Church Unions in the next 20 years?

Which churches may merge in the next 20 years?


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PointyHaired Calvinist

Puritan Board Junior
I've heard rumors and discussions about these for the last couple of years. Which of these do you think may happen in the next 20 years, say better than a 1 in 3 likelihood?
 
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I really don't think that our Calvinist credentials are in jeopardy because we use the word "chance". :lol:

I wouldn't be surprised to see some PCA churches that find the denomination too "liberal" joined to and received by the OPC, and others that find the denomination too "restrictive" joined to and received by the EPC or RCA. As far as wholesale church unions, I dunno. Maybe the UCC and the Unitarians?!
 
I really don't think that our Calvinist credentials are in jeopardy because we use the word "chance". :lol:

I wouldn't be surprised to see some PCA churches that find the denomination too "liberal" joined to and received by the OPC, and others that find the denomination too "restrictive" joined to and received by the EPC or RCA. As far as wholesale church unions, I dunno. Maybe the UCC and the Unitarians?!

I can see this happening as well, and some recent examples could be named that have done just that.
 
PCUSA and UCC

:rofl::rofl::rofl:

We all know it will be with the Episcopal Church!

I always thought the PCUSA could join the UCC, and the United Church of Whatever (UCW) would joint THE Episcopal Church (TEC) to form "The Church" (TC), headed by its arch-moderator Lucky (what, shouldn't dogs be eligible for ordination?). In the union synod, Lucky will give a better sermon than anything the TEC, PCUSA, and UCC high leadership has given in years.
 
Personally I think a union of the "Continental" Reformed Traditions is more likely than those who hail from the British Isles.

Though I did vote for a union maybe between RPCNA and ARP. Not a "full union" but I think relations between the two could be tightened in some manner.
 
As an outsider let me observe the Free Reformed Church and Heritage Reformed Congregations would seem to be a natural fit. But I am not Dutch so their may be good reasons why this suggestion is silly.
 
As a CRC / RCA merger seems to be anticipated by voters here, can someone give background particularly on the RCA and why a merger would be likely?
 
"ARP and RPCNA"

These two have been separate in the US since 1782- when the ARP was founded! I don't see it happening until the ARP gets back to its principles of biblical worship. I would love to see it. I love the brothers in the ARP.

Remember that the last remaining AP congregations went into the RPCNA in the 1960s. So really there are already 2 ARP Churches.
 
ABCUSA and Cooperative Baptists - 40-65%
ABCUSA and Alliance of Baptists - 30-45%

UCC and Americans United for Separation of Church and State - 100% (Hey, Barry Lynn is already UCC isn't he? Just like Bill Moyers).

Any mainline denomination and ACORN - 100%

Grymir and the Karl Barth Society of North America - 0.000000001%
 
IT REALLY EXISTS!!! Karl Barth Society of North America is based in Princeton U.

It's open to anyone, if you pay the $20 dues!!!

I'll never join! Not in 20yrs, not in 1,000 yrs, never. If they call me, I'll say I love my Scofield study bible!!! :p
 
Of course, I'll do what the liberals do, Now that I'm a member of the Barth Group, I'll work my way to the top, and then subvert the whole thing from the inside!

:rofl: Sometimes, I amaze myself.
 
As a CRC / RCA merger seems to be anticipated by voters here, can someone give background particularly on the RCA and why a merger would be likely?

Scott,

There has been a lot of cooperation between the CRC and RCA in the last few years. There are a number of union congregations; they have the same liberal views on (mandatory) women in church office, "infallible but not inerrant" scripture, and embrace of ecumenicalism (e.g. the coming World Communion of Reformed Churches) and "modern evangelicalism." They have also worked together in a number of agencies. At least one book has been published discussing such a complete union. There is also a CRC-written article entitled "The RCA - Our Closest Friend."

A lot of this sounds like talk from New York and Atlanta in the last 60s and early 70s, before the UPUSA and PCUS churches merged. What's old is new again...
 
As a CRC / RCA merger seems to be anticipated by voters here, can someone give background particularly on the RCA and why a merger would be likely?

Would mirror what their mother churches in the Netherlands - The Hervormde Kerk and the Gereformeerde Kerk, have done in the process 'together on the way (samen op weg). The are now united, together with the Lutherans, as the PKN (Protestantse Kerk Nederland).
 
ELCA and whatever liberal body is going to buy them out to get their memberships up.

I could see the ELCA go in with the eventual PCUSA-UCC-TEC merger. Maybe throw in the "Disciples of Christ" for good measure. They can sing kumbaya and eat pudding together.

As long as they drink fair trade organic coffee with it and prop their plates on their Green Letter Bibles it will be OK. :lol:
 
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I could see the ELCA go in with the eventual PCUSA-UCC-TEC merger. Maybe throw in the "Disciples of Christ" for good measure.

There is already some kind of agreement between these denominations. I believe the UMC is included also. I can't remember the name of their agreement but it's there...at least a number of years ago is was.
 
ABCUSA and Cooperative Baptists - 40-65%
ABCUSA and Alliance of Baptists - 30-45%

They can have them.

Which "they" can have which "them"??? :think:

Frankly, the Alliance has much in common with the more liberal ABC people and the Cooperatives have more in common with the more middle-of-the-road ABC folks. For the conservatives still in the ABC, the Cooperatives are a bit to the left of most conservatives but acceptable to most (mainly because most of them are more conservative than the far left of the ABC).
 
Frankly, the Alliance has much in common with the more liberal ABC people and the Cooperatives have more in common with the more middle-of-the-road ABC folks. For the conservatives still in the ABC, the Cooperatives are a bit to the left of most conservatives but acceptable to most (mainly because most of them are more conservative than the far left of the ABC).

Although, it seems as though I'm increasingly seeing CBF churches and people to the left of what I thought was moderate in the ABC. And, of course, there are now many churches dually or even triply associated with all three. Here's one example.
 
What was really sad - when I lived in Rhode Island, I lived two blocks from the first Baptist church in America in Providence (notice the small 'f' in first). So I went there once. Awesome to visit - still authentic architecture except for that Sunday's fill-in pastor who was UCC!!

The place is vacant though - the late service had only about twenty people. Kind of a big let down. I guess that is what you get when Rhode Island is like 95% RC and they have this photo of the newest pastor.
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First Baptist Church in America
 
Are you suggesting the sheep to be wolves among the wolves? Shocking! (and thought-provoking)

Yes. Even a sheep armed with a colt 45 could beat a wolf!! So too could I, armed with my trusty KJV (Genuine Leather of course) beat a bunch of Barthians. This relates to the OP. One of the Barthians in my church is an ex-UCC pastor. He left the UCC because it was too liberal. And he's a liberal. :lol:
 
ABCUSA and Cooperative Baptists - 40-65%
ABCUSA and Alliance of Baptists - 30-45%

They can have them.

Which "they" can have which "them"??? :think:

Frankly, the Alliance has much in common with the more liberal ABC people and the Cooperatives have more in common with the more middle-of-the-road ABC folks. For the conservatives still in the ABC, the Cooperatives are a bit to the left of most conservatives but acceptable to most (mainly because most of them are more conservative than the far left of the ABC).

This is probably right. The Alliance of Baptists is made up largely of liberal churches that left the Southern Baptist Convention in the 80's.
 
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