Misplaced Pages

#164835

84-470: Pentecostal Evangel was first published in 1913 as The Christian Evangel , one year before the formation of the Assemblies of God . Founders J. Roswell and Alice Flower created The Christian Evangel to report on revivals and missions activities. From June 2002 to July 2009, the magazine was renamed Today's Pentecostal Evangel. It was also called The Weekly Evangel from 1915 to 1919, coinciding with

168-674: A Zen group, and through two books made Zen popular in the Netherlands. The guidance of the group was taken over by Erik Bruijn, who is still in charge of a flourishing community. The largest Zen group now is the Kanzeon Sangha, led by Nico Tydeman under the supervision of the American Zen master Dennis Genpo Merzel , Roshi, a former student of Maezumi Roshi in Los Angeles. This group has a relatively large centre where

252-498: A peace church . The US Assemblies of God continues to give full doctrinal support to members who are led by religious conscience to pacifism. Through foreign missionary work and establishing relationships with other Pentecostal churches, the Assemblies of God expanded into a worldwide movement. It was not until 1989 that the world fellowship was formed. In 1989, the various Assemblies of God national fellowships united to form

336-449: A "country focus" to a "people group focus". (From "What is a People Group?" by Dr. Orville Boyd Jenkins: A "people group" is an ethnolinguistic group with a common self-identity that is shared by the various members. There are two parts to that word: ethno and linguistic. Language is a primary and dominant identifying factor of a people group. But there are other factors that determine or are associated with ethnicity.) What can be viewed as

420-510: A North American headquarters at Namgyal Monastery in Ithaca, New York . Lewis M. Hopfe in his "Religions of the World" suggested that "Buddhism is perhaps on the verge of another great missionary outreach" (1987:170). A Christian missionary can be defined as "one who is to witness across cultures". The Lausanne Congress of 1974, defined the term, related to Christian mission as, "to form

504-653: A dramatic increase in efforts since the 20th century, and a strong push since the Lausanne I: The International Congress on World Evangelization in Switzerland in 1974, modern evangelical groups have focused efforts on sending missionaries to every ethnic group in the world. While this effort has not been completed, increased attention has brought larger numbers of people distributing Bibles , Jesus videos , and establishing evangelical churches in more remote areas. Internationally,

588-858: A former mission field and belong to a race other than Caucasian. Much Anglican mission work came about under the auspices of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts (SPG, founded in 1701), the Church Missionary Society (CMS, founded 1799) and of the Intercontinental Church Society (formerly the Commonwealth and Continental Church Society, originating in 1823). With

672-779: A merger of the Pentecostal Church of Australia and the Assemblies of God Queensland. The Queensland AG had formed in 1929; though, it was never formally affiliated with the AG in America. The Assemblies of God of South Africa, founded in 1925, like the AG Queensland was also not initially aligned with the US fellowship. Before 1967, the Assemblies of God USA, along with the majority of other Pentecostal denominations, officially opposed Christian participation in war and considered itself

756-430: A national or regional military. (Romans, Chapter 13) Despite the seeming opposition between the submissive and morally upstanding associations with prayer and violence associated with militarism, these two spheres interact in a dialectical way. Yet they when properly implemented they are entangled to support one another in the upholding of a civilizations morality and the prosecution and punishment of criminals. In some cases

840-656: A nations military may fail to operate according to Godly principles and is not supported by the Church or missionaries, in other cases the military is made up of the Church congregants. The results of spiritual conflict are then present in different ways as prayer can be strategically used, for or against a military. Nigeria, and other countries have had large numbers of their Christian adherents go to other countries and start churches. These non-western missionaries often have unparalleled success; because, they need few western resources and comforts to sustain their livelihood while doing

924-581: A new language) where they study the scriptures along with the Book of Mormon , learn new languages when applicable, prepare themselves to teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ , and learn more about the culture and the people they live among. As of December 2019, the LDS Church had over 67,000 full-time missionaries worldwide and over 31,000 Service Missionaries. In Montreal in 1910, Father James Anthony Walsh ,

