Local Presbyterian church seeks to switch denominations

Published: Thursday, March 7, 2013 at 7:50 p.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, March 7, 2013 at 7:50 p.m.

On Feb. 10, 86 percent of the congregation of Westminster Presbyterian Church on Fernwood Drive voted to leave the Foothills Presbytery, the regional council of the Presbyterian Church (USA), and move to the ECO ? A Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians. Their request to be dismissed will be addressed at the presbytery's regular meeting on April 28.

The Rev. Paul Peterson, pastor of the 675-member church, refused to provide any comments on what specifically provoked the decision, but if the vote is approved, the church will become the second in the Upstate to make this move in the past year, after many others across the nation have already done so.

Petersen said in a statement that the church has been concerned about challenges to its Presbyterian Reformed Theology ? the bedrock of its mission ? for a number of years. He would not say what these challenges are.

So what's the motivation behind so many churches choosing to leave?

Dr. Peter Hobbie, professor of church history and doctrine at Presbyterian College in Clinton, said the denomination these churches are flocking to, the ECO, formed shortly after the 2011 vote by the Presbyterian (USA) denomination to allow the ordination of gays and lesbians.

Amendment 10A, which was approved by a majority of PC (USA)'s presbyteries in May 2011, removed the requirement for ministers to live in ?fidelity within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman or chastity in singleness.?

The ECO is one of six Presbytery denominations, Hobbie said, and it essentially formed in response to the vote.

The vote, however, was for local option, which means the decision is ultimately up to individual presbyteries, regional councils of the denomination.

?In effect, nothing has changed in South Carolina,? Hobbie said.

Still, ?many people have been concerned and distressed about this issue,? he added.

Many Presbyterian churches across the nation have left the denomination since the vote.

According to the Presbyterian Lay Commission, in the past decade, a few hundred congregations have left the PCUSA for either the newly formed ECO or other denominations.

More staggering is the number of members the church has lost ? 63,804 from 2010 to the end of 2011.

In the Upstate, only a few churches have elected to leave the Presbyterian (USA) congregation since the 2011 vote.

The Trinity Presbytery, which serves churches in 11 counties across the middle of the state, reports that three churches have left. The Foothill Presbytery, the largest in the state, which encompasses 75 churches in the Upstate from Spartanburg, Greenville, Anderson, Oconee, Pickens, and Cherokee counties, reports that only one church has completed the removal process. However, two others, including Westminster, have recently issued requests to be dismissed.

Last year, First Presbyterian Greenville became the first church in the Upstate to leave. It also voted to join the ECO. Clergy at the church refused to comment on their decision to leave.

Hobbie described the fact that the Presbyterian Church has so many denominations as a ?travesty? and said the church needs to do a better job of staying connected.

?We need to be more clear by the fact that no Presbyterian church stands alone, we stand together,? he said.

Clergy at First Presbyterian Spartanburg, which has more than 2,000 active members, agree.

When asked why they are choosing to stay with the denomination while others are leaving, the Rev. Tom Evans, senior pastor, said it's a matter of accepting everyone, regardless of differences.

?Our church and our denomination, the Presbyterian Church (USA), are places where people of many points of view and many backgrounds can worship and serve together. We think this is of great value in our faith and in our culture ? that people who are different can work together for a unified purpose,? he said.

Members of Upstate Pride, a local organization consisting of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals, said it's important for churches to be accepting toward gays and lesbians.

?Churches that don't welcome these congregants limit the size of their congregations, not only because LGBT people are turned away, but because Pro-LGBT allies will seek churches that share their political beliefs,? said Alex Hubbard, public relations chairman for Upstate Pride.

Hobbie doesn't expect too many more churches in the Upstate to leave.

?We are pass the point where we aren't going to see many more leave,? Hobbie said. ?And that's a good thing. I'm very opposed to churches leaving.?

Source: http://www.goupstate.com/article/20130307/articles/303071029

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