The Church of God in Christ was formed in 1897 by a group of disfellowshipped Baptists, most notably Charles Price Jones (18651949) and Charles Harrison Mason (18641961). [47] COGIC regards homosexuality, infidelity, and any other forms of sexual immorality that does not agree with Biblical scripture as sinful. Holy Temple COGIC was the first church to open its doors to the garbage workers. [5] He officially retired on March 19, 2021, and was succeeded by Bishop J. A. COGIC does not teach that Spirit baptism is the same as salvation. Bishop Mason was pivotal in licensing and credentialing both white and African-American ministers, who spread the Pentecostal message and planted new churches. Organized in the South and having a predominately African-American membership, COGIC has had a long history in advancing civil rights. COGIC also teaches that all the spiritual gifts are for believers today. In 1988, he was installed as Pastor of Greater Emmanuel Church. Hall Sr. Board member (2021present). According to its 1973 Constitution, the church has two structures to govern the church: civil and ecclesiastical. [29] Former International Music Department President Professor Iris Stevenson-McCullough (originally from Rochester, NY) is a major influence in the gospel music industry around the world. The Church of God in Christ will host the installation service of Rev. [9] This Holiness group/fellowship adopted the name Church of God in Christ, and COGIC began to develop congregations throughout the South. Many mainline denominations and countless nondenominational churches that once rejected these beliefs and practices have adopted these distinctions in their worship liturgy and lifestyle practices. COGIC became a major force in the collective Black Church and worldwide Pentecostal movement. He is credited with systematically restructuring church departments and ministries, expanding the church in Asia, primarily India and the Philippines, and placing the COGIC on a solid financial status. J. O. Patterson Sr. was the Presiding Bishop at that time. In 1982 during the Seventy-Fifth Holy Convocation, the diamond jubilee of the church, COGIC published its own hymnal, Yes, Lord!, which included many arrangements and songs written by COGIC and African-American musicians and songwriters. National officers of the church are chosen at the general assembly every four years unless special elections are warranted. As a result, the general board exercises great authority over the church. It was also around this time, that he married his wife, Mae Lawrence Blake, a native of Michigan and daughter of another COGIC bishop and pastor, and they had three children together, Charles Blake, Jr., Lawrence "Larry" Blake, and Kimberly Blake. Mason. Factions developed within the organization as both the senior bishop and Bishop A. The school and college remain closed at present.[29]. Driver, who was the overseer of California and pastor of the Saints Home COGIC led an interracial congregation made up of many Blacks, Whites, and Latinos, for many years. Thereafter, missionaries were sent to Africa and the islands of the Caribbean, Asia, and elsewhere. Mother Willie Mae Rivers (19972017) of Goose Creek, South Carolina, succeeded Mother Crouch. By that time, it was known as Saints Academy and Junior College. Bishop Malcolm W. Coby Board member (2021present). This seasonal period was selected because most of the COGIC members were farmers and were finished harvesting their crops around this time. Among those who died after reportedly contracting the virus were: First Assistant Presiding Bishop Phillip A. Brooks, a preacher, and leader from Detroit who was No. The Youth Congress eventually become one of the largest conventions in COGIC. G. E. Patterson established the Temple of Deliverance, the Cathedral of Bountiful Blessing which grew to become the largest Pentecostal church in Memphis with over 14,000 members. The denomination teaches that God gives life to human beings, biologically and spiritually, through the moment of conception in the womb of the mother, using Jeremiah 1:5, Genesis 1:2627, and Psalms 139:1316 as their scriptural basis for this belief. Bishop James Oglethorpe Patterson 1968-1989* *Tenure as leader of the church: Presiding Bishop Gilbert Earl Patterson 2000-Present: Bishop Louis Henry Ford 1990-1995* Bishop Chandler David Owens 1995-2000* Founder 1907-1961* Senior Bishop & Chief Apostle Charles Harrison Mason: . Bishop Prince E. W. Bryant Sr. Board member (2021present). [15], In 1951, when Bishop Mason was approaching 85 years of age, he set up a "special commission" to help with the administration and oversight of the church. Charles Edward Blake Sr. (born August 5, 1940) is an American minister and pastor who served as the Presiding Bishop and leader of the Church of God in Christ, a 6 million-member Holiness Pentecostal denomination, that has now grown to become one of the largest predominantly African American Pentecostal denominations in the United . All rights reserved. Bishop Blake also won a defamation lawsuit in 2016 against Earl