# OPC History



## JS116 (Feb 14, 2012)

Anybody know of any free resources to learn about the Orthodox Presbyterian Church online?I'm interested


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## Zach (Feb 14, 2012)

This was a sermon preached by Rev. Danny Olinger at Resurrection OPC a few months ago now titled, "Why We Do What We Do: Singing." It talks about the Biblical command to, "	Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God." (Colossians 3:16 ESV) and hits on a lot of OPC history regarding music. I did not know how much of the founding of the OPC related to increasing liberalism in hymns.


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## JS116 (Feb 14, 2012)

Hmmm seems interesting Zach..I will definitely check it out.Although that's not quite what im looking for,I'm looking for the formation of the OPC,the different GA's that went on,initial mission of Gresham Machen and his counterparts, things of that nature.


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## Guido's Brother (Feb 14, 2012)

I recently lectured on the history of the OPC, so I was wondering the same thing myself. There are a few relevant articles in past issues of New Horizons -- these are available online. Look for the anniversary years (i.e. 2011 was 75th). There's also this page that has some stuff: Historian of the OPC 

The OPC has a DVD on their history available as well, but it's not online. And for the rest, you'll have to hit the books.


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## Wayne (Feb 14, 2012)

Read the Presbyterian Guardian, which is posted on the OPC site. It dates from just immediately before the formation of the OPC, 
and then tracks much of the history of the OPC up until 1987. It was never an official denominational magazine, but coverage was
largely concerned with what was happening within that denomination.

To get something succinct, you'll have to go to one of the books that is offered on the OPC Historian's page of their site.
_Fighting the Good Fight_ by Hart & Muether is probably the one to buy if you are only buying one book. Otherwise,
add _History for a Pilgrim People_ by Dennison and _Pressing Toward the Mark_. Hart's most recent volume,
_Between the Times_ would fill in the middle years.


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## JS116 (Feb 14, 2012)

Thanks Wayne! The OPC would make us pay for information about a denomination, +1 for the PCA


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## Wayne (Feb 14, 2012)

No, no, Shawn. Don't look at it that way. For one, they've put the Guardian up on line, and blow by blow, you won't find a better way of digesting history than to read through original or primary sources like that. (though admittedly, that's a lot of material to read through). If you read consecutively, you'll get a better sense of how things relate and tie together. And the books are sold pretty much at cost, so far as i can tell. The two new anniversary volumes are smyth-sewn hardbacks and only cost $10 each!

Failing anything else, there's always Wikipedia: Orthodox Presbyterian Church - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[one bit of disagreement with the Wikipedia article's writer, where he says


> The denomination maintains a cordial relationship with the Presbyterian Church in America, the largest conservative Reformed denomination in the United States. The two differ from each other more in origin and history than doctrine, though the OPC is traditionally more conservative than the PCA in its approach to worship, government, and discipline; further, the OPC, as a historically Northern U.S. body, *was not informed culturally by the Lost Cause of the South as were the churches that would form the nucleus of the PCA.* The OPC is a member of the North American Presbyterian and Reformed Council (NAPARC), and the International Conference of Reformed Churches (ICRC).



Wrong on two counts, to some extent. Some elements of OPC today are perhaps more consciously informed or guided by Southern Presbyterian theology than are some (many?) in the PCA. This is true particularly in regards of the doctrine of the spirituality of the Church. Darryl Hart is a leading voice on that matter. 

And in regards of the PCA, I find that "culturally informed" phrase reprehensible. Yes, the PCA was formed from Southern churches, but from its founding the PCA was intentionally a national denomination and not a regional or sectional body (its original name was National Presbyterian Church, no less!), and, forming in 1973 when the civil rights movement was still very much in the center of national attention, to be a national denomination necessarily meant being a racially *un*segregated denomination. The new denomination almost from the start had a Presbytery in California. Moreover, there are anecdotal accounts of turning away a man who was willing to donate $1M, but wanted a church for whites only; there is the color-blindness of key leaders such as Aiken Taylor and Bill Hill, as documented in correspondence here in the Historical Center; and the fact that in less than ten years from its founding, the PCA received another denomination with a strong abolitionist heritage. 

(adjusts collar and begins to calm down)


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## JS116 (Feb 14, 2012)

Haha I know Wayne, I was just kidding, sorry if it seemed like I wasnt.

---------- Post added at 11:50 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:39 AM ----------

It is very interesting stuff what you said although! Mannn! I would love to know more about it.I actually had questions about how the OPC felt about the abolitionist movement, and I have yet to find anything. :/


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## Zach (Feb 14, 2012)

JS116 said:


> Hmmm seems interesting Zach..I will definitely check it out.Although that's not quite what im looking for,I'm looking for the formation of the OPC,the different GA's that went on,initial mission of Gresham Machen and his counterparts, things of that nature.



No worries, Shawn. It sounds like Wayne's recommendations are the best for that then.


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## Edward (Feb 14, 2012)

Wayne said:


> The new denomination almost from the start had a Presbytery in California. Moreover, there are anecdotal accounts of turning away a man who was willing to donate $1M, but wanted a church for whites only; there is the color-blindness of key leaders such as Aiken Taylor and Bill Hill, as documented in correspondence here in the Historical Center; and the fact that in less than ten years from its founding, the PCA received another denomination with a strong abolitionist heritage.



It's my recollection that one of the founding fathers of the PCA was a member of a minority group.


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## jwithnell (Feb 15, 2012)

Shawn, I'm actually finding your observation about free-online history resources to be rather interesting and odd. My first thought was that of course there's plenty out there. But even looking at resources like the 75th anniversary edition of New Horizons, I'm seeing very little. (The articles in that issue were mostly personal reflections.) The website that is most self-observant about history is the one for Westminster Seminary which is, naturally, only tangentially related to the formation of the OPC. 

I don't think this is a deliberate oversight. Perhaps our small size leads to the unintentional assumption that folks just know the history. And from a scholarly basis, like the online availability of the Guardian, there's much to be gleaned. But that doesn't give the average joe a quick run-down of a remarkable history in which some lost much to maintain a consistent, confessional witness.


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## Contra_Mundum (Feb 15, 2012)

Fighting the Good Fight The WHOLE book is not online, but there are sections of the book online, mainly historical

The First Ten Years

Historian of the OPC web page with historical references, audio, etc.


Hope this is useful...


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## JS116 (Feb 15, 2012)

Appreciate it Rev Bruce,I will check it out.


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