The Foursquare Church

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Logo of The Foursquare Church: Jesus Christ as Savior, Baptist, Healer and Coming King.

The The Four Square Church is an evangelical , Pentecostal embossed Christian denomination . In 2000, the Church had over 5 million members and nearly 30,000 churches in 123 countries, including the 1,844 churches with 218,981 members in the United States where the Church was organized. The headquarters of the Foursquare Church is in Los Angeles .

founding

Aimee Semple McPherson , an evangelical preacher, also known as "Sister Aimee" (Sister Aimee) was known, founded the Foursquare Church in 1927. The Angelus Temple in Los Angeles, with its 5,300 seats, which was built in 1923 under her leadership, was the founding center and headquarters of the church. McPherson was a celebrity, she took part in public events such as weekly parades in the streets of Los Angeles - alongside well-known actors and the mayor. She built the temple and the adjacent LIFE Bible College on land that she owned in the center of town.

McPherson's notoriety remained beyond her death. Several films have been released about her life, such as: B. The Disappearance of Aimee (1976) and Aimee Semple McPherson (2006). In each case, their one-month disappearance in 1926 (May – June) and the subsequent legal dispute are presented in particular.

After "Sister Aimee"

After Aimee McPherson's death in 1944, their son, Rolf K. McPherson, became President and President of the Church - a position he held for 44 years. Under his leadership, Foursquare Church grew from approximately 400 to over 10,000 churches. The church formed the Pentecostal Fellowship of North America in Des Moines in 1948 , this alliance also included the Assemblies of God , the Church of God , the Open Bible Standard Churches and the Pentecostal Holiness Church .

The Angelus Temple, built by Aimee Semple McPherson, inaugurated January 1, 1923. The temple is in the Echo Park neighborhood of Los Angeles.

On May 31, 1988, John R. Holland became the third President of the Church and remained in this leadership position until July 1997. In 1994, 46 years after the founding of the Pentecostal Fellowship , it was restructured and renamed the Pentecostal / Charismatic Churches of North America (Pentecostal / Charismatic Churches of North America). In the course of this, they also got together with Afro-American groups, the most important of which was the Church of God in Christ .

In July 1997 Harold Helms became provisional President of the Church, and Paul C. Risser replaced him in this position in April 1998.

In October 2003, Foursquare Church sold its Los Angeles radio station ( KFSG-FM , now KXOL-FM ) to Spanish Broadcasting for $ 250 million.

Risser's leadership led to another explosive controversy for the church when church funds were invested in companies that had set themselves the goal of the "closely connected evangelical community" without the participation of the management and financial committee. This investment turned out to be a fatal investment in fraudulent companies. Risser resigned from his presidential post in March 2004.

In October 2004, Jack W. Hayford became President of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel . Hayford is the founder of the Church on the Way in Van Nuys and the Living Way Ministries . Together with Pastors Roy Hicks Jr. from Eugene , Jerry Cook from Gresham , Ronald D. Mehl from Foursquare Church in Beaverton, and John Holland from Vancouver , he was assigned to work out a "plan" for the growth of the denomination.

Pastor Barry Buzza has been President of the Foursquare Gospel Church of Canada since 2008 .

Doctrine of the Church

The Foursquare Church believes in the following principles:

  • The Bible as the inspired word of God
  • The Trinity
  • Christ's atoning death for sinners
  • Salvation by the grace of God in Jesus Christ
  • The need for sincere repentance and acceptance of Christ
  • Sanctification through regeneration
  • The daily growth through strength, prayer, love and service
  • Baptism by immersion
  • Communion / Last Supper
  • Baptism by the Holy Spirit, the sign of which is speaking in tongues
  • The spiritual gifts and fruits of the spirit
  • Divine healing
  • The imminent return of Christ
  • The last judgment
  • Evangelization characterized by discipleship
  • The tithing and thanksgiving offerings
  • Relationship with a Church: It is everyone's duty to identify himself with a congregation of believers and to work together for the advancement of the kingdom of God on earth
  • State subservience: The government is established by God, the laws should be obeyed at all times - unless they contradict the will of God
  • Heaven is the glorious place where God dwells. And the eternal home for born again Christians
  • Hell is a place of darkness, deepest sadness and inextinguishable fire. Originally, it was not intended for humans, but for demons and the devil. Yet it is the place of eternal separation from God for all those who reject Christ as Savior.

See also

Literature and Sources

  • Foursquare Gospel Publications: The Foursquare Church Annual Report 2006 .
  • Glenmary Research Center: Religious Congregations & Membership in the United States (2000) .
  • Frank S. Mead, Samuel S. Hill, Craig D. Atwood: Handbook of Denominations in the United States .
  • J. Gordon Melton (Ed.): Encyclopedia of American Religions .
  • Nathaniel M. Van Cleave: The Vine and the Branches: A History of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Religious Congregations & Membership in the United States (2000)
  2. ^ The Kidnapping of Aimee Semple McPherson ( memento July 24, 2008 on the Internet Archive ), from the "Los Angeles: Past, Present & Future" project on the University of Southern California libraries website
  3. ^ Aimee Semple McPherson Wins Best Independent Film . In: Press release . prweb.com. Retrieved April 16, 2006. Retrieved August 5, 2008: "Church officials, led by ICFG President Jack Hayford , released press statements calling the film" misleading "for exploring Aimee's human struggles."
  4. Our History . Victoria Foursquare Church website. Archived from the original on October 21, 2008. Retrieved on August 5, 2008.
  5. September 13-15, 2002 Retreat Details . foursquarenwmensretreat.org. Archived from the original on December 15, 2004. Retrieved August 5, 2008.
  6. ^ Popular evangelist elected to head Foursquare Church . San Francisco Chronicle . June 5, 2004. Retrieved August 5, 2008.
  7. Foursquare sinner forgiven: Former president's investing may have cost church $ 15 million . San Francisco Chronicle . June 3, 2004. Retrieved August 5, 2008.
  8. ^ History: 1944-Present . Church's official website. Archived from the original on July 31, 2007. Retrieved August 30, 2007.
  9. ^ Doctrine: The Foursquare Declaration of Faith . Church's official website. Archived from the original on November 24, 2009. Retrieved August 5, 2008.