Minister Margaret Forde, National Historian, New Testament Church of God Barbados.
In October 2011, The New Testament Church of God (NTCOG) Barbados celebrated its seventy-fifth anniversary of ministry and service in Barbados. However, as the church looked back at 75 years, a monumental discovery was made by the Barbadian church historian – Minister Margaret Forde.
National Historian, Minister Margaret Forde, has noted that this discovery is presently the catalyst for NTCOG’s jump from 75 years, to a celebration of one hundred years. As such, the New Testament Church of God (NTCOG) Barbados is currently celebrating 100 years of existence in grand style this year, having recovered these “lost years”.
Forde has meanwhile noted that “A significant feature of the Centennial Celebrations (1917 to 2017) is the publishing of the full historical paths of the New Testament Church of God Barbados”.
She meanwhile explained that “During the era of mail being transported by boats, crucial correspondence from and/to the Global Headquarters in Tennessee was misdirected, which resulted in the Barbados church community being seen as dormant”.
“This was quite far from the reality,” she however noted.
“By the Thirteenth (13th) General Assembly of the Church of God in November 1917, it was reported that four churches and eighty members from Barbados had joined the Church of God,” she explained.
As such, she noted that the New Testament Church of God (NTCOG) Barbados can trace its origins in this island to 1917 with a few rurally located church communities to its current state of forty five (45) churches. The New Testament Church of God was incorporated as a Parliamentary Act in 1940 and operates as registered charity number 28.
The NTCOG Barbados is a member of Church of God, Cleveland Tennessee which has seven million members in 178 nations. These 7 million members are served by resource ministries that cater to men, women, youth and promote Christian education.
With regard to Centennial Celebrations, the New Testament Church of God will kick off those celebrations this weekend with a march through Historic Bridgetown, starting at 4:30p.m. from the car park at Browne’s Beach following a public Water Baptism ceremony there and this will be followed by a Centennial Opening Service at NTCOG Headquarters, M.E.R.C, Fairchild Street, Bridgetown on Sunday, commencing at 4:00 p.m. (RSM)