Highland Presbyterian Church is a member congregation of the Presbyterian Church (USA), a denomination of about 2.5 million members and approximately 11,200 congregations. We also belong to Baltimore Presbytery, which is made up of 72 congregations in central and western Maryland.
To be Presbyterian means many things. It means we are governed by a Book of Order, which delineates the principles of polity (church government), worship, and discipline in the Reformed tradition. It also means that we are guided in our theological views by a Book of Confessions comprised of eleven great historical creeds of the Christian church, including the Nicene and Apostles’ Creeds, from the early centuries of the church, as well as several statements of faith from the twentieth century.
But perhaps more than anything else, to be a congregation in the Presbyterian Church (USA) means that we are a connectional church. Highland Church elects its own officers and carries out worship and ministry as an independent congregation, but we do not do so in isolation. Instead, we participate with other Presbyterian churches on the local, regional and national levels, as well as in ecumenical circles, to do things together in mission that we could not do alone. In concert with others in the PC(USA) family, we grapple with matters of faith and polity, to discern where God would lead the church.
You can learn more about Highland Church’s ecclesiastical ties by logging on the www.pcusa.org and www.baltimorepresbytery.org.
