Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship International

Last updated
Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship International (FGBMFI)
Founded1951
Founder Demos Shakarian
TypeChristian Interdenominational
Location
Area served
85 countries
President
Mr. Francis Owusu
Website fgbmfi.org

The Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship International (FGBMFI) is a fellowship of lay businessmen. Its main purpose is to bring interest to the Christian gospel. Theologically, the organization has its roots in Pentecostalism. [1] The headquarters is in Irvine, California.

Contents

History

FGBMFI was founded in 1952 in Los Angeles by Demos Shakarian, a California rancher. [2] [1] The expression "Full Gospel" in the name of the association is central to the vision of the organization. [3] Following a difficult start (for a year nothing happened to the original group that met weekly), then a donation of $1000 was given to start a small publication titled Full Gospel Business Men's VOICE, it grew steadily, the second chapter was in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and after a few years chapters were set up throughout the world. [4] In 1972, the membership was 300,000. [5] In 1988, there were 3,000 chapters in 90 countries. [6]

After Demos Shakarian died in 1993, his son Richard Shakarian assumed the organization's leadership. [7]

In 2023, Francis Owusu was elected president of the organization. [8]

The organization was present in 85 countries in 2023. [9]

Controversies

In the 1980s, the presence on the board of directors and the financial management of Demos Shakarian were challenged. [10]

See also

Literature

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

Evangelicalism, also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "born again", in which an individual experiences personal conversion; the authority of the Bible as God's revelation to humanity ; and spreading the Christian message. The word evangelical comes from the Greek (euangelion) word for "good news".

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evangelism</span> Preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ

In Christianity, evangelism or witnessing is the act of preaching the gospel with the intention of sharing the message and teachings of Jesus Christ.

The Jesus movement was an evangelical Christian movement which began on the West Coast of the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s and primarily spread throughout North America, Europe, and Central America, before it subsided in the late 1980s. Members of the movement were called Jesus people, or Jesus freaks.

The Association of Vineyard Churches, also known as the Vineyard Movement, is an international neocharismatic evangelical Christian denomination.

The term Full Gospel or Fourfold Gospel is an evangelical doctrine that summarizes the Gospel in four aspects, namely the salvation, sanctification, faith healing and Second Coming of Christ. It has been used in various Christian traditions, including Keswickian, Pentecostal, Anabaptist, and Baptist denominations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yoido Full Gospel Church</span> Church in Seoul, South Korea

Yoido Full Gospel Church is a Pentecostal church affiliated with the Assemblies of God on Yeouido in Seoul, South Korea. With about 480,000 members, it is the largest Pentecostal Christian congregation in South Korea. Founded by David Yonggi Cho and Choi Ja-shil in 1958, the church is presently led by Young Hoon Lee. The church has several satellite locations throughout the city of Seoul.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Foursquare Church</span> Pentecostal denomination

The Foursquare Church is an international Evangelical Pentecostal Christian denomination founded in 1923 by preacher Aimee Semple McPherson. Its headquarters are in Los Angeles, California, United States.

The charismatic movement in Christianity is a movement within established or mainstream Christian denominations to adopt beliefs and practices of Charismatic Christianity with an emphasis on baptism with the Holy Spirit, and the use of spiritual gifts (charismata). It has affected most denominations in the US, and has spread widely across the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alliance World Fellowship</span> Protestant Christian denomination, 1887-

The Alliance World Fellowship or Christian and Missionary Alliance is an international evangelical Protestant Christian denomination within the Higher Life movement of Christianity, teaching a modified form of Keswickian theology. The headquarters is in Colorado Springs United States.

Harold Vinson Synan was an American historian, author, and alliance leader within the Pentecostal movement. Synan published a total of 25 books, a majority related to Holiness, Pentecostal, and Charismatic movements. He served as General Secretary of the International Pentecostal Holiness Church and later as Chair of the North American Renewal Service Committee from 1985 to 2001. From 1994 - 2006 he served as Dean of the School of Divinity at Regent University in Virginia Beach, Virginia. In 2016, Synan moved back to Tulsa, Oklahoma to re-join the faculty of Oral Roberts University as Interim Dean of the College of Theology and Ministry, where he served for two years. Following that he served as Scholar in Residence at Oral Roberts University where he worked closely with William M. Wilson, the president of ORU, the World Pentecostal Fellowship, and Empowered21.

