Australian Christian Churches
| Australian Christian Churches | |
|---|---|
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| Classification | Protestant |
| Orientation | Pentecostal |
| Associations | World Assemblies of God Fellowship |
| Region | Australia |
| Origin | 1937 Sydney, New South Wales |
| Merger of | Assemblies of God Queensland and Pentecostal Church of Australia |
| Separations | Christian Revival Crusade |
| Official website | www |
Australian Christian Churches (ACC), formerly known as Assemblies of God in Australia (AOG), is a Pentecostal Christian denomination and the Australian branch of the World Assemblies of God Fellowship, the largest Pentecostal denomination in the world. With over 225,000 adherents, it is the largest Pentecostal denomination in Australia and is the fifth most attended denomination after the Catholic, Anglican, Uniting, and Baptist churches. There are over 1,100 churches in Australian Christian Churches across Australia.
The ACC was formed in 1937 when the Assemblies of God Queensland merged with the Pentecostal Church of Australia under the name Assemblies of God in Australia. In 2007, the denomination adopted Australian Christian Churches as its public name; however, it is still incorporated as the Assemblies of God in Australia.
The Doctrinal Basis of Australian Christian Churches contains the central beliefs of the denomination. Its 20 articles are summarized below:
In recent decades, there has been a noticeable decrease in emphasis on speaking in tongues as the initial evidence as well as the Second Coming of Christ as traditionally understood by Pentecostals. At the same time, the prosperity gospel has been embraced by influential ACC churches, such as Hillsong Church.
Churches in Australian Christian Churches are known for their Pentecostal style services that involve contemporary praise and worship, speaking in tongues, lifting of hands in worship and preaching. While Australian Christian Churches use a wide range of worship styles, generally churches use contemporary praise and worship music for services. From using Hymns in the 1930s to 1950s, music from the Jesus movement in the 1960s and 1970s and the contemporary praise and worship of the 1980s to today, AOG churches have continually adapted to new styles of praise and worship. In recent decades, churches affiliated with Australian Christian Churches have revolutionised church praise and worship. The largest driving force for this change is the popularity of Hillsong Music of Hillsong Church. Other influences are Shirelive Church, Planetshakers, Hillsong United, Youth Alive and Paradise Community Church. Many ACC churches have released albums containing songs written in the church.
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