Carter, who was ordered to remove all defamatory videos and to cease and desist from further conduct disparaging Bishop Blake. Patterson, Evangelist Joyce L Rodgers#, Jurisdictional Supervisor, Former Chairlady of Youth Dept., international evangelist, Dr. Lytia R. Howard, Emeritus, President of the Sunshine Band, COGIC Pastor, Mother Leatha Herndon Chapman Tucker#, church organizer, national evangelist, Mother Elizabeth White#, foreign missionary, Dr. Rita Womack, national evangelist, former Elect Lady, Mother Willa Mary Collins#, founding First Lady of Holy Trinity Church of God in Christ in Evansville, Indiana. As the International Holy Convocation grew to thousands, COGIC leaders had to negotiate with city officials to provide hotel accommodations for the saints. She served as the jurisdictional supervisor of several states including Maryland and New Jersey helping to establish and stabilize struggling jurisdictions. According to a 2015 statistical study by the Pew Research Center, the denomination was estimated to have a United States membership of approximately 84% African-Americans, 5% White Americans, 8% Latino-Americans, and roughly 2% Asian-Americans. Built in the 1940s during World War II, the nearly 4000-seat building was the largest church auditorium of any African-American religious group in the United States. He has also been awarded the Salvation Army's William Booth Award, the Greenlining Institute's Big Heart Award, and was the designated recipient of the L.A. Urban League's Whitney M. Young Award for the year 2000. Under her leadership, the Women's International Convention added the term "and Crusade" to highlight and promote the evangelistic approach of the convention. Student Aid a ministry of support to foreign students. B. McEwen was elected chairman of the executive board, and O.T. Drew Sheard was born on January 1, 1959, in Detroit, Michigan, to Bishop and Mrs. John Henry Sheard. On October 23, 2020, Bishop Blake announced that he will not seek a re-election as Presiding Bishop nor as a member of the General Board and that he would retire from the Office of Presiding Bishop and from the General Board in 2021.[34]. African-American parents sent their children to this school from across the United States, especially those who had grown up in Mississippi and knew its reputation. Today, the International Youth Department (IYD) is led by the International Youth President, Superintendent Nathaniel Green of Dallas, TX, and the International Chairlady, Evangelist Vandalyn Kennedy of Queens, NY. [4] He was reelected to a third term as Presiding Bishop on November 15, 2016. [47], COGIC teaches that the church is the community of Christian believers who have accepted Jesus Christ and submit to his Lordship and authority in their lives. He appointed regional presidents to serve as liaisons to the jurisdictional presidents. [31], Bishop Ford also renovated several COGIC structures in Memphis, including Mason Temple. He referred in his sermon to gay men as "sissies", "perverted and lost", and said, "If you want to feel like a girl; I wish God would give you the monthly of a girl; I wish He had you bleeding out of your butt. Rev. He was a strong advocate for social justice. In 2000, he was elected as the Presiding Bishop of COGIC. COGIC clergy do not officially sanction or recognize same-sex relationships to be united in marriage and the denomination at-large discourages same-sex relationships as unbiblical and immoral. The presiding bishop is part of a general board, consisting of eleven other bishops elected by a general assembly consisting of pastors, elders, chaplains, bishops, missionaries, supervisors, and designated lay delegates. Charles Edward Blake Sr. (born August 5, 1940) is an American minister and pastor who served as the Presiding Bishop and leader of the Church of God in Christ, a 6 million-member Holiness Pentecostal denomination, that has now grown to become one of the largest predominantly African American Pentecostal denominations in the United States, from 2007 to 2021. YPWW became a distinctive trademark for COGIC and the principle training institute usually meeting on Sunday night prior to evening worship services. Vice President of COGIC World Missions-Supervisor Faye M. Butler. Bishop Sedgwick Daniels Board member (2008present). Owens and became known as AIM (Auxiliaries in Ministry). He announced that he met with the ministry leaders and church council and trustee board members and consulted with them to approve of Reverend Charles Blake, Jr and Reverend Lawrence Blake, taking over much of his duties as the de facto pastor and assistant pastor of the church. Adelle M. Banks. The rain in the background represents the, Members of the General Board (2021present), General supervisors for the Department of Women, Young People Willing Workers (YPWW) International Youth Department (IYD), United National Auxiliary Conference (UNAC) and Auxiliaries in Ministry (AIM), Last edited on 26 February 2023, at 15:15, Learn how and when to remove this template message, Worldwide Fellowship of the Assemblies of God, Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches of North America, List of jurisdictions of the Church of God in Christ, "Bishop Mason built COGIC out of revival, the faith of former slaves", "A Brief Historical Sketch of the Church of God in Christ, International (Arkansas)", "PRESS RELEASE: Presiding Bishop Charles E. Blake Sr. Will Not Seek Reelection", "Catholics, Mormons, Assemblies of God growing; Mainline churches report a continuing decline", "The most and least racially diverse U.S. religious groups", "Human Coalition Launches Three-year Initiative with Church of God in Christ", "Proclamation on Marriage | COGIC General Assembly", "Racial and ethnic composition among members of the Church of God in Christ", https://mccormick.edu/content/daniels-david-ii, "RootsWeb's WorldConnect Project: York's Fentress County Tennessee", http://www.mtairycogic.com/index.php/about-us/243-drlouisfelton, "James Haynes Obituary (19312015) Dallas, TX Dallas Morning News", "Ohio North First Jurisdiction COGIC | About Us", "Senior Pastor | St. Stephen's Cathedral Church Of God in Christ", "Chicago's Historic Roberts Temple COGIC Receives Landmark Status", "Our Pastor GREATER EMMANUEL INSTITUTIONAL CHURCH OF GOD IN CHRIST", "Nathaniel Simmons Obituary (2006) Atlanta, GA Atlanta Journal-Constitution", "Barnett Thoroughgood Obituary (2012) Norfolk, VA The Virginian-Pilot", "Wells Memorial Church of God in Christ About Us", "Influential Hampton Roads Bishop Levi E. Willis Sr. dies", "Bishop Roy L.H. Amen. Over time, the ministers and churches under Leonard P. Adams also separated from COGIC; they assimilated into other white Pentecostal groups or organizations. COGIC clergy are also allowed to be married. He became nationally recognized in 1955 for officiating at the funeral of 15-year-old Emmett Till, who was brutally murdered in Mississippi. As has been stated, COGIC does not ordain women as elder or bishop, however, COGIC would not have become the largest predominately African-American Pentecostal church in the world, nor have the largest Women's convention of any major denomination without the contributions of women. During the tenure of Bishop L. H. Ford as Presiding Bishop in the 1990s, he helped gain COGIC membership into the Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches of North America, a more diverse, international caucus of different Pentecostal church denominations and organizations that sought to heal the racial divides in the North American Pentecostal movement.[57]. On April 24, 2022, while addressing his local congregation at the West Angeles COGIC for their sunday morning service, he announced that he has been dealing with and coping with Parkinson's disease, "for the past ten years", and that as of April 2022, he was going to be retiring as the senior pastor of West Angeles COGIC, and that his two sons who are also COGIC elders and ministers, Reverends Charles, Jr. and Lawrence Blake, would be taking over as the de facto pastor and assistant pastor of the West Angeles congregation, respectively. Mamie Till-Mobley was a member of St. Paul COGIC led by then Elder Louis Henry Ford (who would later become the presiding bishop of the denomination) officiated the service. The current leader of the International Music Department is recording artist Dr. Myron Williams, succeeding Dr. Judith Christie McAllister of Los Angeles, California, who is also a praise and worship national recording artist. President, International Music Department Dr. Myron Williams, General Assembly and Call Meeting (April) Memphis, General Council of Pastors and Elders (May), International Women's Crusade and Convention (May), Auxiliaries in Ministry (AIM) Conference (July), Bishop Mason's Birthday/Founder's Celebration (September), International Holy Convocation and General Assembly (November), Mother Lizzie Woods Robinson first general supervisor (19111945), Mother Lillian Brooks Coffey second general supervisor and founding president of the Women's International Convention (19461964), Mother Annie L. Bailey third general supervisor (19641975), Mother Mattie McGlothen fourth general supervisor (19751994), Mother Emma F. Crouch fifth general supervisor (19941997), Mother Willie Mae Rivers sixth general supervisor (19972017), Mother Barbara McCoo Lewis seventh general supervisor (2017present), Evangelist Emily Bram Bibby#, longest-serving national female evangelist, Missionary Pearl Paige Brown#, foreign missionary. Secretary of the General Council of Pastors and Elders Superintendent Prince W. Bryant, II. Coffey was a child convert to COGIC under the preaching of Bishop Mason, and was influential in organizing many of the auxiliaries, bands, and units that exist within the COGIC Women's Department. The YPWW department began in 1928 with the convening of its first Youth Congress. He served faithfully as an Ordained Deacon, the Sunday School Superintendent and the Guitarist. [19], Mason continued to travel across the nation preaching and establishing COGIC churches. Sin was transmitted to humanity when Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, as