why isn't the OPC more prevalent ?

[Jacque_Pierre22]

I was just noticing that many states have 0 or 1 OPC church in them but Ohio, Pennsylvania and Illinois seem to have the most. I would like to attend but my state doesn't have any , only PCA. I would go if there were more. What needs to happen for that? Are people really that convinced that baptism is not a means of grace ? There are baptists everywhere no matter what state you're in.

 

[bbbbbbb]

A lot of has to do with history. Unlike the United Methodist Church which is undergoing a major split at this time, the Presbyterians have taken the route of smaller spin-off denominations. As the mainstream united church (currently the PCUSA which was formed from the northern and southern branches in the 1960's) has drifted toward greater liberalism, conservative members have departed, leaving the more liberal members in the denomination. Some of the conservative folks have formed conservative Presbyterian bodies such as the Bible Presbyterians, the OPC, the PCA, the EPC, etc. Each was formed as a result of a difference on a particular doctrine or practice. For example, homosexual ordination was the trigger for the EPC, but played no role with earlier spinoffs such as the PCA and the OPC. Women's ordination was a huge issue for the OPC, but not so much for later spin-offs. If one opposes women's ordination either as elders or as deaconesses, then the OPC would be an excellent choice. However, most Presbyterians today do not perceive that as being a significant issue. Thus, they have other options from which to choose. As a result, the OPC remains quite small, but hardly the smallest in the family. In the USA the RPCNA is probably the smallest. Their issue goes all the way back to seventeenth-century Scotland and revolves around taking the Covenant. So, if the Covenant is the big issue for you then I highly recommend the RPCNA.

Ancillary issues are there, as well. One of the more interesting ones IMO is the singing of the Psalms, which is fast fading even in the highly conservative branches, other than the RPCNA. So, if exclusive non-instrumental Psalmody is your issue, then go for the RPCNA.

 

[Jacque_Pierre22]

A lot of has to do with history. Unlike the United Methodist Church which is undergoing a major split at this time, the Presbyterians have taken the route of smaller spin-off denominations. As the mainstream united church (currently the PCUSA which was formed from the northern and southern branches in the 1960's) has drifted toward greater liberalism, conservative members have departed, leaving the more liberal members in the denomination. Some of the conservative folks have formed conservative Presbyterian bodies such as the Bible Presbyterians, the OPC, the PCA, the EPC, etc. Each was formed as a result of a difference on a particular doctrine or practice. For example, homosexual ordination was the trigger for the EPC, but played no role with earlier spinoffs such as the PCA and the OPC. Women's ordination was a huge issue for the OPC, but not so much for later spin-offs. If one opposes women's ordination either as elders or as deaconesses, then the OPC would be an excellent choice. However, most Presbyterians today do not perceive that as being a significant issue. Thus, they have other options from which to choose. As a result, the OPC remains quite small, but hardly the smallest in the family. In the USA the RPCNA is probably the smallest. Their issue goes all the way back to seventeenth-century Scotland and revolves around taking the Covenant. So, if the Covenant is the big issue for you then I highly recommend the RPCNA.

Ancillary issues are there, as well. One of the more interesting ones IMO is the singing of the Psalms, which is fast fading even in the highly conservative branches, other than the RPCNA. So, if exclusive non-instrumental Psalmody is your issue, then go for the RPCNA.

wow that's interesting, what about the controversy over "FV" or "Federal Vision" ? I don't know much about it but how would I know if my pastor at a PCA or OPC church was an adherent of that or is that rare?

 

[bbbbbbb]

wow that's interesting, what about the controversy over "FV" or "Federal Vision" ? I don't know much about it but how would I know if my pastor at a PCA or OPC church was an adherent of that or is that rare?

Here is a helpful Wikipedia article - Federal Vision - Wikipedia

As you can see, it was a relatively recent innovation which, curiously developed among several conservative Reformed denominations (not unlike similar earlier controversies such as preterism). This one had zero relationship with the PCUSA. It is difficult to determine how such a relatively obscure teaching could engender such strong feelings. Apparently, it is not merely good enough to embrace standard Reformed theology.

One curious aspect of Reformed theology is the eschatology (or lack thereof). Calvin wrote commentaries on all of the books of the Bible, except the Revelation, leaving a huge vacuum in the area of eschatology. In the nineteenth century Reformed churches in particular developed a form of postMillenial theology which heavily focused on the abolition of slavery in the United States as being the necessary action required by God to bring about the Millennium. By the 1870's it was fairly obvious to everyone that the Millennium had not yet happened, so the focus was shifted to the prohibition of alcohol in American society. After that failed in the twentieth century, there was a general silence on the topic with only vague notions that Jesus Christ would come sometime in the future. The rise of Dispensationalism in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries led to a Presbyterian eschatology which was anti-Dispensational in nature. By the late twentieth century the typical amillennialism and anti-Dispensationalism in the conservative branches got shaken up with some seriously dodgy eschatologies such as Preterism.