Text of the THEO Trio’s report to General Assembly
DORA DAROCZI:
Good morning, everyone! My name is Dora from the Calvin Hungarian Presbyterian Church in Calgary, and my friends speaking with me are Anna from Vancouver Island, as well as Abigail from Essex-Kent.
We will address two questions: the first being what we believe the church needs to hear after attending and participating in GA, and the second being what we think the church is missing as it looks to the future.
We would like everyone to note that when we say the plural word “WE,” that means we are applying it to the three of us only, not any other YAR members. We, the three of us, would like to show the general assembly that young adults do have very different opinions, and with this report, we are celebrating diversity in our denomination. We feel the holy spirit leading us to offer you this reflection and pray that He will bless the hearing of it.
Living Faith chapter 5 says: “The Bible is the standard of all doctrine by which we must test any word that comes to us from church, world, or inner experience.” I think that in a time of cultural confusion and moral relativism, the PCC must clearly and courageously reaffirm its commitment to the historic truths of the gospel: the lordship of Jesus Christ, the reality of sin, the necessity of repentance, and the transforming power of God’s grace.
The three of us believe that the Church must proclaim the unchanging truth of Scripture rather than accommodate it to cultural trends. As Paul charged Timothy, “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching” (2 Timothy 4:2).
In Revelation 2 and 3, Jesus both rebuked and encouraged the churches. He called the faithful to persevere, warned those who had strayed, and promised blessings to those who remained steadfast. His love always came with a call to repentance: in John 8:11, Jesus said, “Go and sin no more”, because as Paul said in Romans 6:23, “the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord”. As Presbyterians, we are called to reflect this same love, firm in truth, rich in grace, and unwavering in our witness.
Truth and love are not opposites, they work together. In my opinion, it is unloving to share the truth of God’s Word with a world that desperately needs it.
ANNA FARLIE:
Hi, I’m Anna from St Andrews Presbyterian church in Nanaimo, Vancouver Island.
What is our generation—and those even younger—so desperately searching for?
If I’m honest, this isn’t just a question I’ve asked about others. It’s a question I’ve asked about myself. I know what it feels like to chase answers—about who I am, what matters, and where I belong. It gave me a sense of control, even confidence, as if I could shape who I was, day by day, into who I was meant to be. But that kind of freedom without structure and boundaries eventually wore me down. Because without something solid to stand on, I always felt like I was drifting.
Eventually, every answer I reached for ran dry. The things I thought would fulfill me—whether that was success, acceptance, new ideas, or self-expression—couldn’t hold me up anymore. But when I had nothing left, God met me. He lit that frozen wick of hope within me, and I didn’t know it was still there. I had given up on myself. But he hadn’t.
Since then, I’ve grown in faith. And that journey is why I’m standing here today, with a deep conviction and a deep love for those around me who are still searching.
Because I see it everywhere: a quiet, aching brokenness in my generation. A longing for identity, purpose, and meaning. A hope for something real and lasting. And I believe the church has the answer—but only if we hold fast to God and never forget who we are.
Like the Israelites in the Old Testament, we’re surrounded by cultures, ideas, and values that seem thrilling in the moment. But if we’re not rooted in the solid foundation of the Word, we risk being swept away. In Judges 2, it says the Israelites began to worship the gods of the nations around them, and slowly forgot who they were. That didn’t happen because they stopped believing in God overnight. It happened because they slowly drifted.
And I fear the same is happening today—not out of rebellion, but out of compassion, out of the desire to include and relate. But if we’re not consistently grounded in truth, even compassion can become compromised.
The Word of God tells us exactly who we are, not based on performance or popularity, but on His unchanging truth. Our identity is not something we build; it’s something we receive from God.
That’s why Jesus called us to be set apart. Not to isolate us, but to protect us, and to make us a light in the darkness. If the church blends in, how will anyone see the way out?
So I ask, as someone who’s lived the search: What are we reflecting? The culture around us, or the face of Christ within us?
I believe identity, purpose, and meaning are not side issues but make up the foundation of how we live, grow, relate, and hope. And what we turn to—especially as the church—will shape not only our future, but our voice in the world.
Let us be a people who don’t just go with the flow, but who stand on the truth, live in grace, and point to the only source of life that will never run dry.
The triune God we wholeheartedly seek to serve: Yahweh the Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
ABIGAIL McGUFFIN:
Hi, I’m Abigail from Lakeshore St Andrews Church in Windsor, Ontario.
As we look ahead to the future, we feel that the Church is missing a vital opportunity to guide the next generation in finding their true identity in Jesus Christ. I know people who are desperately searching for truth in a world that offers only temporary answers through cultural trends and self-expression. Has the church too often told youth and young adults to find their identity in culture instead of in Jesus Christ?
Are we equipping our youth and young adults to know their identity in Him, as 2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. ? Our rising generation is starving for something real… for purpose, for identity, for truth. But instead of pointing them to Jesus, it seems we’ve often let culture define who they are.
This leads me to ask: Are we truly making disciples—followers of Jesus who are rooted in Scripture, growing in faith, and living transformed lives—or are we simply filling pews with people who show up on Sundays but are not being equipped to live as disciples throughout the week? I believe the call of the Church must be to go beyond attendance and into active, intentional discipleship. Abby concludes: We pray the Assembly continues to ask:
Not what culture demands from the church,
But what Christ commands of it.
We pray that the PCC will never trade truth for relevance, but hold fast to Christ, who is the same yesterday, today, and forever!
ALL: Thank you, and God bless you all!
_______________________________
The final sederunt can be found on the PCC’s Youtube channel.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xeaMybmJbXQ
The THEO Trio’s remarks begin at 40:09.
