C. P. Jones and those Holiness leaders who did not embrace the Azusa Revival experience continued as Holiness churches. Young were appointed as a committee by C. P. Jones to investigate reports of a revival in Los Angeles, California that was being led by an itinerant preacher named William J. Seymour. In November 1975, at the National Holy Convocation in Memphis, TN., with the consent of the General Board, Bishop Carlis Moody Sr. of Evanston, Illinois, was appointed by Bishop J. O. Patterson to be president of the Department of Home and Foreign Missions. It includes not only those who are members of COGIC, but all believers who have placed their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. It believes that the gifts of the Spirit are given to believers and are active in the church today. Home; Secretaries Please click on the drop down tab. The court ordered the church to convene a constitutional convention in February 1968. 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]. In 2017, Presiding Bishop Charles E. Blake appointed gospel artist and Evangelist Dr. Dorinda Clark Cole of Detroit, Michigan as the Elect Lady. Bishop John Drew Sheard Sr., who had previously been elected to the General Board in 2012 and 2016, was reelected to the General Board and subsequently elected as the current Presiding Bishop on March 20, 2021, in the first-ever virtual online election for the denomination. [35], In 2016, the Church had 5.5 million members in 60 countries around the world. [citation needed] Bishop Ford is credited with inviting President Bill Clinton, a personal friend, to speak to the Eighty-Sixth International Holy Convocation on November 13, 1993. Patterson, who became presiding bishop in 2000 at the age of 60. [13], Although the Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) began earlier, it is still the case that in 1907, with ten congregations, The Church of God in Christ became the first legally chartered Pentecostal body incorporated in the United States. "[90] This excerpt of Elder Carter's sermon went viral throughout social media and was picked up by major television news broadcasts. In 1951, the first separate National Sunday School Convention convened in Kansas City, Missouri. Office of the General Secretary Office of the General Secretary Church Of God In Christ | Memphis TN Bishop Charles E. Blake, as the Presiding Bishop of the COGIC from the late 2000s up to the 2010s, was also dedicated to increasing and maintaining stable ecumenical relationships from the COGIC with other diverse Christian denominations, most notably Pentecostal/Charismatic churches, Baptist churches, African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Churches, and A.M.E. Zion churches, and even some non-denominational Christian ministries for the purposes of ministry efforts and collaborating on addressing social issues that affect Christians and specifically the Black Church in America, most notably through his Urban Initiatives program. In 2010, Bishop Blake led more than 50,000 delegates to the 103rd International Holy Convocation to St. Louis, Missouri. Mason Temple, a flagship of the Church of God in Christ (COGIC), was a monumental achievement, becoming upon its completion in 1945 the largest gathering place in Memphis as well as the largest church owned and operated by African Americans in the United States. She established a high school and gained accreditation for it, and then for the junior college which she founded on campus. He protested during the 1950s and 1960s against lodging segregation in Memphis, while participating in COGIC Holy Convocations there during the Civil Rights era before federal laws prohibiting such segregation. Mason sent ministers and evangelists to cities and urban areas outside the South, including William Roberts (Chicago), O. M. Kelly (New York), O. T. Jones Sr. (Philadelphia), E. R. Driver (Los Angeles), and Samuel Kelsey (Washington, D.C.) From these major cities, COGIC spread throughout the country. To be consistent with progressive measures and modernization, in the Nineties, the international church along with many local COGIC churches began to use the term "youth department" instead of "YPWW. " [29], Bishop Gilbert Earl (G. E.) Patterson began his ministry as co-pastor of the Holy Temple COGIC with his father, Bishop W. A. Patterson. When she died in 1945, she had laid an impressive foundation for the women's ministry in COGIC. Bishop David A. Salvation is an operation of the Holy Spirit upon sinners brought about by repentance toward God, which brings about conversion, faith, justification, and regeneration. Bishop O. T. Jones Sr, however, did not leave the COGIC. Later, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, ironically known as the "godmother of Rock and Roll," expanded and highlighted the COGIC sound to the greater American public in the 1930s and 1940s. The General Secretary is the official keeper of the COGIC seal, Registered Agent for the Church and signatory on all official documents. 