Assemblies of God:
A Brief History
Sarah Palin belongs to the Assemblies of God church in her home town of now famous Wasilla, Alaska. Focusing on Palin's faith does not translate into anti-church sentiments. But a look at the historical significance of Palin’s brand of Pentecostal faith is a worthy exercise. In examining the religious views espoused at Palin's churches, it is clear that the conservatism inherent in the beliefs is tantamount to complete and utter ‘blind faith’ in the Bible in its most literal context. To cite but one example: the Bible says, in paraphrase, that it is a sin for a man to lay with another man. The fundamentalists take this singular passage at its word and therefore are totally against gay rights or ‘unions’ of any kind between people of the same sex.
At the height of the great depression, a Norwegian immigrant, Abram Vereide, thought himself inspired by God to lead like others who believed the Bible is the only authority that should guide people in every aspect of their daily lives. Vereide came up with what he called ‘The Idea’ that would be the basis for saving all souls, the poor, the derelicts and outcasts in life. It would succeed Vereide claimed by helping powerfully positioned "key men" who had been chosen by God to provide order and prosperity through theocratic political and religious leadership.
‘The Idea’ resonated with the politically elite and the group came to be called The Family (or the Fellowship as it is also known) and today it is often compared with Opus Dei, the secret Catholic counterpart organization that in part Dan Brown made famous in The Vinci Code. The Family is best known for founding the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington DC in the 1950s and which continues to this day. The largely clandestine Family penetrated the highest levels of political power in the United States and all over the world where there are U.S. political or economic interests.
Sarah Palin was raised in an Assemblies of God parish that held views so extreme that it was condemned by the national Assemblies of God in 1949 and 2000. The church movement to which Palin and her family belong has morphed in recent years to align itself with even further right wing views, manifested in movements like the Third Wave or New Apostolic Reformation The Third Wave / New Apostolic Reformation movement rejects pluralism and its members believe they have been chosen by God to lead a world wide mega church into the event that will lead to the end of mankind. Third Wave doctrine espouses extreme religious exclusion of all other religious and philosophical belief systems in the world. Third Wave theology sees any Christian denomination or other doctrines as obstacles to God’s divine will.
It is the cornerstone of Third Wave doctrine - there is a new generation of youth who will be imbued with celestial powers and lead a Christian army to rid the world of evil. These youth, often referred to as Joel’s Army and as the generation born after 1973, will lead a Christian army to prepare for the second coming of Christ. The movement holds special gatherings of believers to use "spiritual warfare" to purge "territorial demons" and end "generational curses" so that social reform means expelling demons from the world.
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