Contact Us Help Search Canada Site ... Table of Contents Pentecostal Assemblies Description The Pentecostal Church began in 1901 at a Bethel Bible College in Topeka, Kansas, when preacher Charles Fox Parham decided to take a new approach to religion. He felt that the Church needed revival through the Holy Spirit. He began instructing his students to pray, fast and read the Scriptures. One of his students was the first to speak in tongues, signifying that she had been baptized in the Holy Spirit. Through evangelism and Parhams use of faith healing, the number of Pentecostals increased over the years to become one of the largest Protestant denominations in the world. Pentecostal congregations in Canada are affiliated with one of two international organizations, the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada or the United Pentecostal Church International. The charter of the former is dated 1919. The latter traces its organizational roots to 1916. Pentecostal theology is derived from earlier British perfectionist and charismatic movements, including the Methodist movement, the Catholic Apostolic movement and Britains Keswick Higher Life movement. Pentecostal doctrine was particularly influenced by John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, who developed the doctrine of the second blessing, or baptism in which the Holy Spirit brings spiritual power and inner cleansing to the recipient. In Pentecostal belief, baptism in the Holy Spirit is evident when a person begins to speak in tongues. | |
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