Results for “Church”
Encyclopedia article
Church
The church is the community of those who believe in Jesus Christ. The word translates the New Testament Greek term ekklesia (an assembly of those who have been called out), and it refers first to a gathering of people rather than to a building.
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- Church MinisterChurch Offices
A church minister is a person whose principal work is ministry in the church, such as preaching, teaching, and pastoral care. In Korean Protestant usage, the associate pastors, evangelists, and others who assist the senior pastor are collectively called associate ministers.
- Church BulletinWorship & Rites
A church bulletin is a newsletter that a church publishes every Lord's Day, containing the order of worship, sermon information, church news, and announcements.
- Church DedicationWorship & Rites
A church dedication is a service in which a newly built church building is offered to God as a place of worship. In Korean Protestant churches, it is usually held after all construction debt has been paid off.
- Church ConstitutionOrganization & Polity
A church constitution is the foundational body of rules in which a denomination codifies its principles of confession of faith, church government, offices, worship, and discipline. Depending on the denomination, it may be called a "constitution," *The Doctrines and Discipline*, or another name.
- Church DisciplineOrganization & Polity
Church discipline is the practice by which a church examines the sins and wrongdoing of its members or officers, urges them to repent, and, when necessary, imposes censures in accordance with its church constitution. It is also referred to as church governance or, in its judicial form, ecclesiastical trial.
- Church PolityOrganization & Polity
Church polity refers to the systems and structures by which a church appoints its officers, makes decisions, and exercises governance and discipline. It is broadly divided into three forms: episcopal, presbyterian, and congregational.
- Church PlantOrganization & Polity
A church plant is a newly established church, founded in an area with no church or too few churches or directed toward a new group of people; the term also refers to the process of establishing such a church. In Korean Protestant usage, it commonly denotes a church in its early years with a small congregation and a limited financial base.
- Church Planting by DivisionOrganization & Polity
The founding of a new, independent church by an existing church (the "mother church"), which sends out some of its members, ministers, and part of its finances. Also called "daughter-church planting," it is distinct from a "church split," in which a congregation divides through conflict.
- Church BylawsOrganization & Polity
Church bylaws are a written body of self-governing rules that set out the basic principles of a church's operation, including its purpose, membership qualifications, decision-making bodies, election of officers, and management of finances and property.
- Church YearFeasts & Seasons
The church year is the church's calendar, which arranges a year of worship in sequence according to the life of Jesus Christ and the coming of the Holy Spirit, beginning with Advent and continuing through the season after Pentecost. It is also known as the cycle of church seasons.
- Church FinanceOrganization & Polity
Church finance is the work and system by which a church manages the money it receives through offerings and other sources, prepares and carries out budgets, and closes its accounts. The topic includes church accounting and financial disclosure.
- Church Membership RegisterChristian Life
A church membership register is the record of a person's status as an enrolled member of a particular church, together with that member's personal details and history of faith; the term can also refer to the membership status itself.
- Church RetreatChristian Life
A church retreat is a gathering in which church members leave their daily routines and stay together for several days to focus on worship, prayer, Bible study, and fellowship. In Korean Protestant churches, retreats are usually held by individual church departments during school vacations.
- Church Growth in KoreaHistory
The rapid increase in the number of Protestant church members and churches in South Korea during the industrialization and urbanization of the 1960s through the 1980s. The term also covers the slowdown and stagnation of that growth from the 1990s onward.
- Church of Almighty GodHeresies & Cults
The Church of Almighty God (全能神教會) is a religious group that originated in China in the early 1990s. It is also known as "Eastern Lightning" or Quannengshen ("Almighty God sect"). The group believes that a Chinese woman is the returned Christ, and several Korean denominations have formally declared it heretical.
- Church Volunteer ServiceChristian Life
Church volunteer service is the work that church members take on by giving their time and talents in worship, church administration, education, service to neighbors, and other areas. The term generally denotes voluntary, unpaid service.
- Church CaféChristian Life
A church café is a coffee shop that a church operates inside its sanctuary building or an auxiliary building. Its main purposes are to foster fellowship among members and to provide a place of contact with local residents.
- Church in North KoreaDenominations
The church in North Korea refers to the Protestant faith community within North Korea. In the narrow sense, the term denotes the Korean Christian Federation, the only Protestant organization recognized by the North Korean authorities, and the churches under its oversight.
- Church ConstructionControversies
The church construction debate concerns whether it is right for a church to build or expand its sanctuary, particularly with borrowed money. Views divide between those who emphasize the importance of space and devotion and those who prioritize people and financial soundness.