| Evangelical Presbyterian Church | |
|---|---|
| Classification | Protestant |
| Orientation | Calvinism |
| Polity | Presbyterian |
| Origin | 29 September 1961 Launceston |
| Separations | 1986 Southern Presbyterian Church |
| Congregations | 5 |
| Members | approx. 250 |
The Evangelical Presbyterian Church is a small Australian Reformed Christian denomination. In September 2010 it had five centres: Brisbane; Londonderry (Sydney); Cohuna, Victoria (preaching station); Launceston and Winnaleah (Tasmania) with until 2014 a small school at Herrick near Winnaleah.
The EPC was constituted in Launceston, Tasmania, on 29 September 1961 with a doctrinal basis identical to the Presbyterian Church of Eastern Australia, three of whose ministers formed a special presbytery for the purpose of ordaining the first three ministers.[1] Its first ministers were the Reverend Charles Rodman, Eric Turnbull and Hugh McNeilly.
The denomination was originally called the Reformed Evangelical Church but in 1966 changed its name because according to the church's official history "it was found that Australian society was not familiar with the term 'reformed' in its historical and church connection. Many associated the word with reform or correctional schools for example."[2]
The creation of the EPC was part of a revival in Reformed and Calvinist theology among Australian evangelical Christians from the 1950s.