title: Orlando, Florida

text: Exploria Stadium, home of the Orlando City Soccer Club and Orlando Pride, also hosts one FBS college bowl game, The Cure Bowl, and hosted the 2019 MLS All-Star Game.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Orlando is home to many notable athletes former and present, including baseball players Carlos Peña, Frank Viola, Ken Griffey Jr. and Barry Larkin; basketball players Shaquille O'Neal and Tracy Mcgrady; soccer players Alex Morgan, Marta, Nani and Kaká; and many golfers, including Tiger Woods, Mark O'Meara and Arnold Palmer.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: The annual Community Effort Orlando (CEO) is the second-biggest fighting game tournament of the country. Having grown since its introduction in 2010, the event got over 4,000 attendees from more than 25 countries in 2016.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: In 2020, the remaining games of the 2019–20 NBA season were arranged to be played in the NBA Bubble at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando suburb Bay Lake, Florida.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Orlando is governed via the mayor-council system the mayor is a strong-mayor. The mayor is elected in a citywide vote. The six members of the city council are each elected from districts.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: In April 2015 it was reported that 56 year old June Walker Scott had filed a $4.5 million federal lawsuit against the City of Orlando and certain officers. According to the suit, the city has paid $3.3 million since 2012 to people who have accused officers of excessive force.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: From the mid-20th century to the early 21st century, Orlando was one of the most politically conservative cities in the United States, having voted for the Republican candidate in every presidential election from 1948 to 2004. This streak was broken when Barack Obama won it in 2008, becoming the first Democrat to carry the city in a presidential election since Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1944. It has since become a Democratic stronghold in statewide and local elections.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Public primary and secondary education is handled by Orange County Public Schools. Some of the private schools include Saint James Cathedral School (founded 1928), Orlando Lutheran Academy, Forest Lake Academy, The First Academy, Ibn Seena Academy, Trinity Preparatory School, Lake Highland Preparatory School, Bishop Moore High School and Orlando Christian Prep.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: The Orlando Hoshuko, a weekend supplementary school for Japanese children, is held at the Lake Highland Preparatory School in Orlando.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Orlando is the center of the 19th-largest media market in the United States according to Nielsen Media Research as of the 2010–2011 TV season. Three major network affiliates operate in the city: WKMG-TV 6 (CBS), WFTV 9 (ABC) and Fox O&O WOFL 35. WFTV and WOFL operate additional stations in Orlando, with WFTV operating independent station WRDQ 27 and WOFL operating MyNetworkTV O&O WRBW 65. The market's NBC affiliate, WESH 2, is licensed to Daytona Beach and also owns and operates CW affiliate WKCF 18, licensed to Clermont; both stations operate out of studios based in nearby Eatonville.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: The city is also served by three public television stations: WUCF-TV 24, the market's PBS member station operated by the University of Central Florida, and two independent stations: Daytona State College's WDSC-TV 15 in New Smyrna Beach and Eastern Florida State College's WEFS 68 in Cocoa.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Four Spanish-language channels are licensed in Orlando, including UniMás O&O WOTF-DT 43 and Telemundo affiliate WTMO-CD 31. Univision affiliate WVEN-TV 43, which operates WOTF-DT under a LMA, is based in Daytona Beach. Several English-language stations also operate Spanish-language subchannels.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: The city's cable system is run by Bright House Networks, which merged with Charter in May 2016, and is now called Spectrum. Spectrum operates News 13, a cable-exclusive regional 24/7 news channel which covers Central Florida news, including that of Orlando.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Orlando is also home to NBC Sports' Golf Channel cable television network. Facilities, including studios and administration, are located at 7580 Golf Channel Drive, just blocks from the I-Drive tourism corridor.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: 25 AM and 28 FM stations transmit to the Orlando area. Some of the country's biggest radio station owners have major presences in Orlando, including iHeartMedia, Cox Radio, and Audacy.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Orlando's primary newspaper, the "Orlando Sentinel", is the second-largest newspaper in Florida by circulation. The "Sentinel" Spanish language edition, "El Sentinel", is the largest Spanish language newspaper in Florida.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Orlando uses the Lynx bus system as well as a downtown bus service called Lymmo. Orlando and other neighboring communities are also serviced by SunRail, a local commuter rail line that began service in 2014.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Orlando, like other major cities, experiences gridlock and traffic jams daily, especially when commuting from the northern suburbs in Seminole County south to downtown and from the eastern suburbs of Orange County to Downtown. Heavy traffic is also common in the tourist district south of downtown. Rush hours (peak traffic hours) are usually weekday mornings (after 7 am) and afternoons (after 4 pm). There are various traffic advisory resources available for commuters including downloading the Tele-Traffic App (available for iPhone and Android), dialing 5-1-1 (a free automated traffic advisory system provided by the Florida Department of Transportation, available by dialing 511), visiting the Florida 511 Web site, listening to traffic reports on major radio stations, and reading electronic traffic advisory displays (also called Variable-message signs, information is also provided by FDOT) on the major highways and roadways.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: The Orlando area is served by one through railroad. The line, now known as the Central Florida Rail Corridor (CFRC), was previously known as the "A" line (formerly the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad's main line). The line was purchased from CSX Transportation by the State of Florida in 2013 and is now used by SunRail, the Central Florida commuter rail system. Some freight spurs still exist off of the line, which are operated by the Florida Central Railroad. Amtrak passenger service runs along CFRC. See also .


