In June of this year, the PCA General Assembly celebrated its jubilee.  Locally, the half-century milestone was marked by a service conducted on October 13th by Westminster Presbytery, the regional body of ministers and churches. Covering southwestern Virginia and northeastern Tennessee, Westminster Presbytery has long had a reputation for its staunch adherence to the standard Presbyterian doctrinal standards–the Westminster Confession of Faith, Westminster Larger Catechism, and Westminster Shorter Catechism.

A special event was held recently in the Tri-Cities, commemorating the establishment of a group of Presbyterian churches.

Fifty years ago, a new denomination was born, as numerous churches and ministers separated from the Presbyterian Church in the United States (PCUS).  Known informally as the Southern Presbyterian Church, the PCUS, by 1973, had become liberal in its theology.  Concern over that liberalism prompted about five percent of the mainline denomination to withdraw and to form a new branch of the church, the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA).

The PCA began with 260 congregations and 41,000 members, virtually all of them in the South.  Today, it has more than 1900 organized churches and missions and close to 400,000 members, spread throughout the United States and Canada.  It is the largest conservative, Bible-believing Presbyterian denomination in the country.

Significantly, the denomination has continued to profess belief in the inerrancy, infallibility, and inspiration of the Bible; the virgin birth, sinless life,  substitutionary atonement, and bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ; salvation by faith alone and grace alone; and justification based upon the imputation of Christ’s righteousness alone.  The PCA also maintains standard Biblical ethics, as witnessed by its commitment to traditional marriage and to preserving the life of unborn babies.

In June of this year, the PCA General Assembly celebrated its jubilee.  Locally, the half-century milestone was marked by a service conducted on October 13^th by Westminster Presbytery, the regional body of ministers and churches.

Covering southwestern Virginia and northeastern Tennessee, Westminster Presbytery has long had a reputation for its staunch adherence to the standard Presbyterian doctrinal standards–the Westminster Confession of Faith, Westminster Larger Catechism, and Westminster Shorter Catechism.

The October 13th event was held at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Kingsport, Tenn.  Several of the founding fathers of the Presbytery spoke.  A common theme was the crisis of conscience that each one faced, and the opposition and challenges that resulted from their resolve to separate.

Delivering the keynote address was Rev. Larry Ball, a retired minister who had served for a number of years as the Stated Clerk and who enjoyed a long ministry in Kingsport.  Mr. Ball recounted the history of the Presbytery, and also stressed the need to remember God’s acts lest future generations forget.

The other speakers were Rev. Pete Hurst, who in 1974 became the first pastor of the host congregation in Kingsport and also served in Alabama and Virginia; Rev. Sidney Anderson, who became a missionary in Nigeria and the Czech Republic; and Dr. Frank J. Smith, who was a ministerial candidate in 1973 (the first one in the PCA) and whose father was the first Stated Clerk of the Presbytery.

The evening was characterized by joy, reflection, poignancy, and anticipation of what the next fifty years might hold.

The service is available on Westminster Kingsport, the host congregation’s YouTube channel.

Frank J. Smith is Pastor of the Atlanta Reformed Presbyterian Church (RPCNA), Atlanta, Georgia.