Summary for the United States, with urban-rural classification.--A general summary of the statistics for the General Eldership of the Churches of God in North America for the year 1926 is presented in Table 1, which shows also the distribution of these figures between urban and rural territory.

      The membership of the Churches of God in North America consists of those persons who have been admitted to the local churches (by action of the official boards) upon reasonable evidence that they are Christians. Baptism is by immersion only.

      The data herewith for the year 1926 represent 428 active churches, with 31,596 members. The classification of membership by sex was reported by 401 churches, and the classification by age was reported by 334 churches, including, however, only 176 which reported any members under 13 years of age.

      Comparative data, 1890-1926.--Table 2 presents, in convenient form for comparison, a summary of the available statistics of, this denomination for the censuses of 1926, 1916, 1906, and 1890.

      State tables.--Tables 3, 4, 5, and 6 present the statistics for the Churches of God in North America by States. Table 3 gives for each State the number and membership of the churches classified according to their location in urban or rural territory and the total membership classified by sex. Table 4 gives for selected States the number and membership of the churches for the three censuses uses from 1906 to 1926, together with the membership for 1926 classified as under 13 years of age and 13 years of age and over. Table 5 shows the value of church property and the debt on such property, for 1926 alone. Table 6 presents, for 1926, the church expenditures, showing separately the amounts expended for current expenses and improvements, and for benevolences, etc., and also gives the data for Sunday schools. Separate presentation in Tables 5 and 6 is limited to those States in which three or more churches reported the principal items shown (values or expenditures), in order to avoid disclosing the financial statistics of any individual church. The States omitted from these tables can be determined by referring to the complete list which appears in Table 3. [406]

      Ecclesiastical divisions.--Table 7 presents, for each eldership of the Churches of God, the more important statistical data shown by States in the earlier tables, including number of churches, membership, value of church edifices, debt on church edifices, expenditures, and Sunday schools.

TABLE 1.--SUMMARY OF STATISTICS FOR CHURCHES IN URBAN AND RURAL TERRITORY, 1926: GENERAL ELDERSHIP OF THE CHURCHES OF GOD IN NORTH AMERICA

TABLE 2.--COMPARATIVE SUMMARY, 1890 TO 1926: GENERAL ELDERSHIP OF THE CHURCHES OF GOD IN NORTH AMERICA

TABLE 3.--NUMBER AND MEMBERSHIP OF CHURCHES IN URBAN AND RURAL TERRITORY, AND TOTAL MEMBERSHIP BY SEX, BY STATES, 1926: GENERAL ELDERSHIP OF THE CHURCHES OF GOD IN NORTH AMERICA

TABLE 4.--NUMBER AND MEMBERSHIP OF CHURCHES, 1906 TO 1926, AND MEMBERSHIP BY AGE, 1926, BY STATES: GENERAL ELDERSHIP OF THE CHURCHES OF GOD IN NORTH AMERICA

TABLE 5.--VALUE OF CHURCH PROPERTY, AND CHURCH DEBT, BY STATES, 1926: GENERAL ELDERSHIP OF THE CHURCHES OF GOD IN NORTH AMERICA

TABLE 6.--CHURCH EXPENDITURES AND SUNDAY SCHOOLS, BY STATES, 1926: GENERAL ELDERSHIP OF THE CHURCHES OF GOD IN NORTH AMERICA

TABLE 7.--NUMBER AND MEMBERSHIP OF CHURCHES, VALUE OF EDIFICES, DEBT, EXPENDITURES, AND SUNDAY SCHOOLS, BY ELDERSHIPS, 1926: GENERAL ELDERSHIP OF THE CHURCHES OF GOD IN NORTH AMERICA

      The revival movement which spread through the United States during the early part of the nineteenth century was not felt as much in the Reformed as in the Methodist, Baptist, and Presbyterian Churches. In one case, however, it made itself apparent, and its fruits are seen in the denomination known as the "General Eldership of the Churches of God in North America."

      John Winebrenner was born in the Glade Valley, Woodsborough district, Frederick County, Md., March 25, 1797, his parents being of German descent. Baptized and confirmed in the German Reformed Church (now the Reformed Church in the United States), he early showed an inclination to the ministry, and after completing a course at the district school, an academy at Frederick, and Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pa., he went to Philadelphia to study theology under Dr. Samuel Helfenstein. While here, on April 6, 1817, he passed through a peculiar religious experience which he interpreted as sound conversion, and from that moment the work of the ministry, which he had hitherto regarded with more or less indifference, became "the uppermost desire of his heart." [407]

      On September 24, 1820, he was ordained in Hagerstown, Md. He then accepted a call to Harrisburg, Pa., with charge of three other churches, commencing his work there October 22, 1820. He was earnest and energetic in his pulpit ministrations, preached experimental religion, sought to raise the standard of true piety, and organized Sunday schools and other church agencies. So searching and impressive was his preaching that many of his hearers became seriously alarmed about their spiritual condition. Revivals of religion were new experiences in the churches of that region, so that his ministry early awakened strong opposition. Some of the members of his charge became much dissatisfied, and the matter was brought to the attention of the Synod of the Reformed Church, which met at Harrisburg, September 29, 1822. The case was not finally disposed of until some time in 1828, when Mr. Winebrenner's connection with the German Reformed Church was finally severed.

