Below is a letter that was sent to the consistory of Zion Reformed Protestant Church (hereafter Zion) by Mr. Nick Meelker, a former elder of the church. In this letter he explains why it was necessary for him to withdraw membership from Zion and to desert his office. Why did Mr. Meelker leave? Mr. Meelker writes, “The issue is our view of polemics and antithetical preaching.” According to Mr. Meelker, the preaching at Zion was schismatic, hyper-antithetical, abusive to the flock, without comfort, and turned children into bloodthirsty savages. So intolerable was the preaching at Zion that Mr. Meelker departed only eight months after Zion’s pastor had been installed into office. So seriously harmful was the preaching at Zion that Mr. Meelker’s only recourse as an overseer in the church was to flee immediately. And I publish Mr. Meelker’s letter with the purpose of responding to it. I respond to this letter as the allegedly intolerable pastor at Zion.

I see no ethical issue in publishing this letter, for although the letter was addressed to the consistory, Mr. Meelker sent this same letter by email to the congregation of Zion on December 13, 2023. By Mr. Meelker’s own actions, he made this letter public. Certainly, he can have no valid objections to it being printed.

Dear consistory of Zion RPC,

It is with much sorrow that I write this letter to you. For many months our congregation has been divided, and we are growing more and more divided by the day. We could try to point at specific doctrines that the denomination holds to, which members of the congregation disagree with. We could point at the way we treat each other and how we walk together in the life of the body. We could look high and low for the problems each member has and attempt to diagnose the cause of our division. But in doing so, we won’t get to the root of our division. It wasn’t until recently that the root has been brought to light. It has been brought to the consistory by members of the congregation that the preaching is dividing our church. It has been discussed at length in our consistory meetings. It has been discussed at family visitation. It has been protested against.

The issue is our view of polemics and antithetical preaching. To be clear, the issue is not antithetical preaching (truth vs. lie) altogether, as this is a necessary part of the preaching. The issue is our consistory’s perception of how the antithesis ought to be preached. This is the view our church holds to. The churches in the Reformed Protestant denomination are the only churches who have the uncorrupted truth. No other church of no other denomination has this truth. And since the antithesis requires a continual warfare against all that is untrue, we will draw the sword against all who are not Reformed Protestant. This view requires us to condemn every church, preacher, and individual with the harshest possible condemnation if they do not belong to this particular institution. We view them as “dogs and pigs,” feral pigs who you mow down with a machine gun from a helicopter. We despise and hate them because they are not of us. We are to separate ourselves from our families, shunning them as though they have no place in the kingdom of heaven, regardless of their godly walk and confession. The office bearers are to rebuke the members of the congregation who have fellowship with family members outside of the RPC. If we do not continually rebuke them, then the office bearers, along with those “wandering” members, have no love for the truth.

These rebukes and condemnations have come. They have come relentlessly from the consistory and the pulpit. Many in the congregation feel beaten and are exhausted. Some have cried out to the consistory for help. Others have told the pastor directly. The consistory’s response has been this. “The truth hurts. It cuts as a sharp sword, and our flesh needs this cutting. Our flesh doesn’t like to be cut but we need it, and if they don’t believe it, it is because they don’t love the truth!” (This is a paraphrased quote, not verbatim)

The consistory knows the pushing of this antithetical view is what is dividing our congregation. What the congregation hears after bringing their grievances is not a word of comfort for their weary souls. It is not what Isaiah brought to a downcast people. Isaiah 61:1-3 “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; [2] To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; [3] To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.” When the sheep are downcast, they need to hear that they are “trees of righteousness” rather than that they “wander to Sodom.”

What is of additional concern is that we are not teaching the lambs of the congregation to fight for the truth. We are preparing them to be warmongers who hate all those outside of the RPC. We are teaching them to condemn everybody. I say this from personal experience. After church a couple weeks ago our 8 year old son told us that a Protestant Reformed family with whom we have a close friendship does not love God. “They can’t love God because they go to a church who doesn’t preach about God. They preach about man. If they loved God they would not be in that church. That’s why we had to leave.”

Our consistory would have rejoiced at this child’s “confession,” except he really doesn’t believe it. He was repeating what he hears at church. Oh, he understands quite well why we left the PRC, but he doesn’t believe that everyone there hates God. He doesn’t believe it because he is taught contrary to that in the home. I refuse to teach him to condemn everyone outside the RPC. Rather, I teach him to judge whether a man shows himself to be a child of God by his walk and confession.

I am convinced that the preaching will not change in this church. As an office bearer, I cannot teach what this church would require me to teach. As a father, I cannot continue to defend my minister and denomination by telling my children “that’s not what they mean.” For this reason, I cannot remain in this church. And while it grieves me to leave, I am confident that the Lord, as our faithful Shepherd will guide our family, never unto Sodom, but always in the way of truth. With this letter, I request that my membership papers, along with those of Sonja, James, Jorie, Maggie, and Vivian be sent to my home.

Your brother in Christ,

Nick Meelker

Read Rev. Bomers’ Response: What Happened at Zion