Frie Evangeliske Forsamlinger
De Frie Evangeliske Forsamlinger ( DFEF ) (German: "The Free Evangelical Assemblies", English Free Evangelical Fellowship ; formerly: De frie venner - The Free Friends) is a Norwegian free church with 67 congregations and contact addresses in Norway . The communities are legally independent. It is estimated that the congregations have around 8,000 to 10,000 members.
The communities are mainly located in the south and west of the country. One of the largest municipalities is Betania Kristiansand .
history
The movement originated in the 1880s, but did not become an organized church until after 1900 under the direction of preacher Erik Andersen Nordquelle (1858-1938). The "Hjemme- og misjonsutvalget" (home and mission committee) is a unified mission organization with work in several countries in Africa , Asia , Europe and South America . The first missionaries went to India and Argentina . The evangelist Dorothea Klem started the work of Solbrått Aldershjem (Solbratt nursing home) in Børselv in Finnmark . Since 2019 there has been a trial cooperation with the Pentecostal movement in Norway.
Beliefs
The members of the Frie Evangeliske Forsamlinger believe in the baptism of the Spirit , speaking in tongues and healing through prayer . They practice baptism and the Eucharist (Nattverd; open to non-members). The movement is close to the Pentecostal movement , but had always separated itself because they were deliberately against membership registers. Therefore the movement in Norway is not run as a separate religious community. Accordingly, the church has no right of marriage. Weddings are closed at the state registry offices and confirmed by an act of blessing in the church.