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Amtrak intercity passenger rail service operates from the Orlando Amtrak Station south of downtown. The Mission Revival-style station has been in continuous use since 1927, first for the Atlantic Coast Line, then the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad (signage for which is still displayed over the station's main entrance). Amtrak's "Silver Meteor" and "Silver Star" service Orlando four times daily, twice bound for points north to New York City and twice bound for points south to Miami. Orlando also serves as a transfer hub for Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach bus service. Orlando Station has the highest Amtrak ridership in the state, with the exception of the "Auto Train" depot located in nearby Sanford.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: In 2005, federal and state funding was granted for the establishment of SunRail, a local commuter rail service, to operate on the former CSX "A" line tracks between DeLand and Poinciana, passing through the downtown area and surrounding urban neighborhoods along the way. The service is expected to substantially reduce traffic congestion along the I-4 corridor, especially between Downtown Orlando and the suburban communities in Seminole and Volusia Counties. Federal and state funds covered approximately 80% of the estimated $400 million cost for track modifications and construction of stations along the route. The counties involved approved local matching funds in 2007 and the line was originally projected to begin operations in 2011. However, the project was ultimately voted down by Florida State Senate in 2008 and again in 2009 due to an amendment that would have approved a $200 million insurance policy for the system. Although there had been growing concern the system would be scrapped, a deadline extension combined with a new insurance arrangement with CSX brought new hope that SunRail will be completed after all. In a special session in December 2009, the Florida Legislature approved commuter rail for Florida, which also enabled high-speed rail federal funding. SunRail began passenger service on May 1, 2014. Phase I of the rail system runs from DeBary to Sand Lake Road in South Orlando. Phase II, which isn't expected to be completed until 2018, will connect from DeBary and continue north to DeLand, as well as extend from Sand Lake Road in Orlando south to Poinciana. Attempts to establish a smaller light rail service for the Orlando area were also considered at one time, but were also met with much resistance.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: On January 28, 2010, President Barack Obama said that Florida would be receiving $1.25 billion to start the construction of a statewide high-speed rail system with Orlando as its central hub. The first stage would have connected Orlando and Tampa, Florida and was expected to be completed by 2014. The second stage was to connect Orlando and Miami, Florida. The project was canceled by Gov. Rick Scott in 2011, and on March 4, 2011, the Florida Supreme Court unanimously turned down the request of two state senators to force Scott to accept federal funding for the project.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: A privately funded initiative known as "All Aboard Florida", which would provide high-speed rail service from Miami to Orlando, was announced in March 2012. Now known as Brightline, the train currently runs from Fort Lauderdale to West Palm Beach with service to Miami Central expected to start in early May 2018. The Orlando extension will include of new railway track and terminate at the new Orlando International Airport Intermodal Terminal. Top speeds are expected to reach 125 mph (201 km/h), becoming one of the fastest rail services in the United States. Service to Orlando is slated to be launched in 2022. Future plans are underway to add a terminal at Disney Springs.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Lynx provides local transit service covering a five-county area: Orange, Seminole, Osceola, Polk, and Volusia. Lynx bus frequency varies depending on the route and time of day.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Greyhound Lines offers intercity bus service from Orlando to multiple locations across the country. The Orlando Greyhound Station is located west of Downtown Orlando.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Having a very well-developed tourism industry and millions of visitors per year the City of Orlando has multiple options for groups arriving and touring the city and surrounding areas by local charter bus companies.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Orlando is served by a collection of independently owned taxi companies. In downtown Orlando, taxis can be hailed on a regular basis. Taxis are also available in and around the Amway Center, Orlando Convention Center, and all major attractions/theme parks. Orlando also has service from car-sharing companies like Uber and Lyft, which offer service at all airports.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Transportation between the Orlando International Airport and various locations in and around Orlando is provided by airport shuttle services. Several shuttles operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.


title: Orlando, Florida

text: Given Orlando's status as a busy international tourist destination and growing industrial and commercial base, there are several foreign consulates and honorary consulates in Orlando including Argentina, Colombia, Czech Republic, Haiti, Mexico, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and the Ivory Coast. As a result, Orlando now has the second-highest number of foreign consulates in Florida next to Miami. The British Government operated a Consulate from 1994 to 2014 when all services transferred to the British Consulate General in Miami.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven, Inc., stylized as 7-ELEVE, is a multinational chain of retail convenience stores, headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The chain was founded in 1927 as an ice house storefront in Dallas. It was named Tote'm Stores between 1928 and 1946. After 70% of the company was acquired by an affiliate Ito-Yokado in 1991, it was reorganized as a wholly owned subsidiary of Seven & I Holdings.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven operates, franchises, and licenses 78,029 stores in 19 countries and territories as of November 2021. While operating under its namesake brand globally, within the United States it operates as 7-Eleven nationally, as Speedway nationally but mostly in the Midwest & East Coast, and as Stripes Convenience Stores within the South Central United States; both Speedway and Stripes operate alongside 7-Eleven's namesake stores in several markets. 7-Eleven also operates A-Plus locations with the name licensed from owner and fellow Metroplex-based Energy Transfer Partners, though most of these stores have since been rebranded as standard 7-Eleven stores.


