December 12 Today in OPC History

On December 12, 1955, the Rev. G.I. Williamson was received into the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. At the time he was pastoring Grace Presbyterian Church (United Presbyterian Church of North America) in Fall River, Massachusetts. That congregation sought to affiliate with the OPC in anticipation of the merger that would take place in the following year between the UPCNA and the northern mainline Presbyterian Church (PCUSA) which would form the United Presbyterian Church in the USA.

The OPC semi-centennial volume described the reception of this church in this way: “There were meetings of every description, among them the memorial reexamination by the Presbytery of New York and New England of Pastor Williamson, which continued well past 2:00 a.m. At that time, the OPC appeared concerned that the group might include incurable dissidents.” While that fear proved to be misplaced, it may have established a precedent for Mr. Williamson (known for the rigor of his theological examinations) that has come to plague many ministerial candidates in the OPC ever since!