Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church

The Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church is a small denomination, formed from the merger of the Associate (Seceder) and the Reformed Presbyterian (Covenanter) churches in Philadelphia in 1782. It is a conservative denomination and is one of the oldest in the United States.

History

Presbyterian pastor Ebenezer Erskine led a group of Christians in separating from the Church of Scotland into a separate Associate Presbytery. Other similar offshoots had formed the Reformed Presbytery. These emigrated to Ireland, and later to the United States, establishing congregations from around 1750 to 1770, mostly in Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.

Some churches of the two movements came together officially in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1782. Another synod was formed of churches in South Carolina and Georgia in 1803 and still another in Texas. The northern Synod merged with the Associate Presbyterians in 1858 to form the United Presbyterian Church of North America. The Modern ARP Church descends from the southern Synod.

The ARPC today

The modern ARP Church in America contains more than two hundred churches in ten presbyteries and thirty thousand members. It has Bonclarken, a campground in Flat Rock, N. C., and its headquarters in Greenville, S. C. It has churches in most states and Canada. Separate Synods exist in Mexico and Pakistan.

The ARP Church is affiliated with the North American Presbyterian and Reformed Council and shares a common theology with conservative Presbyterian denominations. It holds to the infallibility of the Bible and does not ordain women as ministers or elders, though it does permit women deacons. Having been originally formed by a merger of two denominations holding to exclusive psalmody, this was the practice of the ARP Church until 1946, when its Synod allowed for the use of songs other than the Biblical Psalms.

In 1835 the church established in Due West, South Carolina, an academy for men, which in 1839 became Erskine College, the first four-year church-related college in South Carolina. The tiny school is very highly ranked for academic quality.

Erskine Theological Seminary is the professional school of Erskine College. While the college had a professor of divinity since its inception, the seminary was established as a separate but associated school in 1858. Today the seminary provides training for students of a number of denominations, especially the United Methodist Church.

Purpose Statement

Who We are in Christ, Facing the 21st Century

''"We, the members of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, in order to carry out God's mission and move forward together into the next century, profess our life together in Christ and our desire to set forth a united strategy for the work of His church. We express our desire to continue to be a Presbyterian and Reformed church, committed to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and to the Bible as the Word of God."''

- http://www.arpsynod.org/whatwebelieve.html

Basic Beliefs

The worship of the Triune God.
The Holy Scriptures as the basis for our faith and activity.
Unity with other believers in Christ.
Total Stewardship of life - time, talents, and money - including tithing through the local church.
Excellence in education and equipping leaders for tomorrow.
Loving and caring for one another and for other people.
Spreading the Gospel to all parts of the world.
Evaluating and changing church structures and priorities in order to meet the challenges of the future while preserving the best of the past.

Contact

Address:

Associate Reformed Presbyterian Center 1 Cleveland St Ste 110 Greenville SC 29601-3646

Phone: 864-232-8297
Fax: 864-271-3729

External links

Christian denominations | Christian denominations of North America | Presbyterianism | Presbyterianism in the United States