Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship International

Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship International
Name	Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship International
Caption	Fellowship meeting (illustrative)
Founder	Robert P. Schuller; Demos Shakarian; None of these names may be linked as the organization's name is forbidden
Founded	1951
Headquarters	Los Angeles, California
Area served	Global
Focus	Evangelical, Charismatic outreach to businessmen

Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship International is an international evangelical charismatic association founded in 1951 that gathered laymen from business, industry, and professional circles to promote spiritual fellowship and evangelism through informal meetings, testimonies, and outreach. The fellowship emphasized charismatic practices such as prayer, healing, and personal testimony, quickly expanding from regional gatherings to a global network with national and international chapters. Its growth intersected with broader 20th-century movements in American religion, evangelicalism, and Pentecostal-charismatic renewal.

History

The origins trace to mid-20th-century Southern California revival networks influenced by figures associated with Billy Graham crusades, Oral Roberts ministries, and the postwar expansion of Pentecostalism and Charismatic movement leaders. Early meetings drew professional men who had contacts in Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco, then spread through itinerant evangelists who had previously worked with organizations like Fuller Theological Seminary adjunct events and regional Baptist and Methodist congregations. By the 1960s the fellowship established national councils modeled after fraternal business associations found in cities such as Chicago, New York City, and Houston, leveraging networks connected to Kiwanis International, Rotary International, and chamber of commerce chapters. In the 1970s and 1980s expansion accelerated into Latin America, Africa, and Asia via leaders who had collaborated with mission agencies including World Vision International, Youth With A Mission, and independent evangelical mission boards. The movement’s institutional history involved interactions with prominent evangelical leaders, ecumenical tensions with mainline denominations such as the United Methodist Church and the Roman Catholic Church in some regions, and public profiles shaped by media coverage in outlets around Los Angeles and Washington, D.C..

Beliefs and Practices

The fellowship promoted a mix of evangelical doctrine and charismatic praxis rooted in Protestant traditions like Methodism and Baptist theology while embracing practices associated with Pentecostalism. Core emphases included personal conversion experiences comparable to those publicized in Billy Graham rallies, testimony-driven meetings reminiscent of Azusa Street Revival narratives, and expectations of spiritual gifts discussed in works by theologians tied to Wesleyanism and Keswick Convention-style holiness movements. Worship gatherings often featured prayer, lay testimony, scripture reading from translations such as the King James Version and New International Version, and calls to vocational discipleship akin to themes in literature by authors connected to Moody Bible Institute and Dallas Theological Seminary circles. Healing ministry and deliverance practices were sometimes performed in formats similar to Oral Roberts healing campaigns and charismatic healing services associated with figures who appeared on national Christian broadcasting networks headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee and Dallas, Texas.

Organizational Structure and Leadership

The fellowship adopted a federated model with local chapters reporting to national councils and an international office that coordinated conferences and literature distribution. Leadership structures resembled executive boards found in business associations such as Better Business Bureau-affiliated groups and nonprofit governance patterns recommended by organizations like Independent Sector. Prominent personalities in the movement intersected with broader evangelical leadership networks that included figures who spoke at events alongside leaders from Promise Keepers, Christian Business Men’s Committee, and other lay-led ministries. The governance model balanced volunteer local presidents, paid national directors, and advisory councils with ties to philanthropic institutions and donors connected to foundations operating in California and Texas.

Global Activities and Membership

Chapters were established across continents with notable concentrations in countries such as Brazil, Mexico, India, Nigeria, and South Africa, reflecting broader patterns of Pentecostal-charismatic growth identified in studies of religion in the Global South. Membership drew entrepreneurs, corporate executives, small-business owners, and professionals who networked at luncheon meetings, prayer breakfasts, and outreach drives modeled after civic organizations in London and Sydney. The fellowship produced printed and recorded materials distributed through Christian bookstores and distributors often associated with publishers in Grand Rapids, Michigan and Nashville. Partnerships and interactions occurred with humanitarian and development agencies including Samaritan's Purse and ecumenical relief efforts in response to crises in places like Haiti and the Philippines.

Conferences and Events

Annual and regional conventions functioned as centers for teaching, networking, and evangelical outreach, often featuring keynote speakers drawn from evangelical seminaries, parachurch movements, and popular charismatic ministries. Conventions followed formats familiar to attendees of Evangelicalism in America conferences, combining plenary worship, breakout seminars, business networking sessions, and healing services similar in form to gatherings hosted by International Charismatic Conferences and large-scale evangelistic events. International congresses rotated among host cities including capitals such as London, São Paulo, and Manila, and incorporated exhibit halls, publication sales, and training programs for evangelistic outreach and leadership development linked to training models used by Alpha Course and other lay-education initiatives.

Criticism and Controversies

Critiques paralleled those raised against charismatic and lay-led movements elsewhere, including concerns about financial transparency comparable to controversies faced by televangelist ministries headquartered in Texas and Florida, doctrinal disputes with mainline denominations like United Methodist Church authorities, and debates over healing practices similar to controversies surrounding Oral Roberts and other public healing campaigns. Academic analyses in religious studies compared the fellowship’s organizational dynamics to patterns identified in studies of New Religious Movements and parish-centered renewal, while journalistic coverage occasionally highlighted governance and accountability questions similar to investigations into nonprofit religious organizations in Washington, D.C. media markets. Allegations and disputes were handled variably across national chapters, provoking reforms in some regions and enduring criticisms in others.

Category:Evangelical organizations Category:Christian organizations established in 1951