United Pentecostal and Evangelical Churches
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The United Pentecostal and Evangelical Churches ( nl, Verenigde Pinkster- en Evangeliegemeenten, abbreviated VPE) is the largest
Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement
and
evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...
Christian denomination in the
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
. It was created on February 16, 2002, when the Brotherhood of Pentecostal Churches (''Broederschap van Pinkstergemeenten'') and the Full Gospel Churches of the Netherlands (''Volle-Evangeliegemeenten Nederland'') merged. The VPE is the Dutch branch of the Assemblies of God. In 2008, it had 22,000 members in 160 churches.


Organisation

Local churches have relative autonomy, and the national office, based in
Urk Urk () is a municipality and a town in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands. Urk is first mentioned in historical records dating to the 10th century, when it was still an island in the Zuiderzee, an inland sea that would become part ...
, functions as a facilitator of local churches. Peter Sleebos has chaired the VPE since its founding. Clergy and other church workers are trained at Azusa Theological College, which has resided at the Free University in
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...
since 2002. The Free University also has an academic chair of Pentecostalism.


Relations with other Churches

Internationally, the VPE is a member of the World Assemblies of God Fellowship (WAGF). Within Europe, the VPE cooperates closely with Assemblies of God churches in
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
and
Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...
—the Federation of Pentecostal Churches and the Verbond van Vlaamse Pinkstergemeenten respectively. The VPE is also a member of the
Pentecostal European Fellowship Pentecostal European Fellowship is a federation of 60 pentecostal movements across Europe. The headquarters is in Sint-Genesius-Rode, Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country ...
. In the Netherlands the VPE cooperate with other Pentecostal and evangelical groups in the
National Platform of the Pentecostal and Evangelical Movement National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...
and participates in the
Evangelical Alliance The Evangelical Alliance (EA) is a national evangelical alliance, member of the World Evangelical Alliance. Founded in 1846, the activities of the Evangelical Alliance aim to promote evangelical Christian beliefs in government, media and socie ...
of the Netherlands. The VPE has continuous dialogues with both the
Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and the Protestant Church in the Netherlands. September 15, 2007, at the occasion of the celebration of the 100 years existence of the Pentecostal movement in the Netherlands at the
Olympic Stadium ''Olympic Stadium'' is the name usually given to the main stadium of an Olympic Games. An Olympic stadium is the site of the opening and closing ceremonies. Many, though not all, of these venues actually contain the words ''Olympic Stadium'' as ...
in Amsterdam,
Bas Plaisier Bas may refer to: People * Bas (name), a given name and a surname * Bas (rapper) (born 1987) Chemistry * Boron arsenide (BAs), a chemical compound * Barium sulfide (BAs), a chemical compound Other uses * ''bas'' (French for "low"), as in bas- ...
, secretary general of the Protestant Church in the Netherlands asked for forgiveness for some judgements of the Pentecostals issued by his church in the past. November 16, 2007 Peter Sleebos, chairman of the National Platform did the same vice versa when he addressed the General Synod of the Protestant Church in the Netherlands.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:United Pentecostal And Evangelical Churches
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
Evangelicalism in the Netherlands Christian denominations in the Netherlands Pentecostalism in Europe