Handbook of Denominations

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The Handbook of Denominations in the United States, also known as Abingdon's Handbook of Denominations or just the Handbook of Denominations, originally by Frank S. Mead, editor of the Christian Herald , is a reference work on religious denominations, particularly but not exclusively Christian ones, based in North America or extensively represented there (i.e., the Roman Catholic Church). The work is periodically updated to keep pace with changes in the groups chronicled and to document the formation of new groups. The first edition was published in 1951. Editors including Samuel S. Hill and Craig D. Atwood have taken over for Mead in later editions, [1] Roger E. Olson took over as editor for the 14th edition in 2018. [2]

Published by Abingdon Press, the Nashville, Tennessee-based United Methodist Publishing House, it is intended to be an authoritative guide to the history, polity, and doctrines of various religious groups. [3] It has been called the "standard reference work for religious professionals" [1] and "the gold standard for reference works about religious bodies in America." [2]

The book was ranked 323rd most stocked book by OCLC in 2005. [4]

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Adventism religious denomination

Adventism is a branch of Protestant Christianity that believes in the imminent Second Coming of Jesus Christ. It originated in the 1830s in the United States during the Second Great Awakening when Baptist preacher William Miller first publicly shared his belief that the Second Coming would occur at some point between 1843 and 1844. His followers became known as Millerites. After the Great Disappointment, the Millerite movement split up and was continued by a number of groups that held different doctrines from one another. These groups, stemming from a common Millerite ancestor, became known collectively as the Adventist movement.

Reformed Baptists Baptists who hold to a Calvinist soteriology

Reformed Baptists are Baptists that hold to a Calvinist soteriology, (salvation). They can trace their history through the early modern Particular Baptists of England. The first Reformed Baptist church was formed in the 1630s. The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith was written along Reformed Baptist lines.

National Primitive Baptist Convention of the U.S.A.

The National Primitive Baptist Convention, USA is a group of Black Primitive Baptists that has adopted progressive methods and policies not in keeping with the historical and theological background of Primitive Baptists in general. The Convention was organized in Huntsville, Alabama in 1907. These churches have adopted the use of instrumental music, Sunday Schools, revivals and church auxiliaries. The idea of a national convention is itself foreign to standard Primitive Baptist concepts. They still adhere the Calvinistic or Predestinarian teachings held by other Primitive Baptists, but in a more progressive mannaer and are similar to the black National Baptist Conventions. The NPBC churches continue with Primitive Baptist usage in retaining the observance of feet washing as an ordinance of the church, and in calling their ministers "elder." These churches are not in fellowship with the remaining "old school" white Primitive Baptists. Most of the National Primitive Baptist Convention churches are located in the southern United States.

The General Conference of the Evangelical Baptist Church, Inc. was organized in 1935 as the Church of the Full Gospel, Inc, by members of several Free Will Baptist churches, under the leadership of William Howard Carter. The organization currently is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.

The Pentecostal Free Will Baptist Church (PFWBC) is a church group in the southern United States, best thought of as Pentecostal rather than Baptist. The PFWBC is historically and theologically a combination of both, having begun as a small group of churches in North Carolina that broke away from the Free Will Baptist Church to join the Holiness movement and eventually accepting certain Pentecostal doctrines.

The Alliance of Baptists is a fellowship of Baptist churches and individuals in the United States and Canada.

Nondenominational Christianity consists of churches which typically distance themselves from the confessionalism or creedalism of other Christian communities by not formally aligning with a specific Christian denomination. Many non-denominational churches have a congregationalist polity, which is self-governing without a higher church authority.

North American Baptist Conference

North American Baptists (NAB) is an association of Baptists in the United States and Canada, generally of German ethnic heritage.

National Baptist Evangelical Life and Soul Saving Assembly of the U.S.A.

The National Baptist Evangelical Life and Soul Saving Assembly of the United States of America (NBELSSA) is an African-American missions body first formed as an auxiliary of the National Baptist Convention of America, Inc.. This body was founded in 1920 in Kansas City, Missouri by Captain Allan Arthur Banks, Sr. The NBELSSA operated within the NBC of America until 1936 or 1937, when it became an independent group. The main emphasis of the NBELSSA was in evangelism and education. In 1952 this Assembly claimed 644 churches and was headquartered in Boise, Idaho. Many of these churches were evidently dually affiliated with other National Baptist conventions. More recently, the NBELSSA was headquartered at the Second Baptist Church of Detroit, Michigan, and was still operating a correspondence school.

The Church of God is a Pentecostal holiness body of Christians, formerly based in Huntsville, Alabama.

Brethren in Christ Church River Brethren Christian denomination

The Brethren in Christ Church (BIC) is an River Brethren Christian denomination with roots in the Mennonite church, Radical Pietism, and Wesleyan holiness. They have also been known as River Brethren and River Mennonites.

The United Zion Church is a River Brethren Christian denomination with roots in the Mennonite Church and the Radical Pietistic movement.

The denomination known as the United Christian Church is a small evangelical body of Christians with roots in the Radical Pietistic movement of Martin Boehm and Philip William Otterbein. This group may often be confused with local congregations and churches of other denominations that also use the name United Christian Church.

The Social Brethren is a small body of evangelical Christians located in the Midwestern United States and the Philippines.

Schwenkfelder Church

The Schwenkfelder Church is a small American Christian body rooted in the 16th-century Protestant Reformation teachings of Caspar Schwenkfeld von Ossig (1489–1561).

Elim Fellowship

Elim Fellowship is a North American–based Pentecostal/charismatic Christian Ministry founded in 1933. Elim Fellowship's headquarters is located in Lima, NY.

The Primitive Methodist Church is a body of Holiness Christians within the Methodist tradition, which began in England in the early 19th century, with the influence of American evangelist Lorenzo Dow (1777–1834).

The African Orthodox Church (AOC), registered as the Holy African Orthodox Church, is an Episcopalian, primarily African-American denomination founded in the United States in 1918 by the joint collaboration of its first Patriarch George Alexander McGuire and of Marcus M. Garvey. It has approximately 15 parishes and 5,000 members, down significantly from its peak membership.

Roger Eugene Olson is an American Baptist theologian and Professor of Christian Theology of Ethics at the Baylor University.

The American Rescue Workers is a Christian denomination and charity in the United States. The organization was founded in 1882 by Thomas E. Moore as a splinter group from The Salvation Army in response to financial disagreements between Moore and Salvation Army founder William Booth. In 1885 the organization officially adopted a charter as the Salvation Army of America, but in 1913 it was renamed American Rescue Workers and has functioned under this name since that time. Its quasi-military organization suggests that the charity retains similarities to the Salvation Army as with the Volunteers of America. The charity operates shelters for the homeless, workshops for the disabled, and halfway houses for the chemically dependent, in addition to engaging in evangelism. American Rescue Workers publishes a quarterly periodical, The Rescue Herald.

References

  1. 1 2 Olson, Roger E. (20 February 2006). "Handbook of Denominations in the United States (12th edition)". Christian Century. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  2. 1 2 "Handbook of Denominations in the United States, 14th Edition". ministrymatters.com. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  3. Frank Spencer Mead; Samuel S. Hill (1995). Handbook of Denominations in the United States (10 ed.). Abingdon Press. ISBN   9780687014781. Inside cover.
  4. "Complete list - 2005". 4 May 2020.