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. Please note: Fields with ( *) are required. A. Jeter was selected as Overseer of Arkansas. Amen. Patterson, the nephew of the above-mentioned Bishop J.O. It is a separate and distinct work of grace that occurs in the lives of believers after conversion. Southern California Second Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction. The church is thought to have nearly two million members in 7,000 churches on the continent of Africa. A. Remarriage is usually highly discouraged, except in the case of the death of a spouse or former spouse. Mother Deborah Mason Patterson#, daughter of founder, Bishop Mason and wife of first presiding bishop James O. Patterson Sr. C. P. Jones was elected the General Overseer, C. H. Mason was selected as Overseer of Tennessee, and J. All charges against a Pastor or a local Church must be filed with the General Secretary, and the Jurisdictional Secretary. The first Sunday School Superintendent was Professor L. W. Lee (19081916). Secretary General. Malcolm X's Funeral was held in Harlem, New York City at Faith Temple Church Of God in Christ. This system HAS BEEN LICENSED FOR USE BY the General Secretary's and Financial Secretary's Offices of the Church Of God In Christ. Bishop Blake led the COGIC to become a greater global ministry, primarily in Africa and Latin America, while at the same time investing in the inner cities where many COGIC congregations are located. Vice President of COGIC World Missions-Bishop Glenn Plummer. In 1955, Emmett Till's funeral was held at Robert's Temple Church Of God in Christ in Chicago, Illinois. These elders became the first Pentecostal General Assembly of the Church of God in Christ. Chairman of the Board of Bishops Bishop Albert Galbraith. COGIC became a major force in the collective Black Church and worldwide Pentecostal movement. In his first year as Presiding Bishop in 2021, in order to combat debt that the church had accrued from previous years, Bishop Sheard helped to launch the "I Love My Church" Initiative, which was a massive fundraising campaign that helped the COGIC denomination to pay off much of its debts, renovate and refurbish its headquarters church, Mason Temple, establish housing complexes for low-income families throughout Shelby County, Tennessee near the church's headquarters, and purchased a former Catholic nunnery convent in Memphis to provide housing for single mothers affected by health challenges, disabilities, teen pregnancies, and domestic violence. The constitutional convention drafted and approved a new constitution which dissolved both the office of the Senior Bishop and the executive board; it also established the General Assembly, which meets biannually, as the supreme authority over the church to decide matters of faith and practice. Co Directors of the Men's Department Bishop Michael B. In 1964 however, disagreement between the authority of the Senior Bishop and the executive board, led by Bishop A. He is also known for his aggressive initiative, "Save Africa's Children" which supports hundreds of African children who have been affected by HIV/AIDS in orphanages in several countries in Africa. She developed the role of the State Minister of Music and traveled the world conducting seminars and workshops perfecting the quality of choir music, their performance, appearance and demeanor, and the COGIC sound. The Department of Evangelism was officially organized on a national level by Overseer L.C. Al Sharpton, a noted civil rights activist, began his ministerial career as a minister in COGIC. According to its 1973 Constitution, the church has two structures to govern the church: civil and ecclesiastical. The most active women's auxiliaries include: Missionary Circle, Hospitality, Executive Hospitality, Hulda Club, Wide Awake Band, Minister's Wives Circle, Deaconess, Deacon's Wives Circle, Prayer Warriors, Young Women's Christian Council, Usher Board, Educational Committee, Boy's League, Big Brothers, Cradle Roll, Women's Chorus, Board of Examiners, Public Relations, News Reporters and the Burners Home and Foreign Mission Bands. 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. 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. The human soul is immortal and will spend eternity either in heaven as the redeemed or in hell as the damned. 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. When the COGIC was first founded by Bishop Mason in the 1910s, he wanted the denomination to have ecumenical relationships with other predominantly Black Methodist and Baptist churches, but many of them were unwilling to do so at the time because of Mason's controversial history with being expelled from his former Baptist ministry associations and churches in Mississippi for preaching sanctification and Pentecostalism. In 1992, during the Ford administration, UNAC was disbanded in favor of three separate conventions namely: the International Sunday School Convention, the MY Convention (Music and Youth) and the ME Convention (Missions and Evangelism) again meeting in separate cities.. As a result, an ongoing dispute between Elder Carter and Bishop Blake continued without resolution. Vice Chairman of the National Judiciary Board Bishop Enoch Perry. Just another Church Of God In Christ, Inc. site. In the 1920s, Arizona Dranes, a blind Evangelist Missionary became one of the first gospel artists to bring the musical styles of COGIC to the public in her records for Okeh and performances. Throughout the dispute, Elder Carter made allegations against Bishop Blake for impropriety, sexual misconduct, and abuse of power as presiding bishop. The Church of God in Christ (COGIC) is a predominantly African-American Pentecostal Christian denomination, headquartered at Mason Temple in Memphis, Tennessee. A. Blackwell, E. M. Blackwell, E. M. Page, R. H. I. Clark, D. J. Known for the achievements of her students and school alumni, she had also served during these years, by invitation and appointment, on national federal commissions and with noted African-American women's groups. COGIC teaches that the Holy Spirit is alive and active in the world. Mother Willie Mae Rivers served faithfully for 20 years as General Mother until 2017 and the age of 91. 