The Mennonites are members of certain Christian groups belonging to the church communities of Anabaptist denominations named after Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland. Through his writings, Simons articulated and formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders. The early teachings of the Mennonites were founded on the belief in both the mission and ministry of Jesus, which the original Anabaptist followers held to with great conviction despite persecution by the various Roman Catholic and Protestant states. An early set of Mennonite beliefs was codified in the Dordrecht Confession of Faith in 1632, but the various groups do not hold to a common confession or creed. Rather than fight, the majority of these followers survived by fleeing to neighboring states where ruling families were tolerant of their belief in believer's baptism. Over the years, Mennonites have become known as one of the historic peace churches because of their commitment to pacifism.
Tennessee, officially the State of Tennessee, is a state in the southeastern United States. Tennessee is the 36th largest by area and the 16th most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by eight states, with Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina to the east, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi to the south, Arkansas to the west, and Missouri to the northwest. The Appalachian Mountains dominate the eastern part of the state, and the Mississippi River forms its western border. Nashville is the state's capital and largest city, with a 2019 population of 670,820 and a 2019 metro population of 1,934,317. Tennessee's second largest city is Memphis, which had a population of 651,073 and metro population of 1,346,045 in 2019.
Murfreesboro is a city in, and the county seat of, Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 108,755 according to the 2010 census, up from 68,816 residents certified in 2000. In 2019, census estimates showed a population of 146,900. Murfreesboro is located in the Nashville metropolitan area of Middle Tennessee, 34 miles (55 km) southeast of downtown Nashville.
Franklin is a city in, and the county seat of, Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. About 21 miles (34 km) south of Nashville, it is one of the principal cities of the Nashville metropolitan area and Middle Tennessee. As of 2019, its estimated population was 83,097, and it is the seventh-largest city in Tennessee.
The Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS), also referred to simply as the Wisconsin Synod, is an American Confessional Lutheran denomination of Christianity. Characterized as theologically conservative, it was founded in 1850 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the A.M.E. Church or AME, is a predominantly African-American Methodist denomination. It is the first independent Protestant denomination to be founded by black people. It was founded by the Rt. Rev. Richard Allen in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1816 from several black Methodist congregations in the mid-Atlantic area that wanted independence from white Methodists. It was among the first denominations in the United States to be founded on racial rather than theological distinctions and has persistently advocated for the civil and human rights of African Americans through social improvement, religious autonomy, and political engagement. Allen, a deacon in Methodist Episcopal Church, was consecrated its first bishop in 1816 by a conference of five churches from Philadelphia to Baltimore. The denomination then expanded west and south, particularly after the Civil War. By 1906, the AME had a membership of about 500,000, more than the combined total of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church in America and the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, making it the largest major African-American Methodist denomination. The AME currently has 20 districts, each with its own bishop: 13 are based in the United States, mostly in the South, while seven are based in Africa. The global membership of the AME is around 2.5 million and it remains one of the largest Methodist denominations in the world.
The Metropolitan Community Church (MCC), also known as the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches (UFMCC), is an international Protestant Christian denomination. There are 222 member congregations in 37 countries, and the fellowship has a specific outreach to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender families and communities.
Middle Tennessee State University is a public university in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Founded in 1911 as a normal school, the university consists of eight undergraduate colleges as well as a college of graduate studies, together offering more than 80 majors/degree programs through more than 35 departments. MTSU is most prominently known for its Recording Industry, Aerospace, Music and Concrete Industry Management programs. The university has partnered in research endeavors with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the United States Army, and the United States Marine Corps. In 2009, Middle Tennessee State University was ranked among the nation's top 100 public universities by Forbes magazine.
Union University is a private evangelical Christian university in Jackson, Tennessee, with additional campuses in Germantown and Hendersonville. The university is affiliated with the Tennessee Baptist Convention and relates to the Southern Baptist Convention. It is a union of several different schools: West Tennessee College, formerly known as Jackson Male Academy; Union University of Murfreesboro; Southwestern Baptist University; and Hall-Moody Junior College of Martin, Tennessee.
The Navigators is a worldwide Christian para-church organization headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Its purpose is the discipling (training) of Christians with a particular emphasis on enabling them to share their faith with others. The organization's calling statement is "to advance the Gospel of Jesus and His Kingdom into the nations through spiritual generations of laborers living and discipling among the lost."
PhreakNIC is an annual hacker and technology convention held in Nashville, Tennessee. It is organized by the Nashville 2600 Organization and draws upon resources from SouthEastern 2600 (se2600). The Nashville Linux User Group was closely tied with PhreakNIC for the first 10 years, but is no longer an active participant in the planning. First held in 1997, PhreakNIC continues to be a long-time favorite among hackers, security experts and technology enthusiasts. PhreakNIC currently holds claim as the oldest regional hacker con and is one of the few hacker cons run by a 501(c)(3) tax-free charity. The conference attracts about 350 attendees.
Stephen Mark Veazey is the current Prophet-President of Community of Christ, headquartered in Independence, Missouri. Veazey's name was presented to the church in March 2005 by a joint council of church leaders led by the Council of Twelve Apostles, as the next Prophet-President. Delegates elected to a special World Conference of the church approved Veazey and he was ordained as the eighth President of the High Priesthood, Prophet, and President of the Church on June 3, 2005.
GOD TV is an evangelical Christian media network that started in the UK and is now worldwide. The network has a strong presence in Israel and the US and its main offices are located in Plymouth, England, UK, and Orlando, Florida, US. Regional offices are situated in India, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Kenya, Ghana and Australia.
Faith Like Potatoes is a 2006 South African biographical drama film based on the 1998 book written by Angus Buchan, "Faith Like Potatoes." It is written and directed by Regardt van den Bergh, and stars Frank Rautenbach, Jeanne Wilhelm, Hamilton Dhlamini, and Sean Cameron Michael. The film follows Buchan and his family’s move from Zambia to South Africa and chronicles his Christian faith throughout that time.
Madison Academy is a Seventh-day Adventist academy located in Madison, Tennessee. It is a part of the Seventh-day Adventist education system, the world's second largest Christian school system. Established in 1904 under the visionary inspiration of Ellen White, Madison Academy is co-educated day high school located approximately ten miles north of Nashville, Tennessee, on a bend of the Cumberland River.
The Christian film industry is an umbrella term for films containing a Christian themed message or moral, produced by Christian filmmakers to a Christian audience, and films produced by non-Christians with Christian audiences in mind. They are often interdenominational films, but can also be films targeting a specific denomination of Christianity.
Angus Buchan is a Christian Author, and Evangelist based in South Africa.
Angus Buchan's Ordinary People is a 2012 South African drama film that tells the story of South African preacher Angus Buchan and the intertwining stories of three men en route to one of Buchan's Mighty Men's Conferences. It is not a sequel to the film Faith Like Potatoes, also based on the life story of Angus Buchan. The film was directed by FC Hamman and stars Anton Dekker, Jaco Muller, Lucky Koza, David James, Kate Normington, Robin Smith and Norman Anstey. Buchan makes a brief appearance as himself.
The Islamic Center of Murfreesboro (ICM) is an Islamic community organization located in the town of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, United States. Established in the early 1980s, the ICM supports about a thousand congregants, drawn from local permanent residents and numerous students at Middle Tennessee State University.
Pentecostalism is a renewal movement within Protestant Christianity that places special emphasis on a direct personal experience of God through the baptism with the Holy Spirit. For Christians, this event commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the followers of Jesus Christ, as described in the second chapter of the Book of Acts. Pentecostalism was established in Kerala at the start of the 20th century.