SECTION 10

#1732782503165

1008-708: A number of missions in the Americas and in other Western colonies through the Augustinians , Franciscans , and Dominicans to spread Christianity in the New World and to convert the Native Americans and other indigenous people. About the same time, missionaries such as Francis Xavier (1506–1552) as well as other Jesuits , Augustinians, Franciscans, and Dominicans reached Asia and the Far East , and

1092-399: A priest from Boston, met Father Thomas Frederick Price , from North Carolina. They agreed on the need to build a seminary for the training of young American men for the foreign Missions. Countering arguments that the Church needed workers here , Fathers Walsh and Price insisted the Church would not flourish until it sent missioners overseas. Independently, the men had written extensively about

1176-459: A success by those inside and outside the church from this focus is a higher level of cooperation and friendliness among churches and denominations. It is very common for those working on international fields to not only cooperate in efforts to share their gospel message , but view the work of their groups in a similar light. Also, with the increased study and awareness of different people groups, western mission efforts have become far more sensitive to

1260-829: A teacher and some students live permanently. Many other groups are also represented in the Netherlands, like the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives in Apeldoorn, the Thich Nhat Hanh Order of Interbeing and the International Zen Institute Noorderpoort monastery/retreat centre in Drenthe, led by Jiun Hogen Roshi. Perhaps the most widely visible Buddhist leader in the world is Tenzin Gyatso , the current Dalai Lama , who first visited

1344-524: A viable indigenous church-planting movement". Missionaries can be found in many countries around the world. In the Bible , Jesus Christ is recorded as instructing the apostles to make disciples of all nations ( Matthew 28:19–20 , Mark 16:15–18 ). This verse is referred to by Christian missionaries as the Great Commission and inspires missionary work. The Christian Church expanded throughout

1428-710: A visit in 1732 to Copenhagen for the coronation of his cousin King Christian VI , the Moravian Church 's patron Nicolas Ludwig, Count von Zinzendorf , was very struck by its effects, and particularly by two visiting Inuit children converted by Hans Egede . He also got to know a slave from the Danish colony in the West Indies . When he returned to Herrnhut in Saxony , he inspired the inhabitants of

1512-516: Is Trinitarian . It believes that the Bible is divinely inspired and the infallible authoritative rule of faith and conduct. Baptism by immersion is practiced as an ordinance instituted by Christ for those who have been saved. Baptism is understood as an outward sign of an inward change from being dead in sin to being alive in Christ. As an ordinance, Communion is also practiced. The AG believes that

1596-733: Is a social and spiritual movement founded in Jamalpur , Bihar , India , in 1955 by Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar (1921–1990), also known by his spiritual name , Shrii Shrii Ánandamúrti. Ananda Marga counts hundreds of missions around the world through which its members carry out various forms of selfless service on Relief. (The social welfare and development organization under AMPS is Ananda Marga Universal Relief Team, or AMURT.) Education and women's welfare The service activities of this section founded in 1963 are focused on: Dawah means to "invite" (in Arabic, literally "calling") to Islam , which

1680-596: Is a global cooperative body of over 170 Pentecostal denominations that was established on August 15, 1989. WAGF was created to provide structure so that member denominations, which previously related to each other informally, could more easily cooperate on a global basis. The organizational committee, in 1988, summarized the purposes for the WAGF: Member denominations are independent and autonomous, but they are united by shared beliefs and history. WAGF member denominations have varied histories. Most have roots in

1764-413: Is not a policy handbook, and I get very worried when people try to treat it like one". In late 2017, Morrison said he would become a stronger advocate for protections for religious freedom. In Brazil , the local branch Assembleias de Deus has had an increasing influence on politics throughout the early 21st century. The Christian fundamentalist party Patriota is in a parliamental coalition with

