The Reformed Presbyterian Church in the United States was a small
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 ...
denomination based in the United States that merged into the
Vanguard Presbytery. The RPCUS was established in 1983, subscribes to the unrevised
Westminster Confession
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" ...
and upholds
biblical inerrancy
Biblical inerrancy is the belief that the Bible "is without error or fault in all its teaching"; or, at least, that "Scripture in the original manuscripts does not affirm anything that is contrary to fact". Some equate inerrancy with biblical i ...
. The denomination self-identified as
theonomic.
History
The RPCUS began when Chalcedon Presbyterian Church in north
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
left he
Presbyterian Church in America
The Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) is the second-largest Presbyterian church body, behind the Presbyterian Church (USA), and the largest conservative Calvinist denomination in the United States. The PCA is Reformed in theology and presb ...
in 1983. Chalcedon had set requirements that its elders adhere to both theonomy and postmillennialism; however, groups within the
PCA's North Georgia Presbytery complained that the church was being too strict in its requirements and that it was "going beyond the Westminster Confession." While the complaint was dismissed, Chalcedon sought to become secure in its position. They inquired into the
Orthodox Presbyterian Church
The Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) is a confessional Presbyterian denomination located primarily in the United States, with additional congregations in Canada, Bermuda, and Puerto Rico. It was founded by conservative members of the Presbyteri ...
, but found that they had not yet settled on how to handle theonomy, so they formed their own denomination. Chalcedon had begun only nine years earlier under the leadership of Joe Morecraft. After Morecraft ran for Congress in
Georgia' s 7th District in 1986, losing in the general election to incumbent Democrat
George Darden
George Washington "Buddy" Darden III (born November 22, 1943) is an American politician and lawyer from Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. He served in the state house and then for more than five terms as Congressman from Georgia.
Early life
Darden ...
, the denomination saw some growth in the Atlanta area. The church was joined in 1987 by Covenant Presbyterian Church, which grew out of a
Reformed
Reform is beneficial change
Reform may also refer to:
Media
* ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang
* Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group
* ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine
*''Reforme'' ("Reforms"), initial name of the ...
Bible study group held in
Buford, Georgia
Buford is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, Gwinnett and Hall County, Georgia, Hall counties in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 17,144. Most of the ...
. The study group had been partially under the headship of the Rev. Wayne Rogers; however, it would soon be led by Rev. Christopher B. Strevel. The denomination eventually had four presbyteries: Covenant Presbytery (based in Atlanta), Hanover Presbytery, Western Presbytery, and Westminster Presbytery. One church split from the RPCUS in 1990 over concerns of the regulative principle of worship—believing only psalms were acceptable in worship. The next year, Western and Westminster Presbyteries chose to depart and merge, forming the
Reformed Presbyterian Church General Assembly and the Hanover Presbytery also left on its own to form the
Reformed Presbyterian Church – Hanover Presbytery. The split was due, in part, to the RPCUS's failure to establish and maintain a system of church discipline and inability to finalize on a constitution. Only Covenant Presbytery remained; however, it would continue to grow, particularly in the Southern US. By 2003, the presbytery had 6 churches and 2 mission churches.
Morecraft, the denomination's founder, remained pastor of Chalcedon from 1974 until 2015. In 2015, Morecraft transferred his membership to
Reformed Presbyterian Church – Hanover Presbytery as the result of judicial processes against him within the denomination. He immediately founded Heritage Presbyterian Church affiliated with that denomination, also located in
Cumming, Georgia
Cumming is a city in Forsyth County, Georgia, United States, and the sole incorporated area in the county. It is a suburban city, and part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. In the 2020 census, the population is 7,318, up from 5,430 in 2010. Su ...
. Assistant Pastor Tim Price succeeded Morecraft as the Senior Pastor at Chalcedon, before leaving in January 2020.
Before Morecraft's departure in 2015, the denomination had 8 churches, 1 domestic mission church, and 1 foreign mission. At the beginning of 2020, only 3 churches remained: Chalcedon in
Cumming, Georgia
Cumming is a city in Forsyth County, Georgia, United States, and the sole incorporated area in the county. It is a suburban city, and part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. In the 2020 census, the population is 7,318, up from 5,430 in 2010. Su ...
, Zion in
Macon, Georgia
Macon ( ), officially Macon–Bibb County, is a consolidated city-county in the U.S. state of Georgia. Situated near the fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is located southeast of Atlanta and lies near the geographic center of the state of Geo ...
with Pastor Jess Stanfield, and Trinity in
Tazewell, Virginia
Tazewell () is a town in Tazewell County, Virginia, Tazewell County, Virginia, United States. The population was 4,627 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Bluefield, West Virginia, Bluefield, West Virginia, WV-VA Bluefield micropolitan area, micr ...
with Pastor Henry Johnson. Shortly after, only Chalcedon and Trinity would remain with Stanfield becoming pastor at Chalcedon. In 2020, the RPCUS finally dissolved when the remaining 2 churches joined the
Vanguard Presbytery. In May 2022, the former RPCUS churches left the Vanguard Presbytery to form another new denomination: the Christ Reformed Presbyterian Church.
References
External links
Reformed Presbyterian Church in the United StatesChrist Theological Seminary (seminary of the RPCUS)Vanguard Presbytery
Former Presbyterian denominations
Presbyterianism in Georgia (U.S. state)
Christian organizations established in 1983
Presbyterian denominations in the United States
Presbyterian denominations established in the 20th century
Christian organizations disestablished in 2020
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