The Church of God, International (CGI) is a

nontrinitarian Nontrinitarianism is a form of Christianity that rejects the mainstream Christian doctrine of the Trinity—the belief that God is three distinct hypostases or persons who are coeternal, coequal, and indivisibly united in one being, or essenc ...

Christian denomination based in the United States, an offshoot of the

Worldwide Church of God Worldwide may refer to: * Pertaining to the entire world * Worldwide (rapper) (born 1986), American rapper * Pitbull (rapper) (born 1981), also known as Mr. Worldwide, American rapper * ''Worldwide'' (Audio Adrenaline album), 2003 * ''Worldwide ...

(WCG) founded by

Herbert W. Armstrong Herbert W. Armstrong (July 31, 1892 – January 16, 1986) was an American evangelist who founded the Worldwide Church of God (WCG). An early pioneer of radio and television evangelism, Armstrong preached what he claimed was the comprehensiv ...

. It is one of many Sabbatarian Churches of God to separate from WCG.

Foundation

CGI was founded in 1978 by four former members of the

, including evangelist

Garner Ted Armstrong Garner Ted Armstrong (February 9, 1930 – September 15, 2003) was an American evangelist and the son of Herbert W. Armstrong, founder of the Worldwide Church of God, at the time a Sabbatarian organization that taught observance of seventh-day Sa ...

(1930-2003) after his father, Herbert W. Armstrong, excommunicated him from the WCG and fired him from all roles in the church over disagreements about operations and certain doctrinal positions. CGI established its headquarters in

Tyler, Texas Tyler is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the largest city and county seat of Smith County. It is also the largest city in Northeast Texas. With a 2020 census population of 105,995, Tyler was the 33rd most populous city in Texas and 2 ...

, and also founded the Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association. The church logo features a breastplate, helmet, crossed swords, and a banner inscribed wit
Ephesians 6:11-17
It is based on a wall hanging Garner Ted assembled from a suit of armor presented to him as a gift from his father.

Governance

CGI was led by Armstrong until 1998. Armstrong and the ministerial leadership aimed to develop a "servant-leadership type of ministry" in contrast to the "one man, top down leadership", of the WCG—this was an important point of departure for the founders after what was perceived to be years of ministerial abuse of power within the WCG, even though Ted himself continued to be very authoritarian. In 1995, amid accusations of sexual assault involving an incident at a massage parlor, Armstrong was asked to resign. No charges were ever filed. Armstrong left CGI and founded the Intercontinental Church of God. Citing health reasons, prominent church leader Ronald L. Dart had previously left CGI to found his own religious service organization, Christian Educational Ministries, in 1995. After significant ministerial reorganization, the church made an effort to put the incident behind them and focus on continuing "the work". Currently, there is a sharing of administration and leadership among church pastors through a board of directors. The chairman's position is subject to re-election every three years. Charles Groce served as chief executive officer for the church until June 27, 2015, when he announced his retirement. Vance Stinson was elected to replace him to serve in this role. The Ministerial Council has also developed a mentoring program called ''MAP (Ministerial Apprentice Program)'' for training new church leaders, replacing ''Imperial Academy'', which had been established in the fall of 1994. CGI has actively sought to maintain a positive relationship with many of the offshoots of the Worldwide Church of God whenever possible, and is in "Ministry Partnership" with a number of them, including Life Resource Ministries, The Living God Ministries, Church of God Big Sandy, United Christian Ministries, Common Ground Christian Ministries, Church of God Cincinnati, Church of God in Miami, Dynamic Christian Ministries, and Haggai 1:14 Ministries.

Doctrine

The CGI follows and believes in many of the basic doctrinal principles shared by other Christian churches such as the inspiration of the scriptures, Christ's bodily resurrection, and the three ordinances of baptism. The church agrees with Protestant theology regarding the tenets of ''

sola scriptura , meaning by scripture alone, is a Christian theological doctrine held by most Protestant Christian denominations, in particular the Lutheran and Reformed traditions of Protestantism, that posits the Bible as the sole infallible source of aut ...

'', the priesthood of all believers, and that Justification is a gift given freely by God. Like many Christian churches, it also expresses a belief in the

resurrection of the dead General resurrection or universal resurrection is the belief in a resurrection of the dead, or resurrection from the dead (Koine: , ''anastasis onnekron''; literally: "standing up again of the dead") by which most or all people who have died w ...

millennialism Millennialism (from millennium, Latin for "a thousand years") or chiliasm (from the Greek equivalent) is a belief advanced by some religious denominations that a Golden Age or Paradise will occur on Earth prior to the final judgment and futu ...

baptism by immersion Immersion baptism (also known as baptism by immersion or baptism by submersion) is a method of baptism that is distinguished from baptism by affusion (pouring) and by aspersion (sprinkling), sometimes without specifying whether the immersion is ...

