former presiding bishops of cogic

Each state in the US consists of at least one jurisdiction, and several states have more than one jurisdiction. Church Of God In Christ, Inc. 2015-23. Drew Sheard was born on January 1, 1959, in Detroit, Michigan, to Bishop and Mrs. John Henry Sheard. Bishop Sedgwick Daniels Board member (2008present). These auxiliaries are found in nearly every church, district, and jurisdiction within COGIC and function to support the holistic approach that COGIC has toward ministry within the church and the larger community that COGIC congregations serve. Owens continued to serve as a jurisdictional bishop and member of the General Board until his death in 2011. More:J. Although headquartered in Memphis, COGIC's leaders . A. Blake, Jr., who is also a bishop and pastor in the COGIC denomination in San Diego, California. He testified to receiving entire sanctification after reading her autobiography in 1893. This came on the heels of former Presiding Bishop Charles Edward Blake Sr.'s October 2020 announcement that he would not seek reelection. According to its 1973 Constitution, the church has two structures to govern the church: civil and ecclesiastical. In 1918, COGIC opened its first institution of higher learning, the Saints Industrial and Literary School in Lexington, Mississippi, for both girls and boys. On October 23, 2020, Bishop Blake announced that he would 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. 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]. In 1988, after a thirteen-year exodus from COGIC, Bishop G. E. Patterson returned as the founding Prelate of the newly formed Tennessee Fourth Jurisdiction. Youth on a Mission (YOAM) a ministry of young people visiting the mission field to serve each summer. As has been stated, COGIC does not ordain women as elder or bishop, however, COGIC would not have become the largest predominately African-American Pentecostal church in the world, nor have the largest Women's convention of any major denomination without the contributions of women. A local church mother since the age of 21, she was committed to strengthening the auxiliaries in the local churches and to prepare the younger women to carry the mission of COGIC into the Twenty-first Century. COGIC policies and bylaws have also been established regarding sexual misconduct of COGIC clergy and laymembers for disciplinary purposes. Winbush was selected to serve as the first chairman. Al Sharpton, a noted civil rights activist, began his ministerial career as a minister in COGIC. We believe that the Baptism of the Holy Ghost, according to Acts 2:4, is given to believers who ask for it. Secretary of the National Board of Trustees Dr. T. Lynn Smith. [25], Bishop Ozro Thurston Jones Sr. was pastor of the Holy Temple Church of God in Christ in Philadelphia and the Jurisdictional Bishop of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Jurisdiction. By 1906, the church had grown to nearly 100 congregations in three states. [5] He officially retired on March 19, 2021, and was succeeded by Bishop J. In 1968, Two sanitation workers who were also COGIC members, Echol Cole and Robert Walker, were crushed to death in a garbage compactor where they were taking shelter from the rain. Overseer E.R. He is known to many as being an eloquent, compassionate and practical leader, as well as a humanitarian and an advocate with a God-given gift for ministering to the whole man. COGIC has always been traditionally anti-abortion. World headquarters are in Memphis, Tennessee at Mason Temple. Vice President of COGIC World Missions-Bishop Glenn Plummer. His passion for meeting the needs of the whole man reaches globally through his humanitarian efforts. It has nine members, elected by the general assembly, including three bishops, three elders, and three lay members. 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. [29] Former International Music Department President Professor Iris Stevenson-McCullough (originally from Rochester, NY) is a major influence in the gospel music industry around the world. [16], A few years after the Azusa Revival, in 1914, shortly before the United States entered World War I, approximately 300 white ministers, representing a variety of independent churches and networks of churches, including the "Association of Christian Assemblies" of Indiana; and the "Church of God in Christ and in Unity with the Apostolic Faith Movement" from Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Texas; met in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Under her leadership, the Women's International Convention added the term "and Crusade" to highlight and promote the evangelistic approach of the convention. Mother Rivers also began the "49 and Under" to enlist and focus the younger women of COGIC to remain committed to the doctrine and teachings of the church. It is a separate and distinct work of grace that occurs in the lives of believers after conversion. We believe in the Blessed Hope, which is the rapture of the Church of God, which is in Christ, at His return. Together they traveled across the country proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Other accolades include the Distinguished Leadership Award from the African Presidential Archives and. Patterson appointed Dr. Edward Lee Battles President of the Department of Evangelism. Blake has also formerly served as an Advisory Committee Member of the Pentecostal World Conference, and as the founder and Co-chair of the Los Angeles Ecumenical