FRATERNAL RELATIONS COMMITTEE

The Fraternal Relations Committee report to the 46th General Assembly of its work during 2025-2026, plus recommendations for consideration by the Assembly.

Use these quick links to navigate to a specific section of this report:

Summary of Work
Summary of Recommendations
Work of the Committee
Recommendations (Detailed)
Committee Members
Meeting Dates

Douglas Kortyna

Chairman
TE, Presbytery of the Pacific Northwest

SUMMARY OF WORK

1. Trip to Egypt.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

46-33 The Fraternal Relations Committee recommends that the 46th General Assembly move that the EPC enter a formal Fraternal Relation with Synod of the Nile as described in Acts of Assembly 12-10.

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WORK OF THE COMMITTEE

Greetings In the Name of our Lord in 2026!

Over the past year, I have had the pleasure of being the new chair of the Fraternal Relations Committee. The major project that the Fraternal Relations Committee has been working on is recommending a fraternal relationship between the Synod of the Nile and the Evangelical Presbyterian Church at this year’s General Assembly.

I had the joy of representing the EPC and the Fraternal Relations Committee in Cairo Egypt from February 16th-23rd. Our team consisted of Teaching Elder Whitney Cummings and our World Outreach Worker on the ground in Cairo. We had the pleasure of touring six church plants and meeting several key leaders of important committees within the Synod of the Nile. Their General Secretary Refat Fathy was most generous with his time and coordinating our visit. I would kindly ask that you spend time with him and his travel companion Pastor Samuel Adel as they are guests at our General Assembly this year!

The committee has worked towards continuing to improve our relationships with other friends throughout the world. A big thank you is owed to World Outreach Worker Jeff Kim in France who continues to help with UNEPREF. The EPC will be assisting and helping them with church planting and church health as our relationship continues to deepen and grow.

I have personally been working towards reaching out to the Mexican Presbyterian Church. They are our guests for this General Assembly. I hope that we can open the door for recruitment for church planters and short-term mission trips. A special thank you to my wife, Sara Kortyna in coming to GA to help with translation and hospitality for our Mexican guests.

What does the future look like for the Fraternal Relationship Committee within the EPC? Traditionally, the FR and WO have not worked together. Both have been separated. The committee is working towards changing that and having both parties cooperation with one another. The committee will work in the future to make sure if we have a WO worker on the ground, that they connect with our FR. Right now, this is being pursued in Egypt and France. Furthermore, the committee members will work towards raising awareness at the Presbytery levels about how to get involved in the Lord’s work overseas.

The committee is also going to work towards running a workshop at GA in 2027 on how local churches can partner with our FR overseas. Partnership can be pursued through adopting sister churches of similar size and scope in ministry. Cooperation can emerge in domains such as church planting, next generation ministries, church health, and most importantly, prayer.

My local congregation Christ Presbyterian Church, for example, in Boise Idaho is hosting Pastor Samuel Adel to preach and share about church planting in Egypt and the broader region. Both of us are hoping to establish a friendship between our two churches this summer.

It’s been a pleasure to serve the General Assembly. If you have any questions, please reach out to me at douglas.kortyna.epcfraternal@gmail.com. If you are also interested in watching a video of my trip in Egypt, please click this link

Blessings,

Rev. Douglas J. Kortyna

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RECOMMENDATIONS (DETAILED)

RECOMMENDATION 46-33

The Fraternal Relations Committee recommends that the 46th General Assembly move that the EPC enter a formal Fraternal Relation with Synod of the Nile as described in Acts of Assembly 12-10.

Rationale:
Whereas the Evangelical Presbyterian Church is a global movement of Reformed, Evangelical, Presbyterian and Missional congregations, and whereas our mission is to Carry Out the Great Commission, the Permanent Committee on Fraternal Relations believes that a partnership with the Synod of the Nile (Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Egypt) would serve to both continue to ground us in the Gospel-Centered movement of the global church and would also provide opportunities for strategic outreach into some of the most difficult to reach places of the Arab speaking world.

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