Greater Grace World Outreach (GGWO) is a
nondenominational
A non-denominational person or organization is one that does not follow (or is not restricted to) any particular or specific religious denomination.
Overview
The term has been used in the context of various faiths including Jainism, Baháʼí Fait ...
evangelical
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...
Christian churches that emphasize
grace
Grace may refer to:
Places United States
* Grace, Idaho, a city
* Grace (CTA station), Chicago Transit Authority's Howard Line, Illinois
* Little Goose Creek (Kentucky), location of Grace post office
* Grace, Carroll County, Missouri, an uninco ...
, the
finished work
The Finished Work is a doctrine that locates sanctification at the time of conversion, afterward the converted Christian progressively grows in grace. This is contrary to the Wesleyan doctrine of entire sanctification that locates complete sanctif ...
, and
missions. The headquarters of Greater Grace World Outreach is currently located at its
megachurch
A megachurch is a church with an unusually large membership that also offers a variety of educational and social activities, usually Protestant or Evangelical. The Hartford Institute for Religion Research defines a megachurch as any Protestant C ...
(locally named Greater Grace Church Baltimore) in
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
,
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
. The church has a weekly attendance of 1500+. GGWO was founded by
Carl H. Stevens Jr. who was succeeded by Pastor Thomas Schaller as Presiding Elder and Overseeing Pastor of Greater Grace World Outreach in Baltimore in April 2005.
[ GGWO has been investigated by numerous organizations for cult-like activity and spiritual abuse by its leaders. ] GGWO has been investigated by multiple organizations for cult-like practices including spiritual abuse by leadership.
The church is thriving and have over 500 churches throughout the world.
Most of these churches are located in
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
,
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
, with larger congregations in
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
,
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
and
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
. Most of the pastors attended affiliated
Maryland Bible College & Seminary
Maryland Bible College & Seminary, founded in 1988, is a Bible college in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a successor to Stevens School of the Bible.
The college is affiliated with Greater Grace World Outreach
Greater Grace World Outreach (GGWO) is a ...
in Baltimore, however there are many other affiliated Bible colleges around the world. The ministries of Greater Grace also include the radio program ''Grace Hour'', Greater Grace Christian Academy, Christian Sports Clubs, along with other internal ministries.
Beliefs and practices
The beliefs of Greater Grace are outlined in its
doctrinal statement
A creed, also known as a confession of faith, a symbol, or a statement of faith, is a statement of the shared beliefs of a community (often a religious community) in a form which is structured by subjects which summarize its core tenets.
The ea ...
and detailed in booklets written by
Carl H. Stevens. Worship is
non-liturgical but is generally structured as follows: (singing) announcements, worship (singing), offering, opening prayer, sermon, closing prayer/benediction/alter call,(singing) closing announcements. Songs are usually
contemporary
Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from approximately 1945 to the present. Contemporary history is either a subset of the late modern period, or it is o ...
, but
classical hymn
A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...
s are also sung on account of the wide range of ages among members. An "offering song" is also sung during the taking of the offering, which is often sung by a member of the congregation who is not a regular member of the
worship team
Contemporary worship is a form of Christian worship that emerged within Western evangelical Protestantism in the 20th century. It was originally confined to the charismatic movement, but is now found in a wide range of churches, including many w ...
, or by one of the churches
choir
A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...
s.
Evangelism
In Christianity, evangelism (or witnessing) is the act of preaching the gospel with the intention of sharing the message and teachings of Jesus Christ.
Christians who specialize in evangelism are often known as evangelists, whether they are i ...
, ''raps'' (devotionals, or informal Q&A meetings, usually following sermons, but also held at various times throughout the week, most notably during lunch hour), and informal
Bible study are also considered important acts of worship.
The organization has a 10-point Doctrinal Statement available on its website. The organization limits the pastorate and/or homiletic role to men due to a literal interpretation of I Tim. 2:12, but allows women to lead in just about any other capacity. The church leadership is strongly anti-homosexual and
anti-abortion
Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respons ...
.
History
Origins
In the early 1960s, Carl H. Stevens Jr., a bakery truck driver, was praying at Wortheley Pond near
Peru, Maine
Peru is a town in Oxford County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,488 at the 2020 census.
History
It was granted by the Massachusetts General Court to several residents from Falmouth, Maine. The first grantee to settle would be Merri ...
, and developed a vision for a worldwide Christian ministry. Stevens was later ordained by a council of independent ministers at the Montsweag Baptist Church on March 7, 1963. From there Stevens went on to minister at the Woolwich-Wiscasset Baptist Church, and establish the Northeast School of the Bible in 1972. He also began to experiment with radio evangelism, with a program called "Telephone Time."
In 1973, following an arson attack on their church building and a controversial church split, Stevens and his closest followers moved the center of their operations to a former Catholic school facility in
South Berwick, Maine
South Berwick is a town in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 7,467 at the 2020 census. South Berwick is home to Berwick Academy, a private, co-educational university-preparatory day school founded in 1791.
The town was s ...
. There "The Bible Speaks" became the name of the church, and "the Northeast School of the Bible" was renamed as "Stevens School of the Bible". Expanded radio and television outreaches continued to draw in new followers and—both through church planting operations by the organization's Bible school students and graduates, and existing churches affiliating themselves with Stevens' organization—a network of "branch ministries" began to develop.
