19-652: The Australian Presbyterian Mission was founded by the Presbyterian Church of Australia to reach those "beyond the farthest fence" with God's word . It is better known as the Australian Inland Mission ( AIM ). John Flynn was the first superintendent possessing a vision and dedication to see that "hospital and nursing facilities are provided within a hundred miles of every spot in Australia where women and children reside". From 1912
38-469: A deaf Presbyterian Church. The Presbyterian Inland Mission continues the work of the Australian Inland Mission founded by John Flynn in 1912. Padres patrol outback Queensland , New South Wales , South Australia and Western Australia , and hopes to expand into the Northern Territory and Tasmania when resources become available. The Presbyterian Church of Australia publishes
57-560: A local level in the Kirk Session. Only ordained ministers may preside at Communion , or the Lord's Supper, except in the rare circumstance where the presbytery licenses a ruling elder to do so. Likewise, only a minister can administer Baptism . A board or committee of management handles the material concerns of the local congregation. Deacons may also be elected to provide practical care. The minister and an elder from each parish have
76-662: A new hymnbook was introduced. In 1991 the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Australia repealed the approval of the ordination of women. Women elders continue in some states. The heresy trial of Peter Cameron in 1993 upheld historic Reformed beliefs. The church is active in missions with about 130 missionaries working around the world, including Korea, the Pacific and Myanmar. The Presbyterian Church of Australia's official website has stated that
95-422: A number remained because of cultural connections. Before the union the Presbyterian Church of Australia was liberal , but the continuing Presbyterian Church became increasingly conservative. A resurgence of traditional Reformed theology took place. In 1982 the denomination withdrew from the largely liberal World Communion of Reformed Churches and later joined the conservative World Reformed Fellowship . In 1987
114-522: A seat at their regional presbytery and at their state's general assembly. The General Assembly of Australia (GA of A), composed of commissioners from each presbytery and state assembly, meets every three years. Every year each state's general assembly elects a moderator , while the General Assembly of Australia elects a moderator general for a three-year term. In 1991, the PCA's General Assembly of Australia determined that only men are "eligible for admission to
133-487: Is a Rev. John Flynn Memorial in Moliagul , Victoria. Presbyterian Church of Australia The Presbyterian Church of Australia (PCA), founded in 1901, is the largest Presbyterian denomination in Australia. The PCA is the largest conservative, evangelical and complementarian Christian denomination in Australia. The Presbyterian Church of Australia is Reformed in theology and Presbyterian in government. John Hunter
152-681: The Presbyterian Theological College in Melbourne. Ministers and elders of the Presbyterian Church of Australia are required to agree to the Westminster Confession of Faith as their subordinate authority under the Bible. "Along with other true Christian churches, the Presbyterian Church believes that the Bible is the infallible Word of God. As a result of this commitment to the Bible, we uphold
171-732: The Queensland Theological College in Brisbane, Christ College in Sydney and the Presbyterian Theological College in Melbourne. Trinity Theological College, Perth , though independent, is also recognised as a theological training institution. The Presbyterian Church operates the Reformers Bookshop in Sydney (as a joint venture with Stanmore Baptist Church) and the PTC Media Centre – part of
190-488: The World Reformed Fellowship , which is a conservative association, where Reformed , Presbyterian , Reformed Baptist and Reformed Episcopal denominations, congregations and individuals can also participate. The Presbyterian Church of Australia is ruled by elders or presbyters. Presbyterian churches recognise two types of elders : teaching elders (ministers) and ruling elders. These elders meet at
209-752: The Australian Inland Mission established 15 nursing homes/bush hospitals in remote Australian locations, including some offices/shelters. Following the establishment of the Uniting Church in Australia in 1977, the work of the AIM continued in the Presbyterian Church as the Presbyterian Inland Mission and in the Uniting Church as Frontier Services . The mission's centennial was celebrated in 2012. There
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#1732773141558228-535: The Presbyterian Church of Australia. See also List of Presbyterian Denominations in Australia . The Presbyterian Church of Australia's missionary organisation is the Australia Presbyterian World Mission. The organisation has more than 170 cross-cultural missionaries. The Presbyterian Church of Australia has established Arabic , Chinese , Cook Islands , Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Samoan and Sudanese congregations, as well as
247-547: The captain of HMS Sirius in the First Fleet was a former Church of Scotland minister. Later Presbyterian Christianity came to Australia with the arrival of members from a number of Presbyterian denominations in Great Britain at the end of the 18th century. The Presbyterian missionaries played an important role to spread the faith in Australia. Since then Presbyterianism grew to the fourth largest Christian faith in
266-399: The church has over 50,000 adults and children within 740 congregations with more than 600 ministers, deaconesses and theological students. At the last Commonwealth Census (2016) nearly 540,000 people identified as Presbyterian/Reformed, representing 2.3% of the population. This makes Presbyterianism Australia's fifth largest Christian denomination, although not all Presbyterians are members of
285-576: The conditions under which true human response to Christ can take place. The Presbyterian Church does not claim to be the only true church. We see ourselves as forming one small part of the Body of the Lord Jesus Christ and we seek to have fellowship wherever we can with fellow Christians who share with us a common loyalty to 'the faith that was once and for all delivered to the saints' (Jude verse 3)." The Presbyterian Church of Australia belong to
304-497: The country. The Presbyterian Church of Australia was formed when Presbyterian churches from various Australian states federated in 1901. The churches that formed the Presbyterian Church of Australia were the Presbyterian Churches of New South Wales, Victoria , Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia. These state churches were (and still are) incorporated by separate Acts of Parliament (i.e. by
323-518: The historic Christian faith. The Presbyterian Church is a Reformed and Evangelical denomination whose understanding of Christianity is set out in the Westminster Confession of Faith. So we stress, as the Bible does, God’s initiative in people becoming Christian believers. This stance does not lead to a lessening of human responsibility before God nor does it take away from the importance of mission and evangelism, but rather establishes
342-551: The monthly Australian Presbyterian magazine and provides social and educational services. The following schools have links with or are run by the Presbyterian Church of Australia. The closeness and formality of association varies. The following schools in Queensland are conducted by the Presbyterian and Methodist Schools Association . The PCA currently has three colleges, based in Australia's three largest cities:
361-581: The respective State Parliaments) for property holding purposes. (These Acts are known as Property Trust Acts). In 1977 70% of the Presbyterian Church of Australia together with nearly all the membership of the Congregational Union of Australia and the Methodist Church of Australasia , joined to form the Uniting Church in Australia . Much of the 30% who did not join the Uniting Church did not agree with its liberal views , although
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