SECTION 20

#1732782503165

1848-636: Is now regarded as the ancestor of all Shaivite pandits. Shantidas Adhikari was a Hindu preacher from Sylhet who converted King Pamheiba of Manipur to Hinduism in 1717. Historically, Hinduism has only recently had a large influence in western countries such as the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Canada. Since the 1960s, many westerners attracted by the world view presented in Asian religious systems have converted to Hinduism. Many native-born Canadians of various ethnicities have converted during

1932-512: Is said to have converted many to Buddhism in China, and made Chang'an , present-day Xi'an , a major center of Buddhism. Buddhism expanded rapidly, especially among the common people, and by 381 most of the people of northwest China were Buddhist. Winning converts also among the rulers and scholars, by the end of the Tang dynasty Buddhism was found everywhere in China. Marananta brought Buddhism to

2016-480: Is said to have transmitted Vajrayana Buddhism to Bhutan and Tibet and neighbouring countries in the 8th century. The use of missions, councils, and monastic institutions influenced the emergence of Christian missions and organizations, which developed similar structures in places that were formerly Buddhist missions. During the 19th and 20th centuries, Western intellectuals such as Schopenhauer , Henry David Thoreau , Max Müller , and esoteric societies such as

2100-519: Is the second largest religion with 2.0 billion members. From the 7th century, it spread rapidly from the Arabian Peninsula to the rest of the world through the initial Muslim conquests and subsequently with traders and explorers after the death of Muhammad . Initially, the spread of Islam came through the Dawah efforts of Muhammad and his followers. After his death in 632 CE, much of

2184-782: The Algonquin natives who lived in lands claimed by representatives of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the early 17th century. Quaker "publishers of truth" visited Boston and other mid-17th century colonies, but were not always well received. The Danish government began the first organized Protestant mission work through its College of Missions , established in 1714. This funded and directed Lutheran missionaries such as Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg in Tranquebar , India, and Hans Egede in Greenland . In 1732, while on

2268-528: The All India Assemblies of God , was elected vice chairman. Dominic Yeo of the Assemblies of God in Singapore was elected chairman in 2023. According to a census published by the association in 2024, it has 450,106 churches and 86.1 million members and adherents worldwide. The doctrinal position of the Assemblies of God is framed in a classical Pentecostal and evangelical context. The AG

2352-603: The Bolsonaro government as well as the centre-right Partido Social Cristão , which is led by two AG pastors, Everaldo Pereira and Marco Feliciano , who were accused in various cases of crime and sexual misconduct. Everaldo was arrested for his participation in a corruption scheme in the state-owned company of water treatment of the State of Rio de Janeiro , Companhia Estadual de Águas e Esgotos do Rio de Janeiro  [ pt ] ; Feliciano proved his innocence and that he

2436-645: The Buddhist tradition through the Indian Maurya Empire , but later into the Mediterranean as far as Greece. Gradually, all India and the neighboring island of Ceylon were converted. Then, in later periods, Buddhism spread eastward and southeastward to the present lands of Burma , Thailand , Laos , Cambodia , Vietnam , and Indonesia . Buddhism was spread among the Turkic people during

2520-819: The Byzantine Empire . In the earlier stages of the Ottoman Empire , a Turkic form of Shamanism was still widely practiced in Anatolia, but soon lost ground to Sufism . During the Ottoman presence in the Balkans , missionary movements were taken up by people from aristocratic families hailing from the region, who had been educated in Constantinople or other major city within the Empire such as

2604-554: The Evangel collaborated with the Assemblies of God World Missions Department to devote an entire issue to world missions coverage. Through its World Missions Edition , readers receive a perspective and news on the fellowship's world missions efforts. (The World Missions Edition, replaced a separate magazine, Mountain Movers, which focused solely on missions.) Assemblies of God The World Assemblies of God Fellowship ( WAGF )

Pentecostal Evangel - Misplaced Pages Continue

2688-475: The Latin translation of the Bible , Jesus Christ says the word when he sends the disciples into areas and commands them to preach the gospel in his name. The term is most commonly used in reference to Christian missions , but it can also be used in reference to any creed or ideology . The word mission originated in 1598 when Jesuits , the members of the Society of Jesus sent members abroad, derived from

