Pentecostal Press Leaders Meet

The Church of God (Pathway Press) and the Church of God of Prophecy (White Wing Publishing) jointly hosted the biannual meeting of the International Pentecostal Press Association Board of Directors on Monday and Tuesday, November 17-18, 2008. The Monday morning session was held at the Church of God International Offices, with greetings from Bishop Mark Williams, assistant general overseer, representing General Overseer Raymond F. Culpepper. The afternoon session was hosted by the Church of God of Prophecy International Offices. Tours were conducted of the headquarters of both hosting organizations.

On Tuesday morning, the delegates met at the Church of God of Prophecy International Offices, were greeted by General Overseer Randall Howard, and then made an excursion to rural Monroe County, Tennessee and Cherokee County, North Carolina, where they visited many historic sites shared by both Cleveland-based organizations. Sites visited included Barney Creek, where the Church of God formed as the Christian Union in 1886, the Shearer Schoolhouse site where the Holy Spirit baptism was first received by the group in 1896, the J. C. Murphy Home, where the first General Assembly was held in 1906, Fields of the Wood, and the grave of Richard G. Spurling, Jr., in Turtletown, Tennessee. Tour guides were Paul Holt, Heritage Ministries director for the Church of God of Prophecy, and Dr. James M. Beaty, retired missionary, historian, and professor at Lee University and the Church of God Theological Seminary.

The International Pentecostal Press Association is a fellowship of editors and writers from various Pentecostal denominations throughout the world, and receives its spiritual covering from the Pentecostal World Conference. The board of directors members are: Ken Horn, president (Assemblies of God); Clyde Hughes, first vice president (International Pentecostal Church of Christ); Virginia Chatham, second vice president (Church of God of Prophecy) Shirley Spencer, Secretary-Treasurer (International Pentecostal Holiness Church); and James E. Cossey, member at large (Church of God). The next meeting of the board of directors will be in March 2009 in Eugene, Oregon in conjunction with the annual meetings of the Pentecostal-Charismatic Churches in North America (PCCNA) and the Society for Pentecostal Studies.