title: 7-Eleven

text: The company's first outlets were in Dallas, named "Tote'm Stores" because customers "toted" away their purchases. Some stores featured "native" totem poles in front of the store. In 1946, the chain's name was changed from "Tote'm" to "7-Eleven" to reflect the company's new, extended hours, 7:00 am to 11:00 pm, seven days per week. In November 1999, the corporate name of the US company was changed from "The Southland Corporation" to "7-Eleven Inc."


title: 7-Eleven

text: Following 7-Eleven's adoption of its current logo in 1968, a lowercase "n" was used in the logo because the first wife of John P. Thompson Sr., the company's president during the 1960s, thought the all-capitals version seemed a little aggressive. She suggested the change "to make the logo look more graceful."


title: 7-Eleven

text: In 1927, Southland Ice Company employee John Jefferson Green began selling ice, then he started selling eggs, milk, and bread from one of 16 ice house storefronts in Dallas, with permission from one of Southland's founding directors, Joe C. Thompson Sr. Although small grocery stores and general merchandisers were available, Thompson theorized that selling products such as bread and milk in convenience stores would reduce the need for customers to travel long distances for basic items. Thompson eventually bought the Southland Ice Company and turned it into the Southland Corporation, which oversaw several locations in the Dallas area.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In 1928, a manager named Jenna Lira brought a totem pole as a souvenir from Alaska and placed it in front of her store. The pole served as a marketing tool for the company, as it attracted a great deal of attention. Soon, executives added totem poles in front of every store and eventually adopted an Alaska Native-inspired theme for their stores. Later on, the stores began operating under the name "Tote'm Stores". In the same year, the company began constructing gas stations in some of its Dallas locations as an experiment. Joe Thompson also provided a distinct characteristic to the company's stores, training the staff so that people would receive the same quality and service in every store. Southland also started to have a uniform for its ice station service boys. This became the major factor in the company's success as a retail convenience store.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In 1931, the Great Depression affected the company, sending it toward bankruptcy. Nevertheless, the company continued its operations through re-organization and receivership. A Dallas banker, W. W. Overton Jr., also helped to revive the company's finances by selling the company's bonds for seven cents on the dollar. This brought the company's ownership under the control of a board of directors.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In 1946, in an effort to continue the company's post-war recovery, the name of the franchise was changed to 7-Eleven to reflect the stores' new hours of operation (7 am to 11 pm), which were unprecedented at the time. In 1963, 7-Eleven experimented with a 24-hour schedule in Austin, Texas, after an Austin store stayed open all night to satisfy customer demand. Later on, 24-hour stores were established in Fort Worth and Dallas, Texas, as well as Las Vegas, Nevada. In 1971, Southland acquired convenience stores of the former Pak-A-Sak chain owned by Graham Allen Penniman Sr. (1903–1985), of Shreveport, Louisiana.


title: 7-Eleven

text: With the purchase in 1963 of 126 Speedee Mart (all already open 711) franchised convenience stores in California, the company entered the franchise business. The company signed its first area licensing agreement in 1968 with Garb-Ko, Inc. of Saginaw, Michigan, which became the first U.S. domestic area 7-Eleven licensee.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In the late 1980s, Southland Corporation was threatened by a rumored corporate takeover, prompting the Thompson family to take steps to convert the company into a private model by buying out public shareholders in a tender offer. In December 1987, John Philp Thompson Sr., the chairman and CEO of 7-Eleven, completed a $5.2 billion management buyout of the company. The buyout suffered from the effects of the 1987 stock market crash and after failing initially to raise high yield debt financing, the company was required to offer a portion of stock as an inducement to invest in the company's bonds.


title: 7-Eleven

text: Various assets, such as the Chief Auto Parts chain, the ice division, and hundreds of store locations, were sold between 1987 and 1990 to relieve debt incurred during the buyout. This downsizing also resulted in numerous metropolitan areas losing 7-Eleven stores to rival convenience store operators. In October 1990, the heavily indebted Southland Corp. filed a pre-packaged Chapter 11 bankruptcy in order to transfer control of 70% of the company to Japanese affiliate Ito-Yokado.


title: 7-Eleven

text: Southland exited bankruptcy in March 1991, after a cash infusion of $430 million from Ito-Yokado and Seven-Eleven Japan. These two Japanese entities now controlled 70% of the company, with the founding Thompson family retaining 5 percent. In 1999, Southland Corp. changed its name to 7-Eleven, Inc., citing the divestment of operations other than 7-Eleven. In 2005, Seven-Eleven Japan made a tender offer and 7-Eleven, Inc. became its wholly owned subsidiary. In 2007, Seven & i Holdings announced that it would be expanding its U.S. operations, with an additional 1,000 7-Eleven stores in the U.S.


title: 7-Eleven

text: For the 2010 rankings, 7-Eleven climbed to the No. 3 spot in "Entrepreneur" magazine's 31st Annual Franchise 500, "the first and most comprehensive ranking in the world". This was the 17th year 7-Eleven was named in the top 10.


