Who We Are

Our name defines our identity:

• Evangelical: We are people of the Evangel (the Gospel). We preach Christ crucified, risen, and reigning. We hold to the inerrancy of Scripture and the necessity of faith in Jesus Christ for salvation.

• Reformed: We stand on the shoulders of the Reformers. We are not inventing a new religion; we are returning to the ancient paths. We affirm the historic Creeds and the Confessions of the Reformation era.

This name also points to our organic beginning:

• The Evangelical Synod of North America was a denomination of German speaking immigrants of Union background, especially the Prussian Union of Churches. These churches variously held to the Augsburg Confession, the Heidelberg Catechism, Luther's Large & Small Catechisms, and their own Evangelical Catechism.

• The Reformed Church in the US was a denomination of German Reformed immigrants cherishing the simple Heidelberg Catechism alone.

The vast majority of these churches merged in 1934 to form the Evangelical and Reformed Church. In 1957, the E&R joined the United Church of Christ, which would quickly become one of America's most progressive denominations. 

In the 21st century, a small number of E&R churches in the American Southeast joined the United Episcopal Church of North America. An amicable, practical split from the UECNA began today's E&R Synod.

The Evangelical & Reformed Synod is formed as a spiritual successor to the original Evangelical and Reformed Church (1934-1957). We carry forward the banner that was dropped when that body merged into the United Church of Christ, preserving the union of German Reformed and Lutheran heritage for a new generation.