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Concise Historical Statement
The Year of Uniting: 1907-1908. The Association of Pentecostal Churches of America, the Church of the Nazarene, and the Holiness Church of Christ
were brought into association with one another by C. W. Ruth, assistant general superintendent of the Church of the Nazarene, who had extensive friendships throughout the Wesleyan-Holiness Movement. Delegates of the
Association of Pentecostal Churches of America and the Church of the Nazarene convened in general assembly at Chicago, from October 10 to 17, 1907. The merging groups agreed upon a church government that balanced
the need for a superintendency with the independence of local congregations. Superintendents were to foster and care for churches already established and were to organize and encourage the organizing of churches
everywhere, but their authority was not to interfere with the independent actions of a fully organized church. Further, the General Assembly adopted a name for the united body drawn from both organizations: The
Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene. Phineas F. Bresee and Hiram F. Reynolds were elected general superintendents. A delegation of observers from the Holiness Church of Christ was present and participated in the
assembly work.
During the following year, two other accessions occurred. In April 1908, P. F. Bresee organized a congregation of the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene at Peniel, Texas, which brought into the
church leading figures in the Holiness Association of Texas and paved the way for other members to join. In September, the Pennsylvania Conference of the Holiness Christian Church, after receiving a release from its
General Conference, dissolved itself and under the leadership of H. G. Trumbaur united with the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene.
The second General Assembly of the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene met in
a joint session with the General Council of the Holiness Church of Christ from October 8 to 14, 1908, at Pilot Point, Texas. The year of uniting ended on Tuesday morning, October 13, when R. B. Mitchum moved and C.
W. Ruth seconded the proposition: "That the union of the two churches be now consummated." Several spoke favorably on the motion. Phineas Bresee had exerted continual effort toward this proposed outcome.
At 10:40 a.m., amid great enthusiasm, the motion to unite was adopted by a unanimous rising vote.
Denominational Change of Name. The General Assembly of 1919, in response to memorials from 35 district
assemblies, officially changed the name of the organization to Church of the Nazarene because of new meanings that had become associated with the term "Pentecostal."
Since that time at Pilot Point,
Texas, in 1908, the Church has grown to more than 1 million members, and spans 127+ countries. We take seriously Jesus' command to go into all the world and make disciples.
Crossroads Community Church of the
Nazarene is an answer to that call. In 1948 dedicated people who had a vision for a holiness church in western Tennessee started CCCN. They envisioned what God could do through them to reach the lost with the Good
News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. These commitments to evangelism and holy living are as fresh today as they were when the first group of Tipton County Nazarenes began to meet over 50 years ago. As God continues
doing a new thing at Crossroads Community Church of the Nazarene, we would invite you to comealong. Our church can be your home.
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