness to overwhelm compassion. Then we went out to look at the moon eclipse, but the clouds obscured our vision.