title: 7-Eleven

text: Also in 2010, the first "green" 7-Eleven store opened in DeLand, Florida. The store features U.S. Green Building Council's (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) elements. Also, the environmentally friendly design brings the store savings in energy costs. That same year, 7-Eleven went mobile with the launch of the Slurpee drink's iPhone and Android Application (App). The Slurpee drink app made it easy to find 7-Eleven stores and provides driving directions. The following year, 7-Eleven celebrated its 40,000th store opening and within two years of that milestone opened its 60,000th store.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In 2021, 7-Eleven rolled out a $70 million ad campaign, their largest investment in advertising in years, doubling their market spending from the previous year. The commercials, directed by Harmony Korine, are to reflect the "evolution" of the chain's store format, drawing attention to, in part, the fact that "this isn't just gas station food, there's real restaurant quality food at 7-Eleven", according to CMO Marissa Jarrantt.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven in the United States sells Slurpee drinks, a partially frozen soft drink introduced in 1965 (Oklahoma's stores were known as "Icy Drink" until 2020), and Big Gulp beverages, introduced in 1976. Other products include: 7-Select private-brand products, coffee, fresh-made daily sandwiches, fresh fruit, salads, bakery items, hot and prepared foods, gasoline, dairy products, carbonated beverages and energy drinks, juices, donuts, financial services, and product delivery services.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven is known for its relatively large drink sizes and 24-hour accessibility. 7-Eleven offers beverages in sizes as large as 128 ounces (3785 mL) (Team Gulp). These beverage sizes were all among the largest sold soft drinks when they were introduced. 7-Eleven has often been associated with these large sodas in popular culture. For example, Mayor Michael Bloomberg's proposed ban on large sodas in New York City was frequently referred to as the 'Big Gulp ban' (even though the ban wouldn't apply to 7-Eleven as convenience and grocery stores in New York are regulated by the state).


title: 7-Eleven

text: In 2012, 7-Eleven changed the size of the Double Gulp from 64 ounces to 50 ounces (1478 mL). The older style cups were too wide at the bottom and did not fit beverage holders in cars. This was not a reaction to the large soda ban proposal, according to a spokesperson.


title: 7-Eleven

text: On August 30, 2021, 7-Eleven and Thailand's CP Group opened the first 7-Eleven store in Phnom Penh’s Chroy Changvar district. The company hinted at plans to open at least six more stores in Phnom Penh in 2021. According to plans, products from local small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME) sold in 7-Eleven in Cambodia will comprise at least 50 percent of the stock.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven first opened in Hong Kong in 1981, when it was a British colony. , it operates as a subsidiary of the DFI Retail Group (formerly Dairy Farm International). It is popularly called "tsat jai" (, meaning "little seven") or "se fun" (, based on the English "seven"). As of 2012, 7-Eleven had 964 stores in Hong Kong, of which 563 were operated by franchisees. Hong Kong reportedly has the second-highest density of 7-Eleven stores, after Macao. All 7-Eleven stores in Hong Kong accept the ubiquitous Octopus card as a method of payment. They also accept payments for utility bills and public housing rent.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In November 1980, Southland Corporation and Hong Kong conglomerate Jardine Matheson signed a franchise agreement to bring 7-Eleven to the territory. The first 7-Eleven shop opened in Happy Valley on April 3, 1981. The chain expanded aggressively across Hong Kong throughout the 1980s. The 50th store opened in Kwai Chung on October 6, 1983, while the 200th was inaugurated by Simon Keswick at Tai Po Centre on May 7, 1987. The stores were sold to Dairy Farm, part of the Jardine Matheson group, in 1989.


title: 7-Eleven

text: Octopus card readers were introduced in all 7-Eleven stores in July 1999, although at first these could only be used to add value to the card. In September 2004, the number of locations in Hong Kong was substantially boosted when Dairy Farm acquired Daily Stop, a rival convenience store chain, from SCMP Retailing (HK). The chain's 84 shops, located mainly in MTR and Kowloon–Canton Railway stations (as well as shopping centers and housing estates), were converted to 7-Eleven stores.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In 2009, a 7-Eleven location in Quarry Bay opened with a hot food counter, called "7 Café", selling traditional Hong Kong street food and milk tea. This feature was subsequently extended to select other 7-Eleven locations across Hong Kong under the "Daily Café" and "Hot Shot" brands.


title: 7-Eleven

text: On 7 October 2021, Reliance Retail announced its partnership with 7-Eleven to open its stores in India. The announcement came a day after Future Group, another retail conglomerate, announced the end of its partnership with 7-Eleven, citing the inability to meet the target of opening stores and payment of franchisee fees. The first 7-Eleven in India opened in Mumbai on 9 October 2021 at Blue Fortuna, Military Road, Marol, Andheri East. Initially opened as a 24 hours outlet it was soon curtailed to shut its doors at 12:00am.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In 2008, 7-Eleven announced plans to expand its business in Indonesia through a master franchise agreement with Modern Sevel Indonesia. Modern Sevel Indonesia's initial plans were to focus on opening stores in Jakarta, targeting densely populated commercial and business areas. There were 190 7-Eleven stores in Indonesia which then reduced to only 166 stores in September 2016.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In October 2021, it was announced throughout Israeli media that 7-Eleven signed a contract with the company Electra Consumer Products, a division of Israeli company "Electra", and will open their first location in the country in 2022, in Dizengoff Square. It was also announced that dozens of additional locations will open in the next three years.


