July 12 Today in OPC History

On this date in 1992, New Life OPC (later renamed Keys Orthodox Presbyterian Chapel) in Key West, Florida, was received by the Presbytery of the South as a congregation with Bill Welzien installed as organizing pastor. Three years earlier, Mr. Welzien and others had formed an independent church in Key West holding to the Reformed faith. Writing in New Horizons in 1992, Bill Vermuelen observed what a visitor would find New Life OPC: "If you visit Mallory Square during the seek, you will find Bill and his assistants–between the sword swallower and the fire eater–preaching the gospel of deliverance three times a night. New Life OPC, which began in 1990 with about 30 people, now has a Sunday morning attendance of 65 and an excited Sunday school with five classes. On Wednesday evening there is a well-attended study of the Westminster Confession of Faith. The church's book table promotes the writings of Puritans, Reformers, and Presbyterians."

Picture: Bill Welzien