About
Our Story
Begins in 1725
The Reformed Church in the United States (RCUS) is a communion of Christian churches in the Reformed tradition. We stand on the great Reformation principles of salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, according to the Scriptures alone, to the glory of God alone.
Established in the 1700s, today we seek to proclaim the truth in love, committed to God-centered worship, historic biblical orthodoxy, confessional Reformed theology, and Christian missions. and Our aim is to minister the gospel of Jesus Christ to a dying world.
History
While German Reformed immigrants had been meeting and worshipping together for many years, it was not until 1725 that John Phillip Boehm formally organized a dozen congregations in Pennsylvania. Broader gathering of pastors and elders was called together in 1747, meeting as a “Coetus” (similar to a Classis or presbytery). The following year, the Church adopted its first constitution.
The church grew rapidly in the Nineteenth Century, changing its name to the Reformed Church in the United States.
The Church was not immune to the theological controversies confronted by other denominations, resulting in the larger wing of the church electing to merge with the Evangelical Church, and the smaller, more theologically conservative Eureka Classis choosing to remain Reformed. Today, that one Classis has become four, as the Reformed Church in the United States continues its witness to the world, blessed by a unity in doctrine, practice and vision.
Doctrine
The unity of the Reformed Church in the United States (RCUS) consists to a large extent in its faithful adherence to a common faith and doctrine. The denomination affirms the great creeds of the early church—the Apostles’, Nicene, and Athanasian Creeds—which define historic Christianity. It also subscribes to key doctrinal statements of the Protestant Reformation—the Belgic Confession (1561), the Heidelberg Catechism (1563), and the Canons of Dort (1618–19), which together are called the Three Forms of Unity.
Creeds
“What, then, is necessary for a Christian to believe?” asks the Heidelberg Catechism. “All that is promised us in the gospel, which the articles of our catholic, undoubted Christian faith teach us in summary,” is the reply. Though this creed was not penned by the Apostles, it summarizes their teaching with simplicity, brevity, and beauty. Originally used as a baptismal formula in the second century, it reached its present form in the sixth. It gives a concise expression of the fundamentals of historic Christianity.
Missions
The Reformed Church is committed to missions, both at home and abroad. The church currently have five mission congregations and welcomes inquiries from those seeking to plant a Reformed Church, as well as existing congregations seeking to unite with a solidly Reformed denomination.
The Reformed Church is actively involved in church planting in the Philippines, Kenya and Zaire.The Church also works with a number of mission organizations to advance the cause of a Christ thru church planting, and supporting acts of mercy. Among these ministries are Westminster Biblical Missions, Mid-East Reformed Fellowship, and the radio ministry Reformed Faith and Life broadcasting in French and Armenian.
