A History of Christian Doctrine #3 - Online Christian Library

A History of Christian Doctrine
opposed organization by this time. Many Oneness
Pentecostals understandably felt that organizations too
often promoted the traditions of men and stifled the move
of the Spirit. As a result, there are many independent
Oneness Pentecostals even to this day.
The Pentecostal Assemblies of the World
Nevertheless, the majority saw the need to form a
Oneness Pentecostal organization. To further this purpose,
a large group of Oneness ministers met in Eureka
Springs, Arkansas, in late December 1916 and organized
in early January 1917. They elected D. C. O. Opperman
as chairman, Lee Floyd as secretary, and Howard Goss as
treasurer. Opperman, Goss, and H. G. Rodgers were
appointed as a credential committee. The group named
themselves the General Assembly of the Apostolic
Assemblies (GAAA). Among the ministers who joined
were Booth-Clibborn, Ewart, Fauss, Hall, LaFleur,
Pemberton, and Schaepe.
This organization lasted only one year because of two
factors. First, America entered World War I in April 1917,
and since the organization was so new, its ministers could
not obtain exemption from military service. Second, they
could not obtain clergy discounts on the railroad, which
was almost essential at a time when few ministers owned
automobiles.
In the meantime, a small organization known as the
Pentecostal Assemblies of the World (PAW), founded in
1906 or 1907 in Los Angeles, had become a Oneness
organization under the influence of G. T. Haywood, a
member since 1911. It was able to obtain noncombatant
status for its ministers, so in late 1917 or early 1918,
90