UPC found in Wikipedia under "Schisms & Splits"

[pelathais]

Originally Posted by Apprehended

As I said above. They got their facts wrong...

Okay... what facts in particular? The one quoted about the year 1955 seems to reflect events that I thought had happened in 1947. What else do you see?

[Apprehended]

Originally Posted by pelathais

Okay... what facts in particular? The one quoted about the year 1955 seems to reflect events that I thought had happened in 1947. What else do you see?

I looked up the UPCI and found this on Schisms and Splits and low and behold I found this on Wikipedia:

The UPCI has experienced several splinters since its inception in 1945.

In 1955, a group of ministers led by Bishop C. B. Gillespie (Fairmont, WV), Bishop Ray Cornell (Cleveland, OH), and Bishop Carl Angle (Nashville, TN) rechartered the PAJC using the original charter.[citation needed]

I am not 100% certain on this issue, but I am of the strong impression that some of these men picked up the charter in the late 1940s.

1968 a number of ministers organized the Apostolic Ministerial Fellowship - AMF, lead by Robert Cavaness, Murray Burr and others, citing the UPCI as 'liberal'. Central issues were holiness and local church government. Detractors said that Murray Burr was disgruntled because he was not elected General Superintendent.
In 1986, Pastor L. H. Hardwick, a UPCI pastor in Nashville, Tennessee, and Jack Dehart of Texas broke away from what he called "legalists" (referring to the issue of dress code and standards), and formed Global Christian Ministries (now Global Network of Christian Ministries).[citation needed]

Pastor Hardwick was out of the upci long before Jack Dehart left. Jack Dehart did not leave until after the Affirmation Statement was adopted in 1992. Furthermore, he did not leave over the "holiness" or "legalist" issue. He debated against the resolution on the floor in Salt Lake City. He along with C.L. Dees were two of the strongest voices against the Affirmation Statement.

In 2001, Bishop Teklemarim Gezahagne and the more than 2 million members of the Apostolic Church of Ethiopia broke their 45 year alignment with the UPCI and joined up with the AWCF. The division was over Christology. Interesting accusations since most Pentecostals differ with the UPCI on Christology issues.

45 year alignment? Not hardly. That would have placed a date of fellowship back to 1962. In fact, I don't believe brother Wendel, who later committed suicide, went to Ethiopia until after then.

In January 2008 another split came to the UPC prompted by a 2007 resolution to allow advertising on television. The schism led by Jonny Godair formed the Worldwide Pentecostal Fellowship.


Interesting..........

Can't say it is led by Johnny Godair alone. There seems to be bigger pushers and shakers leading the charge than just him.

[stmatthew]

to add to Apprehended's post above, I believe that Teklemarim was disfellowshipped by the UPCI, and not the other way around.

[George]

Originally Posted by Apprehended

As I said above. They got their facts wrong...

Whatever. There is always a certain amount of truth in every lie.

[pelathais]

Originally Posted by Apprehended

I am not 100% certain on this issue, but I am of the strong impression that some of these men picked up the charter in the late 1940s.

I believe that you are correct. The following is from the February 1947, Pentecostal Herald:

Originally Posted by Apprehended

Pastor Hardwick was out of the upci long before Jack Dehart left. Jack Dehart did not leave until after the Affirmation Statement was adopted in 1992. Furthermore, he did not leave over the "holiness" or "legalist" issue. He debated against the resolution on the floor in Salt Lake City. He along with C.L. Dees were two of the strongest voices against the Affirmation Statement.

That part puzzled me as well. I'm not familar with when Pastor Hardwick left exactly, though at one time I worked for his predecessor.

Originally Posted by Apprehended

45 year alignment? Not hardly. That would have placed a date of fellowship back to 1962. In fact, I don't believe brother Wendel, who later committed suicide, went to Ethiopia until after then.

Originally Posted by Apprehended

Can't say it is led by Johnny Godair alone. There seems to be bigger pushers and shakers leading the charge than just him.

I agree.

[pelathais]

Originally Posted by stmatthew

to add to Apprehended's post above, I believe that Teklemarim was disfellowshipped by the UPCI, and not the other way around.

The denunciation of the "Divine Flesh" teaching would have left him out. I don't think Teklemarim himself was disfellowshipped, but the issue was pressed until he had to choose. He was out at the time that the Clyde Haney Bible School was dedicated in Ethiopia.

I remember a certain furor being raised because the school bore the name of the father of the UPC's GS. Of course, funding was raised and the project was begun before the "Divine Flesh" issue became a problem. It seemed like a low blow (at least to me) that so much of a fuss was raised - most of it after the fact.

[pelathais]

Originally Posted by George

Whatever. There is always a certain amount of truth in every lie.

To call it a "lie" means passing a moral judgment that I think is unnecessary. It could be that they simply got it wrong, without resorting to a "lie."

[Apprehended]

Originally Posted by stmatthew

to add to Apprehended's post above, I believe that Teklemarim was disfellowshipped by the UPCI, and not the other way around.

That's right.

My personal conversation with bro Hall indicate that to be the case. If I rightly recall, the Ethiopian church was called into conference in Hazelwood. Every effort was extended to the leaders to work with them to get their Christology straightened out. They resisted. Since the UPCI was not willing to fellowship the DF doctrine, the leaders were finally given an ultimatum. I believe that thechnically, the Ethiopian church elected to withdraw from the UPCI after a later conference in Ethiopia. I think that is the way it worked out.

[Apprehended]

Thank you pelathais.

I don't ever remember seeing that article though I kept many of the very old Hearlds dating back to the late forties and fifties which I gave away to my kids who pastor a upci church.

Interesting article. I just remember that the charter was picked up in the late forties. I wasn't exactly sure when.

[Steve Epley]

Originally Posted by Apprehended

That's right.

My personal conversation with bro Hall indicate that to be the case. If I rightly recall, the Ethiopian church was called into conference in Hazelwood. Every effort was extended to the leaders to work with them to get their Christology straightened out. They resisted. Since the UPCI was not willing to fellowship the DF doctrine, the leaders were finally given an ultimatum. I believe that thechnically, the Ethiopian church elected to withdraw from the UPCI after a later conference in Ethiopia. I think that is the way it worked out.

That is so Teke beat them to the punch. The leaders sent them a letter severing the fellowship with the UPC.