DECLARATION OF COMMITMENT
To the membership of the
Presbyterian Church, US, in light
of the questions and concerns being expressed in the Church
as to the nature of our faith and order, we, the undersigned
ministers declare our conviction:
--- That the faith of our
Lord Jesus Christ turns men from
darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. By
coming to faith in Him alone is there genuine reconciliation
between man and God and man and man.
--- That the Holy Scriptures
are the infallible Word of God,
and that these Scriptures commit the Church to a mission
whose primary end is the salvation and nurture of souls.
--- That Christian faith
must bear fruit if it is to remain virile.
These fruits vary from believer to believer. But common to
them all are evidences of love, concern and neighborliness,
toward all races of men without partiality and without preju-
dice, especially to the poor, the oppressed and the disad-
vantaged. The man of faith views all men as neighbors and
himself as debtor, for Christ’s sake.
--- That, for the implementation
of the above principles, in
obedience to our ordination vows, we must strive to preserve
a confessional Church, thoroughly Reformed and Presbyterian.
Thus, our support of or opposition to any proposed union will
be determined by these considerations.
--- That, being fully committed
by our ordination vows to the
system of doctrine set forth in the Westminster Confession
of
Faith and Catechisms, we must oppose all efforts to change
in substance or otherwise debase our historic doctrinal com-
mitment.
--- That we are in the same
context by vow committed to his-
toric Presbyterian polity with its representative system and
its parity among teaching and ruling elders. Thus, we are
forced to oppose any efforts to take our Church into the mas-
sive organization envisioned by COCU.
--- That, should the basic
theology or polity of the Church be
altered or diluted, we shall be prepared to take such actions
as may be necessary to fulfill the obligation imposed by our
ordination vows, to maintain our Presbyterian faith.
