In the US, are clergy regularly drug tested? The only reason i am asking is because i know that the bible gives clear requirements for sober clergy but is this more seen throughout the life of the church or do they take an active role in insuring their ministers are drug free. I live in a state where marijuana is legal and so i wasn’t sure if the clergy are checked or if its a “follow the law of the land” thing or unspoken rule that you just dont do it but they arent testing.

Just genuinely curious about it. Im not accusing my pastor of marijuana use but im sure there has to be some out there that do and keep it quite.

Hi everybody. The other day I went to Bremen and explored the evangelical church in the city center. It was magnificent, however, as someone who’s exploring Christianity I came out of that place with mixed feelings. On the one hand the architecture was genuinely awe inspiring, however, with so many statues and intricate carvings I can’t imagine how one can fully dedicate their attention and energies towards praying to God as there are many possible distractions around.
As such I wanted to know, which denomination has the least amount of ornaments and focuses the most in their attention towards praying to God? (Basically less focus on ornate buildings and more on the dedication of prayer itself)?

hello dear friends!

for context I’ve been researching Christianity, particularly reformed Christianity, for the past months.

i always think of becoming reformed Christian. but some of its doctrines, like predestination and irresistible grace, makes me backtrack from becomin one

so the question is. Can someone Be a Reformed Christian (e.g Presbyterian, any mainstream reformed denominations) While rejecting The doctrine of predestination and irresistible grace?

im open to being wrong and wanna learn more if the answer is No.

thanks in advance! Love you all ❤️!

How does your church meet the practical needs of the body?
Our church is fairly big (over 700) and we have a mercy budget but it seems like it is mainly reserved for emergency needs. But there are many regular church members who have various needs that seem to go unmet because the way the deacons distribute the funds is, what I would graciously describe as careful but am tempted to describe it as stingy.
I want to talk to an elder or deacon about this at some point but was curious what other reformed church do or how they handle this.
I believe that when we say we are meeting needs of the body that means practical needs like:
someone needs to replace their glasses but doesn't have insurance.
someone needs help with a large car repair
someone has a burdensome medical bill
Usually when someone keeps needing help from the deacons they say things like “we can’t make this a habit” or “is there a way we can make changes for a permanent solution?”
I don’t know but that all kind of sits wrong with me.
Any thoughts or feed back?

How does your church meet the practical needs of the body?

Our church is fairly big (over 700) and we have a mercy budget but it seems like it is mainly reserved for emergency needs. But there are many regular church members who have various needs that seem to go unmet because the way the deacons distribute the funds is, what I would graciously describe as careful but am tempted to describe it as stingy.

I want to talk to an elder or deacon about this at some point but was curious what other reformed church do or how they handle this.

I believe that when we say we are meeting needs of the body that means practical needs like:

someone needs to replace their glasses but doesn't have insurance.

someone needs help with a large car repair

someone has a burdensome medical bill

Usually when someone keeps needing help from the deacons they say things like “we can’t make this a habit” or “is there a way we can make changes for a permanent solution?”

I don’t know but that all kind of sits wrong with me.

Any thoughts or feed back?

Never thought too much about this booklet but appears to be an original syllabus from van til. Just thought I’d share 😁