Congress (LAEC), an interdenominational coalition of religious leaders and pastors for the city of Los Angeles. Chairman of the Board of Bishops Bishop Albert Galbraith. Bishop Patterson was the second youngest person to ever be elected Presiding Bishop of COGIC at the age 60 in 2000, second to his uncle, Bishop J. O. Patterson Sr. who was 56 when he was elected Presiding Bishop in 1968. Owens outlined a progressive plan to position the COGIC for ministry in the twenty-first century, known as "Vision 2000 and Beyond." In her brief tenure, she encouraged the women to stay focused and supportive to the leadership of the church. Well-known gospel musicians with COGIC roots include; Andrae Crouch and Sandra Crouch, Walter Hawkins and Edwin Hawkins, Tramaine Hawkins, Rubenstein McClure, Yvette Flunder, Sara Jordan Powell, Daryl Coley, BeBe and CeCe Winans, The Winans, "Detroit" Gary Wiggins, John P. Kee, The O'Neal Twins, Vanessa Bell Armstrong, Rance Allen, Rev. There is one God eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Today the International Women's Convention/Crusade meets annually in May in different cities throughout the nation drawing thousands of women from around the world. Her predecessor was Evangelist Dr. Rita Womack of Los Angeles, California. OUR HISTORY | ucogic It was also around this time, that he married his wife, Mae Lawrence Blake, a native of Michigan and daughter of another COGIC bishop and pastor, and they had three children together, Charles Blake, Jr., Lawrence "Larry" Blake, and Kimberly Blake. Bishop John Drew Sheard is Presiding Bishop and Chief Apostle of the Church of God in Christ, Inc., one of the largest African American Pentecostal denominations in the United States with 12,000 churches in over 112 countries. MEMPHIS, Tenn Funeral arrangements are set for COGIC Evangelist Louise Patterson, the widow of the late Bishop G.E. Vice President of COGIC World Missions-Bishop Nate' M. Jefferson. He was elected four times uncontested as presiding bishop. Chairman of the National Judiciary Board Bishop Martin Luther Johnson. The Youth Congress eventually become one of the largest conventions in COGIC. Ford, as Saints' Academy, a private co-educational grade school. We believe the Bible to be the inspired and only infallible written Word of God. The COGIC emphasized the use of the choir as an integral part of the worship experience. Vice President of COGIC World Missions-Supervisor Sideary King. [2][3] On March 21, 2007, he became the Presiding Bishop of the Church of God in Christ, Inc., as a result of Presiding Bishop Gilbert E. Patterson's death. C. P. Jones and those Holiness leaders who did not embrace the Azusa Revival experience continued as Holiness churches. Deaconess Missionaries serve and assist in the ceremonial and temporal affairs of the local church. 2nd Assistant Presiding Bishop Bishop Lawrence M. Wooten. In 1945, Bishop S. Crouch of the Northern California Jurisdiction appointed Elder H. C. Johnson as State Sunday School Superintendent who appointed Missionary Lucille Cornelius to be Chairlady, the first woman to lead the supervision of COGIC women in the Sunday School Department. Today thousands of COGIC women when ministering the gospel or serving in official capacities are seen in their civic (black) or ceremonial (white) habits. As a Pentecostal church, COGIC teaches that when one is baptized in the Holy Spirit, the believer will experience an initial evidence of speaking in tongues (glossolalia) by the will of God. March 22, 2021. Lizzie Woods Robinson (19111945) was the first "General Mother" of the church. 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. [31], Bishop Ford also renovated several COGIC structures in Memphis, including Mason Temple. It ultimately ended by 1930, when the Depression set in. These departments include: the Women's Department, the Sunday School Department, the Youth Department known as Y.P.W.W. Pentecostals have been known and continue to be known for their lively worship, exuberant expressions of praise and worship, and musical compilations, mostly relying on congregational singing of hymns and chants. In 1976, under the leadership of Bishop J.O. Charles Edward Blake Sr. (born August 5, 1940) is an American minister and pastor who served as the Presiding Bishop and leader of the Church of God in Christ, a 6 million-member Holiness Pentecostal denomination, that has now grown to become one of the largest predominantly African American Pentecostal denominations in the United States, from 2007 to 2021. Mrs. Mattie McCaulley of Tulsa, Oklahoma was the first to respond, and was sent to Trinidad. The presidium includes a separately elected international presiding bishop by the general assembly who serves a term of four years, who, then appoints two assistant presiding bishops. Nurses Aid Ministry nurses taking their skills to the mission field. 