a result all men have original sin. C. P. Jones was elected the General Overseer, C. H. Mason was selected as Overseer of Tennessee, and J. In 1969, he was asked by his father and by Southern California COGIC bishop, Bishop Samuel M. Crouch, to take over as the pastor of the West Angeles Church of God in Christ. [29] She is also the Jurisdictional Supervisor of Women for the South Carolina Jurisdiction. [44], COGIC teaches that salvation is the work of redemption to the sinner and his restoration to divine favor and communion with God. "[91] Bishop Blake apologized to a young man (Andrew C. Caldwell) who, following Superintendent Carter's message, came forward to proclaim that he had been delivered from homosexuality. Finding two groups of women in the church, one group praying known as the Prayer Band, the other group studying and teaching the Word known as the Bible Band, she combined the two under the name of the Prayer and Bible Band. Church Of God In Christ, Inc. 2015-23. A visionary, she spearheaded the establishment of the multi-million dollar Hale Morris Lewis Manor, a senior citizen complex in Los Angeles, CA. COGIC Bishop Alvin A. Childs of the Faith Temple Church of God in Christ (later renamed Child's Memorial in his honor) was the clergyman who finally opened his doors. Mason as General Overseer and Chief Apostle. Bishop Elijah Hankerson III - Board member (2021present), Bishop Charles E. Blake Presiding Bishop Emeritus. The racial climate in the post WWI years, when there was high competition for jobs and housing and violent unrest in many cities in 1919, would not sustain this relationship. As founder and CEO of Save Africas Children, a program of the Pan African Childrens Fund, he helps to support more than 200,000 children in 400 orphan care programs throughout more than 23 nations on the continent of Africa. At the 1907 COGIC Convocation held in Jackson, a separation occurred among Jones and other leaders in the church because of such disagreements. Bishop Blake said, "The Church of God in Christ does not compromise its stance against homosexuality as the Word of God condemns it as sin, but "this preacher's" (referring to Earl Carter) comments were unacceptably offensive and uncalled for, and will not be tolerated by the Church of God in Christ or its leadership. March 22, 2021. We believe that the regeneration by the Holy Ghost is absolutely essential for personal salvation. The church started with only 50 members in 1969 when he became pastor. Assistant Elect Lady, COGIC World Missions-Supervisor Lee E.Van Zandt. His ministry spanned more than seven decades. Drew Sheard, Sr. as Presiding Bishop on March 20, 2021. Bishop J. The Department of Evangelism was officially organized on a national level by Overseer L.C. Carter currently posts material on YouTube and Facebook reporting alleged misconduct and impropriety within current leadership of COGIC and other Christian (mainly African-American) denominations. As a result, many local congregations, foreign missions, and schools were established through the leadership and efforts of women in COGIC. Patterson in March 2007. Mason was influenced by the testimony of the African-American Methodist evangelist Amanda Berry Smith, one of the most widely respected African-American holiness evangelists of the nineteenth century. Blake has also formerly served as an Advisory Committee Member of the Pentecostal World Conference, and as the founder and Co-chair of the Los Angeles Ecumenical Congress (LAEC), an interdenominational coalition of religious leaders and pastors for the city of Los Angeles. He has one older brother, J. Remarriage is usually highly discouraged, except in the case of the death of a spouse or former spouse. Mrs. Anna Broy Crockett Ford was the first organizer and director of the National Music Department, which was formally established in November 1949. He gave the eulogy for Till at Robert's Temple COGIC in 1955. From 1985 to 2009, he maintained the position of Prelate for the First Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction of California, where he was responsible for overseeing over 250 churches. They have two children, Kierra Kelly and John Drew Sheard, II, one son-in-love, Jordan Kelly, and two grandchildren. He was elected four times uncontested as presiding bishop. Mother Dorothy Exume#, foreign missionary, Evangelist Reatha D. Herndon#, first and longest-serving elect Lady, church organizer, national evangelist, Supervisor Deola Wells Johnson, national evangelist, jurisdictional supervisor, Evangelist Maria Gardner Langston, COGIC pastor, national evangelist, former Elect Lady, Mother Elsie Washington Mason#, third and final wife of Bishop Mason, Mother Lelia Washington Mason#, second wife of Bishop Mason. [10] After testifying to being sanctified, members of the church referred to themselves as "Saints", believing that they were set apart to live a daily life of Christian Holiness in words and deeds.