Two Largest Pentecostal Denomination Announce 'Black Lives Matter' Sunday

Carrie Dedrick | Updated: Dec 12, 2014

Two Largest Pentecostal Denomination Announce 'Black Lives Matter' Sunday

The two largest Pentecostal denominations in the U.S. have joined together to name Dec. 14 ‘Black Lives Matter’ Sunday. The Christian Post reports that the Assemblies of God (AG) joined with the Church of God in Christ (COGIC) to respond to the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, both black men who were killed by white police officers. 

The Pentecostal denominations said that by organizing Black Lives Matter Sunday, they were following the Bible’s orders to “mourn with those who mourn.” 

AG General Superintendent Dr. George O. Wood said, "The lives of all people are precious to God, of course, but at the present moment, many of our black brothers and sisters in COGIC and the AG feel that their lives are not highly valued by many in white America. As examples, they point to the recent controversial decisions of grand juries in St. Louis County, Missouri, and Staten Island, New York, not to return bills of indictment against white police officers in the deaths of two black males, Michael Brown and Eric Garner."

"Whatever your opinion of those controversial decisions, can we stand with our brothers and sisters and affirm the value of black lives generally and of their lives specifically? Scripture teaches that God does not take pleasure in the death of people, not even the death of the wicked (Ezekiel 33:11). If so, then whatever the circumstances, we can be certain that God did not take pleasure in the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner. Therefore, neither should we."

Black Lives Matter Sunday will be a designated day of prayer for the families of Brown and Garner, as well as for the U.S. legal and judicial system. AG and COGIC members will also pray that the nation’s believers can unite and become a “Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings" (Isaiah 58:12).

Publication date: December 12, 2014



Two Largest Pentecostal Denomination Announce 'Black Lives Matter' Sunday