Welcome to a Congregation of the Presbyterian Church

Welcome to this Presbyterian congregation! It is one of the nearly 13,000 similar congregations spread across the United States that, together, make up the Presbyterian Church (USA).

Early Presbyterianism in both Europe and America was often characterized by its insistence on a kind of “doctrinal purity” in which all congregations and all members adhered to identical beliefs and practices. Today, however, Presbyterianism is a uniquely diverse denomination in which it is difficult to characterize either a “typical” congregation or an average Presbyterian. Our congregations range from large metropolitan congregations of a few thousand members to small country churches of 20 members, from suburban middle-class congregations to inner-city store-front churches. Our worship styles and theological emphasis vary from congregation to congregation. We are ethnically and socially diverse and well distributed across the United States.

While this modern diversity sometimes gives us identity problems, it is also a great strength of the Presbyterian Church (USA). Whatever your needs and interests, there is a Presbyterian congregation for you. No matter what our surface differences may be, we are all members of God’s family. We are brothers and sisters who love the same Creator and our differences genuinely allow us to be responsive to God’s call. However, around the world, Presbyterians share a common understanding that we are all chosen by God to be disciples of Jesus Christ and this unifying force is much stronger than the things that make us different from one another.

As a means of further introduction to this congregation of the Presbyterian Church (USA), the remainder of this document is divided into a question-answer format focused on the things we think you might like to know about the Christians who call themselves Presbyterians.

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