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. He was denied such trial in 2016. [55], A 2014 statistical study from the Pew Research Center Forum on Religion & Public Life, reported that most members of COGIC usually got married between the ages of 25 and 30, and that over 42% of COGIC members between the ages of 25 and 65+ were married, at least 19% were divorced or separated, 32% were never married, and at least 5% were widowed. He began production of the YPWW Quarterly Topics to train the youth of the COGIC in the faith, doctrine, and polity of the church. After being ejected for accepting these new Pentecostal teachings, Mason called a meeting in Memphis later in the year and reorganized the Church of God in Christ as a Holiness-Pentecostal body. Then in 1946, the YPWW Department was combined with the Sunday School Department for joint conventions until 1951 when they were separated once again. Presiding Bishop Emeritus of the Church of God in Christ, Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches of North America, "COGIC Re-Elects Presiding Bishop Charles E. Blake Sr. as Leader - Afro", "PRESS RELEASE: Presiding Bishop Charles E. Blake, Sr. Will Not Seek Reelection", "Why the Power of the Black Church Matters This Election", "Whitehouse.gov - Inaugural Advisory Council: Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships", Succession of Church of God in Christ Leaders, Historically African-American Christian denominations, First African Baptist Church (Richmond, Virginia), First African Baptist Church (Savannah, Georgia). 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. The legislative authority of the church is vested in a general assembly, composed of the members of the general board, jurisdictional/auxiliary bishops, jurisdictional supervisors, chaplains, pastors, ordained elders, four district missionaries and six lay members from each jurisdiction. Bishop Michael E. Hill Assistant Secretary to the General Board (2021present) and board member (2021present). Women in COGIC have been influential in the leadership and organization of the church since its inception. Demons exist as manifestation of evil or unclean spirits. There are more than 200 ecclesiastical jurisdictions around the world, with 170 in the United States. During the tenure of Bishop J. O. Patterson Sr. as Presiding Bishop in the 1970s and 80s, Bishop Patterson established several interdenominational Christian schools and seminaries, and helped to establish the World Fellowship of Black Pentecostal Churches and gained COGIC membership in the Congress of National Black Churches as well, a national caucus of Black church denominations that represent different denominations and organizations of the Black Church in America. [7] The leadership of the Mississippi State Convention of the National Baptist Convention intervened and expelled Jones, Mason, and others who embraced the Wesleyan teaching of entire sanctification. He believed that the name, taken from 1 Thessalonians 2:14, was divinely revealed and biblically inspired. The early pioneers of this newly formed Holiness-Pentecostal body in 1907 were E. R. Driver, J. Bowe, R. R. Booker, R. E. Hart, W. Welsh, A. Superintendent, International Sunday School Department Superintendent Mark Ellis. Bishop Mason was pivotal in licensing and credentialing both white and African-American ministers, who spread the Pentecostal message and planted new churches. In 1951, the first separate National Sunday School Convention convened in Kansas City, Missouri. Research Center at Boston University, the Greenlining Institutes Big Heart Award, a Trumpet Award, and the Urban Leagues Whitney M. Young award, among many others. Drew Sheard was appointed Superintendent of the Emmanuel District, by Bishop Herbert J. Williams, Sr., Prelate of the North Central Michigan Jurisdiction. President Clinton gave speeches at COGIC meetings including the International Holy Convocation at Mason Temple and the Women's International Convention. B. McEwen was elected chairman of the executive board, and O.T. This office is reserved for a woman who serves as counterpart to the Sunday School Superintendent. A. He was a speaker at the Democratic National Conventions first Ecumenical Service where he eloquently, challenged all to protect the unborn by advocating pro-life. During the 1990s, President Bill Clinton was invited by then COGIC Presiding Bishop, Louis Henry Ford to attend the International Holy Convocation. Carter currently posts material on YouTube and Facebook reporting alleged misconduct and impropriety within current leadership of COGIC and other Christian (mainly African-American) denominations. [8], In 1897, Elder Mason founded the St. Paul Church in Lexington, Mississippi, as the first church of the new movement. In November 2012, Bishop Blake was re-elected again to serve a four-year term as the Presiding Bishop. [27], Several bishops disagreed with the new organizational structure; they severed ties with COGIC to start their own organizations. Humanity can only be restored through salvation offered only through Jesus Christ. After the death of Mother McGlothen, Mother Emma F. Crouch (19941997) of Dallas, Texas, served as the fifth General Supervisor. The Church of God in Christ (COGIC) is a HolinessPentecostal Christian denomination,[2][4] and the largest Pentecostal denomination in the United States. Malcolm X's Funeral was held in Harlem, New York City at Faith Temple Church Of God in Christ. James Moore, Thomas Whitfield (singer), Deniece Williams, Hubert Powell, Donnie McClurkin, LaShun Pace, The Anointed Pace Sisters, Dr. Bettye Ransom Nelson, Bishop Richard "Mr. Clean" White, Bishop Paul S. Morton, The Clark Sisters: (Jacky Clark-Chisholm, Elbernita "Twinkie" Clark, Dorinda Clark-Cole and Karen Clark-Sheard). Male as well as female evangelists were instrumental in spreading COGIC throughout the United States as well as around the world. A general supervisor of women is appointed by the presiding bishop and given authority to lead the International Women's Ministry of the church. Drew Sheard who was elected in 2021. The Presiding