[11]. [20], The first national tabernacle was built and completed in 1925. It is one of the largest gathering of Christian women from any major denomination and religious organization. Historically, women in ministry in COGIC are known as "Missionaries" and are designated in two categories: Deaconess Missionary, and Evangelist Missionary. "[90] This excerpt of Elder Carter's sermon went viral throughout social media and was picked up by major television news broadcasts. These offices are found in every local, district, and jurisdiction to support development and growth of the Sunday School. The first youth leader on a national level was Elder M.C. During her leadership, several new buildings were constructed on the 350-acre campus to serve this expansion. Bishop Patterson was also to date the youngest person to ever be elected presiding bishop of COGIC at the age of 56; the second youngest was his nephew Gilbert Earl (G.E.) Bishop Blake led COGIC through the death of G. E. Patterson while preparing the church for its 100th Holy Convocation; an important milestone for the church. President Clinton gave speeches at COGIC meetings including the International Holy Convocation at Mason Temple and the Women's International Convention. Despite what seems to be obvious limitations to minister because of ordination, women have been given great latitude and numerous opportunities to serve in ministry in COGIC. Deaconess Missionaries serve and assist in the ceremonial and temporal affairs of the local church. [96][97][98][99], This article is about the Holiness Pentecostal denomination. During the tenure of Bishop G.E. [25], Bishop Ozro Thurston Jones Sr. was pastor of the Holy Temple Church of God in Christ in Philadelphia and the Jurisdictional Bishop of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Jurisdiction. In 1984 and 1988 respectively, Rev. According to the press release, The COGIC General Assembly, the legislat Then in 1946, the YPWW Department was combined with the Sunday School Department for joint conventions until 1951 when they were separated once again. "[92], Elder Carter was attempting to address members of COGIC as to sexual misconduct, and specifically, homosexual practices. After graduating from high school, he matriculated to Wayne State University, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in education and a Master of Education degree in mathematics. Young, James Brewer, Daniel Spearman, and J. H. Boone. She organized the sewing circle and after meeting Elder Searcy, she encouraged the women to support mission work through the Home and Foreign Mission bands. In looking to COGIC'S future, Presiding Bishop Charles E. Blake, Sr., senior pastor of West Angeles Church of God in Christ in Los Angeles, announced last year that he would not seek-re-election as a member of the General Board or Presiding Bishop. Blake, Sr. and the late Evangelist Lula M. Blake. According to Alex Haley, "He and his wife then received bomb threats at home and at church." Churches are organized in dioceses called jurisdictions, each under the authority of a bishop. [49] The church does not practice infant baptisms or christenings, but does conduct baby dedications in formal ceremonies. Mallory retired in 1976 after fifty years of service; and she had a national reputation. Medger Evers, the famed NAACP Field representative for the state of Mississippi who was gunned down in the front of his house in 1963 was raised in by his mother as a member of COGIC before later becoming a Baptist. The Voice of Missions a bimonthly magazine, John Seth Bailey#, general board member, jurisdictional bishop, Michigan Southwest Jurisdiction; pastor, Bailey Cathedral, Detroit, MI, Elmer Elijah Cleveland#, jurisdictional bishop, Northern California Jurisdiction, pastor, Ephesians, Oakland, CA, Bishop David Willard Grayson, Sr#, Jurisdictional Bishop of Maine, Founding Jurisdictional Bishop of Eastern New York Fourth, David Daniels, educator, professor, auxiliary bishop, James Logan Delk#, politician, pastor, First, Hopkinsville, KY, James Louis Felton, auxiliary bishop, pastor, Mount Airy, Philadelphia, PA, James Neaul Haynes#, general board member, jurisdictional bishop, Texas Northeast First Jurisdiction; pastor, Saintsville, Dallas, TX, Roderick Hennings, author, auxiliary bishop, pastor, Zion Dominion Global Ministries, Amherst, NY, William Morgan James#, general board member, jurisdictional bishop, Ohio North First Jurisdiction, pastor, St. James, Toledo, OH and James Temple, Cincinnati, OH, Orzo Thurston Jones Jr.#, general board member, jurisdictional bishop, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Jurisdiction; pastor, Holy Temple, Philadelphia, PA, Otha Miema Kelly#, general board member, jurisdictional bishop, Eastern New York First Jurisdiction; pastor, Kelly Temple, Harlem, NY, Otis Lockett#, church planter, jurisdictional bishop, North Carolina Second Jurisdiction, pastor, Evangel Word Fellowship, Greensboro, NC, George Dallas McKinney#, scholar, general board member, jurisdictional bishop, Southern California Second Jurisdiction; pastor, St. Stephen's Cathedral, San Diego, CA, S.E.
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