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. B. McEwen made conflicting administrative and executive decisions. In addition to the general board, there is a board of bishops that is composed of all jurisdictional and auxiliary bishops, a national trustee board that is composed of 15 members who are elected for a term of four years, the General Council of Pastors and Elders, which is open to any officially recognized pastor and current credentialed ordained elder in the church. 1st Assistant Presiding Bishop Bishop Jerry W. Macklin. [50], In July 2016 during their annual Auxiliaries in Ministries convention, COGIC announced their Urban Initiative Outreach ministries and Missions and Charity departments would be partnering up with The Human Coalition, an anti-abortion advocacy group, from 2016 to 2019 for a three-year initiative to encourage COGIC pastors and ministers to encourage anti-abortion advocacy in their local churches. She built a home for missionaries in the Bahamas, a pavilion for senior citizens and unwed mothers in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. [27], Several bishops disagreed with the new organizational structure; they severed ties with COGIC to start their own organizations. The denomination considers these to be inconsistent with COGIC doctrine and teaching. COGIC policies and bylaws have also been established regarding sexual misconduct of COGIC clergy and laymembers for disciplinary purposes. Administrative Assistant & Member Executive Committee-General Assembly - 1989-Present. The three-year-initiative with The Human Coalition was also supposed to encourage local COGIC clergy leaders across the United States, both male and female, to partner up with other anti-abortion advocacy groups and Christian ministries to lobby for more anti-abortion restrictions throughout local states.[51]. Secretary of the Board of Bishops Bishop William Watson, III. Historically, women in ministry in COGIC are known as "Missionaries" and are designated in two categories: Deaconess Missionary, and Evangelist Missionary. It was destroyed by fire in 1936. Its doctrine and practice are charismatic in nature, much like the Assemblies of God, meaning that they emphasize personal religious experience and divinely inspired powers, such as healing, prophecy, and speaking in tongues. On May 19, 1952, he added Bishop J. O. Patterson Sr. Also in 1952, Mason revised the constitution to determine the leadership and succession of the church after his death. Mason. The Youth Congress eventually become one of the largest conventions in COGIC. Under her leadership and tenure, COGIC choirs and individual singers came to dominate gospel music producing a number of recordings and gospel hits. Lizzie Woods Robinson (19111945) was the first "General Mother" of the church. Drew Sheard. including information stored locally or on any other media connected to this system. [31], Bishop Ford also renovated several COGIC structures in Memphis, including Mason Temple. Bishop Sedgwick Daniels Board member (2008present). These offices are found in every local, district, and jurisdiction to support development and growth of the Sunday School. Assistant Financial Secretary Bishop David A. Sanders. Churches are organized in dioceses called jurisdictions, each under the authority of a bishop. The international membership of COGIC is estimated be between one and three million adherents. [22], The years of 19621968 has been described as a "Dark Period" in the history of the Church of God in Christ, because there was polarization and conflict in leadership following the death of the founder. The first youth leader on a national level was Elder M.C. The international headquarters is in Memphis, Tennessee. Washington, Bishop Chandler D. Owens, Bishop Brandon B. Porter, and Bishop J. There was the creation of the Sunday School Field Representative. President Clinton gave speeches at COGIC meetings including the International Holy Convocation at Mason Temple and the Women's International Convention. Nevertheless, as time progressed in the 1950s and 60s, and as COGIC began to grow and became increasingly institutionalized as a denomination, several other churches and denominations began partnering up with COGIC's leaders to help advance the cause of Civil Rights for African Americans, most notably such as the National Baptist Convention, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, and many other similar predominantly Black denominations as well. These events include physical death, the intermediate state, bodily resurrection, the Second Coming of Christ, the Great Tribulation, the Battle of Armageddon, the Millennial Reign, the Final Judgment, the future of the wicked in hell, and life for the redeemed in heaven.[48]. 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. Jones was acquainted with Seymour between 1895 and 1905, as Seymour's travels led him to many Holiness preachers such as John G. Lake and Martin Wells Knapp. The three-year initiative would also help encourage COGIC clergy to use their missions and charity ministries in local churches to help offer aid and assistance to African-Americans and people of other ethnic minorities, and people of low incomes in local communities who are considering and contemplating abortion and offer aid and assistance to people dealing with economic and medical issues from pregnancy. [12] Mason stayed in Los Angeles for five weeks and his visit to the Azusa Street Revival changed the direction of the newly formed holiness church. After the death of Mother Coffey in 1964, Dr. Annie L. Bailey (19641975), became the third General Supervisor. Patterson Sr. in 1989. However, the General Assembly vested authority in the executive board composed of the seven bishops selected by Bishop Mason before his death. 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