Twentieth Century Holiness
Twentieth Century Holiness
Churches of Christ in Christian Union
Evangelical Church of North America
Gospel Mission Corps of the American Rescue Workers
International Fellowship of Bible Churches, Inc.
Kentucky Mountain Holiness Association
Lumber River Annual Conference of the Holiness Methodist Church
Wesleyan Tabernacle Association
Calvary Holiness Church
3415-19 N Second St., Philadelphia, PA 19140
In 1963, the Brethren in Christ Church experienced a split among members, with some rejecting what they saw as liberalizing and diversifying trends in the church. Members in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, congregation under the leadership of William L. Rosenberry saw the church as loosening its stand on separation from the world and practical holiness. This small congregation incorporated in 1964 as the Calvary Holiness Church. It was joined by members who left Brethren in Christ congregations in Hanover and Millersberg, Pennsylvania, and Massillon, Ohio.
The church follows the general beliefs of the Brethren in Christ, differing primarily in the strictness with which its holds to these beliefs and practices. As with other Wesleyan holiness churches, it believes in the experience of entire sanctification as a second work of grace in the life of the believer. Members observe the ordinances of baptism in the name of the Trinity, the Lord’s Supper, and the washing of the saints’ feet. Women wear a veil during worship. The holy kiss (I Peter 5:14) is used as a form of greeting. Believers are admonished to live a life of separation from the follies, sinful practices, and methods of the world, most especially in following a spirit of nonresistance in all matters according to Christ’s Sermon on the Mount. Members refrain from the use of intoxicating substances, worldly amusements (including television), membership in lodges and secret societies, and activity that does not glorify God on the Lord’s Day.
Members wear a version of the “plain people” garb, which for men includes a suit of plain material, black or brown shoes, and conservative hats. No neckties or jewelry is allowed. Women wear conservative dresses with full-length sleeves. They may not wear shorts, slacks, socks, jewelry, lace, or bows, or employ artificial means to bedeck their hair or face. During all waking hours, they wear a “prayer and prophecy veil” in the shape of a bonnet of white (which is covered with a black bonnet when they are outdoors).
The church follows a congregational polity. It has an executive council that handles matter of polity, doctrine, and standards at a general church level.
Membership
Not reported. In the early 1970s, there were only two congregations and 38 members, though the church reported a number of constituency members and the monthly magazine had a circulation of 7,000.
Periodicals
The Gospel Witness.
Remarks
This church should not be confused with the Calvary Holiness Church of England (1930–1955), which is now an integral part of the Church of the Nazarene.
Christian Pilgrim Church
Current address not obtained for this edition.
The Christian Pilgrim Church was formed in 1937 by a group of holiness people, including Reverends Fannie Alldaffer, C. W. Cripps, and Tracy Alldaffer. They gathered at Coldwater, Michigan, to build a holiness church that could function without “so much law and order or machinery in the church.” Officers were elected for life or as long as they remained in agreement with the Bible and the church.
The doctrine is Trinitarian and holiness (i.e., in essential agreement with the other churches discussed in this chapter). Healing is stressed but speaking in tongues is considered contrary to the Word of God; Baptism by any mode is desired; tithing is insisted upon; secret societies are condemned; Christ’s imminent premillennial Second Coming is expected.
There is a General Assembly, which meets annually. The church is divided into districts. A general superintendent has general oversight of the work and is aided by two assistants. Congregations are found in the South and Midwest.
Membership
Not reported. In the mid-1970s, the church had 15 congregations and approximately 250 members.
Periodicals
The Christian Voice.
Churches of Christ in Christian Union
PO Box 10, 1426 Lancaster Pke., Circleville, OH 43113
The Churches of Christ in Christian Union (CCCU) was formed in 1909 when a small group of ministers withdrew from the annual council of the Christian Union denomination when the council voted to censure any minister preaching a Wesleyan Holiness doctrine. The doctrine of the CCCU is Wesleyan Holiness, with a strong emphasis on evangelism and the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. The denomination supports a worldwide mission program and the Circleville Bible College, an accredited college specializing in training persons for ministry and other Christian service careers.
