Japan Assemblies of God
Encyclopedia
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
:日本アッセンブリ－ズ・オブ・ゴッド教団 Nihon Assenburiizu obu Goddo Kyodan) is a Pentecostal Christian denomination
Christian denomination
A Christian denomination is an identifiable religious body under a common name, structure, and doctrine within Christianity. In the Orthodox tradition, Churches are divided often along ethnic and linguistic lines, into separate churches and traditions. Technically, divisions between one group and...
in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
affiliated with the World Assemblies of God Fellowship. It claims 10,766 adherents and 211 churches. It is also a member of the Japan Evangelical Association
Japan Evangelical Association
Japan Evangelical Association is a fellowship of member denominations, churches. The JEA is a member of the World Evangelical Alliance .-Member denominations:*Immanuel General Mission*The Salvation Army*Evangelical Free Church of Japan...
.
History
In 1913, the missionaries Carl and Frederike Juergensen arrived in Japan and began evangelizing to the populace. In 1914, the Assemblies of God in the United States of America was formed, and the Juergensen's became the first Assemblies of God missionaries to Japan. An Assemblies of God USA affiliated district of Japan was organized under the direction of missionaries in 1920. Under pressure from the Japanese wartime government, Assemblies of God churches joined the United Church of Christ in JapanUnited Church of Christ in Japan
The United Church of Christ in Japan is the largest Protestant denomination in Japan. It was a union of thirty three diverse Protestant religious bodies forcibly brought together by the Japanese wartime government on June 24, 1941.The UCCJ is a member of the World Council of Churches .-Events...
in 1941 but withdrew after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. In 1949, the self governing Japan Assemblies of God was formed with 19 ministers and 17 congregations.