Brunstad Christian Church | |
---|---|
Orientation | evangelical, non-denominational |
Leader | Kåre Johan Smith |
Region | Worldwide |
Founder | Johan Oscar Smith |
Origin | 1905 Horten, Norway |
Congregations | more than 220 |
Members | more than 20,000 |
Official website | http://bcc.no/ |
Brunstad Christian Church(BCC) is a worldwide evangelical non-denominational Christian church. Established in Norway early in the 20th century. It is represented by more than 220 churches in 54 countries. [1] An overview of members per country shows a total of 20,000 members in 2016. As many as two thirds of its members live outside Norway. [2] For many years the group did not have a formal name and was referred to as Smith's Friends, particularly in Norway. [3]
Johan Oscar Smith (1871–1943), the church's founder, was originally a member of the Methodist Church in Norway. After a religious conversion in 1898 Smith began preaching to small gatherings. [4] In 1905, his brother Aksel Smith (1880–1919) joined him. Smith had early contact with the Pentecostal movement in Norway and Aksel Smith cooperated with Thomas Ball Barratt during the first few years after Barratt introduced Pentecostalism to Norway in 1906–1907. [2] As both the Pentecostal movement and Smith's group developed, they became increasingly wary of each other, with Barrat accusing Smith of creating schism within his group, as some of his followers joined Smith. [5]
In 1908, Johan Oscar Smith met Elias Aslaksen (1888–1976) while serving in the Norwegian Navy. Under the leadership of Johan Oscar Smith, Aksel Smith, and Elias Aslaksen the group began to grow quickly. [1] In World War I, Smith, as a Naval officer, partook in patrols of the Norwegian coast, which enabled him to develop relationships with believers and establish churches in several Norwegian coastal towns. [1] During the 1930s churches were established in inland Norway, most notably in Hallingdal and Valdres. [1] During this period, congregations were also established in Denmark.
From the 1950s, the church began to spread throughout Western Europe, including in Germany, Switzerland, and the Netherlands, after several church leaders were invited to participate in the Pentecostal conferences held at Leonberg during the 1950s.[ citation needed ] In the 1960s and 1970s, the Brunstad Christian Church spread further to Eastern Europe, the United Kingdom, North America, Australia, Africa, and Asia. [1] Churches were first established in South America in the 1970s. [6]
Today, there are more than 220 congregations in more than 65 countries. The church has annual international conferences at Oslofjord Convention Center and regional conferences throughout the world. [1] It has its own publishing house, Skjulte Skatters Forlag, publishing books and distributing audio-visual media intended for spiritual edification. The monthly journal Skjulte Skatter, ('Hidden Treasures') has been published every month since 1912. [1]
Brunstad Christian Church is an association of some 220 churches worldwide. The church has no ordained clergy and few members have any theological training. Leaders are appointed in each local church congregation on the basis of their perceived virtue, the confidence of members in the individual and their natural abilities. There are no elected leaders. [7] When Johan Oscar Smith died in 1943, overall leadership of the church passed to Elias Aslaksen, followed by Sigurd Bratlie in 1976 and Kåre J. Smith in 1996. The church is non-denominational and has little formal association with other churches. [3]
Brunstad Christian Church places its basis of faith in the New Testament and the belief that the Bible is the word of God. The fundamental elements of their faith are: faith in Jesus as God's son, faith in the Holy Spirit, forgiveness of sin, baptism and the Lord's Supper. [8] [9] They believe that the forgiveness of sins is undeserved and by received through Divine grace when one believes in Jesus Christ. [10] They practice the baptism of adults by complete immersion into water. [8]
As in other evangelical churches, the Bible is central and believed literally. Books and writings by past and present elders in the movement are held in high regard within Brunstad Christian Church. [11] The most central internal publications are the monthly magazine, Skjulte Skatter and Smith's Letters, a collection of letters written by Johan O. Smith, mostly to his brother Aksel and Elias Aslaksen.
The church claims to differ from other non-denominational evangelical groups in its belief that Jesus not only died to bring forgiveness of our sins, but that he was also tempted to sin just like every human being. The church teaches that Jesus' victory over sin as a human being is the basis for personal victory over sin and transformation into Jesus image for believers, which is defined as the process of sanctification. [12] A study undertaken by Norwegian theologian Geir Lie concluded that the theology of Brunstad Christian Church was influenced by the Keswick revival at the turn of the 20th century and by individuals such as Madame Guyón and Jessie Penn-Lewis. [2]
Brunstad Christian Church is engaged in missionary and humanitarian work around the globe. [13]
A 2020 documentary by Norwegian state broadcaster NRK raised questions about whether BCC is a sect, and alleged that church leaders were benefiting economically from the church in a manner that could be illegal. [14] The BCC denied the allegations, and claim that they are part of a misinformation campaign run by the private Israeli intelligence company Psy-Group on behalf of an ex-member. [15]
Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement that emphasizes direct personal experience of God through baptism with the Holy Spirit. The term Pentecostal is derived from Pentecost, an event that commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and other followers of Jesus Christ while they were in Jerusalem celebrating the Feast of Weeks, as described in the Acts of the Apostles.
