Westminster Presbyterian Church

The Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church is a conservative, evangelical denomination which holds to the great truths of the Christian faith as revealed in Holy Scripture. The Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church adheres to the Westminster Standards, historic doctrinal statements which emphasize the following:

• GOD IS THE SOVEREIGN CREATOR and ruler of the universe.

• JESUS CHRIST is the Son of God, the only Saviour and Lord of man.

• THE HOLY SPIRIT is the initiator and enabler for the Christian life.

• THE BIBLE is the infallible Word of God, the only rule of faith and practice and without error in all that it teaches.

• SALVATION is by God’s grace, freely given through faith and not earned by any merit of man.

• THE TEN COMMANDMENTS are the summation of man’s duty to God and of man’s responsibility to his fellow man.

• FAMILY WORSHIP AND TITHING are encouraged.

• CHURCH GOVERNMENT is by the Presbyterian system from which the denomination takes its name. As outlined in the New Testament, church government is by elders and deacons, elected in a democratic manner by each congregation.

• THE SACRAMENT OF BAPTISM is administered to believers and their children. All forms of Christian baptism are recognized, and a second ceremony is not administered to those baptized in other churches.

• BELIEVERS MAY JOIN the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church by profession of faith, reaffirmation of faith or transfer of membership from another denomination.

Our principal doctrinal statements are found in The Standards of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church. From time to time position statements are written to address specific topics of concern. The areas of responsibility of boards and committees of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church are spelled out in the Manual of Authorities and Duties. In worship, our congregations often employ an ancient confessional statement known as the Apostles’ Creed:

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ His only Son, our Lord; Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary; suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic Church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.

Position Statements

ABORTION

We believe that the Scriptures clearly and plainly testifies to the infinite worth of human life by virtue of man having been created in the image and likeness of God, and that decisions about life and death are God’s prerogatives and not man’s, and that even in the case of rare exceptions such as judgments by medical personnel about highly technical medical problems, human judgement should always stand in submission to the divine judgement and wisdom of God.

We also believe the Scriptures point up a unique relationship between God the Creator and the unborn child. And, therefore, regarding the divine mysteries of the conception and development of human life, we dare make no other inference than the conclusion that it is not for men basically to be the determiners of life and death, even for the unborn child. Therefore, in all instances, one should seek to preserve the life of the unborn child.

(Minutes of the General Synod, 1981, p. 402 & 403)

HOMOSEXUALITY

For all conditions of men and women, the renewing grace and changing power of Jesus Christ are freely offered. To those enslaved in the bonds of any sinful practice or thought pattern, Jesus Christ can bring freedom and release.

Today, many seem to be caught in the web of homosexual practices and thought-patterns. In Christian love we declare that God’s Word clearly forbids homosexual practice as a sin against God. As members of the Church of Jesus Christ we affirm our obligation to show Christian love and concern for homosexuals, and call them to repentance, cleansing, and deliverance in the saving power of Jesus Christ.

(Minutes of the General Synod, 1977, p. 444)

SCRIPTURE

The Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the Word of God without error in all that it teaches.

(Minutes of the General Synod, 1979, p. 23)

We believe Christ is the Son of God. We believe God the Father gave His Son to save us from our sins. We believe that the Holy Spirit reveals Christ to us through the Holy Scripture which is the Word of God written. While we do not have the original autographs as evidence, we believe on faith that God’s Word in its entirety was accurately recorded by the original writers through divine inspiration and reliably transmitted to us. We affirm that salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ and Him alone.

(Minutes of the General Synod, 1979, p. 76)