Presbyterian Church in America unanimously elects new stated clerk: 'I am your servant'
Pastor Fred Greco emphasizes relationships in speech to General Assembly
The General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) unanimously elected the Rev. Fred Greco as the denomination's sixth stated clerk during its annual meeting in Louisville, Kentucky, on Tuesday evening.
Greco, who serves as senior pastor of Christ Church in Katy, Texas, emphasized the importance of servant leadership and cultivating relationships during a brief speech to the General Assembly, which offered him a standing ovation upon his election.
"Should the Lord give me strength and kindness, I intend to be available to the church to advise pastors, elders, sessions, and presbyteries to help them as they minister in Christ's kingdom to have healthy churches and to see the Gospel go forward," he said.
"I am not your boss, I am your servant. I intend to visit every single one of your presbyteries over the next few years. I want to build and strengthen relationships across our beloved denomination. My office will always be open, my phone and my email available to you," he added.
Greco went on to assert his commitment to strengthening the PCA's fraternal relationship with churches in the North American Presbyterian and Reformed Council (NAPARC), which includes Reformed congregations in multiple denominations in both the U.S. and Canada. He also noted his plan to visit South Korea later this year to attend the International Conference of Reformed Churches, a global fellowship of confessional Reformed denominations.
"May the Lord Jesus Christ be glorified through my life and service," he said, asking for prayer.
The PCA Administrative Committee had unanimously nominated Greco to serve as the PCA's administrative head in January following a rigorous, four-phase search process that began last August, according to the PCA's online magazine byFaith. The process reportedly weighed counsel from almost 450 PCA church leaders and included more than 200 responses.
"The search committee applied a highly stringent process to prioritize among key traits the qualities that are most critical to the role," Frank Cohee, a pastor and chairman of the eight-member search committee, told the outlet.
"Teaching Elder Greco ideally embodied those traits shown through his previous denominational service, ministry background, interviews and discussions. Most important to me, however, was his constant desire to approach the position humbly with the primary goal of serving Christ's church and glorifying the Lord in this work," he added.
Raised near Buffalo, New York, Greco became a corporate attorney in Cleveland, Ohio, after obtaining his law degree at the University of Michigan Law School. After discerning a call to the ministry, he and his family moved to Jackson, Mississippi, in 2003 so that he could attend Reformed Theological Seminary. He accepted the call to pastor Christ Church in Texas in 2006.
Greco is stepping into the role that had been filled by the Rev. John Bise in an interim capacity following the Rev. Bryan Chapell's abrupt retirement last year.
Chapell, who had served as the PCA's stated clerk since 2020, stepped down after prompting backlash for briefly displaying a legible, handwritten Post-It note during a podcast that included the names of Presbyterian ministers he accused of being "scandalizers."
Chapell, who falsely alleged that all the men on his list had either abandoned their families, renounced their faith or died by suicide, acknowledged in a statement that what he claimed was not true and expressed repentance after news of his accusations drew widespread attention.
The 53rd PCA General Assembly is meeting in Louisville, Kentucky, through June 26. Earlier on Tuesday, the General Assembly elected the Rev. Melton "Mel" Duncan, who serves as stated clerk of Calvary Presbytery in South Carolina, to serve as moderator.
Jon Brown is a reporter for The Christian Post. Send news tips to jon.brown@christianpost.com
