Denominational Profile

History

Elder William S. Crowdy, a black cook on the Sante Fe Railroad, claimed to have a vision from God telling him to lead his people to true religion. He left his job and founded the Church of God and Saints of Christ in 1896 at Lawrence, Kansas. The doctrine of the Church of God is a complicated mixture of Judaism, Christianity, and black nationalism.

Membership Data

Year	Clergy	Churches	Members
1935	200	94	3,311
1937	-	120	7,000
1946	-	189	34,045
1951	-	204	34,710
1952	-	208	34,816
1953	-	214	35,126
1954	-	213	35,921
1955	-	216	36,041
1959	-	217	38,127

Source

Data were taken from the National Council of Churches' Historic Archive CD and recent editions of the Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches. Denomination descriptions provided by Dr. J. Gordon Melton, Director, Institute for the Study of American Religion (ISAR). [More information on data sources]