Evangelical Orthodox Church

The Evangelical Orthodox Church (EOC), founded on

Evangelical Orthodox
January 15, 1979, is a small Christian syncretic denomination
established by former leaders of Campus Crusade for Christ, Church
who, reacting against the freewheeling Jesus People movement, Type Christian Syncretic
developed their own synthesis of Evangelicalism, Eastern Classification Eastern Protestant ·
Orthodoxy, and Shepherding Movement principles.[3][4][5][6] New Christian
religious movement
History Orientation Charismatic ·
Evangelical
On January 14, 1979, the six members of the General Apostolic
Council of the New Covenant Apostolic Order (NCAO)— Polity Episcopal
Peter Gillquist, Jack Sparks, Jon Braun, J.R. Ballew, Gordon Bishop Jerold Gliege
Walker, and Kenneth Berven—stood in a circle and self- Churches 120[1]
ordained each other bishops.[7] The following day they
announced the formation of a new denomination——the Region United States,
Evangelical Orthodox Church—consisting of congregations Canada, parts of
following the NCAO.[8] According to NCAO leaders, the EOC Africa and Sweden[2]
was launched with 2,500 members in fifty churches organized Language English
into seventeen dioceses.[9][10] However, former members
Liturgy Byzantine Rite
reported the membership as less than 1,000.[11] The Leadership
(optional)
Location in Isla Vista, California was originally a Witness Lee,
"Local Church" Community before it was stolen out from Headquarters Indianapolis,
under the leadership of Evangelist Gene Edwards, who Indiana, United
subsequently wrote books against Authoritarianism in the States
Church, by Joe Richard Ballew and Jon Braun. The remnants
Founder Peter E. Gillquist,
of the Jim Jones Cult in Ukiah were ordered to move there or to
other unnamed
Reno to attack the evils of a gambling town, following entry
into the Antiochian Church, the Reno group moved to Yakima Former Campus
and merged. The other major component was the remnants of Crusade for Christ
Jack Sparks' "Christian World Liberation Front" which he members
established at Berkley to try to combine Christianity with Origin 1979
Chairman Mao's 'Little Red Book'. In 1984, the "Local
Official website www
Church" sued the E.O.C.
.evangelicalorthodox
.org (https://www.ev
Controversies angelicalorthodox.or
g/)
The EOC generated controversy throughout its short history,
mostly regarding its view of apostolic succession and of apostolic authority. In canonical orthodoxy the
hierarchy of authority is based on belief in an unbroken line of apostolic succession, from which the
appointment of bishops proceeds. Jack Sparks argued that any attempt to trace such a succession inevitably
included false apostles and bad men. In place of the Eastern Orthodox tradition of apostolic succession,
Sparks argued for “charismatic” succession.[12]
The EOC was itself criticized by both secular and evangelical sources for the bishops’ exercise of binding
authority over members.[13][14][15] One particular case involving disclosure of confidential communications
from a penitent went to court. In that case the California Court of Appeals denied the EOC leaders’ claim to
ecclesiastical privilege.[16]

Dialogues

In 1977, the first contact with the Eastern Orthodox Church was initiated through Orthodox seminarian and
former Berkeley - Christian World Liberation Front member (Karl) John Bartke, who introduced them to
Fr. Alexander Schmemann, Dean of St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary of the Orthodox
Church in America (OCA).[17] EOC leaders invited seminary faculty to instruct them in Orthodoxy and
pursued dialogues with the OCA 1978 to 1983, but talks broke down over the EOC’s conception of church
government.[18] EOC leaders also opened dialogue with the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese in America
(GOArch) in 1981.[19] In 1984 the bishops applied for EOC membership in the National Association of
Evangelicals. Their application was tabled over concerns by members of the Executive Committee over the
EOC’s teachings and practices.[20][21] Growing impatient with lack of progress in dialogues with the OCA
and GOArch, the EOC bishops embarked on a pilgrimage to Istanbul where they were turned away and
not given an audience with the Ecumenical Patriarch of the Orthodox Church.[22][23] Orthodox sources
have said that the two reasons that the Eastern Orthodox community was hesitant to embrace the EOC
were the continued influence of Shepherding Movement teachings regarding hierarchical authority and the
EOC bishops’ desire to remain as bishops, which was unacceptable as Orthodox bishops must be celibate
and appointed by the appropriate authorities based on apostolic succession.[24][25]

Disposition of parishes

Fr. John Bartke, who had been a member of the Christian World Liberation Front with Jack Sparks and had
acted as the primary intermediary with the AOCANA served as host for the initial set of chrismations and
ordinations of the EOC at St. Michael's Church in Van Nuys, California.[26][27] The group of 20 parishes
became known as the Antiochian Evangelical Orthodox Mission, which subsequently issued a statement to
Metropolitan Philip stating that they knew what Orthodoxy was. This lasted until 1995 when it was
disbanded and the parishes put under the standard diocesan framework of the archdiocese.[28]

See also
African Orthodox Church
Fr. Duane Pederson
Independent Catholicism
Independent sacramental movement

