Church of God (Seventh-Day)

The Churches of God (7th Day) [or (Seventh Day)] movement is composed of a number of sabbath keeping churches, from which the General Conference of the Church of God (Seventh-Day), or simply CoG7, is the most known organization. Like the Seventh Day Baptists and the Seventh-day Adventist Church, the Churches of God (Seventh Day) observe Sabbath on the seventh day of the week (Saturday).

Church of God (Seventh Day)

The Church of God (Seventh Day) represents a line of Sabbatarians that rejected the visions and teachings of Ellen G. White before the formation of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. In 1858, five years before the founding of the SDA Church, a group led by Gilbert Cranmer (1814–1903) of Michigan separated from the Adventists who supported White. Another independent Sabbatarian Adventist body formed in Iowa in 1860, and joined with the Church of God (Seventh Day) in 1863.

A publication called The Hope of Israel (now The Bible Advocate) was started in 1863, and this publication extended the influence of the body into other areas. Through this publication, the doctrines of the second advent and seventh-day Sabbath were promoted, and other Christians were invited to gather for meetings. This extended the movement into Missouri, Nebraska and other places, and in 1884 the General Conference of the Church of God was organized. They incorporated in 1899, and "(Seventh Day)" was added to the name in 1923. Offices were established in Stanberry, Missouri.

A.N. Dugger and C.O. Dodd (1935)^[1] wrote a book attempting to trace the Church's history back to the Apostles through various medieval groups which they believed were Sabbath-keeping. In the case of some of these groups, such as the Waldensians^[2] and Paulicians,^[3] that claim is disputed.

A well-publicized member of the Church of God (7th Day) was evangelist Herbert W. Armstrong (1893–1986). In 1927 Armstrong was challenged by his wife, Loma, to find a Biblical justification for keeping Sunday as the Christian Sabbath day. Loma had come under the influence of Mrs. Runcorn, a member of the Seventh Day church in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. Emma Runcorn and her husband Ora were lay leaders in the Oregon conference. Armstrong soon became a minister for that church and a writer for the Bible Advocate journal. Within a few years Armstrong began teaching the British-Israel Theory - the alternative history that regarded the nations of Western Europe and North America as the literal descendants of the "Lost Ten Tribes" of Israel - and the mandatory keeping of the Feast Days in Leviticus 23. Armstrong was ultimately disfellowshipped by the Church of God (7th Day) - Salem Conference over these two issues, which were not original doctrines of the Churches of God (7th Day).^[4]

The Division of 1933 - Stanberry and Salem

The following information concerning the division of 1933 are taken from an online history book, "History of the Seventh Day Church of God," by Richard C. Nickels.^[5]

The undivided conference named "Church of God (Seventh Day)" remained until 1933. According to Church of God historian A.N. Dugger, this is how the division occurred: Church of God members across the United States were simultaneously felt the need for a "Bible Organization" of the Church of God. The idea was also to move world headquarters to Jerusalem. The time and place chosen to perform this work of "reorganization" was Salem, West Virginia, November 4, 1933. More and more has been exerted by about half of the membership for more unity, when some on the other hand felt that they were denied freedom of expression. On the one side, Andrew N.Dugger and others held to "reorganization" of church government, clean meats, no tobacco, and Passover on Nisan 14. On the other hand, Burt F. Marrs led a group of "independents" who were pro-pork and tobacco, and felt Passover should be on Nisan 15. On November 4, 1933 Salem, West Virginia, the Salem Conference headquarters were started. On November 6, the Bible Advocate was printed at Salem, with the continuing volume number as the one still being published in Stanberry. Shortly thereafter, the number sequence was changed due to copyright laws. From 1933 to 1949 there were two separate Church of God organizations, one at Stanberry, Missouri, and the other at Salem, West Virginia.

The headquarters in Salem, West Virginia still exit today as we will see below^[6] and are still formally organized under the apostolic model (Twelve apostles, Seventy elders and "seven men to place over the business affairs of the church"^[7]). The Salem Conference has members worldwide. Elder A. N. Dugger was for a time part of the Salem Conference, but was never part of the Church Council of the Twelve as the Church is organized.^[5]

The reunification in 1940's

The following information concerning the reunification in 1940's are taken from an online history book, "History of the Seventh Day Church of God," by Richard C. Nickels.^[8]

A first attempt for a merger between the Stanberry and the Salem Conferences occurred in 1942. Some copyright Lawsuit concerning the Bible Advocate magazine and the publication of the Bible Home Instructor hindered the merger. In 1947, the Salem Council of Ministers asked Stanberry to appoint a committee to meet with their committee to discuss a new attempt for a merger. Eventually, in 1948, the two churches met at Fairview, Oklahoma, on February 12–17, 1948. Because of the laws under which the Stanberry group was incorporated, the earliest possible time the union of the two groups could take place was August 1949. The merger was voted on August 12–20, 1949 and the first issue of the combined Bible Advocate came out on October 3, 1949. Charles Monroe, who wrote "A Synoptic History of the Churches of God in the Latter Days," (Facts of Our Faith, January, 1969, pages 12–25) related, "the merger did not unite all of the Church of God."