      After his separation from the Reformed Church, his labors extended to surrounding districts and towns and were attended by extensive revivals of religion. Gradually his views changed on a number of doctrinal points and on the ordinances or sacraments, and about 1825 he organized an independent church, calling it simply the "Church of God." Others followed, both in and around Harrisburg, each assuming the name of "Church of God at -----." These churches, in which all members had equal rights, elected and licensed men to preach, but there was as yet no common bond, general organization, or directing authority. Finally, for the purpose of adopting a regular system of cooperation, a meeting was held at Harrisburg in October, 1830, which was attended by six of the licensed ministers. At this meeting an "eldership," to consist of an equal number of teaching and ruling elders, was organized, which, to distinguish it from the local church eldership, was called the "General Eldership of the Church of God." The work continued to grow and spread to adjoining counties, to the State of Maryland, and to western Pennsylvania and Ohio, where Elderships were organized. On May 26, 1845, delegates from these three eldership met at Pittsburgh, Pa., and organized the "General Eldership of the Church of God in North [409]

      Missionaries were sent into the Western States, and churches Were organized in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, West Virginia Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas, Oklahoma (including what was then Indian Territory), Colorado, Oregon, and Washington. In nearly all these States annual elderships have been organized, in cooperation with the General Eldership.

      In doctrine the Churches of God are evangelical and orthodox, and Arminian rather than Calvinistic. They hold, as distinctive views, that sectarianism is anti-Scriptural; that each local church is a church of God and should be so called; that in general, Bible things, as church offices and customs, should be known by Bible names, and a Bible name should not be applied to anything not mentioned in the Bible; and that there are not two, but three, ordinances that are perpetually obligatory, namely, baptism, the Lord's Supper, and the religious washing of the saints' feet. The last two they regard as companion ordinances, which are always to be observed together and in the evening. The only form of baptism recognized is the immersion of believers. They have no written creed but accept the Word of God as their only rule of faith and practice. They insist strongly on the doctrines of the Trinity, human depravity, atonement through the sacrifice [410] of Christ, the office and work of the Holy Spirit, man's moral agency, justification by faith, repentance and regeneration, practical piety, the observance of the Lord's Day, the resurrection of the dead, the eternal being of the soul, and future and eternal rewards and punishments.

      The organization of the churches is presbyterian. Each local church votes for a pastor, but the annual elderships make the appointments within their own boundaries. The church elects its own elders and deacons, who with the pastor constitute the church council and are the governing power, having charge of the admission of members and the general care of the church work. The ministers within a certain territory and an equal number of laymen elected by the various churches (or charges) constitute annual elderships, corresponding to presbyteries, which have the exclusive right to ordain ministers. Laymen, on recommendation of churches, may be licensed as exhorters. The different annual elderships combine to form the General Eldership, which meets once in four years and is composed of an equal number of ministerial and lay representatives elected by the annual elderships.

      The missionary activities of the Churches of Cod are under the control of the Board of Missions of the General Eldership. composed of persons elected quadrennially. This board has charge of both the home and foreign mission work, the former being principally in the Southwest.

      The foreign mission work dates from October, 1896, when the first missionary sailed for India. The missionaries are stationed in Bogra and Ulubaria districts, and the converts secured, the mission schools established, and the mission buildings erected show a good degree of progress.

      The educational work of the Churches of Cod, in its permanent form, began in 1881, when Findlay College, Findlay, Ohio, was incorporated. This institution has been constantly growing and now has a strong faculty, a large student body, and over $300,000 endowment.

      There is a publishing house at Harrisburg, Pa., worth over $100,000, with $118,000 endowment, where the Church Advocate and other journals are published.

      The denomination celebrated its centennial in Harrisburg in 1925. [411]

      1 Urban territory includes all cities and other incorporated places which had 2,500 inhabitants or more in 1920, the date of the last Federal census; rural territory comprises the remainder of the country.
      2 Per cent not shown where base is less than 100.
      3 Based on membership with age classification reported.
      4 A minus sign (-) denotes decrease.
      5 Ratio not shown where number of females is less than 100.
      6 Based on membership with age classification reported
      7 Amount included In figures shown for "Other States" to avoid disclosing the statistics of individual churches.
      8 The figures for parsonages (value and debt)) include data for 5 churches in Michigan, Missouri, West Virginia, and Oklahoma.
      9 Amount included in the figures shown on the line designated "Combinations," to avoid disclosing the statistics of individual churches.
      10 The figures for value and debt represent data for churches in Arkansas and Oklahoma eldership and Washington and Oregon eldership.
      11 This statement, which is substantially the same as that published in Part II of Religious Bodies, 1916, has been revised by Rev. S. G. Yahn, editor or the Church Advocate, Harrisburg, Pa., and approved by him in its present form.

      The electronic text has been transcribed from Religious Bodies: 1926. Vol. 2. Separate Denominations: Statistics, History, Doctrine, Organization, and Work (Washington, D. C.: U. S. Government Printing Office, 1929), pp. 405-411. The electronic text has been produced from a copy of the book held by St. Vincent College Library.

      Pagination of the printed text has been represented by enclosing the page numbers within square brackets. The arrangement of the text differs, in that information has been grouped into two main sections (Statistics and History, Doctrine, and Organization) in the electronic version.

      Addenda and corrigenda are earnestly solicited.

Ernie Stefanik
Derry, PA

Created 28 March 1997.
Updated 9 July 2003.