References
1. https://www.evangelicalorthodox.org/who-we-are Who we are
2. https://www.evangelicalorthodox.org/where-we-are Where we are
3. Lloyd R. Thompson, “A Critical Analysis of the Evangelical Orthodox Church (New Covenant
Apostolic Order)” (Ph.D. diss., Yale Divinity School, 1979), 20.
4. Ruth Stiling, “An Examination of the Evangelical Orthodox Church” (M.A. thesis, Dallas
Theological Seminary, May 1980), 17-18.
 5. Steve Barth, “Development of Evangelical Church Traced: Twelve Years of Theology
Change Moves Away from Anti-Authority,” Daily Nexus (November 13, 1979): 2.
6. D. Oliver Herbel, Turning to Tradition: Converts and the Making of an American Orthodox
Church (Oxford University Press, 2014), 104-117.
7. Walker, Gordon (September 1983). "Odyssey to Orthodoxy". Again. Vol. 6, no. 3. p. 10.
8. Stiling, Ruth L. (1980). An Examination of the Evangelical Orthodox Church (MA). Dallas,
TX: Dallas Theological Seminary. p. 25.
9. Hitt, Russell T. (March 1980). "Go East, Young Men". Eternity. Vol. 31, no. 3. p. 13.
10. Vecsey, George (March 11, 1979). "New Group Combines Evangelism and Orthodoxy". The
New York Times. p. 25.
11. Counts, Bill (November 2, 1979). The Evangelical Orthodox Church and the New Covenant
Apostolic Order (Report). Berkeley, CA: Spiritual Counterfeits Project. p. 1.
12. Herbel, D. Oliver (2014). Turning to Tradition: Converts and the Making of the American
Orthodox Church. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 108–110. ISBN 9780199324958.
OCLC 869486494 (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/869486494).
13. Counts, "The Evangelical Orthodox Church..."
14. Wollenburg, Bruce (July 2, 1980). "The Evangelical Orthodox Church: A Preliminary
Appraisal". The Christian Century. Vol. 97, no. 23. p. 700.
15. Barth, Steve (November 12, 1979). "Local Church a 'Potentially Dangerous Situation':
Sources Say EOC has Total Authority Over Members" (https://www.alexandria.ucsb.edu/dow
nloads/00000114j). Daily Nexus. Vol. 60, no. 44. p. 1.
16. Hayden, Paul T. (1993). "Religiously Motivated 'Outrageous' Conduct: Intentional Infliction of
Emotional Distress as a Weapon Against 'Other People's Faiths' " (http://scholarship.law.wm.
edu/wmlr/vol34/iss3/4/). William and Mary Law Review. 34 (3): 659–661.
17. Liacopulos, George P. (2000). Lights of the Modern World: Orthodox Christian Mission and
Evangelism in the United States. Minneapolis, MN: Light & Life Publishing. p. 125.
ISBN 1880971577.
18. Fester, Joseph H. (1982). The Evangelical Orthodox Church and Its Dialogue with the
Orthodox Church in America (M.Div.). Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Seminary.
p. 46. OCLC 926121110 (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/926121110).
19. Gillquist, Peter (1992). Becoming Orthodox: A Journey to the Ancient Christian Faith
(rev. ed.). Ben Lomond, CA: Conciliar Press. pp. 125–128. ISBN 9780962271335.
OCLC 27034433 (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/27034433).
20. Herbel, Turning, pp. 120-122.
21. National Association of Evangelicals Papers (SC-113), Wheaton College Special
Collections.
22. Herbel, Turning, pp. 122-123.
23. Gillquist, Becoming, pp. 135-143.
24. Zengerle, Jason (April 25, 2010). "Evangelicals Turn Toward … the Orthodox Church –
Orthodox Christian Resource Center" (http://theorthodoxchurch.info/blog/ocrc/2010/04/evan
gelicals-turn-toward-the-orthodox-church/). Retrieved March 3, 2011.
25. Fester, "The Evangelical Orthodox Church," p. 49, citing Alexander Schmemann, “Report on
Participating in the Session of the Council of Bishops of the Evangelical Orthodox Church—
Santa Barbara, Ca., June 7–9, 1981,” a report submitted to the Metropolitan Council of the
Orthodox Church in America.
26. Herbel, Turning, p. 123.
27. Gillquist, Becoming Orthodox', p. 141.
28. "Evangelical Orthodox Join Antiochian Jurisdiction". Theosis. Vol. 9, no. 9. September 1986.
p. 8.

Sources
Gillquist, Rev. Peter E. Becoming Orthodox: A Journey to the Ancient Christian Faith. Ben
Lomond, CA: Conciliar Press, 1989. (ISBN 0-9622713-3-0)

Further reading
About the Evangelical Orthodox Church (https://web.archive.org/web/20141006091752/htt
p://www.ogreatmystery.com/about/), a site by former members
The Chicago Call (https://web.archive.org/web/20120419025427/http://www2.wheaton.edu/
bgc/archives/GUIDES/033.htm)
History of the ARC (https://web.archive.org/web/20101119120714/http://arcchurch.org/about/
history-of-the-arc/), a communion with roots in the NCAO
Twelve Tribe community (http://www.twelvetribes.com/) Archived (https://web.archive.org/we
b/20050822092938/http://www.twelvetribes.com/) 2005-08-22 at the Wayback Machine
founded by former NCAO apostle Elbert Spriggs
History of Spriggs' community (http://www.neirr.org/histry.html) mentioning his time with the
NCAO

External links
Official website (https://www.evangelicalorthodox.org/)

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Evangelical_Orthodox_Church&oldid=1185468992"