2772-982: The Netherlands , France , and the United States . In Canada, the immense popularity and goodwill ushered in by Tibet 's Dalai Lama (who has been made honorary Canadian citizen) put Buddhism in a favourable light in the country. Many non-Asian Canadians embraced Buddhism in various traditions and some have become leaders in their respective sanghas . In the early 1990s, the French Buddhist Union (UBF, founded in 1986) estimated that there are 600,000 to 650,000 Buddhists in France, with 150,000 French converts among them. In 1999, sociologist Frédéric Lenoir estimated there are 10,000 converts and up to five million "sympathizers", although other researchers have questioned these numbers. Taisen Deshimaru

2856-783: The Roman Empire already in New Testament times and is said by tradition to have reached even further, to Persia ( Church of the East ) and to India ( Saint Thomas Christians ). During the Middle Ages, the Christian monasteries and missionaries such as Saint Patrick (5th century), and Adalbert of Prague (c. 956–997) propagated learning and religion beyond the European boundaries of the old Roman Empire. In 596, Pope Gregory

2940-542: The Second Vatican Council of 1962–1965, with an increased push for indigenization and inculturation , along with social justice issues as a constitutive part of preaching the Gospel . As the Catholic Church normally organizes itself along territorial lines and had the human and material resources, religious orders, some even specializing in it, undertook most missionary work, especially in

3024-663: The Theosophical Society of H.P. Blavatsky , The Buddhist Society of Great Britain and Ireland and the Buddhist Society, London spread interest in Buddhism. Writers such as Hermann Hesse and Jack Kerouac , in the West, and the hippie generation of the late 1960s and early 1970s led to a re-discovery of Buddhism. During the 20th and 21st centuries Buddhism has again been propagated by missionaries into

3108-793: The Turkic tribes living in and bordering the area. The missionary movement peaked during the Islamic Golden Age , with the expansion of foreign trade routes, primarily into the Indo-Pacific and as far south as the isle of Zanzibar as well as the Southeastern shores of Africa. With the coming of the Sufism tradition, Islamic missionary activities increased. Later, the Seljuk Turks ' conquest of Anatolia made it easier for missionaries to go lands that formerly belonged to

3192-745: The Ukrainian Orthodox Church (both traditionally said to have been founded by the missionary Apostle Andrew), the Bulgarian Orthodox Church (said to have been founded by the missionary Apostle Paul). The Byzantines expanded their missionary work in Ukraine after the mass baptism in Kiev in 988. The Serbian Orthodox Church had its origins in the conversion by Byzantine missionaries of the Serb tribes when they arrived in

3276-410: The United States of America , the majority of its membership vote or lean Republican . During Donald Trump's presidency, General Superintendent George O. Wood attended the National Day of Prayer and praised an executive order allowing ministers and religious organizations to support and advocate for political candidates. The World Fellowship unites Assemblies of God national councils from around

3360-621: The 19th century. The Russian Orthodox Church also sent missionaries to Alaska beginning in the 18th century, including Saint Herman of Alaska (died 1836), to minister to the Natives . The Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia continued missionary work outside Russia after the 1917 Russian Revolution , resulting in the establishment of many new dioceses in the diaspora , from which numerous converts have been made in Eastern Europe, North America, and Oceania. Early Protestant missionaries included John Eliot and contemporary ministers including John Cotton and Richard Bourne, who ministered to

3444-425: The 2nd and 3rd centuries BCE into modern-day Pakistan, Kashmir , Afghanistan , eastern and coastal Iran , Uzbekistan , Turkmenistan , and Tajikistan . It was also taken into China brought by Kasyapa Matanga in the 2nd century CE , Lokaksema and An Shigao translated Buddhist sutras into Chinese. Dharmarakṣa was one of the greatest translators of Mahayana Buddhist scriptures into Chinese. Dharmaraksa came to

