Church of God (7th Day, Salem, West Virginia) (1933 - Present) - Religious Group
Religious Family: AdventistReligious Tradition: Unclassified
Description: The Church of God (7th Day, Salem, West Virginia) was founded in 1933 by former members of the General Conference of the Church of God (Seventh Day). The catalyzing issue that prompted the formation of the new church was a disagreement over congregational polity; at the general conference meeting in 1933, there was a motion to reorganize the church from a congregational polity to one that maintained a hierarchy of 12 apostles, 70 prophets, and 7 financial stewards. When the move was defeated, those who supported it reorganized as a new congregation.
Official Site: http://www.churchofgod-7thday.org/
Connections: Church of God (7th Day, Salem, West Virginia)
| Group (Active) | Group (Defunct) | Other |
Church of God (7th Day, Salem, West Virginia), Trends (1936 - 1960)1
| YEAR | MEMBERS | MINISTERS | CHURCHES |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1936 | 1,154 | 39 | |
| 1951 | 2,000 | 15 | |
| 1959 | 1,500 | 9 | 15 |
| 1960 | 2,000 | 9 | 7 |
Sources
1 All data on clergy, members, and churches are taken from the National Council of Churches’ Historic Archive CD and recent print editions of the Council’s Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches. The CD archives all 68 editions of the Yearbook (formerly called Yearbook of the Churches and Yearbook of American Churches) from 1916 to 2000. Read more information on the Historic Archive CD and the Yearbook.
Membership figures are "inclusive." According to the Yearbook, this includes "those who are full communicant or confirmed members plus other members baptized, non-confirmed or non-communicant." Each denomination has its own criteria for membership.
When a denomination listed on the Historic Archive CD was difficult to identify, particularly in early editions of the Yearbook, the ARDA staff consulted numerous sources, including Melton’s Encyclopedia of American Religions and the Handbook of Denominations in the United States. In some cases, ARDA staff consulted the denomination’s website or contacted its offices by phone. When a denomination could not be positively identified, its data were omitted.
