Our Beliefs

The Presbyterian Church (USA) affirms the distinctive beliefs of the Reformed Tradition, which date back to principles articulated by John Calvin in the 16th century. Central to the Reformed tradition is affirmation of the sovereignty of God. That assurance provides a basis for other traits of the Reformed way: that God calls us to service in the world, that our life together is to be ordered in ways that enable all members to flourish, that God calls us to generous stewardship of what we have, and that we are to stay alert to the human tendency to idolatry and tyranny and respond to God’s call to work for a society that seeks justice. For over four centuries, Presbyterians have been responding to the call of Jesus Christ, taking the gospel into the world and bearing witness to Christ’s saving love to the ends of the earth. Today the Holy Spirit is still on the move, calling us to share in what God is doing in the world. Shaped by its Reformed theology, history, and representational form of leadership, the Presbyterian Church (USA) faithfully works to serve Christ in the world through new and existing communities of faith, hope, love, and witness.