Pentecostal Evangel - Misplaced Pages Continue

3528-515: The Balkans in the 7th century. Orthodox missionaries also worked successfully among the Estonians from the 10th to the 12th centuries, founding the Estonian Orthodox Church . Under the Russian Empire of the 19th century, missionaries such as Nicholas Ilminsky (1822–1891) moved into the subject lands and propagated Orthodoxy, including through Belarus , Latvia , Moldova , Finland , Estonia , Ukraine , and China . The Russian St. Nicholas of Japan (1836–1912) took Eastern Orthodoxy to Japan in

3612-403: The Chinese capital of Luoyang in 266 CE, where he made the first known translations of the Lotus Sutra and the Dasabhumika Sutra , which were to become some of the classic texts of Chinese Mahayana Buddhism. Altogether, Dharmaraksa translated around 154 Hīnayāna and Mahāyāna sutras , representing most of the important texts of Buddhism available in the Western Regions. His proselytizing

3696-476: The General Council locating its headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri . The name Christian Evangel returned when the headquarters moved to Springfield, Missouri , its current location. In November 2014, the magazine announced that it would discontinue its printed publication at the end of the year, and switch to an online version at penews.org. Since 1997, the Evangel : Pentecostal Evangel published its 5,000th edition on March 7, 2010. Nine times each year,

3780-416: The General Council. In 1919, Pentecostals in Canada united to form the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada , which formally affiliated with the Assemblies of God USA the following year. The Assemblies of God in Great Britain formed in 1924 and would have an early influence on the Assemblies of God in Australia, now known as Australian Christian Churches . The Australian Assemblies of God formed in 1937 through

3864-410: The Great (in office 590–604) sent the Gregorian Mission (including Augustine of Canterbury ) into England. In their turn, Christians from Ireland (the Hiberno-Scottish mission ) and from Britain ( Saint Boniface (c. 675–754), and the Anglo-Saxon mission , for example) became prominent in converting the inhabitants of central Europe. During the Age of Discovery , the Catholic Church established

3948-763: The Holy Spirit . The AG teaches that this experience is distinct from and subsequent to the experience of salvation . Baptism in the Holy Spirit empowers the believer for Christian life and service. The initial evidence of baptism in the Holy Spirit is speaking in tongues "as the Spirit gives utterance" (Acts 2:4). It also believes in the present-day use of other spiritual gifts such as divine healing . The Assemblies of God ordains women as pastors, which many Christians, especially from evangelical denominations, but also from traditional churches such as Orthodox and Catholic denominations, consider liberal and progressive. Pentecostal and Charismatic denominations have traditionally allowed women to serve in pastoral ministry. While

4032-408: The Jews was founded, which pioneered mission amongst the Jewish people; it continues today as the Church's Ministry Among Jewish People . In 1865, the China Inland Mission was founded, going well beyond British controlled areas; it continues as the OMF, working throughout East Asia . The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) has an active missionary program . Young men between

4116-486: The Korean Peninsula in the 4th century. Seong of Baekje , known as a great patron of Buddhism in Korea , built many temples and welcomed priests bringing Buddhist texts directly from India. In 528, Baekje officially adopted Buddhism as its state religion. He sent tribute missions to Liang in 534 and 541, on the second occasion requesting artisans as well as various Buddhist works and a teacher. According to Chinese records, all these requests were granted. A subsequent mission

4200-499: The Latin missionem ( nom. missio ), meaning 'act of sending' or mittere , meaning 'to send'. The first Buddhist missionaries were called "Dharma Bhanaks", and some see a missionary charge in the symbolism behind the Buddhist wheel, which is said to travel all over the earth bringing Buddhism with it. The Emperor Ashoka was a significant early Buddhist missioner. In the 3rd century BCE, Dharmaraksita —among others—was sent out by emperor Ashoka to proselytize and initially

4284-437: The Middle East and Southern Asia each have one. They are elected by the General Assembly. Each World Fellowship member is entitled to send one or more delegates to the General Assembly with one vote. The General Assembly also elects the Chairman, Vice Chairman, and Secretary of the World Fellowship. At both the national and lower level, the Assemblies of God are generally structured around a form of presbyterian polity , combining