title: 7-Eleven

text: Japan has more 7-Eleven locations than anywhere else in the world, where they often bear the name of its holding company Seven & i Holdings. Of the 71,000 stores around the globe, 21,215 stores (nearly 30% of global stores) are in Japan, with 2,824 stores in Tokyo alone. On September 1, 2005, Seven & I Holdings Co., Ltd., a new holding company, became the parent company of 7-Eleven, Ito-Yokado, and Denny's Japan.


title: 7-Eleven

text: , 7-Eleven has stores in all 47 prefectures of Japan with the opening of 14 new locations in Okinawa Prefecture.


title: 7-Eleven

text: The aesthetics of the store are somewhat different from that of 7-Eleven stores in other countries as the stores offer a wider selection of products and services. 7-Eleven stores in Japan are also popular among tourists from other countries, as the Seven Bank ATM machines at branches will accept foreign debit and credit cards for withdrawing cash in Japanese yen.


title: 7-Eleven

text: Following the example of other convenience stores in Japan, 7-Eleven has solar panels and LEDs installed in about 1,400 of its stores.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In July 2019, 7-Eleven launched then almost immediately suspended a mobile payment service, 7pay. The service was hacked upon launch, and attackers were able to spend money from affected customers' accounts.


title: 7-Eleven

text: On August 31, 2020, 7-Eleven and Thailand's CP Group announced a 30-year master franchise agreement. The first Laotian 7-Eleven is expected to open in the country's capital, Vientiane, in 2022.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven entered the Macau market in 2005 under the ownership of Dairy Farm, the same conglomeration group operating Hong Kong's 7-Eleven. With only 25.9 square kilometers, Macau has 45 stores, making it the single market with the highest density of 7-Eleven stores, containing one store per 0.65 square kilometers.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven opened its first store in China in Shenzhen, Guangdong in 1992 and later expanded to Beijing in 2004, Tianjin and Shanghai in 2009, Chengdu in 2011, Qingdao in 2012, Chongqing in 2013, Hangzhou and Ningbo in 2017, Nanjing in 2018, and Wuhan, Xi'an, and Fuzhou in 2019. In China's 7-Eleven stores where Slurpees are offered, the Chinese name (sīlèbīng) is used. They also offer a wide array of warm food, including traditional items like steamed buns, and stores in Chengdu offer a full variety of onigiri (饭团). Beverages, alcohol, candy, periodicals, and other convenience items are available as well. The majority of these stores are open for 24 hours a day. As of September 2021, 7-Eleven has 2,582 stores in Mainland China.


title: 7-Eleven

text: Malaysian 7-Eleven stores are owned by 7-Eleven Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., which operates 2,225 stores nationwide. 7-Eleven in Malaysia was incorporated on June 4, 1984, by the Antah holding, The first 7-Eleven store was opened in October 1984, in Jalan Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In the Philippines, 7-Eleven was run by the Philippine Seven Corporation (PSC). Its first store, located at the corner of EDSA and Kamias Road in Quezon City, opened on February 29, 1984. On May 2, 1996, the stockholders of both PSC and PSPC approved the merger of the two companies to advance PSC group's expansion. On October 30, 1996, Securities and Exchange Commission approved the merger and PSPC was then absorbed by PSC as the surviving entity. In 2000, President Chain Store Corporation (PCSC) of Taiwan, also a licensee of 7-Eleven, purchased the majority shares of PSC and thus formed a strategic alliance for the convenience store industry within the area.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In February 2009, 7-Eleven has signed a non-exclusive contract with Chevron Philippines to open its stores in selected Caltex gas stations nationwide.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In 2012, they opened their first store outside of Luzon in Cebu City, which soon expanded to the other parts of Cebu as well as its neighboring provinces. It was followed with the branch openings in Bacolod City in 2013, Iloilo City in 2014, Davao City in 2015, and Cagayan de Oro City in 2016. The number of stores eventually spread from these major cities to smaller towns and provinces near them.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In February 2020, 7-Eleven and GCash, the mobile wallet of Alipay and Globe, have teamed up for the introduction of a new payment option for physical purchases: scan-to-pay (STP) via a barcode feature in the GCash app. This enables the customers to generate their unique barcodes through the GCash app and allow the cashier to scan their barcodes to complete the transaction.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In 2020, due to the effect of COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines, the Philippine Seven Corporation (PSC) slashed the store openings to 200 from the original 400 stores planned to be open due to financial difficulties from the growing pandemic situation. On July 11, 2021, coinciding with the 94th founding anniversary of the convenience store chain, 7-Eleven Philippines opened its 3,000th store in Meycauayan, Bulacan.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In Singapore, 7-Eleven forms the largest chain of convenience stores island-wide. There are 393 7-Eleven stores in the country as of February 2018. Stores in Singapore are operated by Dairy Farm International Holdings, franchised under a licensing agreement with 7-Eleven Incorporated. The first 7-Eleven store in Singapore was opened along Upper Changi Road in 1983, and in 1986 the first franchised 7-Eleven store (under the Jardine Matheson Group) was opened. The license was then acquired by Cold Storage Singapore, a subsidiary of the Dairy Farm Group, in 1989.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In 2006, Shell Singapore and 7-Eleven agreed to rebrand all 68 of its Shell Select convenience stores into 7-Eleven. The partnership was terminated in October 2017, and the remaining 52 7-Eleven stores in Shell petrol stations will be gradually rebranded back into Shell Select.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven has a major presence in the Republic of Korea convenience store market, where it competes with CU, GS25 (formerly LG25), and independent competitors. There are 11,067 7-Eleven stores in the Republic of Korea; with only Japan and Thailand hosting more stores. The first 7-Eleven store in the Republic of Korea opened in 1989 in Songpa-gu in Seoul with a franchise license under the Lotte Group. In January 2010, Lotte Group acquired the Buy the Way convenience store chain and rebranded its 1,000 stores under the 7-Eleven brand.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In 2021, 7-Eleven announced that it would be working with a South Korean nonprofit to create jobs and franchising opportunities for North Korean defectors in South Korea.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven is the largest convenience store chain In Taiwan, and is owned by under Uni-President Enterprises Corporation. The first fourteen stores opened in 1979, and struggled to make a profit. Southland Corporation partnered with Uni-President to modernize the stores. However, business was still slow, and Uni-President opted to stock Asian foods. In 1986, 7-Eleven made its first profit in Taiwan. The 5,000th store was opened in July 2014. In January 2018, an experimental and unstaffed shop branded the X-Store was opened. 7-Eleven announced plans to operate a combination store in partnership with Domino's Pizza in February 2019.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In the early 2000s, 7-Eleven and Dentsu introduced a corporate mascot named Open-Chan (Open 小將), an extraterrestrial dog who wears a rainbow-shaped crown from a fictional planet known as Planet Open to be a "cartoon spokesperson" for the store chain in Taiwan. Open-Chan quickly grew in popularity among Taiwanese children soon after its initial debut. After Open-Chan's subsequent rise to prominence in Taiwan, the character was even introduced in Japan.The unique convenience store culture formed by President Chain Store (7-Eleven in Taiwan) has become a part of Taiwanese culture.


