Redeemed Christian Church of God
Template:Short description Template:Infobox Christian denomination
The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) is a holiness pentecostal megachurch and denomination headquartered in Ebute Metta, Lagos, Nigeria. With presence in 197 countries and territories of the world and more than 5 million members in Nigeria alone, it is one of the biggest church denominations in the world with over 9 million members worldwide.<ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
After the death of founder Pa Josiah Akindayomi<ref name=":1" /> in 1980,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> pastor E.A. Adeboye, a former university lecturer, became its General Overseer in 1981.<ref name=":0" />
History
The RCCG was founded in 1952 by Rev. Josiah Olufemi Akindayomi (1909–1980).<ref name=":1">Ruth Marshall, Political Spiritualities: The Pentecostal Revolution in Nigeria, University of Chicago Press, USA, 2009, page 74</ref>
Adeboye was a mathematics lecturer at the University of Lagos and had joined the church in 1973. Adeboye was initially a Yoruba-to-English interpreter for Akindayomi's sermons. He was ordained a pastor of the church in 1975. His appointment as the leader (styled 'General Overseer') of the church in 1981, was formalized by the posthumous reading of Akindayomi's sealed pronouncement. In 1990, the Redeemed Christian Church of God Bible School was founded.<ref>Laurent Fourchard, André Mary et René Otayek, Entreprises religieuses transnationales en Afrique de l'Ouest, Karthala Editions, France, 2005, page 343</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Andrew Rice, writing in The New York Times, calls the RCCG "one of [Africa's] most vigorously expansionary religious movements, a homegrown Pentecostal denomination that is crusading to become a global faith".<ref name="nyt">Template:Cite news</ref> The church's mission statement states that "In every household, there will be at least one member of Redeemed Christian Church of God in the whole world."<ref name="nyt"/><ref name="pbs"> {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In 2008, the RCCG had more than 14,000 churches and five million members in Nigeria, and as at 2024, it is present in more than 190 countries.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Stephen M. Cherry, Helen Rose Ebaugh, Global Religious Movements Across Borders: Sacred Service, Routledge, Abingdon-on-Thames, 2016, p. 35</ref>
The international church is structured in different areas throughout the world.<ref>Donald E. Miller, Kimon H. Sargeant, Richard Flory, Spirit and Power: The Growth and Global Impact of Pentecostalism, OUP USA, USA, 2013, page 190</ref> The local churches are grouped into regions, with 59 regions currently in Nigeria after the 2024 Annual Convention of the church, held in August. It is also organised throughout most of the world. Notable special spiritual programs are the "Holy Ghost Service", which holds on the first Friday of every month in Nigeria. Others include the annual "Holy Ghost Convention" that holds in August and the "Holy Ghost Congress" which holds in December.
Beliefs
The RCCG website outlines its beliefs in the Bible and the Holy Trinity, that the devil exists, that God formed man in his image, in repentance, in cleansing from sins by God's grace, in sanctification, water baptism, Holy Spirit baptism, restitution and that God can heal without medicine (by His divine intervention e.g. through prayer).<ref>cite web |url=https://www.rccg.org/our-beliefs/ |title=DIVINE HEALING(WITHOUT MEDICINE)</ref>
See also
- List of the largest evangelical churches
- List of the largest evangelical church auditoriums
- Worship service (evangelicalism)
- Christ Apostolic Church
- The Redeemed Evangelical Mission