In 1976, the school grew beyond its capacity. As a result, Carl Stevens moved the "home base" of his organization to a former private boarding school facility which they were able to purchase in
Lenox, Massachusetts
Lenox is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts. The town is based in Western Massachusetts and part of the Pittsfield Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 5,095 at the 2020 census. Lenox is the site of Shakespeare & Company and T ...
.
Former organization
The cornerstone of Stevens' career in Christian broadcasting was the call-in radio show he hosted, originally known as "Telephone Time", now called "Grace Hour". In 2006, this program won an Angel award for Excellence in Media.
In both South Berwick and Lenox, the Bible Speaks developed a considerable local presence, not only through drawing large numbers of young adults into these small communities as Bible school students, but also through operating extensive Sunday School operations, with a private fleet of retired school buses for bringing in children from the surrounding area.
They also established a network of private K-12 schools, beginning with Southern Maine Christian Schools in South Berwick (later moved to
Scarborough, Maine
Scarborough is a New England town, town in Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County on the southern coast of the U.S. state of Maine. The town is a coastal resort area. Located about south of Portland, Maine, Portland, Scarborough is part of t ...
), and then Stevens Christian Schools in Lenox. Church planting missionary teams were also sent out first to
El Salvador
El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...
and then to
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
and other European countries . In the 1980s this expanded to include church planting operations in South America, Africa, Asia and Australia. Thomas Schaller, the current leader of GGWO, began his pastoral career as the head of their original missionary team to Finland.
In the 1983, the Bible Speaks purchased a Norwegian ferry boat which they renovated to use as a missionary relief vessel in the Caribbean. This boat was named La Gracia, with Baltimore, Maryland as its official home port.
Present organization
In Baltimore, Greater Grace World Outreach quickly grew and established ministries including the Grace Hour, Greater Grace Christian Academy, Maryland Bible College and Seminary, the Christian Athletics Program, as well as international outreach ministries.
In 2003, Carl Stevens became too ill to continue his leadership of GGWO. In 2005, the elders elected Rodger Stenger to become the new chief elder of the church. However, Rodger Stenger chose not to accept the position. In his place the elders elected Thomas Schaller as senior pastor, after a congregational vote. Still, many of the elders and senior pastors were dissatisfied with the choice, citing Schaller's views on the role of the senior pastor. In 2004, many church leaders, associated ministry leaders, and affiliate churches elected to disaffiliate. A group of pastors who disaffiliated formed a new organization known as The International Association of Grace Ministries. The church is thriving and have over 600 churches throughout the world.
Organization
GGWO is an affiliation of international churches, whose pastors are ordained by the leadership of Greater Grace Church Baltimore (GGWO headquarters), who agree to abide by the standards of the church. In return, the affiliation allows pastors to have fellowship and communion with other pastors and churches, mostly within the worldwide Greater Grace community of churches, but occasionally outside of it as well. Technically, it is an affiliation of pastors who agree to worship under the GGWO "umbrella", and not the congregations themselves, as GGWO recognizes local congregations as fully autonomous and independent. However, if a congregation's pastor is an ordained member of GGWO then that congregation is considered to be a member of the greater GGWO body of churches as well. Be that as it may, GGWO does not interfere with an individual church's affairs unless assistance is requested.
[.]
Critics
On several occasions, Greater Grace World Outreach has been accused of cult-like behavior. A letter was written by the
Christian Research Institute
The Christian Research Institute (CRI) is an evangelical Christian apologetics ministry. It was established in October 1960 in the state of New Jersey by Walter Martin (1928–1989). In 1974, Martin relocated the ministry to San Juan Capistrano, ...
, which offers a list of suggestions for the church, attempting to correct any of the false teachings that might exist. The main teaching which was considered a concern was that of delegated authority.
However, in this document, Miller concedes that "TBS has, up to the time of this writing, also maintained an orthodox, biblical position on those doctrines most essential to the Christian faith. Thus, we do not consider TBS a non-Christian cult, but rather a Christian ministry." The document concludes with a call to repentance for the egregious sins committed by Stevens and leadership of GGWO. A repentance that has not come in full.
References
External links
Greater Grace World Outreach WebsiteGGWO Missions WebsiteDiscussGGWO
CarlStevens.orgFisher, Marc (1986-09-04). "Money Talks, Bible Speaks -- How To Spend $7 Million Religiously?" Times Union (Albany, NY). Retrieved 2012-05-15.
60 Minutes, (1987-05-31) Part 1, Reporting by Correspondent Roger Mudd. CBS. Season 20. 15 minutes. Retrieved from YouTube 2012-05-15.60 Minutes, (1987-05-31) Part 2, Interviews with Diane Sawyer. CBS. Season 20. 11 minutes. Retrieved from YouTube 2012-05-15.
* [http://articles.nydailynews.com/2001-04-17/sports/18181666_1_charlie-ward-senior-pastor-knick Bondy, Flip (2001-04-17). "Church of team pastor has troubled roots" New York Daily News. Retrieved 2012-05-15.]
Gleick, Elizabeth and Lambert, Pam (2003-04-19). "The Strangers Among Us-It's Not Just Waco: Cults Ruled by Paranoia Flourish All Over America" People Magazine. Retrieved 2012-05-15.
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Religious scandals
Evangelical megachurches in the United States
Evangelical churches in Maryland
Churches in Baltimore
Christian missions
Christian organizations established in 1987
1987 establishments in Maryland