Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales

The Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales (EPCEW) (Welsh: Eglwys Bresbyteraidd Efengylaidd yng Nghymru a Lloegr) is a reformed and conservative evangelical denomination in both England and Wales with churches in Germany, Switzerland, and Sweden. Founded in 1996, the denomination is small but growing.

All Saints' Presbyterian Church (EPCEW), Newcastle upon Tyne
Religion in England

History

In 1986, a Presbyterian conference was held in a Free Church of Scotland chapel in London, where a vision of a new Presbyterian denomination in England was proposed, which was to be faithful to Scripture and adhere to the Westminster Confession. As a consequence, the Presbyterian Association in England was formed in 1987[1] from several small Christian groups and existing congregations with efforts at church planting following. In 1991, an interim Presbytery was formed with congregations in Blackburn, Cambridge, Chelmsford, Durham and Hull to work towards the establishment of the new denomination. This came to fruition in 1996,[1] taking the name, Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales.[2]

Church Planting

In 2000, two congregations in Cardiff, Immanuel and Bethel, were accepted into communion.[3][4] The EPCEW has grown significantly since its founding with a number of congregations joining the EPCEW and others being planted by existing churches. The denomination recently planted a church in the Salford/Manchester area[5] and is working to establish church plants in Oxford,[6] Lincoln,[7] Gloucester,[8] and Sunderland.[9] They are actively looking to plant churches throughout England and Wales.[10]

Denominational growth has been steady:

Year Number of congregations Notes
2000 6 [11]
2005 10 [12]
2010 15 Includes two congregations in Sweden.[13]
2015 17 Includes one congregation in Sweden and one congregation in Germany.[14]
2020 23 There are 20 established churches with a congregation in Sweden, a church plant in Switzerland, and another in Germany.[15]

Congregations

As of 2020, the denomination has twenty-three congregations and church plants at:[16]

England
Congregation Town or City Minister Image
All Saints Presbyterian Church Newcastle Upon Tyne [17] Rev Dr William Schweitzer[18]
Blackburn Evangelical Presbyterian Church Blackburn[19] Rev Norman Green[20]
Bury St Edmunds Presbyterian Church Bury St Edmunds [21] Matthew Jolley[22]
Cambridge Presbyterian Church Cambridge [23] Rev Douglas McCallum[24]
Chelmsford Presbyterian Church Chelmsford [25] Rev Darren Moore[26]
Durham Presbyterian Church Durham [27] Rev Phil Baiden[28]
East Hull Presbyterian church Hull [29]
Hexham Presbyterian Church Hexham [30] Rev Joshua Rieger[31]
Naunton Lane Evangelical Presbyterian Church Leckhampton, Cheltenham[32]
Oxford Evangelical Presbyterian Church Oxford[33] Rev Andy Young
Salford Evangelical Presbyterian Church Salford [34] Rev Chris Statter[35]
Sheffield Presbyterian Church Sheffield[36] Dr Kevin Bidwell[37]
Solihull Presbyterian Church Solihull [38] Rev Dr Stephen Dancer[39]
Sunderland Evangelical Presbyterian Church Sunderland [40] Rev Nathan Hilton[41]
Whaddon Road Evangelical Presbyterian Church Cheltenham[42] Rev David Pfeiffer[43]
Lincoln Presbyterian Church Lincoln[44] Rev Ben Thomas[45]
Gloucester Evangelical Presbyterian Church Gloucester[46] Rev Michael Cochran[47]

Wales

Sweden
See also: Evangelical Reformed Church in Sweden

Germany

Switzerland

Westminster Presbyterian Theological Seminary

Several EPCEW ministers were instrumental in the recent founding of Westminster Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Gateshead, UK. WPTS aims to equip men to hold fast to God’s faithful Word, with a particular focus on preparation for planting churches in the UK and continental Europe. The school is committed to the Westminster Standards, experiential Calvinism, Presbyterian Church government, ordinary means of grace ministry, and the regulative principle of worship. The seminary offers a range of courses accredited through Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, including the Master of Divinity (M.Div.).

Publications

The denomination publishes The Presbyterian Network in Spring and Autumn with theological and pastoral articles and news from its congregations.[54]

International Organisations

Along with the Free Church of Scotland and the Free Church of Scotland (Continuing), the denomination is one of the three members of the International Conference of Reformed Churches from Great Britain,[55] and one of seven European Christian denominations who founded the European Conference of Reformed Churches.[56] The denomination has a co-operative agreement with the Presbyterian Church in America.[57]

