Oneness Pentecostalism
Oneness Pentecostalism (also known as Apostolic, Jesus’ Name Pentecostalism, or the Jesus Only movement) is a nontrinitarian religious movement within the Protestant Christian family of churches known as Pentecostalism.
It derives its distinctive name from its teaching on the Godhead, which is popularly referred to as the Oneness doctrine, a form of Modalistic Monarchianism.
This doctrine states that there is one God, a singular divine spirit with no distinction of persons who manifests himself in many ways, including as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
This stands in sharp contrast to the doctrine of three distinct and eternal persons posited by Trinitarian theology.
Oneness believers solely baptize in the name of Jesus Christ as opposed to the Trinitarian formula of baptizing “in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” Oneness believers state that Jesus is the one name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and so all religious activities should be performed in that one name.
Besides their beliefs about the Godhead, Oneness Pentecostals differ significantly from most other Pentecostal and Evangelical Christians in matters of soteriology.
Whereas most Pentecostals and Evangelical Protestants believe that only faith in Jesus Christ is the essential element for salvation, Oneness Pentecostals believe that salvation is by grace through faith, and that true faith leads to repentance, full-submersion water baptism in the name of Jesus Christ, and baptism in the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in other tongues.
Many also tend to emphasize strict holiness standards in dress, grooming and other areas of personal conduct, a teaching shared with traditional Holiness Pentecostals, but not with other Finished Work Pentecostal groups, at least not to the degree that is generally found in some Oneness Pentecostal (and Holiness Pentecostal) churches who also say holiness is to be set apart to God.
The Oneness Pentecostal movement first emerged in North America around 1914 as the result of a schism following the doctrinal disputes within the nascent Finished Work Pentecostal movement (which itself had broken from Holiness Pentecostalism) — specifically within the Assemblies of God— and claims an estimated 24 million adherents today.
It was often pejoratively referred to as the Jesus Only movement in its early days, which can be a misleading term as they do not deny existence of the Father or Holy Spirit.
