Good Church News (at last)
From the 227th PC-USA General Assembly
In this time of national celebration as well as reflection on the 250th anniversary of the signing of the United States Declaration of Independence on Saturday, I have read with sadness announcements from the Southern Baptist Convention, disempowering / prohibiting women from serving in positions of leadership in their Protestant Christian churches. I have also read (with disgust) about the ways the civilian leader of the United States Department of Defense has attempted to inappropriately force Christian practices and worldviews upon service members, contrary to the values and words of our Constitution and it’s Amendments, separating Church and State.
Thankfully, all the news from Christian denominational leaders today is not bad and heretical. (Heresy: Contrary to the discerned, interpreted and properly understood Word of God.)
I am encouraged by recent news from our own PC-USA Presbyterian Denomination, whose representatives this summer voted overwhelmingly for and forwarded the following change to our “Book of Order” for a vote of the Presbyteries this coming year:
“The church rejects any ideology that seeks to establish Christianity as a privileged or dominant force through the power of the state, or that conflates religious identity with national, racial, or ethnic supremacy. Such ideologies, in all their forms, are incompatible with the example and teachings of Jesus Christ, constitute a theological error, undermine the church’s faithful witness, and are contrary to the church.
Thanks to delegates at the 227th General Assembly of the PCUSA Denomination:
PC(USA) labels White Christian nationalism "Theological Error"
(John A. Bolt, The Presbyterian Outlook, 1 July 2026)
Specifically, thanks to Presbyters from San Jose, California, and partners / co- sponsors:
“The Presbytery of San Jose, who authored RUS-01, was joined by six other presbyteries in asking the General Assembly to take a stand, calling Christian nationalism “a dangerous and increasingly pervasive ideology that seeks to merge national identity with Christian identity, distorting both faith and politics” that “contradicts the foundational commitments and public witness of our church: love, equality, inclusion, peace, religious freedom and the imago dei of all beings.
In its rationale for the request, San Jose said, “Christian Nationalism presents a clear and present danger to both the integrity of Christian faith and the health of democracy. It distorts the gospel and seeks to impose a singular religious identity on a pluralistic society.”
A second adopted resolution, RUS-07, helpfully goes on to explain by “White Christian Nationalism” is theologically erroneous and misleading:
“‘Nationalism’ emphasizes the importance of a ‘homeland’ with a shared ethnic identity among its citizens. Christian Nationalism becomes ‘white’ when it suggests that those of northern European ancestry are inherently more capable, intelligent, moral, and able to lead — and are thus the only ‘true Americans’ and ‘true Christians.’”
Specifically this resolution highlights, why the inclusion of all of God‘s children, including our LGBTQ+ brothers and sisters, is essential to the health of our nation and fidelity with the Word of God, the teachings of Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit.
It states:
“…this ideology [White Chistian UN-nationalism] has made LGBTQIA+ persons specific and repeated targets. By characterizing diverse sexual orientation and gender identities as existential threats to the homeland or national identity, this ideology utilizes dehumanizing language to justify the exclusion of these communities and other marginalized groups from public life.”
A third adopted statement condemned the values and actions of settler colonialism, an essential tenant of white supremacy:
“The [Advocacy Committee of Women and Gender Justice] reminds commissioners that RUS-02 ‘risks sanctifying a narrative that binds the Church’s witness to a national origin story rooted in conquest, exclusion, and the erasure of Indigenous peoples, particularly women and gender expansive persons.’ The overture also risks elevating American identity in unhealthy ways.”
I am encouraged by all of these words.
Our words matter.
If we seek to be “culture healers and not culture warriors,” and in the words of President Abraham Lincoln in his second inaugural address, “…strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds…” then we must stand resolute in condemning movements which seek to dehumanize rather than humanize our neighbors.
May God heal our nation and our world, and may our hearts turn to the guidance of God’s Holy Spirit as we seek to understand and do His will.
AI attribution: I did NOT use any AI tools to write this short article. I did, however, use Claude AI to draft an image prompt, and then created that image using Gemini AI.