Gap creationism Gap creationism (also known as ruin-restoration creationism, restoration creationism, or "the Gap Theory") is a form of old Earth creationism that posits that the six-'' yom'' creation period, as described in the Book of Genesis, involved six li ...

, and

continuationism Cessationism versus continuationism involves a Christian theological dispute as to whether spiritual gifts remain available to the church, or whether their operation ceased with the Apostolic Age of the church (or soon thereafter). The cessation ...

. However, some of its teachings differ significantly from Catholic and Protestant doctrine in a number of key areas: ;Restorationism Like many churches in the

Restorationist Restorationism (or Restitutionism or Christian primitivism) is the belief that Christianity has been or should be restored along the lines of what is known about the apostolic early church, which restorationists see as the search for a purer a ...

movement, CGI believes that a number of today's traditional Christian teachings stem from doctrinal corruption under the influence of Greco-Roman philosophy,

Gnosticism Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish and early Christian sects. These various groups emphasized pe ...

anti-Semitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

and mistranslation which occurred early in the history of the church, and believes that the major Christian churches, under the weight of

tradition A tradition is a belief or behavior (folk custom) passed down within a group or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examples include holidays or ...

, now teach various

pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. I ...

ideas and practices that have been synchronized or "syncretised" with Christianity. CGI equates paganism with demonolatry, and teaches that God forbids

syncretism Syncretism () is the practice of combining different beliefs and various schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merging or assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in the theology and mythology of religion, thu ...

with the

occult The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism a ...

. Much of CGI doctrine that is distinct from mainstream Christianity is the outgrowth of an effort to separate these influences and traditions from what is believed to be the beliefs and practices of the original Apostolic church. For example, CGI teaches that the ancient pagan origins of

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

Halloween Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observan ...

, and

Easter Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samue ...

render them inappropriate for Christians because they are offensive to God. This also applies to

Valentine's Day Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring one or two early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine and, thr ...

and

New Year's Day New Year's Day is a festival observed in most of the world on 1 January, the first day of the year in the modern Gregorian calendar. 1 January is also New Year's Day on the Julian calendar, but this is not the same day as the Gregorian one. Whi ...

celebrations. ;Nontrinitarianism Doctrinally, CGI is

binitarian Binitarianism is a Christian theology of two persons, personas, or aspects in one substance/Divinity (or God). Classically, binitarianism is understood as a form of monotheism—that is, that God is absolutely one being—and yet with binitariani ...

, believing that the

Holy Spirit In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is the divine force, quality, and influence of God over the Universe or over his creatures. In Nicene Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is the third person of the Trinity. In Islam, the Holy Spirit acts as ...

is the spirit/power of

God In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...

and of

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...

, rather than a separate entity within the Godhead. God "the Father" and Jesus Christ are viewed as distinct "God beings" in the "God family". This is held to be in agreement with the beliefs of the original Apostolic church. ;Purpose of man CGI teaches that Christians are begotten into the family of God, and at their resurrection will experience theosis, being "changed into spirit as a son of God", in the process of God reproducing Himself after His own likeness. ;Mortality of the soul CGI rejects the doctrine of the

immortality of the soul Christian mortalism is the Christian belief that the human soul is not naturally immortal and may include the belief that the soul is “sleeping” after death until the Resurrection of the Dead and the Last Judgment, a time known as the inte ...

as is taught by

Catholicism 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 most major

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

denominations, in that the soul is not believed to remain conscious after death (until resurrection). CGI believes that the doctrine of the immortality of the soul resulted from doctrinal corruption early in the history of the church. ;Kingdom of God CGI maintains that the core of Jesus Christ's message concerned the coming of a literal earthly kingdom, and that the saved will not go on to heaven, but will live and rule with Jesus on earth during the

Millennium A millennium (plural millennia or millenniums) is a period of one thousand years, sometimes called a kiloannus, kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting ...

after his

Second Coming The Second Coming (sometimes called the Second Advent or the Parousia) is a Christian (as well as Islamic and Baha'i) belief that Jesus will return again after his ascension to heaven about two thousand years ago. The idea is based on messia ...

