PCUSA
100 Witherspoon Street
Louisville KY 40202-1396
Kentucky United States of America (North America) Telephone: +1 502 569 5000, 5439 Fax: +1 502 569 8005 Email: ckirkpat@ctr.pcusa.org Address-No.: 112216 / 3205
The Presbyterian Church (USA) was created in 1983 through a merger of “Northern” and “Southern” Presb, a division dating back to the Civil War. It is by far the largest Presb body and can therefore lay claim to being the mainstream Presb body. The Presbyterian Church has been subject to both internal and external divisions throughout its history. The 18th-century revival caused a division between the Old Side and the New Side, with the New Side demanding more understanding of the spiritual needs of the people from its ministers. As Americans moved west and required cooperation with their neighbors, there was also cooperation among frontier churches. Suspicion of the orthodoxy of those new churches led to the di visionof Old School and New School in 1837. Princeton Seminary, founded in 1812, represented Old School thinking, while Union Theological Seminary in New York was founded by persons of the New School in 1836. While several groups split off from the mainstream in the 19th and 20th century, there were reunions as well. Each reunion left a remnant that continues today. In 1858 two Presb groups, the Associate Synod and the Associate Reformed Synod, each with independent origins, joined to become the United Presbyterian Church in North America (UPCNA). In 1906 the Presbyterian Church USA reunited with the Cumberland Presb, a frontier breakaway. The PCUSA and the UPCNA joined in 1958 to become the United Presbyterian Church in the USA (USA). The Southern group, officially known as the Presbyterian Church in the United States (PCUS), then merged with the UPCUSA in 1983. That merger created the Presbyterian Church (USA), a national Presbyterian church. From the 1960s on, the PCUSA has found its numbers in decline. Controversies over the 1983 merger led to a loss of about 800,000 members. The church, however, remains the largest body of the Ref and Presb tradition in the USA. Its people are found across the country, although they are more concentrated in the South and East. About 40% of the members live in the Southern states, the area of the former PCUS. There are strong minority caucuses in the PCUSA. The African-American group is the largest, followed by the Korean Presbyterian Council, which has about 50,000 ethnic Koreans in its congregations. The PCUSA is strongly ecumenical in outlook. Its predecessors were founding members of both the World Council of Churches and of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches. In 1997 agreement was reached with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America to have full communion and an exchange of ministers. At present the church seeks to establish closer links with the Cumberland Presbyterian Church (cf. no. 14). Among the main challenges facing this church are mission amid pluralism, theology and sexuality, witness in a materialistic culture, and secularization. There are 14 seminaries affiliated with the PCUSA, including two which have covenant agreements with the General Assembly, one being in Puerto Rico.
Statistic data of church
Members
total: 3644187
Parishes
(conventionally): 12685
house fellowships
(Number of growing parishes): 0
Ordained clergy
total: 20624
women´s ordination
Elders/Presbyters
total: 0
Deacons
total: 0
no information about deacons
Missionaries
total: 0
no information about missionaries working abroad
Baptismal practise
infant and believer´s baptism
Godparents
No information about godparents
Lord's Supper
Frequency per annum: 8
Newspapers/ Periodicals
no information about publication of magazines
Theological training facilities
Number: 14
Schools providing general education
no information about other schools
Founded in
1983
Organizational structures
171 Presbyteries in 16 synods, annual General Assembly
The Presbyterian Church (USA) was created in 1983 through a merger of “Northern” and “Southern” Presb, a division dating back to the Civil War. It is by far the largest Presb body and can therefore lay claim to being the mainstream Presb body. The Presbyterian Church has been subject to both internal and external divisions throughout its history. The 18th-century revival caused a division between the Old Side and the New Side, with the New Side demanding more understanding of the spiritual needs of the people from its ministers. As Americans moved west and required cooperation with their neighbors, there was also cooperation among frontier churches. Suspicion of the orthodoxy of those new churches led to the di visionof Old School and New School in 1837. Princeton Seminary, founded in 1812, represented Old School thinking, while Union Theological Seminary in New York was founded by persons of the New School in 1836. While several groups split off from the mainstream in the 19th and 20th century, there were reunions as well. Each reunion left a remnant that continues today. In 1858 two Presb groups, the Associate Synod and the Associate Reformed Synod, each with independent origins, joined to become the United Presbyterian Church in North America (UPCNA). In 1906 the Presbyterian Church USA reunited with the Cumberland Presb, a frontier breakaway. The PCUSA and the UPCNA joined in 1958 to become the United Presbyterian Church in the USA (USA). The Southern group, officially known as the Presbyterian Church in the United States (PCUS), then merged with the UPCUSA in 1983. That merger created the Presbyterian Church (USA), a national Presbyterian church. From the 1960s on, the PCUSA has found its numbers in decline. Controversies over the 1983 merger led to a loss of about 800,000 members. The church, however, remains the largest body of the Ref and Presb tradition in the USA. Its people are found across the country, although they are more concentrated in the South and East. About 40% of the members live in the Southern states, the area of the former PCUS. There are strong minority caucuses in the PCUSA. The African-American group is the largest, followed by the Korean Presbyterian Council, which has about 50,000 ethnic Koreans in its congregations. The PCUSA is strongly ecumenical in outlook. Its predecessors were founding members of both the World Council of Churches and of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches. In 1997 agreement was reached with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America to have full communion and an exchange of ministers. At present the church seeks to establish closer links with the Cumberland Presbyterian Church (cf. no. 14). Among the main challenges facing this church are mission amid pluralism, theology and sexuality, witness in a materialistic culture, and secularization. There are 14 seminaries affiliated with the PCUSA, including two which have covenant agreements with the General Assembly, one being in Puerto Rico.