References
  1. Bauswein, Jean-Jacques; Vischer, Lukas (1999). The Reformed Family Worldwide: A Survey of Reformed Churches, Theological Schools, and International Organizations. W.B. Eerdmans. p. 512. ISBN 9780802844965.
  2. http://www.epcew.org.uk/about.html Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales - About
  3. http://christianquoter.blogspot.hu/2010/06/presbyterianism-in-england-today-part-3.html Christian Quoter - Presbyterianism in England Today (Part 3)
  4. http://heidelblog.net/2012/09/there-are-presbyterians-in-england-and-theyre-having-a-conference/ The Heidelblog - There Are Presbyterians in England and They’re Having a Conference
  5. "Mission - Salford-Manchester Evangelical Presbyterian church plant".
  6. "Oxford Evangelical Presbyterian Church". Oxford Evangelical Presbyterian Church. Retrieved 2018-05-23.
  7. "Lincoln | Sheffield Presbyterian Church".
  8. "Gloucester Evangelical Presbyterian Church". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2020-11-28.
  9. "Sunderland Presbyterian Bible Study | nil desperandum auspice Deo". sunderlandpres.org.uk. Retrieved 2018-05-23.
  10. http://epcew.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/epcew-church-planting.pdf
  11. "Congregations". epcew.org.uk. Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales. Archived from the original on 2000-12-04. Retrieved 2016-06-26.
  12. "Congregations". epcew.org.uk. Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales. Archived from the original on 2005-12-18. Retrieved 2016-06-26.
  13. "Congregations". epcew.org.uk. Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales. Archived from the original on 2010-12-02. Retrieved 2016-06-26.
  14. "Congregations". epcew.org.uk. Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales. Archived from the original on 2015-11-22. Retrieved 2016-06-26.
  15. http://www.epcew.org.uk/congregations
  16. "EPCEW Congregations". Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales Website. Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  17. https://allsaintspres.org.uk/ All Saints Presbyterian Church
  18. https://allsaintspres.org.uk/people/revd-dr-william-bill-schweitzer/
  19. "Church information - Affinity".
  20. http://www.epcew.org.uk/congregations/blackburn-evangelical-presbyterian-church
  21. http://www.bse-pc.org/welcome.htm Archived 2014-07-14 at the Wayback Machine Bury St Edmunds Presbyterian Church
  22. https://bse-pc.org/about-us/leadership/
  23. http://www.cambridgepres.org.uk/ Cambridge Presbyterian Church
  24. https://www.cambridgepres.org.uk/about-us/people
  25. http://www.chelmsfordpres.org.uk/ CPC Hall Street
  26. http://www.epcew.org.uk/congregations/chelmsford-presbyterian-church
  27. http://www.depc.org.uk/ Durham Presbyterian Church
  28. http://www.epcew.org.uk/congregations/durham-presbyterian-church
  29. http://www.ehpc.co.uk/ East Hull Presbyterian church
  30. "Hexham Presbyterian Church". Hexham Presbyterian Church Website. Hexham Presbyterian Church. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  31. http://www.epcew.org.uk/congregations/hexham-presbyterian-church
  32. http://www.cheltenhampres.org.uk/ Naunton Lane Evangelical Presbyterian Church
  33. http://www.epcew.org.uk/congregations/oxford-evangelical-presbyterian-church
  34. "Salford EPC | Salford Evangelical Presbyterian Church". salfordepc.org.uk. Retrieved 2018-05-23.
  35. http://salfordepc.org.uk/whos-who
  36. http://www.sheffieldpres.org.uk/ Sheffield Presbyterian Church
  37. http://www.epcew.org.uk/congregations/sheffield-presbyterian-church
  38. http://www.solihullpres.org.uk/ Solihull Presbyterian Church
  39. http://www.epcew.org.uk/congregations/solihull-presbyterian-church
  40. http://www.sunderlandpres.org.uk/ Sunderland Evangelical Presbyterian Church
  41. http://www.epcew.org.uk/congregations/sunderland-evangelical-presbyterian-church
  42. "About us: Whaddon Road Evangelical Presbyterian Church".
  43. http://www.epcew.org.uk/congregations/cheltenham-whaddon-road-evangelical-presbyterian-church
  44. "Lincoln Presbyterian Church | Welcome to our website". Retrieved 2020-11-28.
  45. "About Us | Lincoln Presbyterian Church". Retrieved 2020-11-28.
  46. "Gloucester Evangelical Presbyterian Church". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2020-11-28.
  47. "GRUKology Episode 16: Interview with Michael Cochran - Church Planting in Gloucester". Gospel Reformation: UK. Retrieved 2020-11-28.
  48. "Church information - Affinity".
  49. http://www.bethelpcr.org.uk Bethel Presbyterian Church, Cardiff
  50. http://www.immanuelcaerau.org.uk/ Immanuel Presbyterian Church
  51. http://www.immanuelskyrkan.info Immanuelskyrkan, Tranås
  52. "Home - Presbyterianische Kirche".
  53. "Zürich Presbyterianische Gemeinde". Zürich Presbyterianische Gemeinde (in German). Retrieved 2020-11-28.
  54. http://www.epcew.org.uk/resources.html Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales - Resources
  55. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on July 17, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2013.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) International Conference of Reformed Churches - Churches in Membership
  56. http://www.eucrc.org/index.php/members/list-of-members European Conference of Reformed Churches - Member Churches
  57. http://epcew.org.uk/OLD/bco/bco.pdf
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.