The Book of Confessions - The Presbyterian Leader

public and well attended, unless persecution by the enemies of Christ and the Church does not
permit them to be public. For we know how under the tyranny of the Roman emperors the
meetings of the primitive Church were held in secret places.
DECENT MEETING PLACES. Moreover, the places where the faithful meet are to be
decent, and in all respects fit for God's Church. Therefore, spacious buildings or temples are to be
chosen, but they are to be purged of everything that is not fitting for a church. And everything is
to be arranged for decorum, necessity, and godly decency, lest anything be lacking that is required
for worship and the necessary works of the Church.
MODESTY AND HUMILITY TO BE OBSERVED IN MEETINGS. And as we believe
that God does not dwell in temples made with hands, so we know that on account of God's Word
and sacred use places dedicated to God and his worship are not profane, but holy, and that those
who are present in them are to conduct themselves reverently and modestly, seeing that they are
in a sacred place, in the presence of God and his holy angels.
THE TRUE ORNAMENTATION OF SANCTUARIES. Therefore, all luxurious attire,
all pride, and everything unbecoming to Christian humility, discipline and modesty, are to be
banished from the sanctuaries and places of prayers of Christians. For the true ornamentation of
churches does not consist in ivory, gold, and precious stones, but in the frugality, piety, and
virtues of those who are in the Church. Let all things be done decently and in order in the church,
and finally, let all things be done for edification.
WORSHIP IN THE COMMON LANGUAGE. Therefore, let all strange tongues keep
silence in gatherings for worship, and let all things be set forth in a common language which is
understood by the people gathered in that place.
CHAPTER XXIII - Of the Prayers of the Church, of Singing, and of Canonical Hours
COMMON LANGUAGE. It is true that a man is permitted to pray privately in any
language that he understands, but public prayers in meetings for worship are to be made in the
common language known to all. PRAYER. Let all the prayers of the faithful be poured forth to
God alone, through the mediation of Christ only, out of faith and love. The priesthood of Christ
the Lord and true religion forbid the invocation of saints in heaven or to use them as intercessors.
Prayer is to be made for magistracy, for kings, and all that are placed in authority, for ministers of
the Church, and for all needs of churches. In calamities, especially of the Church, unceasing
prayer is to be made both privately and publicly.
FREE PRAYER. Moreover, prayer is to be made voluntarily, without constraint or for
any reward. Nor is it proper for prayer to be superstitiously restricted to one place, as if it were
not permitted to pray anywhere except in a sanctuary. Neither is it necessary for public prayers to
be the same in all churches with respect to form and time. Each Church is to exercise its own
freedom. Socrates, in his history, says, "In all regions of the world you will not find two churches
Copyright © 1996 by the Office of the General Assembly, Presbyterian Church (USA)