Christ Church is a Calvinist church in Moscow, Idaho, pastored by Douglas Wilson, and a member of the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches. The congregation has received international coverage for its views, which include advocating for a theocracy, and its desire to make Moscow a "Christian town". It has formal and informal affiliations with a number of ministries, including a three-year ministerial training program (Greyfriars Hall), a private accredited college (New Saint Andrews), a campus ministry (Collegiate Reformed Fellowship), and formerly a publishing operation and magazine (Canon Press, Credenda/Agenda). The church is estimated to have between 900 and 2,000 members.
Beliefs
Christ Church is a Calvinist church, holding conservative views. Its ministers are proponents of postmillennialism and have been described as holding to a form of dominion theology. It is known for its promotion of Christian education and biblical courtship, and for its opposition to liberalism and feminism as being contrary to the Christian faith. Christ Church also holds to biblical inerrancy and adheres to the Westminster Standards, the Three Forms of Unity, and the Apostles' and Nicene Creeds. It is a charter member of the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches.
Affiliated organizations
New Saint Andrews College
New Saint Andrews College is a classical Christian liberal arts college with numerous connections to Christ Church. Ben Merkle, an elder at Christ Church, is president. Studies at NSA include "the languages, history, philosophy, and culture of classical antiquity and Western tradition in the light of Scripture".
Greyfriars' Hall
Greyfriars' Hall is a ministerial training program affiliated with Christ Church.
Bakwé Mission
The Bakwé Mission is the church's foreign mission ministry to the Bakwé people of southwest Côte d'Ivoire. It consists mainly of translating scripture for the Bakwé Church, as well as training teachers to teach reading and writing to the Bakwé people.
Logos School
The Logos School is nondenominational classical Christian school with numerous connections to Christ Church, which regularly promotes Classical Christian education. Logos School is organized as a limited liability company.
Canon Press
Canon Press is a publisher with connections to Christ Church.
Controversies
The church has drawn attention for its vocal opposition, and active resistance to federal and local restrictions meant to halt the spread of COVID-19. The church's head pastor, Douglas Wilson, has posted on his blog and on YouTube to call on his followers to "resist openly, in concert with any others in your same position", which he said would constitute "an example of a free people refusing to go along with their own enslavement". Wilson's remarks, which also warned "we are not yet in a hot civil war, with shooting and all, but we are in a cold war/civil war", drew condemnation from a number of other Evangelical leaders. Wilson has also drawn controversy for co-authoring the book Southern Slavery as it Was, which described slavery in the Antebellum South as more benign than usually portrayed. Wilson has denied the accusation that he supports slavery, writing on his blog, "Am I a defender of the system of Southern slavery as it existed prior to the Civil War? No, I am not. This is a false charge."
2020 anti-mask protests
In late September 2020, Christ Church organized and promoted two anti-mask protests at Moscow's City Hall. The protests consisted of members of the church and local community gathering mask-less at City Hall and singing psalms and hymns to protest Moscow's mandatory mask policy which required people to wear a mask in public places or at large gatherings. These protests occurred on Wednesday, September 23 and Friday, September 25. At the Wednesday psalm sing/protest about 150 people showed up and five people were cited and three were arrested with the most notable arrestee being 2020 Latah County Commissioner Candidate and Christ Church deacon Gabriel Rench. At the second psalm sing/protest on Friday, September 25, the protesters were joined by counter-protesters who beat drums to try to drown out the singing. About 400 protesters showed up and no one was arrested. Charges against Gabriel Rench were later dismissed.
In February 2023, U.S. District Court Judge Morrison C. England Jr. ruled that "the City indisputably erred in interpreting its own Code", and that the church members ought never to have been arrested in the first place, since the city ordinances explicitly exempted both religious and protest activities.