Worldwide Church of God
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The Worldwide Church of God is a denomination that was founded in 1933 by Herbert W. Armstrong as the Radio Church of God. For a history of the church prior to 1986 see the articles about the life of its founder and the church that he created. At that time the Worldwide Church of God had a reported income of $170 million a year, which was larger than the Billy Graham and Oral Roberts ministries combined. Today the church is considerably smaller, has liquidated most of its real estate properties and is in the process of relocating to Glendora, California. Its doctrines today are relatively mainstream Christian and it is a member of the National Association of Evangelicals.
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Brief history of the church after 1986
After the death of Herbert W. Armstrong in 1986, the church leadership was transferred to Joseph W. Tkach by Herbert W. Armstrong.
As early as 1988, Joseph W. Tkach began to make some minor doctrinal changes. Tkach and his son, Joseph W. Tkach, Jr., led the church toward a theological position more in line with and acceptable to evangelical Christians. The "new" church repudiated many of its former teachings, and even issued an apology to the wider Christian community. This turnaround caused much disillusionment among the membership, and the widespread rise of splinter groups. During the tenure of the elder Joseph Tkach, the church dropped in membership by about 50%.
The Worldwide Church of God now accepts their founder as a sincere Bible student who made many errors in his interpretation of the Bible.
Current status
The Worldwide Church of God has about 64,000 members in 860 congregations in around 90 nations across the world (2004). Headquarters are in Pasadena, California. The church has held membership in the National Association of Evangelicals since 1997.
Current organizational structure
The Worldwide Church of God is established under an hierarchical form of government. The chief ecclesiastical officer of the denomination is called the pastor general. The denomination's ecclesiastical policies are determined by its Advisory Council of Elders (ACE), which is chaired by the pastor general. A Doctrinal Advisory Team advises the ACE on the denomination's doctrinal statements and publications.
In addition to the international leadership, the Worldwide Church of God maintains national offices and offices in multinational regions.
Within the United States, denominational contact with local assemblies (known as local churches or local congregations) is facilitated by district superintendents, each of which is responsible for a large number of churches in a geographical region (such as Florida or the Northeast) or in a specialized language group (such as Spanish-speaking congregations).
Local churches are generally led by a senior pastor or a pastoral leadership team, each of which is supervised by a district superintendent. Some senior pastors are responsible for a single local church, but many are responsible for two or more churches. Local church leadership also includes an Advisory Council, a number of ministry leaders (some of whom are also called deacons), and often additional elders or assistant pastors. [1] (http://www.wcg.org/lit/church/manual/index.htm)
Timeline of Change
- 1986 - Joseph Tkach becomes Pastor General
- 1988 - Members to seek medicinal help, observe birthdays and wear cosmetics
- 1991 - Revised teaching on new birth; divinity of the Holy Spirit accepted
- 1993 - Doctrine of the Trinity accepted
- 1994 - Church teaches that true Christians are found in other denominations
- - Church announces Christians are no longer under the Old Covenant laws
- 1995 - Joseph Tkach dies and his son succeeds him
- - Anglo-Israelism rejected; members permitted to observe Christmas and Easter
- 1996 - Church apologizes to members and others for its erroneous teachings
- 1997 - Worldwide Church of God joins the National Association of Evangelicals
See also
- Herbert W. Armstrong for the history of the church prior to 1986.
- Radio Church of God for a brief outline of the original church.
- Stanley Rader for a history of the church between 1972 and 1981.
Original Worldwide Church of God splinter groups
- Church of God International (org. 1978)
- Philadelphia Church of God (org. 1989)
- Twentieth Century Church of God (org. 1990)
- Church of God (Philadelphia Era) (org. 1991)
- Global Church of God (1992 - now defunct)
- United Church of God (1995)
- Living Church of God (1998)
- Worldwide Church of God Organizational Splits (http://www.wcg.org/lit/aboutus/splits.htm) - External link with full chart to 1996
References
- Handbook of Denominations in the United States, by Frank S. Mead, Samuel S. Hill, and Craig D. Atwood
- The Liberation of the Worldwide Church of God, by J. Michael Feazell
External links
- Worldwide Church of God (http://www.wcg.org/) - official Web Site
- - A brief history of the WCG and its changes (http://www.wcg.org/lit/aboutus/history.htm)
- Beliefs of the Worldwide Church of God (http://www.wcg.org/lit/aboutus/beliefs/default.htm)
- Roots of the Worldwide Church of God (http://www.wcg.org/lit/aboutus/roots.htm)
- Ambassador Watch - critical ezine covering Worldwide Church of God and splinter groups (http://www.ambassadorwatch.co.nz)
- Critical Christian website "to assist former members and survivors of the Worldwide Church of God" (http://home.datawest.net/esn-recovery/default.htm)de:Weltweite Kirche Gottes