Prosperity theology is a religious belief among some Protestant Christians that financial blessing and physical well-being are always the will of God for them, and that faith, positive speech, and donations to religious causes will increase one's material wealth. Material and especially financial success is seen as a sign of divine favor.

The Neo-charismaticmovement is a movement within evangelical Protestant Christianity that is composed of a diverse range of independent churches and organizations that emphasize the current availability of gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and faith healing. The Neo-charismatic movement is considered to be the "third wave" of the Charismatic Christian tradition which began with Pentecostalism, and was furthered by the Charismatic movement. As a result of the growth of postdenominational and independent charismatic groups, Neo-charismatics are now believed to be more numerous than the first and second wave categories. As of 2002, some 19,000 denominations or groups, with approximately 295 million individual adherents, were identified as Neo-charismatic.

Awana is an international evangelical Christian nonprofit organization in child and youth discipleship. The headquarters is in St. Charles, Illinois, United States. Its mission is to equip children's and youth ministry leaders throughout the world to reach kids with the Gospel and engage them in lifelong discipleship.

The Apostolic-Prophetic Movement is a US-based Christian movement founded in the early 2000s. It is a network of non-denominational alliances of independent churches and ministries.

Demos Shakarian was an American businessman of Armenian origin from Los Angeles who founded the Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship International (FGBMFI). His story and the story of FGBMFI is the subject of the book The Happiest People on Earth, written by John and Elizabeth Sherrill and published in 1975.

The Cross and the Switchblade is a biographical book written by the Rev. David Wilkerson with John and Elizabeth Sherrill, published by Bernard Geis Associates in 1963.

Frederick K. C. Price was an American televangelist and author who was the founder and apostle of Crenshaw Christian Center (CCC), located in South Los Angeles, California. He was known for his Ever Increasing Faith ministries broadcast, which aired weekly on television and radio.

Charismatic Christianity is a form of Christianity that emphasizes the work of the Holy Spirit and spiritual gifts as an everyday part of a believer's life. It has a global presence in the Christian community. Practitioners are often called Charismatic Christians or Renewalists. Although there is considerable overlap, Charismatic Christianity is often categorized into three separate groups: Pentecostalism, the Charismatic movement, and the Neo-charismatic movement.

Evangelical theology is the teaching and doctrine that relates to spiritual matters in evangelical Christianity and a Christian theology. The main points concern the place of the Bible, the Trinity, worship, Salvation, sanctification, charity, evangelism and the end of time.

References

  1. 1 2 Heino, Harri (1997). Mihin Suomi tänään uskoo[What does Finland believe in today] (in Finnish) (2nd ed.). Helsinki: WSOY. pp. 115–116. ISBN   951-0-27265-5.
  2. Randall Herbert Balmer, Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism: Revised and expanded edition, Baylor University Press, USA, 2004, p. 274
  3. J. Gordon Melton, Martin Baumann, Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices, ABC-CLIO, USA, 2010, p. 1082
  4. The Happiest People on Earth, the story of Demos Shakarian as told to John and Elizabeth Sherrill, Steward Press, Chuppaqua, New York, 10514, 1975
  5. Randall Herbert Balmer, Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism, Westminster John Knox Press, USA, 2002, page 274
  6. Robert H. Krapohl, Charles H. Lippy, The Evangelicals: A Historical, Thematic, and Biographical Guide, Greenwood Publishing Group, USA, 1999, page 74
  7. Allan Anderson, An Introduction to Pentecostalism: Global Charismatic Christianity, Cambridge University Press, UK, 2013, page 160
  8. FGBMFI, Our International President, fgbmfi.org, USA, retrieved March 7, 2020
  9. FGBMFI, OUR HISTORY, fgbmfi.org, USA, retrieved February 4, 2023
  10. John Dart, Worldwide Christian Body Divided Over Funds, Power, latimes.com, USA, January 14, 1989