Church of God General Conference (Abrahamic Faith)
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The Church of God General Conference is an Adventist Christian body which is also known as the Church of God of the Abrahamic Faith and the Church of God General Conference (Morrow, GA). The Church of the Blessed Hope, some of whose congregations use the name Church of God of the Abrahamic Faith are a separate denomination, although they share the same origins.
The Church of God General Conference has roots in several similar groups in England and North America that eventually united in 1921 in Waterloo, Iowa to form the current national organization. These small groups had reached similar doctrinal convictions through independent Bible study. In the mid 1800s, some of the individuals and groups, including Joseph Marsh of New York and the Wilson family of Illinois (Benjamin Wilson's family), began to circulate religious writings which made the groups aware of one another. This led to fellowship, the development of state conferences, and an attempted national organization in 1888. Strong convictions on the autonomy and authority of individual congregations, though, led to the demise of the original attempt.
In 1921 the groups divided, with the larger becoming the Church of God General Conference, and the smaller the Church of the Blessed Hope. The Church of the Blessed Hope held to the beliefs shared by Benjamin Wilson, and the Church of God General Conference expanded their belief system to embrace doctrines (e.g. the existence of a personal devil) previously not held by the group Wilson helped co-found.
Doctrines of the Church of God General Conference include belief in the authority of the Bible as the rule of faith, God the Father as creator, Jesus' existence beginning with the virgin birth by Mary, water baptism by immersion for the remission of sins, the literal premillennial second coming of Jesus Christ, and that the promises of God to Abraham will be literally fulfilled.
The Churches of God are congregational in government, yet cooperate in publications and missions ministries, and the Atlanta Bible College. International headquarters are located in Morrow in Clayton County, Georgia in the metro-Atlanta area. The Restitution Herald is the official periodical of the church, and is published bi-monthly. A journal dealing with the doctrines of the movement, A Journal From the Radical Reformation, has been published quarterly since 1991. In 1998, the Church of God General Conference had 5040 members in 90 congregations.
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[edit] References
- Handbook of Denominations in the United States, by Frank S. Mead and Samuel S. Hill
- Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches (1999), National Council of Churches
- Hemingray, Peter (2003). John Thomas: His Friends and His Faith. Canton, MI: Christadelphian Tidings. ISBN 81-7887-012-6.