In 1952 the Reformed Methodist Church, which had split from the Methodist Episcopal Church over episcopal polity, joined the Churches of Christ in Christian Union as the Northeastern District. The Reformed Methodist Church was formed in 1914 in Readsborough, Vermont, by a group of Methodists led by Pliny Brett, a local preacher. At their first conference, February 4, 1914, they adopted the Methodist “Articles of Religion” and some democratic rules for church government. The government was essentially congregational, without sharp distinctions between ministers and laymen. While the Methodist system of representative conferences was kept, ministers were delegates only if elected, not ex-officio. The local church had the power to ordain elders, select its own ministers, and do whatever else necessary to carry on its work. Likewise, ministers could pick their field of service.
Polity is congregational within the limits established by the denominational constitution and bylaws. Spiritual officers of the local church are the pastor and elders. Local church business affairs are conducted by a board comprised of the elders, church trustees, and departmental leaders. The national church officers are elected by biennial general council and/or annual district councils.
Membership
In 2007–2008 the churches reported 11,132 members, 231 congregations, and 562 clergy/ministers.
Educational Facilities
Circleville Bible College, Circleville, Ohio.
Ohio Christian University, Circleville, Ohio.
Periodicals
The Evangelical Advocate.
Sources
Churches of Christ in Christian Union. www.cccuhq.org.
Brown, Kenneth, and P. Lewis Brevard. Our Godly Heritage. Circleville, OH: Circle Printing, 1980. Available at , www.cccuhq.org.
Evangelical Church of North America
9421 West River Rd., Minneapolis, MN 55444
The Evangelical Church of North America was formed on June 4, 1968, by members of the Evangelical United Brethren who did not wish to proceed into the merger with the Methodist Church (1939–1968) that created the United Methodist Church. The schism in the Evangelical United Brethren involved 50 congregations in the church’s Northwest Conference and 23 churches from the Montana Conference. For several decades the Northwest Conference had been a center of Holiness theology, with many of the pastors being trained at the Western Evangelical Seminary (established in 1945 and firmly Holiness in its doctrine and emphases).
Almost as soon as the Evangelical Church of North America was formed, the Holiness Methodist Church, with headquarters in Minneapolis, voted to affiliate, and in 1969 it became the North Central Conference of the new church. The Holiness Methodist Church was a result of the “Holiness” revival movement that swept the United States in general and Methodism in particular during the late 1800s. The Northwestern Holiness Association was formed at Grand Forks, North Dakota, on March 24, 1909, as a fellowship of those following the Holiness way. This informal association changed its name to the Holiness Methodist Church in 1920, recognizing that the association had become a denomination. In 1977 the small Wesleyan Covenant Church, with congregations in Detroit and in Brownsville, Texas, as well as an extensive Mexican mission, merged into the Evangelical Church.
The doctrine of the Evangelical Church of North America follows the tradition of Methodism as developed within the Evangelical United Brethren. It includes a special emphasis on entire sanctification.
The Evangelical Church of North America has six annual conferences—the Pacific, the Eastern, the Western, the East Central, the North Central, and the Southeastern. The church is supervised by a general conference that meets quadrennially and the general church council that meets annually. The highest full-time executive office, that of general superintendent, was created in 1976. In 2008 Rev. Brian Eckhardt was the general superintendent over the general conference. The work of missions is supervised by the department of missions and a full-time executive director. Fields include Bolivia, Brazil, Germany, Japan, and New Mexico (among Native Americans). In addition, churches across the denomination participate actively in a number of interdenominational mission agencies such as OMS International, World Gospel Mission, and Wycliffe Bible Translators. Currently there is more than one adult missionary per congregation (150:140). The church is a member of the National Association of Evangelicals and the Christian Holiness Association.
In 1993 the North West Canada Conference became autonomous, and with the blessing of the Evangelical Church of North America merged with the Missionary Church in Canada to become the Evangelical Missionary Church of Canada.
Membership
In 2000 the church reported 13,500 members.
Educational Facilities
George Fox University, Newberg, Oregon.
Kentucky Mountain Bible College, Vancleve, Kentucky.
Vennard College, University Park, Iowa.
Wesley Biblical Seminary, Jackson, Mississippi.
George Fox Evangelical Seminary, Portland, Oregon.
Periodicals
The Evangelical Challenge • The HeartBeat
Sources
Evangelical Church of North America. theevangelicalchurch.org.
Pike, John M. Preachers of Salvation: The History of the Evangelical Church. Milwaukie, OR: Evangelical Church of North America, 1984.
