Communion Table or Lord's Table
This is the table at the front of the sanctuary that holds the bread
and the wine (or juice) for Communion. Sometimes other items are placed on
this table, such as the Bible, a cross, or candles.
The reason this is called the Lord's Table rather than an altar is that
on the night in which he was betrayed, when Jesus was eating the
Passover meal with his disciples, they were sitting at a table
(Luke 22:14).
An altar is a place for making sacrifices. In the Reformed tradition
we believe that Jesus' sacrifice on the cross was sufficient once and
for all. This sacrifice does not have to be repeated with a Mass or
other Communion on an altar.
Lord's Supper
This is the meal we share from the Lord's Table. Some churches call this
meal Communion, or the Eucharist. Eucharist is from the Greek
word for "thanksgiving," which is what Jesus did before he gave
the bread and wine to his disciples.
Manse
This is a house owned by a congregation that they let the pastor
live in. In some denominations it is called the "pasrsonage."
The word "manse" comes from the Latin word "mansio" which means
"dwelling."
Session
This is the group of people, elected by the congregation, who make
the decisions for the running of the local church. In some churches
this group is called the "church council."
Elders
The Session is composed of elders. This doesn't have to do with
age so much as those who are considered competent and wise enough
to make good decisions. There are two kinds of elders, "ruling
elder" and "teaching elders." The ruling elders come from the
congregation and are elected to serve in three-year cycles. The
teaching elder is the pastor. This person is called a teaching
elder because they have the responsibility to preach and teach
proper doctrine. The pastor is often also called the minister,
or a "minister of the Word and Sacrament."
Presbytery
The Presbytery is made up of a group of churches usually in a certain
geographical area. The presbytery meeting includes "presbyters," both
ruling and teaching elders, who gather to make decisions affecting
the presbytery. By having their representatives gather together
as a group, congregations both support each other and are held
accountable to each other.
Moderator
This is the person who runs a meeting of elders or deacons, or a
presbytery or committee meeting. In a club or other gathering,
he or she would be called the "chairperson" or perhaps the
"president."
While the moderator of a board of deacons is usually a deacon, the
moderator of the session is a teaching elder. The moderator of
the presbytery may be either a teaching elder or a ruling elder.
Book of Order
This is the rule book for the Presbyterian Church. It contains
the guidelines for church life, including structure, worship and
collective action. It not only tells us how to do things, but
also explains why. It was developed and can be modified by the
General Assembly, with the ratification of a majority of the
presbyteries.
General Assembly
Every year all the presbyteries in the country elect commissioners
or representatives to a meeting of the General Assembly. The
General Assembly makes deicions for the church as a whole. This
is where Presbyterians become a national rather than a local church.
Commissioners
These are the people - a proportionate number of ministers and
elders - elected by the presbyteries to go to General Assembly. Rather
than being instructed in how to vote at the Assembly by their
presbytery, the commissioners as a body seek to discern the will
of the Holy Spirit.
Election
No, this doesn't refer to how commissioners are selected to go to
the General Assembly. It is a theological term that means God
makes the first move in acting to redeem sinners. People within the
covenant faith are called "the elect." Reformed (or Presbyterian)
theology teaches that we are not capable of saving ourselves from
our sins, and that God "elects" or "chooses" to save us.
Predestination
This word, similar to election, often raises questions for people
of other denominations. Basically predestination means that our
election by God occurred not only before we were born, but so far
back in time that it happened "before the creation of the world"
(see Ephesians 1:4).
Debts and Debtors
When we pray the Lord's Prayer we use the words "debts" (forgive
us our debts) and "debtors." Some Christians say "trespasses" or
"sins." This is because the Lord's Prayer is found in both
Matthew and Luke's Gospels, and in the original Greek they used
two different words that mean "to sin." In Matthew's version the
word used means "to owe a debt," but a debt of sin, not money.
Calvin and Knox
In the Presbyterian Church you will hear the names Calvin and
Knox used frequently." John Calvin was a French
Reformer who followed in the footsteps of Martin Luther in the
1500s. He gave us the theological foundations for our church, so
we have named a lot of things after him. John Knox was a Scottish
preacher who brought the teachings of John Calvin to Scotland
and got the Presbyterian Church going in that country. The
Presbyterian Church (USA) is a direct descendant of the church
in Scotland.
With some slight modification, this is a reprint of an article by P.J. Southam that appeared in Presbyterians Today.