CREC and Saint Peter Presbyterian Church

March 14, 2006

RE: Saint Peter Presbyterian Church in Bristol, TN

Statement From:
Pastor Randy Booth, CREC Council Moderator

On Saturday, March 4, 2006, the congregation of St. Peter, Bristol, TN, voted to request that a Commission of five pastors or elders, from separate CREC congregations, be constituted to provide pastoral guidance for the immediate needs of the St. Peter congregation. This Commission is not judicial in nature, but rather pastoral. The CREC respects the judicial bounds of the RPCGA and intends to operate within those boundaries. The RPCGA has deposed the former session of St. Peter from office and has also released both the St. Peter congregation and her former session from RPCGA membership without censure. The RPCGA is aware that St. Peter has approached the CREC for pastoral counsel and care.

The RPCGA has not precluded the possibility that some or all of the St. Peter session might be reinstated to office in the future, provided they go through the normal credentialing process. That is not to say that reinstatement is a forgone conclusion, only that the judgment of the RPCGA does not necessarily call for their permanent exclusion from office. Ultimately, these decisions will be made by the congregation of St. Peter and any ecclesiastical body to which they might join themselves.

Some of these matters have been treated in an anti-ecclesiastical way via web sites on the worldwide web. There is definitely false and misleading information that is being advanced at some of these sites, including false information pertaining to the nature and make-up of the CREC Commission. Self-appointed arbiters of justice do not contribute to a godly resolution of anything and we hereby call upon them to recuse themselves from such public discourse, to immediately remove any material related to these matters from the web, and to pray for all those affected by these matters. It is the desire of the CREC to work to honor Christ and His Church.