SECTION 50

#1732782503165

4368-463: The Portuguese sent missions into Africa. Emblematic in many respects is Matteo Ricci 's Jesuit mission to China from 1582, which was totally peaceful and non-violent. These missionary movements should be distinguished from others, such as the Baltic Crusades of the 12th and 13th centuries, which were arguably compromised in their motivation by designs of military conquest. Much contemporary Catholic missionary work has undergone profound change since

4452-434: The Society for Missions to Africa and the East, was founded in 1799 by evangelical Anglicans centred around the anti-slavery activist William Wilberforce . It bent its efforts to the Coptic Church , the Ethiopian Church , and India, especially Kerala ; it continues to this day. Many of the network of churches they established became the Anglican Communion . In 1809, the London Society for Promoting Christianity Amongst

4536-418: The Soga clan, Buddhism rose over the objections of the pro-Shinto Mononobe and Buddhism entrenched itself in Japan with the conversion of Prince Shotoku Taishi . When in 710 Emperor Shomu established a new capital at Nara with urban grid plan modeled after the capital of China, Buddhism received official support and began to flourish. Padmasambhava , The Lotus Born, was a sage guru from Oḍḍiyāna who

4620-435: The United States in 1979. As the exiled political leader of Tibet , he has become a popular cause célèbre. His early life was depicted in Hollywood films such as Kundun and Seven Years in Tibet . He has attracted celebrity religious followers such as Richard Gere and Adam Yauch . The first Western-born Tibetan Buddhist monk was Robert A. F. Thurman , now an academic supporter of the Dalai Lama. The Dalai Lama maintains

4704-420: The West such as Ananda Metteyya ( Theravada Buddhism ), Suzuki Daisetsu Teitarō ( Zen Buddhism ), the Dalai Lama and monks including Lama Surya Das (Tibetan Buddhism). Tibetan Buddhism has been significantly active and successful in the West since the Chinese takeover of Tibet in 1959. Today Buddhists make a decent proportion of several countries in the West such as New Zealand , Australia , Canada ,

4788-429: The World AG Fellowship has a statement of faith that outlines the basic beliefs that unify the various branches of the movement, each national AG denomination formulates its own doctrinal statements. The Assemblies of God USA, for example, adheres to the Statement of Fundamental Truths . The most prominent politician within the Assemblies of God is former Australian prime minister Scott Morrison . He has said, "the Bible

4872-429: The World Pentecostal Assemblies of God Fellowship at the initiative of Dr. J. Philip Hogan, then executive director of the Division of Foreign Missions of the Assemblies of God in the United States. The initial purpose was to coordinate evangelism, but soon developed into a more permanent organism of inter-relation. Dr. Hogan was elected the first chairman of the Fellowship and served until 1992 when Rev. David Yonggi Cho

4956-432: The ages of eighteen and twenty-five are encouraged to prepare themselves to serve a two-year, self-funded, full-time proselytizing mission. Young women who desire to serve as missionaries can serve starting at the age of nineteen, for one and a half years. Retired couples also have the option of serving a mission. Missionaries typically spend two weeks in a Missionary Training Center (or two to three months for those learning

5040-425: The concept, Father Price in his magazine Truth , and Father Walsh in the pages of A Field Afar , an early incarnation of Maryknoll Magazine . Winning the approval of the American hierarchy, the two priests traveled to Rome in June 1911 to receive final approval from Pope Pius X for the formation of the Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America, now better known as the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers. Hinduism

5124-477: The cultural nuances of those they are going to and those they are working with in the effort. Over the years, as indigenous churches have matured, the church of the Global South (Africa, Asia, and Latin America) has become the driving force in missions. Korean and African missionaries can now be found all over the world. These missionaries represent a major shift in church history where the nations they came from were not historically Christian. Another major shift in

SECTION 60

#1732782503165

5208-439: The elements that are partaken are symbols which express the sharing of the divine nature of Jesus of Nazareth; a memorial of His suffering and death; and a prophecy of His second coming. The Assemblies of God also strongly emphasizes the fulfillment of the Great Commission and believes this is the church's calling. As classical Pentecostals, the Assemblies of God believes all Christians are entitled to and should seek baptism in

