COOLJC - MISSIONARIES

The Women's Missionary Department was created to aid the Apostolic Faith Temple COOLJC as a living body of Christ to carry out the acts of the saints in the beginning of the Biblical Apostolic Church; to give the missionary women an opportunity to be helpers together with the ministers and pastors in bringing souls to Christ. It would be a mistake to leave out the role of women within the early formation of the COOLJC. Although there was a strong stance against women ordination and leadership in the COOLJC, there were many women who came out of the church to serve in leadership capacity and establish their own denominations.

In New York City, such women as Mother Bonner and Mother Daisy Cobb established COOLJC as separate denominations with women as leaders. Major laity-driven auxiliaries are Women's Council; Ministers' and Deacons' Wives' Guild; the International Sunday School Association and the Armor Bearers' Young People Union, which together comprise the International Congress; and the International Music Department. Though women are not ordained, they are licenced as Social, Senior, and Field Missionaries through the organization's Department of Women's Missionary Work. There is also a Deacon's Union.

It would be a mistake to leave out the role of women within the early formation of the COOLJC. Although there was a strong stance against women ordination and leadership in the COOLJC, there were many women who came out of the church to serve in leadership capacity and establish their own denominations. In New York City, such women as Mother Bonner and Mother Daisy Cobb established COOLJC as separate denominations with women as leaders.

In 1998 the church had about 30,000 members in 450 churches in the United States. There are also congregations in Africa, the British West Indies, the Dominican Republic, England, Haiti, and the Philippines. Its U.S. membership is predominantly African-American. Headquartered in New York City, the church operates W.L. Bonner College in Columbia, South Carolina and the Church of Christ Bible Institute in New York City.

We, the women of the Churches of Our Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith, knowing that God has called us into holiness and sobriety, and charity, to rescue the fallen and administer any and all help, as we have opportunity, whether spiritual or material to the Glory of God and to the honor and majesty of His great Name, now take our place in the ranks of the workers of our Lord to do our part in harvesting souls for Jesus Christ, as our Lord is coming soon to gather the precious fruits of the early and latter rain. We desire to do a more effectual work for Christ, do create and ordain this Constitution