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The Apostolic Church is a Pentecostal Christian denomination which can trace its origins back to the 1904–1905 Welsh Revival. Despite the relatively recent origin of the denomination, the church seeks to stand for first-century Christianity in its faith, practices, and government. The purpose of the denomination is summed up by one prominent Apostolic writer as:
The worldwide vision of the church is evidenced by a strong missionary concern. The movement, which commenced in Welsh-speaking villages of south Wales had, by the end of the 20th century, grown to over 15 million members in approximately 100 nations.〔'Our Famous God', Circular Letter to UK Apostolic Churches, 7th January 2015〕 The largest national church is The Apostolic Church Nigeria, with over 4.5 million members and a national convention centre that seats over 100,000.〔http://www.thechristiancentre.org.uk/appohist〕 ==Church history== On 5 November 1909, William Oliver Hutchinson started a Pentecostal Church in Britain at the Emmanuel Mission Hall in Bournemouth in Dorset. It soon became the headquarters of a large network of Pentecostal assemblies, known as Apostolic Faith Church. Rev Daniel Powell Williams〔 http://wbo.llgc.org.uk/en/s2-WILL-POW-1882.html 〕 became an Apostle in the rebirth of the movement. On 8 January 1916, Williams and a number of the Welsh assemblies separated from Hutchinson and the Apostolic Faith Church over doctrinal matters, creating the Apostolic Church in Wales (ACW).〔 〕 Since 1916, the two groups have developed along very different doctrinal paths. In 1917 a second group centred on Birmingham affiliated to the ACW. The following year the Burning Bush Pentecostal Congregation in Glasgow,〔 came into co-operation with the ACW but remained independent. In the same year, a group using the name "Apostolic Church" in Hereford also came into co-operation with the ACW.〔 In 1920, Ben Fisher, who was the leader of an independent Pentecostal congregation in Belfast, Northern Ireland, invited Williams to minister in his church. The group then affiliated to the ACW becoming their first mission field. H V Chanter was the leader of the Apostolic Church of God (ACG); a large group of Pentecostal congregations headquartered in Bradford. During 1921, Chanter attended the Christmas convention of the ACW in Pen-y-groes, Carmarthenshire. A prophetic word given in Bradford directed the leaders to invite the Welsh leaders to join them for a meeting. They met 1922, with another wider meeting arranged for Easter. At the Easter convention, leaders from most of the ACW congregations and those affiliated with them met in Bradford. The 1922 Easter meeting in Bradford was the beginning of the Apostolic Church. Four main groups attended: the Apostolic Church in Wales; the Burning Bush congregation; the Apostolic Church in Hereford; and the Apostolic Church of God. A prophetic word directed them to form administrative union: Pen-y-groes was to be the administrative centre; Glasgow, the financial centre; and Bradford the missionary centre. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Apostolic Church (denomination)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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