Christmas and Easter Directive

The synod of the USA has voted in favor of the following directives concerning the use of liturgical calendars, seasons (ie: Advent, Christmas, Lent, and so forth) and the celebration of Christmas and Easter in churches.




With a majority of parishes, clergy, and bishops deciding:

In keeping with our continual reformation around scriptures we the Puritan Church in America (Congregational Episcopal Church) do ordain the following.

The use of liturgical calendars needlessly divides the year into repetitive celebrations each year that have no basis in scriptures. Each minister, pastor, deacon, and bishop has the needed knowledge of scriptures to perform their duties as preachers without the unneeded crutch of calendars, seasons, and so forth.

Seasons of Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter, Whitsunday, and so forth have no scriptural basis and are an outdated tool of a time when the faithful had neither education nor personal used Bibles. These seasons are simply contrary to what reformers of our Puritan faith taught and preached to reform the church as a living body. Repetition of readings make for a lazy and uninventive church. Ministers of the Gospels need no such seasons to conduct their services, and the faithful need no such seasons to lift their hearts to God. These seasons are repugnant to faith.

As Christmas and Easter have been overly celebrated with a secular lean, which has found its was into Christian churches, these holidays are no longer recognized as "holy days" or as feasts in the church. Pastors are advised to treat these festivals as any other Sunday. There is no need to mark special services for such pagan festivals in the church when those called as saints need no special days for celebration being saved by the Lord Jesus other than the Sabbath.