Our congregation is on a journey to find a suitable home where Christ is honored, God is glorified and Scripture is upheld and taught. To use an analogy: think of this journey like taking an airplane trip. There are plans to be made, research to be done, goals to be set, a budget to consider and a destination to be determined before we can ever begin to pack or get our boarding passes. The next step in our journey will take place this Sunday at the congregational meeting. This will involve a vote by those members in attendance to formally declare our desire to seek membership with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC). In November of 2024, by a vote of the members who attended that congregational meeting, an overwhelming majority voted to seek dismissal from the PCUSA. Another milestone in our journey was reached. But now, we must officially declare our desire to join the EPC – our destination. The “plane” heading to the EPC is at the gate, now we need to get our boarding passes and get on board. Please attend this Sunday’s meeting as our desire is for all of you to help us take this next step in our goal of keeping Hebron an orthodox, Scripturally-based, reformed fellowship that welcomes all while holding fast to the traditional Christian essentials, and is united with other like-minded churches.
By the rules of the PCUSA, we cannot be dismissed to just be on our own (non-denominational) or to join any other church that is not Reformed in its beliefs and teachings. The Session did its research and has determined that the EPC is clearly the best choice for us. Why? First and foremost, it holds firmly to the basic historical tenets of the Reformed Christian faith. The EPC lists 8 “Essentials” which are non-negotiable tenets of faith and reflect the truth of the Scriptures. These can be found on their website (EPC.org). Let’s be clear: no denomination, no earthly church is going to be perfect. As long as there are people involved, any organization will be affected by sin. That being said, we (the Session) strongly believe that the EPC is by far the best fit for Hebron.
Our negotiations team is all set and is waiting for the Pittsburgh Presbytery’s team to pick a date to begin working out the details of our gracious separation. So, the plane is about to get airborne to take us to our destination. We may hit some turbulences along the way, but with God as our pilot and prayer as our fuel, we are confident that we will land safely. All aboard!!