Pentecostal Assemblies of Newfoundland and Labrador
The Pentecostal Assemblies of Newfoundland and Labrador (PAONL) is a Pentecostal denomination in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is one of three Canadian branches of the World Assemblies of God Fellowship, the largest Pentecostal denomination in the world. The other two are the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada and the Canadian Assemblies of God. It claims approximately 130 affiliated churches.[1]
The PAONL traces its beginnings to the ministry of Pentecostal evangelist Alice Bell Garrigus from Boston, Massachusetts. In 1911, she founded the Bethesda Pentecostal Church in St. John's. By 1925, the number of Pentecostals and churches had grown enough to receive legal recognition from the Newfoundland government. Until 1949, Newfoundland and Labrador was a separate dominion from Canada, and the PAON developed separately from the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. Nevertheless, the two organizations share a common statement of faith and cooperate closely in overseas mission work. The two groups also share the Eastern Pentecostal Bible College in Peterborough, Ontario.[2]
References
- ^ PAONL Churches. Accessed March 19, 2012.
- ^ "The Pentecostal Assemblies of Newfoundland". The New International Dictionary of Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements. Rev. ed. Edited by Stanley M. Burgess and Eduard M. van der Mass. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2003. Kindle edition.