St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church (Iglesia Presbiteriana San Andrés in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

), is a Christian church denomination that was founded in 1829 and has its origins in the arrival in Argentina of Scottish colonial settlers early in the 19th century. The first church in Argentina was founded at

Monte Grande Monte Grande is a city which forms part of the urban agglomeration of Greater Buenos Aires. It is the administrative seat of Esteban Echeverría Partido in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It was founded on April 3, 1889, by a company named ''Soc ...

, Buenos Aires Province. Originally the church had ties to the Presbyterian

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Reformation of 1560, when it split from the Catholic Church ...

but these were later severed. The church also founded a school for children in 1838 called the St. Andrew's Scots School which later also developed the daughter institution the University of San Andres. In 2019, the church had about one thousand members, fifty-six elders, fourteen ministers and ten congregations. The main office is on the

Avenida Belgrano Avenida Belgrano is an avenue that runs through Montserrat, Balvanera and Almagro neighborhoods of Buenos Aires, Argentina. The avenue crosses other major avenues like Huergo, Paseo Colon, Diagonal Sur and 9 de Julio. The avenue was so name ...

in Buenos Aires, and there are churches and missions located in the City of

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

Province of Buenos Aires Buenos Aires (), officially the Buenos Aires Province (''Provincia de Buenos Aires'' ), is the largest and most populous Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of th ...

and Province of Entre Ríos, Argentina. The

theological Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the s ...

doctrine is '' reformed'', and the form of government is ''

presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

''. St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church is affiliated with the

World Communion of Reformed Churches The World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) is the largest association of Calvinist churches in the world. It has 230 member denominations in 108 countries, together claiming an estimated 80 million people, thus being the fourth-largest Chris ...

and is a member of the Argentine Federation of Evangelical Churches (''Federación Argentina de Iglesias Evangélicas'').

Doctrine

St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church believes that the Bible contains the special revelation of God to mankind, and that it is the only rule of faith and conduct for the guidance of its members. The Church reaffirms the freedom of conscience of its members in regards to the personal interpretation of the biblical text. It also holds that the

Westminster Confession of Faith The Westminster Confession of Faith is a Reformed confession of faith. Drawn up by the 1646 Westminster Assembly as part of the Westminster Standards to be a confession of the Church of England, it became and remains the "subordinate standard" ...

of 1647 and its Larger and Shorter Catechisms contain a worthy and precise summary of the system of doctrines taught in Scripture.

Government

St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church follows the model of presbyterian church government of the early church. It is governed by Elders (Presbiteros), meeting in three courts in regular gradation: the Church Session, the Presbytery and the General Assembly. Elders can be: *Teaching Elders (or

Pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

s): elders elected and trained to teach and preach. *Ruling Elders: elders elected to oversee the spiritual welfare of the church. The Church Session (Cuerpo de Gobierno) is formed by all Elders elected (or called) by the congregation to carry out the particular functions. Generally it meets monthly. The Presbytery is formed by all Teaching Elders and a limited number of Ruling Elders commissioned by each Church Session (generally two per church). It meets three times a year. The upper court, the General Assembly, is formed by all Teaching Elders and a limited number of Ruling Elders commissioned by each Church Session (generally two per church). The church does not currently have a General Assembly. The Book of Order of the St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church is a constitutional church document defines the guidelines for the government, discipline and worship of its members.

Logo

The logo the Church combines the symbol of the

burning bush The burning bush (or the unburnt bush) refers to an event recorded in the Jewish Torah (as also in the biblical Old Testament). It is described in the third chapter of the Book of Exodus as having occurred on Mount Horeb. According to the ...

with the Latin motto, ''nec tamen consumebatur''. The burning bush appeared for the first time as a symbol of

presbyterianism Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

at the end of the 17th century and has been widely used by the

and many other presbyterian denominations. The motto is taken from the Franciscus Junius-

Immanuel Tremellius Immanuel Tremellius ( it, Giovanni Emmanuele Tremellio; 1510 – 9 October 1580) was an Italian Jewish convert to Christianity. He was known as a leading Hebraist and Bible translator. Life He was born at Ferrara and educated at the University o ...

Latin biblical translation of 1579, appearing in the Old Testament in Exodus 3.2: :"and the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the ''bush was not consumed''.

References

External links

website of the Presbytery
*Drysdale, J.Monteith (1929), ''A hundred years in Buenos Aires, 1829-1929 ; being a brief account of St. Andrew's Scots church and its work, during the first century of its existence,'' 116 pp, Argentine Republic he English Printery Buenos Aires, ASIN B000867EKA *Murray, Catherine A. and Howat, Jeremy N. T. (2008), ''St. Andrew's, Buenos Aires : alphabetical index to the registers of baptisms, marriages and burials of the 19th century,'' Michigan, USA
St. Andrew's Presbyterian City Church, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaSt. Andrew's-in-Olivos Presbyterian Church, ArgentinaSt. Andrew's Presbyterian Church Magazine, ArgentinaArgentine Federation of Evangelical Churches, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaRegister of St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church 1827-1900
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Andrew's Presbyterian Church Presbyterian denominations in South America Protestantism in Argentina Argentine people of Scottish descent Presbyterian denominations established in the 19th century

Doctrine

Government

Logo

See also

References

External links