The Presbyterian Church of Nigeria (PCN) has always prided itself on being part of the holy, catholic and apostolic Church. In this sense, ‘catholic’ means universal. So the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria sees itself as part of one single Christian Church represented in different denominations with Jesus Christ as its only Head. The Church, which started with Jesus and his first Apostles after Pentecost around 30 AD (Boer, 1979) remained one entity until 1054 AD when the Great Schism occurred with the church dividing into two, the Roman Catholic Church based in Rome and the Eastern Orthodox Church based in Constantinople (MacCullough, 2009). The Reformation movement of the 16^th century further divided the Roman Catholic Church, leading to the emergence of the Protestant churches under the leadership of reformers like Huldrych Zwingli, Martin Luther, John Calvin, etc. Hunt (2008: 65) explained “…that the physical division of the church at this time was as monumental as the events that led to the Great Schism.”  Hunt (2008) further explains that even though the Church was administratively and physically divided, it remained one in essence.

Part of the churches that emerged at this time were known as the Reformed Church, which is sometimes called the Calvinist Church after John Calvin, who explained much of the biblical and theological bases for the reformation movement. Cunningham (2000: p122) explains concerning the doctrine of the Reformed Churches, “We base all the doctrines of our system upon statements contained in Scriptures, we undertake to prove them by fair rational application of the materials which Scripture furnishes…” For the Reformed Churches, the inerrancy of the Bible is incontestable and Scriptures are interpreted with rationality with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

The Presbyterian Church of Nigeria is part of the Reformed churches. Their basic doctrines emphasize the sovereignty of God in all human and historical situations, “Scripture alone (sola scriptura), grace alone (sola gracia), Faith alone (sola fidei), through Christ alone (sola Christus) and to God’s glory alone (soli Deo Gloria)” (Udo, 2009: 53). Their doctrine of salvation is encapsulated in five points (popularly referred to as the Five Points of Calvinism): Total Depravity (of humankind), Unconditional Election (through God’s eternal fore-knowledge and grace), Limited Atonement (for only those God graciously called unto salvation), Irresistible Grace (for those elected and called unto salvation), Perseverance of the Saints (also known as Total Security, for those chosen through grace). These five points are known by their first letters T. U. L. I. P (Steel et al. 1963). www.religionfacts.com summarises Presbyterianism as follows:

Presbyterian beliefs are rooted in the thought of the French reformer John Calvin. In addition to the common Reformation themes of justification by faith, the priesthood of all believers, and the importance of the Bible, Presbyterianism also reflects Calvin’s distinctive emphasis on the sovereignty of God and a representational form of church government (Steel et al. 1963).

Inah (2005) explains that the word Presbyterian has more to do with church government than doctrinal. The word derives from Greek presbuteros, which means ‘elder.’ So Presbyterian Church simply means a church ruled by elders as against episcopal, that is, churches ruled by bishops. The Presbyterian type of government is democratic representational. There are two types of elders – ruling and teaching. The ruling elders are elected by the members who join the teaching elders, that is, the clergy, to rule the church (VanGerpen, 1989).

According to Udo (1996), the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria came from the Church of Scotland, hence the initial name of the Church – Church of Scotland Mission (CSM). The pioneers were Scottish and Jamaican missionaries. The establishment was inspired by the freed slaves of African descent who were in Jamaica. Eleazu (2012) sees the changes in world politics in the 18th and 19th centuries as remote causes for the establishment of the church in Calabar. For example, with the abolition of the slave trade, the chiefs of Calabar were at a loss concerning what to do with the massive number of slaves in their custody. An alternative trade was needed. Goldie et al. (1901) wrote the earliest surviving history of the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria. They explained that in 1842, the two most prominent Calabar chiefs, King Eyo Honesty II of Creek Town and King Eyamba V of Duke Town, asked for help concerning the educational and agricultural development of their respective domains. Consequently, King Eyo on December 1, 1842, allegedly wrote to the British authorities thus: “If I can get some cotton or coffee to grow and a man for teach me, and make sugar come for we country come up proper, and sell for trade side, I very glad”. Three days later, King Eyamba added voice to the plea, “…and then some men must come for teach the book proper and make all men sabby God like white man, and we go on for the same fashion” (Goldie et al., 1901,  27;  Udo, 1996: 5).

The two requests are quite clear on the needs: agricultural assistance and Christian missionaries. The Jamaican Presbytery accepted the invitation and on 6th January, 1846, Rev. Hope Masterton Waddell sailed from Liverpool with some other workers and landed in Calabar on 10th April 1846 (The Triumph of His Grace, 2013: 13). They were welcomed by the Calabar chiefs and they started work in earnest. Goldie et al. (1901) write that the first congregation was made up of male slaves and curious men of the town; the first Holy Communion was celebrated on August 1, 1847. A major success was recorded on February 15, 1850, with the proclamation of the Ekpe Law, which prohibited human sacrifice. The first convert, Essien Essien Ukpabio, was baptised on 10th October, 1853, while women were finally allowed to attend church for the first time on 13th December, 1858 (Goldie et al., 1901).

From this time, the Church began to expand with the establishment of stations all over Calabar and in surrounding communities. With the establishment of churches came the setting up of schools and hospitals. Aye (1996) pointed out that the principal subjects in these schools were theology, church history, elementary physiology, physical geography, management as well as the traditional subjects like arithmetic, English language, etc. The Presbyterian Church of Nigeria Desk Diary (2016) gives a sequential account of the development of the Church thus: In 1858, the mission was constituted as the Presbytery of the Bight of Biafra. Following the Cross River upstream, the Church expanded through Itu into Igboland by 1888. By 1921, the mission was large enough to be constituted as the Synod of Biafra and in 1945, the Presbyterian Church of Biafra was established, taking its name from the Bight of Biafra. But on 1952, the Church was renamed the Presbyterian Church of Eastern Nigeria and finally the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria on 16th June, 1960 (Johnstone, 1975).

Eme (2012) who is the Director of Public Affairs and Communication of the Church, writes that today, the Church has expanded all over the nation with ten Synods, over sixty Presbyteries, thousands of Parishes, congregations and out-stations. The membership is estimated to be a few million. The Church’s mission thrust and transnational church planting efforts are driven by two-fold principles – to fulfil the Great Commission of Jesus Christ that the gospel must be preached in all nations and to present familiar worship environments for members in diaspora. Therefore, the Church has established Parishes in the Benin Republic, Togo, Burkina Faso, Mali, Canada, and new efforts are being made to establish congregations in the United States of America and Britain.

The organisational structure of the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria is divided into four strata. The lowest is the Session. This is made up of a minister-in-charge and other assisting ministers, aided by elected ruling elders, to oversee parishes. The next level is the Presbytery, which is the equivalent of dioceses or districts in some other churches. The Presbytery membership is made up of all ordained ministers (clergy) and an equal number of ruling elders appointed from all the parishes within an area. The clergy and laity members of the Presbytery are known as commissioners. The next level is the Synod, which is made up of all commissioners from the Presbyteries within a contiguous area. Finally, the highest level is the General Assembly, which is made up of one-third of all commissioners from the Synods. The General Assembly meets biennially. The four levels of administration are known as Courts.