, and will eventually share ruler-ship over the entire universe as part of the "God Family". ;Grace, Law and Justification CGI believes Justification is a free gift given by God after

repentance Repentance is reviewing one's actions and feeling contrition or regret for past wrongs, which is accompanied by commitment to and actual actions that show and prove a change for the better. In modern times, it is generally seen as involving a co ...

and

baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...

, but holds that obedience to God's law is necessary even after Justification, because Jesus Christ is said to have come to relieve mankind from sin and the penalty of the law, not from the law itself. It is taught basic Old Testament law carries over into the New Covenant and applies to Christians today, because the Tanakh describes them as "God's laws", not "Jewish laws", and because they are upheld by New Testament scripture and practice. This includes the observance of the seventh-day

Sabbath In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, commanded by God to be kept as a holy day of rest, as ...

(from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset), abstaining from unclean meats, and observing Holy Day festivals, including removing leavening and eating unleavened bread during the Days of Unleavened Bread, and living in "temporary dwellings" during the

Feast of Tabernacles or ("Booths, Tabernacles") , observedby = Jews, Samaritans, a few Protestant denominations, Messianic Jews, Semitic Neopagans , type = Jewish, Samaritan , begins = 15th day of Tishrei , ends = 21st day of Tishre ...

. and condemnation of all sexual sins. This does not include observance of ancient Israelite civil laws, the necessity for physical

circumcision Circumcision is a procedure that removes the foreskin from the human penis. In the most common form of the operation, the foreskin is extended with forceps, then a circumcision device may be placed, after which the foreskin is excised. Top ...

, and parts of the law that have to do with approach to God, i.e., sacrificial, temple, and priesthood laws which are believed to have been brought to fulfillment in Jesus Christ. The church observes these laws mostly apart from Jewish tradition (except Jewish calendar calculations, which it views as authoritative) and maintains that this interpretation of law to be historically in agreement with the practice and beliefs of the early Apostolic church. The church rejects replacement theology (supersessionism), i.e., the doctrine that God has rejected the Jewish people and replaced them with the New Testament church. CGI believes that in matters of law and justification, mainstream Christian doctrine misinterprets Pauline theology and is essentially

antinomian Antinomianism (Ancient Greek: ἀντί 'anti''"against" and νόμος 'nomos''"law") is any view which rejects laws or legalism and argues against moral, religious or social norms (Latin: mores), or is at least considered to do so. The term ha ...

, and is the result of doctrinal corruption and anti-Semitism which occurred in the early history of the church following the apostolic era. Christ's sacrifice is viewed as being able to cover any inevitable failed attempts at obedience, except the Unpardonable Sin, i.e., willful impenitence. God's law is not viewed as being of itself punitive, but as having educative value, and it is believed that Jesus magnified the law and its value by applying its spiritual intent, and that Jesus showed how the commandments are far more binding in their spiritual application than in their mere physical application. Obedience to God's law is also seen as being able to build moral character and to significantly improve one's quality of life and to improve society at large, because it is seen as an expression of the mind and character of God. Despite criticism of legalism, CGI staunchly maintains that obedience is not viewed as a "work" to "earn" salvation, but that salvation is a freely given gift from God. ;Pre-Siniatic Decalogue CGI teaches that the Ten Commandments were in force long before

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu ( Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pr ...

, and predated the Flood by centuries, and that this is proven circumstantially in the Old Testament, (though not in precisely the same form as those given at Sinai) thus nullifying arguments that God intended them for Israel only. ;Doctrine of Hell CGI believes that the idea of an ever-burning

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...

stems from the influence of paganism and Hellenistic philosophy on rabbinic thought and on Christian doctrine early in the history of the church, and that the scriptures actually teach that the final destination of the unrepentant wicked is literal death, i.e.

annihilation In particle physics, annihilation is the process that occurs when a subatomic particle collides with its respective antiparticle to produce other particles, such as an electron colliding with a positron to produce two photons. The total ener ...

or permanent destruction, as opposed to an "eternal life of torture in hell." ;Multiple resurrections CGI holds that people who do not know or understand the truth of the Bible during their lifetime will be given time to learn these teachings after the "

Second Resurrection The second (symbol: s) is the unit of Time in physics, time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally t ...