Bishop - Church Of God In Christ COGIC teaches the deity of Jesus Christ, his virgin birth, sinless life, physical death, burial, resurrection, ascension and visible return to the earth. According to a 2015 statistical study by the Pew Research Center, the denomination was estimated to have a United States membership of approximately 84% African-Americans, 5% White Americans, 8% Latino-Americans, and roughly 2% Asian-Americans. They were given the authority through a "gentlemen's agreement" to license ministers and establish churches under the COGIC name. The Elders' Council met and organized the first Missions board of the Church of God in Christ. We believe in the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit, by whose indwelling a Christian is enabled to live a holy and separated life in the present world. Assistant Financial Secretary Bishop David A. Sanders. One of her contributions was to divide the women's fellowship in the local congregations into two groups: The Christian Women's Council for the middle aged and senior women, and the Young Women's Christian Council (YWCC) for the younger women. As the church continued to grow, she created women auxiliaries including the Purity Class and the Sunshine Band. COGIC members gathered for praying, fasting, teaching, preaching, fellowship and conducting business related to the national COGIC organization. Salvation is an operation of the Holy Spirit upon sinners brought about by repentance toward God, which brings about conversion, faith, justification, and regeneration. In 1916, a few white churches were organized as a white branch of COGIC. In 1945, Mason dedicated Mason Temple in Memphis as the church's national meeting site. 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. Patterson Sr., the five major departments of COGIC were united under an umbrella convention known as UNAC-5 (United National Auxiliary Convention). The jurisdictional supervisor is assisted by district missionaries who oversee the women's ministry of the district. "[90] This excerpt of Elder Carter's sermon went viral throughout social media and was picked up by major television news broadcasts. A visionary, she spearheaded the establishment of the multi-million dollar Hale Morris Lewis Manor, a senior citizen complex in Los Angeles, CA. After being removed from the office of Senior Bishop, he remained the Jurisdictional Bishop of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania until his death in 1972. Chairman of AIM Bishop Linwood Dillard. He consecrated and appointed more than 100 bishops during his twenty-one years of leadership. Bishop James Oglethorpe Patterson 1968-1989* *Tenure as leader of the church: Presiding Bishop Gilbert Earl Patterson 2000-Present: Bishop Louis Henry Ford 1990-1995* Bishop Chandler David Owens 1995-2000* Chandler David Owens Sr. - Wikipedia Supervisor Irene Oakley#, pastor, supervisor, bishop's wife, Mother Louise Patterson, evangelist, former first lady and wife of G.E. The current president of the Missions Department is Bishop Vincent Mathews Jr. of South Africa. Washington, Bishop Chandler D. Owens, Bishop Brandon B. Porter, and Bishop J. He referred in his sermon to gay men as "sissies", "perverted and lost", and said, "If you want to feel like a girl; I wish God would give you the monthly of a girl; I wish He had you bleeding out of your butt. A new constitution and official manual of the church were completed in 1973. She formed her daughters into a singing group who became known as the legendary "Clark Sisters" who helped introduce and became leaders of the contemporary gospel music era. (Young People Willing Workers), and Missions and Evangelism. His pastor and mentor was Bishop F. D. Washington of Brooklyn, NY. [93] Leaders within the COGIC, other denominations and Bishop Blake's own family came to his defense. In 1984 and 1988 respectively, Rev. As public education was segregated and underfunded by white officials in the South through most of the tenure of the first major leader, this school became a destination for parents wanting their children to have high-quality education. Church of God in Christ names Detroit's Bishop J. Drew Sheard new COGIC teaches that the Holy Spirit is alive and active in the world. 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. COGIC considers any physical, sexual relationship outside of the sanctity of marriage to be outside of the sovereign will of God and unbiblical. As a result, the general board exercises great authority over the church. Bishop Carter came into holiness in 1952 at the Jones Avenue Church of God in Christ, under the leadership of the late Bishop George Briley. COGIC became a major force in the collective Black Church and worldwide Pentecostal movement. Bishop Blake said, "The Church of God in Christ does not compromise its stance against homosexuality as the Word of God condemns it as sin, but "this preacher's" (referring to Earl Carter) comments were unacceptably offensive and uncalled for, and will not be tolerated by the Church of God in Christ or its leadership. Patterson, as Presiding Bishop of the Church in the 2000s, he helped bridge denominational barriers and encouraged non-COGIC ministries and denominations to work collaboratively with the COGIC denomination to help support charity efforts for poor and disadvantaged African Americans and people affected by poverty and disasters in foreign countries through the COGIC Charities Department and the COGIC Missions and Evangelism Department.