Christ Apostolic Church (Deadure) – Wikipedia

The Christ Apostolic Church (abbreviated Cac ) is a Christian church with a charismatic-prophetic orientation, which in 1939 in Nigeria emerged as a split from an association of the Faith Tabernacle and the Apostolic Church of England. CAC today has denominations worldwide, maintains schools, its own university in Ikeji Arakeji (Jabu) and a theological faculty in Ile-iFe (Nigeria). According to its own statements, the CAC has 5 million members today.

The history of the CAC is closely linked to the creation of the Aladura movement. After various prayer circles within the mission churches in Nigeria had formed during the great flu pandemic in Nigeria, with the aim of causing healing healing through prayers, there were conflicts between the circles and the church management (mainly the Anglican and the Methodist Church, the such activities were skeptical). At the same time, some of these circle took the names like Praying Band and Diamond Society wore, contact with the Pentecostal church Faith Tabernacle from the USA. The result was that the prayer groups from their churches said goodbye and founded a denomination of the Faith Tabernacle in Nigeria. A so -called Revival , which took place in 1930 under the direction of the charismatic Joseph Ayo Babalola in Oke Ooye, Ilesa, led to a significant increase in popularity and awareness of the church in Nigeria. Thousands are said to have been healed by diseases during this two -month revival, which is considered the largest in the history of Nigeria and converted to Christianity. In 1931 the Nigerian associated itself Faith Tabernacle with the Apostolic Church of England . However, there were soon conflicts that once again sparked the subject of spiritual healing. After a split into a pro-European and a purely Nigerian group, this charismatic faction, which also belonged to Babalola, called itself Christ Apostolic Church from 1942. In the period that followed, the church suffered from various personnel and financial bottlenecks. The death of the founding fathers Babalola and Pastor Odubanjo in 1959, on the other hand, did not refer to a cut. With the oil boom in Nigeria, which started in the 1960s, more money came to church and it was able to significantly expand its activities. Their number of members rose from 100,000 around 1960 to millions in the 1980s. Outside of Nigeria, the CAC was first established in Ghana, today it is also widespread in Europe and the USA, mainly in immigrant communities.

As with all Aladura churches, the focus of practice is on prayer. The supporters hope to improve their material living conditions as well as the solution of personal conflicts, healing of diseases and spiritual growth. Accordingly, the municipality also takes up a large part of the services. The belief in spiritual healing, prophecy and waking dreams also play a major role in combination with practices such as fasting.
As the only one among the Aladura churches at the CAC, the trailers do not appear with a white soutaneous service at the services. These are also not as strongly oriented as in most Aladura churches, but have adapted to the practice of the Pentecost churches. Although the CAC historically has different roots, it sees herself today as the first Pentecost church in Nigeria. In fact, the strong emphasis on the charisms also offers a link between the Aladura and Pentecost movement. Organizationally, the church is led by so -called “apostles”, “prophets” and “evangelists”, on the lower level by pastors, deacons and deaconesses.