Gospel Mission Corps of the American Rescue Workers
Box 175, Hightstown, NJ 08520
The Gospel Mission Corps was founded by Robert S. Turton III, a graduate of the Pillar of Fire Bible Seminary of Zarephath, New Jersey. He began a mission at Hightstown, New Jersey, that grew into the Gospel Mission Corps in 1962. Its doctrine was like that of the American Rescue Workers (ARW), with which it merged in 1980. Some of its members had previously belonged to the ARW.
Grace and Hope Mission, Inc.
4 S. Gay St., Baltimore, MD 21202-4007
The Grace and Hope Mission was founded in 1914 by Mamie E. Caskie and Jennie E. Goranflo, who opened a gospel mission in Baltimore. The work grew so that by the late 1960s there were 12 centers, mostly in large cities. The doctrine is Wesleyan-Protestant with an emphasis on evangelism, holiness, and the hope of the Second Coming. The officers, all single females, wear a black uniform with red trim and the Mission’s emblem. There is an annual conference held in York, Pennsylvania, on the Sunday following Mother’s Day, at which the assignments of officers for the coming year are made. Ruth Carlson was the superintendent in 2008.
Membership
In 2008 the mission reported eight centers. There is no formal membership, but in 1997 approximately 800 people participated in the mission’s activities.
Sources
Grace and Hope Mission, Inc.
secure.mawebcenters.com/websites/gracehopemission/index.html.
International Fellowship of Bible Churches, Inc.
PO Box 1222, Bethany, OK 73008
Shipping Address
3511 N. Geraldine, Oklahoma City, OK 73112
International Fellowship of Bible Churches, Inc. is an association of Holiness churches and ministers of a Wesleyan-Arminian persuasion. The Fellowship was founded in 1988 under the leadership of Dr. Donald Hicks and Rev. Kenneth Arnold. Several hundred attended the initial Fellowship assembly, at which Hicks and Arnold were elected to continue to lead the new organization. They were appointed by an international coordinating committee comprised of ten elders and ten lay leaders from member churches. Following the assembly, Hicks and Arnold began a national tour to meet with ministers and church unable to attend. A periodical, The Fellowship, was launched before the year was out. Administrative offices were opened in Oklahoma City in 1994. Rev. Arnold resigned as co-CEO in 1991 and Dr. Hicks continued as CEO until he retired from that office in 1998. At that time, Dr. William Sillings was appointed to serve as the next CEO. In 2002 the Fellowship revised its bylaws, replacing the office of CEO with a general superintendent elected by the assembly, a position held by Sillings since 2002. The general superintendent is elected quadrennially at a general assembly.
The Fellowship adopted a statement of faith that affirms traditional Wesleyan-Arminian doctrines, including a belief in entire sanctification. Entire sanctification is defined as an act of God, subsequent to regeneration, by which “believers are made free from original sin, or depravity, and are brought into a state of entire devotion to God, and the holy obedience of perfect love.” Through the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, the believer is empowered to live the Christian life. The sanctified individual is not free of human error and misjudgment, and is still in a process of continued growth.
Unlike other Holiness churches, the Fellowship also recognizes the gifts of the Spirit as supernatural endowments for service to be exercised in conjunction with the harmony of the body of Christ.
The Fellowship believes in the autonomy of the local church, and exists to provide fellowship, cooperative ministry, and credentials for its member ministers and churches. The work of the Fellowship is extended through several departments, including Fellowship Youth for Christ (FYC), World Mission Outreach, and the Commission on Credentials and Membership (CCM). The commission oversees ministerial licensing and ordination procedures, and the chartering of churches and parachurch organizations. The Fellowship has supported world mission endeavors to the Philippines, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico, Nigeria, and Lesotho, and has mission links with Barbados and Guyana, as well as several affiliated pastors and churches in India and Pakistan.
Membership
Not reported.
Periodicals
The Fellowship, and Fellowship Pastor, an official communication of the General Superintendent with Fellowship ministers.
Sources
International Fellowship of Bible Churches. www.ifbc.org/.
Kentucky Mountain Holiness Association
75 Mill Creek Lawson Rd., Vancleve, KY 41385
Alternate Address
PO Box 2, Vancleve, KY 41385
The Kentucky Mountain Holiness Association was begun in 1925 by Lela G. McConnell, a deaconness in the Methodist Episcopal Church. Following her ordination in 1924, she began a vigorous ministry in the mountains of eastern Kentucky. She preached a Wesleyan-Protestant doctrine with a strong emphasis on sanctification. The association maintains an elementary school, a high school, a four-year bible college, a radio station, and a campground. J. Eldon Neihof is the president emeritus of the association.
