September 10 Today in OPC History

On September 10, 1977, the Special Committee on Housing for Retired Ministers met at the OPC administrative building at 7401 Old York Road in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania. Committee members were Kenneth Bosgraf, Bruce Coie, Ada Galbraith, Lewis Grotenhuis, and chairman John Kinnaird. Committee members Grotenhuis and Coie both had recently retired after four decades of pastoral service in the OPC. The committee had been established to assist the Pensions and Diaconal Committee to help retiring ministers, many of whom had served in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church since its founding in 1936. One of the first things that the committee did was to survey the pastors of the OPC. They found out the following: 1) Over 80% of OPC ministers would prefer to own their own homes, but only 60% did own a home; 2) Around 40% of OPC congregations owned manses; 3) The manses owned represent a significant asset of the church. In addition to the survey, the committee questions whether congregations were obeying the scriptural mandate of 1 Timothy 5:17 that pastors well deserve to be paid double. In the committee's judgment, too often pastors were only paid "half."

Picture: Bruce Coie