title: 7-Eleven

text: The first Thai 7-Eleven opened in 1989 on Patpong Road in Bangkok. The chain consists of both company-owned (45%) and franchised shops (55%). CP ALL Public Company Limited is the 7-Eleven owner and franchisor in Thailand. , there were 11,983 stores in Thailand, employing 170,000. In 2018, 7-Eleven generated 335,532 million baht in income for CP. 7-Eleven holds a 70% market share in the convenience store category, opposed by some 7,000 other convenience stores (e.g., FamilyMart) and 400,000 "mom and pop" shops. Thailand has the second largest number of 7-Eleven stores after Japan. In an effort to reduce plastic pollution the parent company of 7-Eleven stores in Thailand, CP All Public Company, announced their intent in November 2018 to reduce and eventually end the use of single-use plastic bags. , 7-Eleven—along with 42 other Thai retailers—will stop giving single-use plastic bags to customers.


title: 7-Eleven

text: Seven & I Holdings announced in June 2014 that they had agreed a contract with Seven Emirates Investment LLC to open the first Middle Eastern 7-Eleven in Dubai, United Arab Emirates during the summer of 2015. The company also said that they had plans to open about 100 stores in the country by the end of 2017. The first store was opened in October 2015. The country has 13 stores as of January 2018.


title: 7-Eleven

text: The first 7-Eleven store in Vietnam opened in 2017, making Vietnam the 17th country to host the world's largest convenience store chain. Seven System Vietnam (SSV) is the Master Franchisee of the 7-Eleven convenience store system in Vietnam, based in Ho Chi Minh City.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven has been established in Norway since 13 September 1986, when the first store opened in Oslo. In 2004 Reitan Convenience, a branch of the Norwegian Reitan Group bought the rights to use the 7-Eleven brand in Norway, Sweden and Denmark and since then has massively grown the number of operating shops in Scandinavia.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven entered Sweden in March 1984 with their first branch in Stockholm. Reitan acquired the brands right after 1997, and now has almost 200 stores throughout Sweden.


title: 7-Eleven

text: The first 7-Eleven store in Denmark was opened at Østerbro in Copenhagen on September 14, 1993. There are 183 stores, mostly in Copenhagen, Aarhus, Aalborg, and Odense, including eight stores at Copenhagen Central Station. In Denmark, 7-Eleven has an agreement with Shell, with a nationwide network of Shell/7-Eleven service stations, and an agreement with the Danish railway company DSB to have 7-Eleven stores at most S-train stations.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In 2022 7-Eleven in Denmark suffered a widespread ransomware attack that caused all stores to temporarily close. 7-Eleven did not comply with the attacker's demands. No customer data was compromised in the attack.


title: 7-Eleven

text: During the 1980s, 7-Eleven convenience stores were based in London and the South East of England. The first shop opened in Sydenham, South East London in 1985. The United Kingdom had 57 7-Eleven stores when it was sold to Budgens in October 1997. The company announced in 2014 they had planned to return to the UK market, but this did not progress beyond its announcement. In 2019, the company announced again it had planned to return, but as of October 2022 no stores had been opened.


title: 7-Eleven

text: The first 7-Eleven store to open in Canada was in Calgary, Alberta, on June 29, 1969. There are 562 7-Eleven stores in Canada . Winnipeg, Manitoba, has the world's largest number of Slurpee consumers, with an estimated 1,500,000 Slurpees sold since the first 7-Eleven opened on March 21, 1970. All 7-Eleven locations in Canada are corporate operated. Like its U.S. counterparts every July 11 the stores offer free Slurpees on "7-Eleven Day".