5292-443: The era after the collapse of the Roman Empire in the West. Over time, the Holy See gradually established a normalized Church structure in the mission areas, often starting with special jurisdictions known as apostolic prefectures and apostolic vicariates . At a later stage of development these foundations are raised to regular diocesan status with a local bishops appointed. On a global front, these processes were often accelerated in

5376-404: The expansion of the empire came through conquest such as that of North Africa and later Iberia ( Al-Andalus ). The Islamic conquest of Persia put an end to the Sassanid Empire and spread the reach of Islam to as far east as Khorasan , which would later become the cradle of Islamic civilization during the Islamic Golden Age (622–1258 CE) and a stepping-stone towards the introduction of Islam to

5460-474: The focus for many years in the later 20th century was on reaching every "people group" with Christianity by 2000. Bill Bright's leadership with Campus Crusade, the Southern Baptist International Mission Board , The Joshua Project, and others brought about the need to know who these " unreached people groups " are and how those wanting to tell about the Christian God and share a Christian Bible could reach them. The focus for these organizations transitioned from

5544-411: The form of modern missionary work takes shape in the conflation of spiritual with contemporary military metaphors and practices. Missionary work as spiritual warfare (Ephesians, Chapter 6) weapons of a spiritual sense, is the primary concept in a long-standing relationship between Christian missions and militarization. Though when the Church establishes a governance, usually this results in a formation of

5628-435: The independence of the local church with oversight by district and national councils. The World Assemblies of God Relief Agency (WAGRA) directs its humanitarian work. Missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education , literacy , social justice , health care , and economic development . In

5712-408: The interracial Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles, California or other Pentecostal revivals around the world in the early twentieth century. The largest member denomination, Assembleia de Deus in Brazil, dates its beginning to 1911. Initially called Missão de Fé Apostólica (Apostolic Faith Mission), it changed its name in 1918 to Assembleia de Deus. The Assemblies of God USA, organized in April 1914,

5796-470: The last 50 years through the actions of the Ramakrishna Mission , ISKCON , Arya Samaj and other missionary organizations as well as due to the visits and guidance of Indian gurus such as Guru Maharaj, Sai Baba , and Rajneesh . The International Society for Krishna Consciousness has a presence in New Zealand, running temples in Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington and Christchurch. Paramahansa Yogananda , an Indian yogi and guru , introduced many westerners to

5880-403: The later 1960s, in part accompanying political decolonization. In some regions, however, they are still in course. Just as the Bishop of Rome had jurisdiction also in territories later considered to be in the Eastern sphere, so the missionary efforts of the two 9th-century saints Cyril and Methodius were largely conducted in relation to the West rather than the East, though the field of activity

5964-408: The meeting and was incorporated under the name General Council of the Assemblies of God in the United States of America . In time, self-governing and self-supporting general councils broke off from the original fellowship or formed independently in several nations throughout the world, originating either from indigenous Pentecostal movements or as a direct result of the indigenous missions strategy of

6048-747: The slaves and together with Native Americans , including the Lenape and Cherokee Indian tribes. Today, the work in the former mission provinces of the worldwide Moravian Church is carried on by native workers. The fastest-growing area of the work is in Tanzania in Eastern Africa. The Moravian work in South Africa inspired William Carey and the founders of the British Baptist missions. As of 2014 , seven of every ten Moravians live in

6132-471: The teachings of meditation and Kriya Yoga through his book, Autobiography of a Yogi . Swami Vivekananda , the founder of the Ramakrishna Mission is one of the greatest Hindu missionaries to the West. Ānanda Mārga , organizationally known as Ānanda Mārga Pracaraka Samgha (AMPS), meaning the samgha (organization) for the propagation of the marga (path) of ananda (bliss),

