Prominent PCA Pastor Burk Parsons Suspended Indefinitely From Pulpit After ‘Guilty’ Verdict
Prominent PCA pastor Burk Parsons has been indefinitely suspended from the pulpit after being found guilty of unbecoming pastoral conduct by the PCA’s Central Florida Presbytery.
Parsons is the senior pastor of Saint Andrew’s Chapel, a prominent PCA congregation in Sanford, Florida, as well as the chief publishing officer for Ligonier Ministries, editor of Tabletalk magazine, and a Ligonier Ministries teaching fellow. Months ago, he was brought up on charges related to his personal conduct and temperament.
Yesterday, the Judicial Commission of the Central Florida Presbytery announced that, after hearing testimony from nearly 60 witnesses and conducting more than 45 hours of trial proceedings, resulting in two full days of deliberation, they unanimously found him guilty of three charges.
- Being harsh, ungentle, and unkind to those under his care or with whom he interacts
- Not being a humble servant leader but instead “lording it over others” (i.e, autocratic) and being domineering, contentious, and quarrelsome/pugnacious in his leadership so that those in his care and in his “leadership orbit” were intimidated, bullied, and/or afraid
- Slandering and/or demeaning other servants and churches of our Lord
Some of the (more) specifics include actions towards Ruling Elders (RE’s) and congregants:
According to the report:
The Commission voted unanimously to indefinitely suspend (Teaching Elder) Parsons from office, but not from the sacraments, citing insufficient signs of repentance and a need for pastoral reflection about his calling as an elder.
During this time TE Parsons cannot participate in the duties of an elder, including preaching, teaching, administering the sacraments, and participating in the church courts.
The Commission reveals that the suspension remains in effect until “satisfactory evidence of repentance is provided.”
Notably, they also point out that this isn’t the first time Parsons has faced these type of allegations. Parsons “previously plead guilty to similar charges in 2019 and received admonition at that time.”
This, along with “subsequent reports of relational harm and unhealthy leadership environment, taking
place both before and since the 2019 event” indicate an “unresolved pattern, and thus led the
Commission to discern that indefinite suspension was the appropriate censure.”
Parsons plans to appeal to appeal the decision.
About Author
in the PCA “RE” is “Ruling Elder” not “resident.”
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This report is pretty useless since it offers no examples of what they’re claiming he said.
I went and found a sermon of his on Ligonier Ministries on youtube and started watching it. I think they need to add to this document “he talks too slow.” I had to put him on 1.5 to get him to even close to normal preacher speed. I guess he and Steve Lawson went to “how to talk super slow” school together, and probably graduated together with James White. And of course the first sermon I found of this freak is trying to equate Omnipotence to God being a lunatic puppetmaster freak from hell as Calvinism teaches. So, contrary to Anon who had a problem with the report not giving any example of what this man did wrong, of how he spiritually abused people, I FOUND ONE: He taught Calvinism. That IS spiritual abuse. Fire him, defrock him, and send him to the penitentiary for life, because he is guilty of being a vile heretic and spiritual abuser, and Satanist, because he teaches a false god who predestines all sins.
Papist freak.