"Back to Salem" Movement of 1950

The following information concerning the "Back to Salem" Movement of 1950 are taken from an online history book, "History of the Seventh Day Church of God," by Richard C. Nickels.^[9]

As early as 1949, ministers F.L. Summers and his son-in-law Chris Royer went back to Salem and established headquarters there. The "Back to Salem" movement broke into at least three factions: 1. The original Salem people who stayed at Salem with it as headquarters; 2. Dugger and Severson, who went to Jerusalem; 3. Olson and Groshans, who formed the Seventh Day Church of God in Caldwell, Idaho. The Salem Conference started to publishes a magazine The Advocate of Truth, which began in February 1950. Salem is purported to believe that the saints will be raptured to the sea of glass while the seven last plagues will be poured out. It differs with the Denver Group in the date for the annual Lord's Supper, which they calculate according to the Spring Equinox.

In September, 1952, A.N. Dugger after returning from an extended trip to Nigeria to visit groups of Church of God people, decided to move to Jerusalem, to start The Mount Zion Reporter in 1953. Possibly doctrinal issues led to Dugger's exit to Israel.

The 1948-49 Stanberry Merger of the Church of God (Seventh Day), also known as the Denver Group, contained the largest number of Church of God people today, but it would be inaccurate to describe it as the only significant Church of God center, as the foregoing has shown. The Stanberry conference, which headquarters moved to Denver, Colorado, typically uses the name 'General Conference of the Church of God (Seventh-Day), with "Seventh" spelled out and often with a hyphen.

A number of Churches of God (7th Day) are independent or affiliated with groups previously associated with Jerusalem headquarters in Israel. The Churches affiliated with the Jerusalem Conference usually follow a set of 40 points of doctrine.^[10]

Membership

As of 2012, the Church of God (Seventh Day) has over 200 congregations in the United States and Canada, with an estimated 11,000 members.^[11] As for the Denver Conference, the worldwide membership in its International Ministerial Congress is over 200,000 members, with affiliated ministries in more than 40 countries. Central offices for the North American conference are in Denver, Colorado as of 2015, with Elder Loren Stacy serving as its president. The Denver Conference is a member of the Bible Sabbath Association (org. 1943), an organization promoting "fellowship and cooperation between Sabbath-keepers of various groups."

Doctrine and practices

This section mainly use the General Conference of the Church of God (Seventh Day) [Denver Conference] Statement of Faith as a reference. ^[12] It is noteworthy, that although the doctrinal beliefs among the different Churches of God (7th Day) or (Seventh Day) are very similar, some major points of disagreement still remain, either concerning christological beliefs or Church organization.

Outlining some beliefs of the Churches of God (7th Day), the Statement of Faith of the General Conference of the Church of God (Seventh Day) - Denver Conference states the following:

• According to the Denver Conference, God is revealed in Scripture as Father and Son. From eternity the Son existed with Father and shared His glory (Section 2). This christological belief is a departure from their long held doctrinal beliefs in that regard. The Denver Conference, part of the greatest Church of God (7th Day) movement had an arian christology for much of the twentieth century, before leaving part of his heritage and reverting to a more classical view of Christ.^[13] NOTA BENE: The Salem Conference,^[14] the Churches previously affiliated or linked to the Jerusalem Conference^[15] and a number of independent Churches of God (7th Day) still believe that Jesus Christ, as the Word of God, is a created being.^[16] In fact, the position paper written by the Jerusalem Conference states the following:

  "The Amen, the faithful and the true witness is no one else but Jesus Christ and speaking of himself he said, he is "the beginning of the creation of God" i.e. the very first manifested act of YHWH was the creation of his son Yehoshua (Jesus). Do other scriptures support this? Col 1:15 "Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature". A creature is life which has been created, whether terrestrial or celestial: Colossians support Revelation, it says of Christ he is "the firstborn of every creature:"

