Meanwhile, back at Tenth Pres, talk is cheap, but contrition is nowhere to be found

“The only vice that cannot be forgiven is hypocrisy. The repentance of a hypocrite is itself hypocrisy.” — William Hazlitt

We’ve covered misconduct at Tenth Presbyterian (PCA) in Philadelphia repeatedly over the years. But the more things change, the more they stay the same. And we need look no further than the slate of candidates for the church’s Session, which will replace the current Session, resigning in December.

Slate of candidates

Here’s the church’s email, together with the list of candidates:

At the congregational meeting on May 16, 2025, members of the congregation requested that Session release the names of current elders who, while resigning, intend to stand for election to serve on Session again in 2026.

This request arose in part from concerns about the genuineness of Session’s repentance, especially given that some who resigned intend to stand for election without a significant pause, which has raised questions for some about whether the process reflects true repentance or is rather a public gesture.

In response, at its meeting on May 27, 2025, Session voted to release these names in a spirit of transparency, eager to demonstrate a commitment to bearing fruit in keeping with repentance and to help rebuild trust as we move forward.The following is the status of all men currently on Session with regard to whether they intend to stand for election, listed alphabetically by last name:

Keith Bennet – End of Term; Not Returning

Norm Carter – Nominated; Willing

Dave Collins – Nominated; Not Returning

Paul Duggan – Nominated; Willing

Bert Fink – Nominated; Willing

Jamin Ferner – Nominated; Not Returning

Nasrat Ghattas – Not Returning

Frank Harder – End of Term; Not Returning

Bill Langford – Nominated; Undecided

Kevin Little – Nominated; Willing

George McFarland – Nominated; Not Returning

Michael Miller – Nominated; Willing

Chris Pontius – Nominated; Willing

Russ Pfeifer – Nominated; Undecided

Scott Sweeney – Nominated; Willing

John Ward – Nominated; Undecided

We invite you to pray for each of these men as they go through elder training and examination, as well as men currently not on Session who have been nominated. Ask the Lord to give them humility and clarity as they seek to discern his will.

Please also pray for our teaching elders and for the men commissioned by Presbytery to assist in examining all officer candidates, that they may discern each man’s readiness in light of the high standards of Scripture and our confessional commitments. A reminder that officer training begins this Sunday, July 13, in Fellowship Hall at 9 AM. We encourage all members of the congregation to attend, even if you are not a nominee, to learn more about the biblical qualifications and responsibilities of church officers.

As always, nomination is only the beginning of the process. Per the Book of Church Order (BCO) 24-1, every candidate must be examined and found sound in both life and doctrine. Our teaching elders will lead the class and offer recommendations to Session regarding who may stand for election in December. Barring extraordinary circumstances, a nominee who receives at least four out of six ministerial recommendations will be eligible for inclusion on the ballot at the congregational meeting held in December.

If you have personal concerns about any of these nominees, we encourage you to speak directly with the individual or bring your concern to a member of the Leadership Development Committee. We are committed to listening with grace and addressing such matters in a godly and honest way.

Being an elder in Christ’s church is a high and holy calling. The significance is not found in the title, but in the work itself. So, we humbly ask for your prayers that God would raise up just the men he has called to shepherd the flock of God (1 Peter 5:1–11).

In Christ,

The Leadership Development Committee

TE Enrique Leal

RE Russ Pfeifer

TE Josiah Vanderveen

Looking into this crock of goo

Wow, where to begin?

Let’s start with the context. The church acknowledges in the email that members are calling it on the carpet over issues of transparency and accountability.

Releasing the list of candidates is good, but it only goes so far when those involved are corrupt.

Specifically, we need only look at the leadership development committee, where Enrique Leal is one of the abusers implicitly identified in the GRACE report.

Relatedly, Russ Pfeifer’s response to abuse in the church has been underwhelming, as identified in the GRACE report (page 79). Moreover, in subsequent civil litigation, Pfeifer said that one of the female victims “got what she deserved.”

On this score, we want to be crystal clear: Victims of abuse never deserve it. Full stop. It doesn’t matter where they go, how they act, or what they wear.

Any other conclusion is morally wrong and misogynistic. Not to mention proof that folks at Tenth just don’t get it.

Similarly, Paul Duggan has spent way too much time on this website commenting about how he’s new and not responsible for Tenth’s current mess.

But people in leadership positions are, by definition, responsible for leading, and we have yet to see meaningful change or accountability at Tenth. So yeah, Duggan needs to work for change or leave. It’s as simple as that.

Meanwhile, Bert Fink’s inclusion on the list spells bad news for the church. Over the years, he’s been complicit with George McFarland in many of the worst problems at Tenth, so the fact that he’s even up for consideration is problematic.

Speaking of, after years of corruption at the church under his watch, why was George McFarland nominated again? Do people in the church not get the problems at hand?

Indeed, the only good news in all of this is that Andrew Fletcher has flown the coop. From our vantage point, the church should never have elected Fletcher in the first place.

Legal woes facing Tenth

Meanwhile, there’s one sign looming that Tenth may yet clean up its act. Specifically, word on the street is that Tenth is about to get hit with at least one lawsuit over its abusive behavior.

To that, we say kudos.

Yes, we get the whole thing about not suing other Christians. We also recognize that one of the first lawsuits may well come from Guy and Susan Elzey — and yes, we continue to regard Susan as being on both sides of the aisle when it comes to abuse. 

But Tenth and its leadership did not have any qualms about taking whistleblower Phil Snyder to court, and the church did not have any problem perjuring itself about Phil.

Nor has the church or its leadership retracted any of its fabrications made under oath.

So, there is zero reason to feel bad for Tenth Presbyterian or to think a lawsuit is unwarranted.

Finally, to be clear, the Philadelphia Presbytery has twice rebuked Tenth Pres and its leadership for violating the Fifth and Ninth Commandments per the GRACE report (pages 41-43), including covering up issues with a former director of music who allegedly sadistically abused young men he supervised.

It is time to clean house at Tenth.

A copy of the GRACE report is included below.