Membership
In 2002 the association reported 13 churches.
Educational Facilities
Kentucky Mountain Bible College, Vancleve, Kentucky.
Sources
McConnell, Lela G. The Pauline Ministry in the Kentucky Mountains. Jackson, KY: Author, 1942.
Lumber River Annual Conference of the Holiness Methodist Church
Prospect Rd., Penbroke, NC 28372
The Lumber River Annual Conference of the Holiness Methodist Church has its origins in a meeting organized in 1900 by members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, at Union Chapel Church, Robeson County, North Carolina. These members had an intense interest in the holiness movement, with its stress on the second blessing, a religious experience certifying holiness. At the time, the holiness movement was criticized by many Methodists, so attendees at the 1900 meeting decided to form a new church.
Equally important in the formation of the new conference was the desire to provide spiritual nurture to those of Native American descent, mostly the Lumbee and Tuscarora peoples of Robeson County. Three of the founders of the church, Henry H. Lowrie, French R. Lowrie, and Calvin Canady Lowrie, had formerly been ministers in the Blue Ridge Methodist Conference, which focused its work on this area. Joining the Lowries in organizing the conference were Revs. John O. Sampson, p.m. Loclear, S. A. Hammonds, and Jack P. Jacobs.
The church follows Wesleyan-Protestant doctrine and has adopted an episcopal polity. Some features of nineteenth-century Methodism—attendance at class meetings (regular gatherings of small classes for mutual discussion, Bible study, confession and forgiveness, and prayer) and six months’ probationary membership—are retained. The itinerant ministry has been dropped.
The conference is currently led by its presiding bishop, Rev. James H. Wood, and its superintendent, Rev. Elton Hunt.
Membership
In 2008 the conference reported 650 members in 10 churches. It provides preachers for three additional churches not officially members of the conference.
Sources
Doctrines and Discipline of the Lumber River Conference of the Holiness Methodist Church. Pembroke, NC: Lumber River Conference of the Holiness Methodist Church, 1998.
Official Journal of the 103rd Annual Session of the Lumber River Conference of the Holiness Methodist Church. Pembroke, NC: Lumber River Conference of the Holiness Methodist Church, 2003.
Woods, James H., et al. The History of the Lumber River Conference of the Holiness Methodist Church. Pembroke, NC: Lumber River Conference of the Holiness Methodist Church, 2003.
Parkville Bible Church
800 Whisler Rd., Etters, PA 17319
The Parkville Bible Church, formerly the Holiness Gospel Church, was founded in 1945 by former members of the Evangelical United Brethren and the Church in God. Its theology is Wesleyan holiness. The church sponsors camp meetings. The church is affiliated with the Bahamas Holy Bible Mission headquartered in the Bahama Islands.
Membership
The church is a single congregation of 70 members.
Pillar of Fire
Pillar of Fire International, 10 Chapel Dr., Zarephath, NJ 08890
The existence of the Pillar of Fire is due in part to the preaching and witnessing of an anointed pastor’s wife. This privilege was not encouraged in the late nineteenth century. Alma White (1862–1946), a Methodist minister’s wife, began to preach both in revivals and in her husband’s pulpit. Her success led to notoriety and then to opposition from Methodist officials, so she began to organize her converts into independent missions modeled on the early Methodist societies within the Church of England. After initially cooperating with the Metropolitan Church Association, she incorporated the missions in 1902 as the Pentecostal Union, which gradually emerged as a body separate from the association. The name Pillar of Fire was adopted in 1917 because the church’s magazine of the same name was widely known and associated with this church.
The doctrine of the church is typically Wesleyan Holiness, and it adopted a slightly modified form of the Methodist Twenty-five Articles of Religion early in the twentieth century. The church believes in healing, and accepts premillennialism.
The church is organized episcopally. Alma White, its first bishop, was among the first women in modern times to assume that role. Women can occupy all ministerial roles. As part of its commitment to women’s rights, the church for many years published a periodical called Women’s Chains.
White was an advocate of a variety of controversial causes, including vegetarianism and women’s rights. She was also an active supporter of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s. She wrote a book, Klansmen: Guardians of Liberty (1926), defending them as God’s agents in maintaining the social order, but the church disassociated itself from the Klan many years ago.
