June 30 Today in OPC History

On June 30, 1937, the Presbytery of Chicago withdrew from the Presbyterian Church of America (renamed Orthodox Presbyterian Church in 1939). The presbytery had been formed nine months earlier with the Rev. J. Oliver Buswell serving as moderator. Two churches were enrolled, First Chicago PCA and Glenwood PCA, both pastored by the Rev. R. Jackson Vaughn. First Chicago Church was a mission work located on the north side of Chicago while Glenwood Church was located on the south side of Chicago near Chicago Heights.

At the Third (1937) General Assembly held June 1–4 in Philadelphia, the Presbytery of Chicago had argued unsuccessfully for "abstinence" to be the official position of the new church. The presbytery also believed that the amillennial and premillenial views of Scripture were "so irreconcilable as to vitiate any united testimony on the Lord's return." When the Assembly did not uphold the presbytery's desire to have premillennialism declared the position of the church, the presbytery severed ties. The Rev. William Agnew cast the lone vote for remaining in the PCA, and his membership was tranferred to the Presbytery of Wisconsin.

Picture: J. Oliver Buswell (left) and J. Gresham Machen in 1936