title: 7-Eleven

text: A limited number of 7-Eleven locations feature gas stations from Shell Canada, Petro-Canada, or Esso. In November 2005, 7-Eleven started offering the Speak Out Wireless cellphone service in Canada. 7-Eleven locations also featured CIBC ATMsin June 2012, these machines were replaced with ATMs operated by Scotiabank. 7-Eleven abandoned the Ottawa, Ontario, market in December 2009 after selling its six outlets to Quickie Convenience Stores, a regional chain. Following concerns over the fate of 7-Eleven Speak Out Wireless customers, Quickie offered the option for SpeakOut customers to port into the Good2Go mobile provider. SpeakOut subsequently offered online sales as an option, and continues to offer Ottawa-based phone numbers to new and existing customers. 7-Eleven is similarly absent from the Quebec market due to its saturation by chains like Alimentation Couche-Tard and Boni-soir, and by independent dépanneurs.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In March 2016, 7-Eleven acquired 148 Imperial Oil-owned Esso gas stations in Alberta and British Columbia for C$2.8 billion. Most of their convenience stores were converted to 7-Eleven stores, and they remain supplied by Esso. Some locations were not converted to 7-Eleven; these locations operate under the transitional banner "smartstop 24/7" with their existing store formats, typically inherited from the previous On the Run chain.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In Mexico, the first 7-Eleven store opened in 1976 in Monterrey in association with Grupo Chapa (now Iconn) and 7-Eleven, Inc. under the name Super 7. In 1995, Super 7 was renamed to 7-Eleven, which now has 1,835 stores in several areas of the country. When stores are located within classically designed buildings (such as in Centro Histórico buildings) or important landmarks, the storefront logo is displayed in monochrome with gold or silver lettering.


title: 7-Eleven

text: Supermarket News ranked 7-Eleven's North American operations No. 11 in the 2007 "Top 75 North American Food Retailers," based on the 2006 fiscal year estimated sales of US$15.0 billion. Based on the 2005 revenue, 7-Eleven is the 24th largest retailer in the United States. , 8,144 7-Eleven franchised units exist across the United States. Franchise fees range between US$10,000 – $1,000,000 and the ongoing royalty rate varies. 7-Eleven America has its headquarters in the Cypress Waters development in Irving, Texas. Small-size Slurpees are free on "7-Eleven Day", on July 11. This holiday first became widely celebrated on July 11, 2008, when first discovered by J. Brabank and C. Johnson. One exception is 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic caused that year's cancellation. 7 Rewards members got a free medium Slurpee in their app instead.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven Stores of Oklahoma operated independently beginning in 1953 under an agreement with the Brown family. As part of this franchise agreement, 7-Elevens in Oklahoma bore slight differences to stores elsewhere: for instance, products such as Big Bite hot dogs were not sold there, the Slurpee was branded as the "Icy Drink", and Oklahoma stores operated their own loyalty program called "Thx!", which did not intersect with the national 7Rewards system. On March 2, 2020, 7-Eleven, Inc. announced it had officially closed on the acquisition of over 100 of these independently operated 7-Eleven stores in Oklahoma. All of these 100 stores were in the greater Oklahoma City metropolitan area. This acquisition increased the total number of 7-Eleven stores in the US and Canada to nearly 9800. Following the purchase, the Oklahoma 7-Elevens were fully integrated into national branding, marketing, and loyalty campaigns.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In April 2021, 7-Eleven launched the "Take it to Eleven" ad campaign. The slogan was partially inspired by the chain's name, but also the term "up to eleven" made popular in the film "This is Spinal Tap". The slogan was only for the main 7-Eleven brand and not A-Plus or Stripes.


title: 7-Eleven

text: On July 11, 2022, two men were focusing on a crimes surrounding 7-Eleven. The 7-Eleven stores that were involved were Santa Ana, Brea, and North Hills in Los Angeles County. Two suspects named Patt and Jason Payne was charged on three counts of robbery and one count of attempted robbery.


title: 7-Eleven

text: On September 3, 2022, in Capitol Heights, Maryland, one person was found dead, and three others were injured following a shooting at a 7-Eleven store.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In the U.S., many 7-Eleven locations used to have filling stations with gasoline distributed by Citgo, which in 1983 was purchased by Southland Corporation. 50% of Citgo was sold in 1986 to Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A., and the remaining 50% was acquired in 1990. Although Citgo was the predominant partner of 7-Eleven, other oil companies are also co-branded with 7-Eleven, including Fina, Exxon, Gulf, Marathon, BP, Shell, Chevron (some former TETCO convenience stores were co-branded with Chevron, and Texaco prior to the 7-Eleven purchase in late 2012), Sunoco, and Amoco. Conoco is the largest 7-Eleven licensee in North America. The Pittsburgh market alone—where 7-Eleven is the market leader by store count but third behind Sheetz and GetGo in revenue—7-Eleven currently offers fuel from Exxon, Gulf, Marathon (both legacy 7-Eleven locations and


title: 7-Eleven

text: Speedway), BP, and Sunoco (the latter two being from 7-Eleven's acquisitions of their company-owned-and-operated locations in the area) and also having previously offered Citgo and Pennzoil at some locations. In more recent years, some 7-Eleven locations sell 7-Eleven branded fuel without a Big Oil brand, much like 7-Eleven's primary rival Circle K has done in recent years.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven signed an agreement with Exxon-Mobil in December 2010 for the acquisition of 183 sites in Florida. This was followed by the acquisition of 51 ExxonMobil sites in North Texas in August 2011.