The headquarters of the church are at Zarephath, New Jersey. The location of the original headquarters, Denver, Colorado, functions as a second major center of activity. At both locations there is a college, bible seminary, prep school, radio station (KPOF in Denver and WAWZ in Zarephath), and a branch of the Pillar of Fire Press. A third radio station, WAKW, and a school are located in Cincinnati, Ohio, and other schools are located in Jacksonville, Florida, Los Angeles, California, and London, England. There is also an active foreign missions program with many schools, churches, and other humanitarian activities.
Following Alma White’s death, her two sons Ray B. White (1892–1946) and Arthur K. White (1889–1981) inherited the leadership of the church. Arthur K. White became the new bishop and directed its activities for more than thirty years. Dr. Donald J. Wolfram is the present bishop and general superintendent.
Membership
Membership is not counted and is unknown. In 2002 there were 106 congregations in the United States and in foreign countries, including Great Britain, India, Liberia, Nigeria, and Costa Rica.
Educational Facilities
Belleview Christian College and Bible Seminary and Belleview Christian School (K–12), Westminster, Colorado.
Somerset Christian College and Somerset Christian Academy (K–12), Zarephath, New Jersey.
Eden Grove Academy (pre-K–12), Cincinnati, Ohio.
Sycamore Grove Christian School (K–8), Los Angeles, California.
Alma Heights Christian Academy (K–12), Pacifica, California.
Pillar of Fire also has numerous mission schools abroad.
Periodicals
Pillar of Fire • Mission News around the Globe Today
Sources
Pillar of Fire. www.pillar.org/index.html
McRobbie, James. What the Bible Teaches. Salem, OH: Schmul, 1983.
White, Alma. Hymns and Poems. Zarephath, NJ: Pillar of Fire, 1946.
———. The New Testament Church. Zarephath, NJ: Pillar of Fire, 1929.
———. The Story of My Life. 6 vols. Zarephath, NJ: Pillar of Fire, 1919–34.
———. Why I Do Not Eat Meat. Zarephath, NJ: Pillar of Fire, 1938.
Sanctified Church of Christ
1141 S. 2nd St., Louisville, KY 40203
The Sanctified Church of Christ was formed July 5, 1937, at Columbus, Georgia, by a group of former members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. The group was led by Brother E. K. Leary and Sister Jemima Bishop, and their purpose was to preserve the rich heritage of true scriptural Holiness. Their doctrine was Wesleyan-Protestant with a distinct emphasis upon entire sanctification. Particular rules were made against secret oath-bound societies, immodest dress such as shorts, jewelry, make-up, public and mixed bathing, women cutting their hair, television, and divorce. Members are conscientious objectors.
There is an annual conference that elects the general superintendent, secretary, treasurer, and the council of 12 members, which is the chief legislative body of the church. The council approves all candidates for the ministry.
In 1996 Amistad y Vida (Friendship and Life) joined the Sanctified Church of Christ as its first primarily Spanish local church. The Sanctified Church opened the first Spanish church in Atlanta, Georgia, under the ministry of Rev. Hector Julian and Auristela Ordonez. The general church council under the superintendence of Rev. Sherman Stoess decided to serve the growing Hispanic populations of Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, and other areas of the United States by starting churches, preaching the message of scriptural Holiness, and attending the basic needs of the international Latin community.
Membership
In 2008 the church’s website listed 10 congregations, spread mostly across the Deep South. It also listed four future congregations. Membership is unknown.
Sources
Sanctified Church of Christ. www.thesanctifiedchurch.org.
Wesleyan Tabernacle Association
Current address not obtained for this edition.
The Wesleyan Tabernacle Association is a small holiness church. It was formed in 1936 for the purpose of promoting Christian love and fellowship among godly leaders of various undenominational bodies and to open a greater field of service for holiness evangelistic preachers and singers. The association asserts belief in the Trinity, salvation and sanctification by God’s free grace, divine healing, baptism and the Lord’s Supper as ordinances, and the premillennial return of Christ. Polity is congregational. There is an annual association convention which elects officers to oversee publications, missions, and cooperative endeavors with like-minded groups. Women are freely admitted to the ministry. The association supports a children’s home and an extensive mission in Haiti.
Membership
Not reported. In the 1970s the association had 26 congregations in the United States. It supported 173 ordained ministers, 53 licensed ministers, 10 song evangelists, and 19 commissioned Christian workers, some of whom were under the direction of independent holiness mission agencies.
Periodicals
Evangel.
Sources
Yearbook. Wesleyan Tabernacle Association, 1965.