A Pennsylvania church has ended its relationship with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and affiliated with ECO: A Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians.
East Main Presbyterian Church, located in Grove City about 50 miles north of Pittsburgh in western Pennsylvania, was granted dismissal from the PCUSA during a Feb. 26 meeting of the Presbytery of Shenango.
Persistent evidence that the PCUSA ignores the authority of Scripture and the Lordship of Jesus Christ, or relates them to the climate of the current culture, were the latest symptoms in the denomination’s drift from Biblical principles and obedience to Christ as Lord that burdened leaders and members of the Pennsylvania church.
As a result, the session of East Main – a church founded in 1879 – began to explore the possibility of leaving the denomination.
“This was not something that happened over night,” the Rev. Dr. Bill Hoffman said. “This has been a part of who we are for a long time. Our session decided in the spring of 2011 that we had to make a decision – to be different from the way our denomination was heading, or we were going to have to leave and go elsewhere. It was a crossroads of being different and witnessing (in the PCUSA) or going to a denomination that fits us better.”
A Denominational Issues Team – charged with following changes within the PCUSA, developing responses for the congregation and an option for a potential new denominational home – was formed in June 2011.
After numerous discussions with the Denominational Issues Team and prayerful consideration spanning more than six months, the session of East Main voted unanimously (13-0 with two abstentions) on Jan. 10, 2012, to recommend the church seek dismissal from the PCUSA and affiliation with another Reformed body.
On April 29, 2012, 58 percent of the church’s active membership turned out for a congregational vote that revealed 89 percent (312-37) were in favor of the recommendation to sever ties with the national denomination.
The East Main congregation voted on Oct. 28, 2012, to request dismissal from the Presbytery of Shenango and affiliate with ECO. Thirty-nine percent of the active members – more than the 35 percent required by the presbytery’s gracious dismissal policy – turned out for the vote, and 97 percent (a margin of 226-7) were in favor of joining ECO.
To finalize the dismissal process the church agreed to pay its full amount of per capita for 2013 and a descending portion for the next two years, an amount totaling approximately $15,000.
“Our presbytery shared some of our same views, and the relationship we had probably kept us in the PCUSA longer than expected,” Hoffman said. “We wanted to honor that relationship with the presbytery.
“Overall, it was a process that was very gracious and wasn’t adversarial at all. I think with reluctance the presbytery understood where we are. The PCUSA label was an increasing hindrance to us being recognized as the evangelical church we are.”
The session of East Main had voted in 1988 to cease its giving to support the work of the PCUSA because of concerns over the drift of the denomination away from Biblical standards embraced by the congregation. The removal of the fidelity and chastity clauses in 2011 was further proof of such a drift and proved to be a tipping point in the decision to seek withdrawal from the PCUSA.
“We’ve long been a congregation that could be characterized as evangelical within the PCUSA,” Hoffman said. “We believe in the necessity of Christ for salvation, the primacy of Scripture and have a strong mission focus.”
About a decade ago, East Main’s session adopted a mission statement that reflected the central aims of the church along that evangelical path. Among those were being a people who recognize that salvation is found only through Jesus Christ; an affirmation of the authority of Scripture; being a community of believers who respond with grateful obedience to God; and being a church empowered by the Holy Spirit that acknowledges Christ’s Lordship in every part of life.
That came as a result of a number of issues the church took exception to within the PCUSA, including the General Assembly’s refusal to adopt a resolution affirming Jesus as the unique savior in 2001. In response, East Main joined nearly 1,200 congregations in the confessing Church Movement, which affirmed the uniqueness of Jesus Christ as savior and the authority of the Bible for faith and life.
More recently, a change in the ordination standards created an issue for East Main’s leaders and membership.
A majority of presbyteries across the nation voted to change ordination standards that called pastors, elders and deacons to “lead a life in obedience to Scripture and in conformity to … historic confessional standards.” The change, which took place with the passage of Amendment 10A in May 2011, calls them to be “guided by” these same standards. Language calling ordained leaders to repent of self-acknowledged sin has been removed. In regard to sexual morality, leaders no longer are called to either faithfulness within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman, or chastity in singleness.
“(Amendment) 10A made it concrete for a lot of people,” Hoffman said. “It was a view of the Scripture and Christ we could not abide by, and we felt the PCUSA was divided on core issues. This is not about sex, and it’s unfortunate that this became a flashpoint issue. This came down to how we are called by God. (Passage of 10A) was an obvious in-your-face symptom of that obedience to Christ, or lack thereof, as revealed in Scripture.”
Hoffman said ECO seemed to provide the best denominational fit for East Main’s congregation moving forward, particularly through the expression of its essential tenets.
“That was a draw. One of the fatal flaws going forward with the PCUSA was its refusal to nail down theological essentials, something we found ECO to have,” he said. “There is an unequivocal and clear view about women in the ministry and an entrepreneurial spirit of high trust and low control in ECO, which fits well with where we want to be.”
The dismissal process was one that proved to be valuable and clarifying for the East Main congregation as it moved forward into a new denominational home, something Hoffman thinks will serve members well in the future.
“It was an eye-opening experience for many, but it got us to talking about our theological essentials and why it is important to have them,” Hoffman said. “We feel now like we are living into this vision of ministry we have and hope that ECO challenges us to work in that direction. It’s kingdom work, and that’s what we hope to be about.”