6216-638: The village – it had fewer than thirty houses then – to send out "messengers" to the slaves in the West Indies and to the Moravian missions in Greenland . Within thirty years, Moravian missionaries had become active on every continent, and this at a time when there were fewer than three hundred people in Herrnhut. They are famous for their selfless work, living as slaves among

6300-763: The work they have chosen among a new culture and people. One of the first large-scale missionary endeavors of the British colonial age was the Baptist Missionary Society , founded in 1792 as the Particular Baptist Society for the Propagation of the Gospel Amongst the Heathen. The London Missionary Society was an evangelical organisation, bringing together from its inception both Anglicans and Nonconformists ; it

6384-665: The world together for cooperation. Each national council is fully self-governing and independent and involvement with the World Fellowship does not limit this independence. The work of the World Fellowship is carried out by the Executive Council. Executive Council members represent different regions of the world and serve three-year terms. Africa, Asia Pacific, Latin America/Caribbean, and North America each have four representatives, Europe has three, and

6468-558: Was a Japanese Zen Buddhist who founded numerous zendos in France. Thich Nhat Hanh , a Nobel Peace Prize -nominated, Vietnamese -born Zen Buddhist, founded the Unified Buddhist Church (Eglise Bouddhique Unifiée) in France in 1969. The Plum Village Monastery in the Dordogne in southern France was his residence and the headquarters of his international sangha . In 1968 Leo Boer and Wener van de Wetering founded

6552-492: Was a victim of a conspiracy planned by former PSC member Patricia Lelis, who was charged with false reporting and extortion before fleeing to the United States , where she was again charged and arrested for the same crime. Another Brazilian politician and AG member, Marina Silva , pursues ecologist ideas and supports the rights of the indigenous tribes of her country . The church leadership has criticized Silva's leftist stances on many issues, such as drug reform. Within

6636-649: Was central Europe. The Eastern Orthodox Church , under the Orthodox Church of Constantinople undertook vigorous missionary work under the Roman Empire and its successor the Byzantine Empire . This had lasting effects and in some sense is at the origin of the present relations of Constantinople with some sixteen Orthodox national churches including the Romanian Orthodox Church , the Georgian Orthodox and Apostolic Church , and

6720-713: Was elected chairman. In 1993, the name of the Fellowship was changed to the World Assemblies of God Fellowship. In 2000, Thomas E. Trask was elected to succeed Cho. At the 2008 World Congress in Lisbon , Portugal, George O. Wood , General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God in the United States, was elected chairman. At the 2011 World AG Congress in Chennai , India, David Mohan, General Superintendent of

6804-692: Was founded in England in 1795 with missions in Africa and the islands of the South Pacific. The Colonial Missionary Society was created in 1836, and directed its efforts towards promoting Congregationalist forms of Christianity among "British or other European settlers" rather than indigenous peoples. Both of these merged in 1966, and the resultant organisation is now known as the Council for World Mission . The Church Mission Society , first known as

6888-590: Was introduced into Java by travellers from India in ancient times. Several centuries ago, many Hindus left Java for Bali rather than convert to Islam . Hinduism has survived in Bali ever since. Dang Hyang Nirartha was responsible for facilitating a refashioning of Balinese Hinduism. He was an important promoter of the idea of moksha in Indonesia. He founded the Shaivite priesthood that is now ubiquitous in Bali, and

6972-617: Was sent in 549, only to find the Liang capital in the hands of the rebel Hou Jing , who threw them in prison for lamenting the fall of the capital. He is credited with having sent a mission in 538 to Japan that brought an image of Shakyamuni and several sutras to the Japanese court. This has traditionally been considered the official introduction of Buddhism to Japan. An account of this is given in Gangōji Garan Engi . First supported by

7056-489: Was the first Pentecostal denomination to name itself Assemblies of God. The Assemblies of God USA was founded by about 300 preachers and laymen from 20 states and several foreign countries met for a general council in Hot Springs, Arkansas , United States. While most other U.S. Pentecostal denominations were regionally defined, the Assemblies of God claimed a broad nationwide constituency. A new fellowship emerged from

#164835