The Church of the Nazarene is a Christian denomination that emerged in North America from the 19th-century Wesleyan-Holiness movement within Methodism. It is headquartered in Lenexa, Kansas. With its members commonly referred to as Nazarenes, it is the largest denomination in the world aligned with the Wesleyan-Holiness movement and is a member of the World Methodist Council.
The Holiness movement is a Christian movement that emerged chiefly within 19th-century Methodism, and to a lesser extent influenced other traditions such as Quakerism, Anabaptism, and Restorationism. The movement is historically distinguished by its emphasis on the doctrine of a second work of grace, which is called entire sanctification or Christian perfection. The word Holiness refers specifically to the belief in entire sanctification as a definite, second work of grace, in which original sin is cleansed, the heart is made perfect in love, and the believer is empowered to serve God. Churches aligned with the holiness movement additionally teach that the Christian life should be free of sin. For the Holiness movement, "the term 'perfection' signifies completeness of Christian character; its freedom from all sin, and possession of all the graces of the Spirit, complete in kind." A number of Christian denominations, parachurch organizations, and movements emphasize those Holiness beliefs as central doctrine.
Nondenominational Christianity consists of churches, and individual Christians, which typically distance themselves from the confessionalism or creedalism of other Christian communities by not formally aligning with a specific Christian denomination. According to Arizona Christian University's Cultural Research Center, nondenominational faith leaders typically maintain a biblical worldview at higher percentages than those of other Christian groups.
The Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches of North America (PCCNA) is an interdenominational fellowship of Pentecostal and charismatic churches and denominations in North America, existing for the purpose of promoting cooperation and understanding. It is a successor to the Pentecostal Fellowship of North America (PFNA). PCCNA headquarters are in Los Angeles, California.
The Alliance World Fellowship is an evangelical Christian denomination within the Higher Life movement of Christianity, teaching a modified form of Keswickian theology. It includes 6.2 million members throughout 88 different countries within 22,000 churches.
Within many denominations of Christianity, Christian perfection is the theological concept of the process or the event of achieving spiritual maturity or perfection. The ultimate goal of this process is union with God characterized by pure love of God and other people as well as personal holiness or sanctification. Other terms used for this or similar concepts include entire sanctification, holiness, perfect love, the baptism with the Holy Spirit, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, baptism by fire, the second blessing, and the second work of grace.
Johan Oscar Smith was a Norwegian Christian leader who founded the evangelical non-denominational fellowship now known as Brunstad Christian Church.
Elias Aslaksen (1888–1976) was the leader of Brunstad Christian Church from 1943 until his death in 1976.
Thomas Ball Barratt, also known as T. B. Barratt, was a British-born Norwegian pastor and one of the founding figures of the Pentecostal movement in Europe, bringing the movement, or baptism in the Holy Spirit, as it became known, to Norway and Europe in 1906. He was originally a Methodist pastor but later left the church and went on to establish the Pentecostal movement in Norway.
Oslofjord Convention Center is a convention center in Stokke, Norway, as well as the company established to manage the facility.
Events in the year 1871 in Norway.
Ivar Skippervold is a Norwegian singer and musician.
Sigurd Rudolf Guldbrandsen Bratlie was the leader of Brunstad Christian Church from 1976 until his death in 1996.
Pentecostal congregations in Norway is the largest Protestant free church in Norway with a total membership of 40,725 people in 2020.
According to some Christian traditions, a second work of grace is a transforming interaction with God which may occur in the life of an individual Christian. The defining characteristics of the second work of grace are that it is separate from and subsequent to the New Birth, and that it brings about significant changes in the life of the believer.
The Swedish Pentecostal Movement is a Pentecostal movement in Sweden. Many, but not all, of these, are members of the Pentecostal Alliance of Independent Churches, which was founded in 2001. The Pentecostal movement spread to Sweden by 1907 from the 1904–1905 Welsh Revival and the Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles in 1906.
Byavisa Sandefjord, known as Vestfold Blad until 2014, was a local free newspaper in Sandefjord, Norway. Owned by the media conglomerate Content Media, the paper was published weekly and later biweekly, and competed with Sandefjords Blad. Founded in 2010, Byavisa Sandefjord ran on deficits for most of its existence, before 2018, when the paper was shut down.
Maran Ata is a Norwegian free church Christian denomination or faith community founded by Charismatic minister Aage Samuelsen in 1958–1959. The denomination consists of several congregations. Maran Ata is known for its music and a direct and challenging proclamation of salvation.
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