" to a new physical life. After living again in the Millennial world under God's kingdom, those who continue to reject God's Holy Spirit and way of life will be annihilated after the " Third Resurrection", along with unrepentant former believers who had turned away from God. They are destroyed in the Lake of fire. ;Tithing Like many Christian churches, CGI supports the doctrine of Biblical

tithing A tithing or tything was a historic English legal, administrative or territorial unit, originally ten hides (and hence, one tenth of a hundred). Tithings later came to be seen as subdivisions of a manor or civil parish. The tithing's leader or ...

as a personal act of worship; 10 percent of a member's income is given to the church to fund the organization's gospel mission. It is also taught that each member should personally set aside an additional 10 percent of their income, a

Second tithe The second tithe (Hebrew: ''ma'aser sheni'' מעשר שני) is a tithe mentioned in the Hebrew Bible and practised within Orthodox Judaism. It is distinguished from the first tithe (Hebrew: ''ma'aser rishon'' מעשר ראשון), the third or ...

, for personal observance of annual religious festivals, particularly the Feast of Tabernacles. ;British Israelism CGI asserts a belief in

British Israelism British Israelism (also called Anglo-Israelism) is the British nationalist, pseudoarchaeological, pseudohistorical and pseudoreligious belief that the people of Great Britain are "genetically, racially, and linguistically the direct descenda ...

. This belief is not used to assert racial or ethnic superiority, but solely to interpret End Time prophecies which are believed to be directed at the United States and Europe. ;Doctrinal departures from WCG CGI departs from the original WCG in matters of church government and does not assign its own administration as the "one true church". The WWCG gradually came to teach that the Kingdom of God included the ruler-ship of the ministry in the lives of the congregation. CGI believes that the Kingdom of God is the ruler-ship of Jesus Christ in the individual lives of its members, and that it will include the future ruler-ship of Christ on Earth during the Millennial period. The ministry is considered the servants of the people towards that goal. The WCG taught that the God of the Old Testament was, in fact, Jesus Christ, and that Christ came to reveal the Father who was previously unknown. The CGI has more recently distanced itself from this doctrine, asserting that both Father and Son are referenced in the Old and New Testament. Like other

Adventist Adventism is a branch of Protestant Christianity that believes in the imminent Second Coming (or the "Second Advent") of Jesus Christ. It originated in the 1830s in the United States during the Second Great Awakening when Baptist preacher W ...

churches, CGI believes that the

Second Coming of Christ The Second Coming (sometimes called the Second Advent or the Parousia) is a Christian (as well as Islamic and Baha'i) belief that Jesus will return again after his ascension to heaven about two thousand years ago. The idea is based on messia ...

is imminent and it interprets contemporary events in the light of bible prophecy, but it is also deliberately less dogmatic about prophetic speculative ideas, rejecting the practice of setting dates for the return of Christ, rejecting the WCG's interpretation of the doctrine of Church Eras as proposed by Dr. Herman Hoeh, and rejecting its interpretation of the doctrine of the Place of Safety during the

Great Tribulation In Christian eschatology, the Great Tribulation ( grc, θλῖψις μεγάλη, thlîpsis megálē) is a period mentioned by Jesus in the Olivet Discourse as a sign that would occur in the time of the end. At Revelation 7:14, "the Great Tri ...

Message and media

With congregations in the United States, Canada, Jamaica, Ireland, Australia and the Philippines, CGI produces a television program titled ''Armor of God'' and ''Prevail Magazine'', which cover topics related to Christian living. The church publishes a quarterly newspaper, ''The International News'' containing doctrinal articles, world events as they relate to bible prophecy, and church news, and offers children's education through ''Buckaroo Bob's Neighborhood'' programming. ''Twentieth Century Watch'', a full-color glossy magazine, was discontinued in 1998. In 2013, the church decided to push for a more aggressive presence on the internet, and built a new studio to broadcast in

high-definition television High-definition television (HD or HDTV) describes a television system which provides a substantially higher image resolution than the previous generation of technologies. The term has been used since 1936; in more recent times, it refers to the g ...

. The church also hosts a multimedia website and has a presence on YouTube along with a dedicated Roku channel. The church also supports a program for young adults ages 18–30 called ''Infuse'', which includes a quarterly magazine, a website, and service activities for local churches and communities. The program is run by volunteers and includes older adults who support the program, and is also open to young people in other churches.

References

Bibliography

External links

Official website: ''Church of God, International''Magazine''Magazine''

Ministry Partners

''Life Resource Ministries''''The Living God Ministries''''Church of God, Big Sandy''''Common Ground Christian Ministries''''Church of God, Cincinnati''''Church of God in Miami''''Dynamic Christian Ministries''''Haggai 1:14 Ministries''

Separations

''Intercontinental Church of God'' To Win (Christian Educational Ministries)''of God Outreach Ministries''
{{Authority control Seventh-day denominations Nontrinitarian denominations Church of God denominations Church of God (Armstrong) Christian organizations established in 1978 Christian denominations established in the 20th century