• According to the Denver Conference, salvation is by God's grace, received by faith in Jesus Christ apart from good works, human merit, or ceremony (Section 4). Obedience to the moral law, while not a means to salvation, is encouraged as an important part of Christian living. Eating of unclean meats such as pork and shellfish is discouraged, as is the observance of Christmas and Easter, due to their pagan roots (Section 10). The Salem Conference and churches associated with the Jerusalem Conference strongly discourage the use of tobacco, alcohol and any other drugs as well.^[17][18] Furthermore, according to the Salem Conference, "There are three basic precepts that we must follow in order to obtain salvation and receive the gift of eternal life" : 1) To love the LORD your God; 2) to accept Jesus Christ as your personal savior, repent of our sins, and become baptized in the name of the "Lord Jesus Christ"; and 3) to continually strive for a better understanding of God's truth. According to this same Conference, "The key point here is that in order to be approved unto God, we must study his word. Our salvation depends upon it.".^[19]
• Mankind is mortal, and the soul is unconscious in death (Section 3). The wicked who reject Christ until the end will face the judgment of annihilation, not eternal torment in hellfire (Section 12).
• Two church ordinances are observed—baptism by immersion and an annual Lord's supper service (with washing of feet), observed annually on the day of Jesus's death, Nisan 14 (Section 6).
• On tithing, the Denver Conference^[13] differs from the Salem Conference and the churches associated with the Jerusalem headquarters. The Salem and Jerusalem Churches of God (7th Day) still believe tithing to be an obligation for believers today. According to the Salem Conference: "All members of God's church are required to contribute a tenth part of their increase to the work of the church",^[20] a statement to which the Jerusalem Churches agrees as stated in their 40 Points of Doctrine (19. The paying of tithes on all increase is a continued obligation. This portion of our earnings belongs to יהוה, and should be placed in his work. Malachi 3:10; Matthew 23:23 ^[10]).
• All three groups object to military service and participation to physical warfare. The Salem and Jerusalem Conferences have a stronger stance on the question, condemning participation to "carnal warfare" rather than simply discouraging it.^[10][21]
• A peculiarity, the Church of God (7th Day) - Salem Conference is organized according to the "apostolic model." They currently have Twelve Apostles, Seventy Prophets and Seven Stewards. This belief may be found on page 13 of their doctrinal statement of beliefs. An article for their FAQs section states:

Jesus Christ is the head of the Church of God (7th Day). Jesus set the organization of the church to have twelve apostles who are responsible for governing the church and seventy ministers to help spread the gospel. Seven stewards were then choosen [sic] by the apostles to oversee the financial matters of the church. Members of the twelve and seventy are to be chosen by God through the casting of lots."^[22]

• Still, another group, with headquarters located in Meridian, Idaho, object to the hierarchical form of church governance found in the Denver Conference and in the Salem Conference. This group called the General Council Churches Of God (Seventh Day) Inc., Headquarters Meridian, Idaho favors a congregationalist polity for the Church. According to them:^[23]

  The Church of God (7th day) is, historically, congregational in polity. We desire that our churches and their members continue to enjoy this blessed freedom of local autonomy.

• On a side note, the Jerusalem Conference still believe that headcovering is mandatory for women in public worship ^[24]

See also

• Sacred Name Movement
• Adventist
• Millerites
• Sabbath in Christianity

References

1. A history of the True Religion Traced From 33 A.D. to Date, A. Dugger and C.O. Dodd Bible Advocate 1935
2. Giorgio Tourn You are my Witnesses: The Waldensians Across Eight Centuries. Torino, Italy: Claudiana Editrice, 1989. ISBN 88-7016-089-0
3. Frederick Cornwallis Conybeare "Was the Sabbath observed in the early Armenian church?" p.clxii in The Key of Truth. A Manual of the Paulician Church of Armenia.
4. A Brief Biography of Herbert W. Armstrong (1892-1986). (online page) (biography), Giving & Sharing.
5. X. The Division of 1933 - Stanberry and Salem (online page) (online history book), Giving & Sharing.
6. Church of God (7th Day) - Salem Conference.
7. X. The Division of 1933 - Stanberry and Salem (online page) (online book), Giving & Sharing.
8. XII. The Merger: 1948-1949 (online page) (online history book), Giving & Sharing.
9. XIII. The Post Merger Period, 1949 to 1973 (online page) (online history book), Giving & Sharing.
10. 40 Points of Doctrine (article), Mount Zion Church of God (7th day) Winnipeg.
11. Data from the National Council of Churches' Historic Archive CD and Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches
13. Questions & Answers (magazine) (article), Bible Advocate.
14. Doctrine of the Trinity (PDF) (Bible study tract).
15. Who is Jesus Christ? (online document).
16. DOCTRINAL BELIEFS of the JOPLIN CHURCH OF GOD (Seventh Day) - Jesus, the Son of God (online article).
17. THE CHURCH OF GOD'S BELIEFS ON ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO (online doctrinal essay).
18. What are the Church's beliefs on alcohol and tobacco? (online study article).
19. What are the keys to receiving salvation? (online study essay).
20. What tithe are we commanded to give to the Lord? (online page) (online study article).
21. What are the Church's beliefs regarding carnal warfare and military service? (online page) (online study article).
22. How should the Church of God be organized? (online page) (online study article).
23. A DECLARATION Of Things Most Commonly Believed Among Us - CHURCH OF GOD (7TH DAY) Headquarters Meridian, Idaho (online PDF) (online document).
24. Head Covering (online doctrinal position paper).

External links

• Church of God (Seventh-Day)
• Church of God 7th Day (Jerusalem)
• Church of God (7th Day)
• General Council of the Churches of God, 7th Day
• Church of God (Seventh-Day) - UK
• Profile of the Church of God (Seventh-Day) on the Association of Religion Data Archives website
• Church of God (Seventh-Day) - Jamaica
• A history of the True Religion Traced From 33 A.D. to Date
• Various information, rare literature and grave sites of the Church of God pioneers and wives
• History of the Seventh Day Church of God by Richard C Nickels
• Meridian Church of God Seventh Day
• Church of God