title: 7-Eleven

text: On August 2, 2020, Seven & I Holdings announced to buy Speedway LLC for $21 billion. The deal closed on May 14, 2021. 7-Eleven was ordered by U.S. antitrust regulators to divest 293 stores across 20 states. 124 stores were sold to Anabi Oil, 106 stores were sold to Cross-America Partners LP and 63 stores were sold to Jacksons Food Stores.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In Brazil, during the 1990s, 7-Eleven had 17 stores in the city of São Paulo in a joint venture between Esteve S.A. Exportadora and Southland Corporation, but all closed due to high competition. In 2018, the company entered into partnership talks to operate convenience stores at gas stations operated by Petrobras Distribuidora in the country, but this did not progress beyond.


title: 7-Eleven

text: The first 7-Eleven in Australia opened on August 24, 1977, in the Melbourne suburb of Oakleigh, Victoria. The majority of stores are located in metropolitan areas, particularly in central business district areas. Stores in suburban areas often operate as petrol stations and most are owned and operated as franchises, with a central administration. 7-Eleven bought Mobil's remaining Australian petrol stations in 2010, converting them to 7-Eleven outlets, resulting in an immediate and unprecedented overnight major expansion of the brand. In South Australia all Mobil petrol stations were sold to Peregrine Corporation and branded as On the Run petrol stations.


title: 7-Eleven

text: 7-Eleven stores in Australia sell a wide range of items, including daily newspapers, drinks, confectionery, and snack foods. They sell gift cards, including three types of pre-paid Visa cards. The chain has partnered with Bankwest, placing an ATM in each of their stores nationwide. Each year on November 7, 7-Eleven promotes "7-Eleven Day" by giving away a free Slurpee to customers.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In April 2014, 7-Eleven announced plans to start operating stores in Western Australia, with 11 stores planned to operate within the first year and a total of 75 stores established within five years. The first store was opened on October 30, 2014, in the city of Fremantle. The country has 675 stores as of January 2018.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In April 2022, 7-Eleven Australia settled a class-action lawsuit from its franchisees for A$98 million, amid claims that it had misled franchisees about the profitability of its business model.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In August 2015, Fairfax Media and the ABC's "Four Corners" programme reported on the employment practices of certain 7-Eleven franchisees in Australia. The investigation found that many 7-Eleven employees were being underpaid at rates of around A$10 to A$14 per hour before tax, well under the legally-required minimum award rate of A$24.69 per hour.


title: 7-Eleven

text: Franchisees underpaying their staff would typically maintain rosters and pay records that appeared to show the employee being paid the legally-required rate; however, these records only included half of the hours the employee actually worked in a week. Employees were then paid on the basis of these records, resulting in them effectively being paid half the legally-required rate.


title: 7-Eleven

text: It was also reported that workers were often not paid loadings and penalty rates that they are legally entitled to, for working overtime hours, nights, weekends, and public holidays.


title: 7-Eleven

text: After these reports came to light and received widespread attention, some employees had alleged to Fairfax Media that they had begun to be paid correctly through the 7-Eleven payroll system; however, they were then asked by the franchisee to pay back half their wages in cash. 7-Eleven subsequently announced they would fund an inquiry to investigate instances of wage fraud. The inquiry was conducted by an independent panel chaired by former Australian Competition & Consumer Commission chairman Allan Fels, and with the support of professional services firm Deloitte. The inquiry invited submissions from current and former 7-Eleven employees who allege they have been underpaid, and assess each individual claim.


title: 7-Eleven

text: In September 2015, chairman Russ Withers and chief executive Warren Wilmot announced they were resigning from the company. Deputy chairman Michael Smith replaced Withers, while Bob Baily was appointed as interim chief executive.


title: 7-Eleven

text: The "Four Corners" investigation into 7-Eleven won a Walkley Award in 2015. In December 2015, Stewart Levitt of law firm Levitt Robinson Solicitors, who featured prominently in the "Four Corners" program and the Dr Brendan French defamation case, announced a potential class action lawsuit against 7-Eleven head office on behalf of franchisees who had allegedly been lured into signing on with 7-Eleven by false representations. This action was mired itself in controversy after Levitt Robinson was forced to retract misleading statements in advertising to the franchisees.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "born again", in which an individual experiences personal conversion; the authority of the Bible as God's revelation to humanity (biblical inerrancy); and spreading the Christian message. The word "evangelical" comes from the Greek ("euangelion") word for "good news".


title: Evangelicalism

text: Its origins are usually traced to 1738, with various theological streams contributing to its foundation, including Pietism and Radical Pietism, Puritanism, Quakerism, Presbyterianism and Moravianism (in particular its bishop Nicolaus Zinzendorf and his community at Herrnhut). Preeminently, John Wesley and other early Methodists were at the root of sparking this new movement during the First Great Awakening. Today, evangelicals are found across many Protestant branches, as well as in various denominations around the world, not subsumed to a specific branch. Among leaders and major figures of the evangelical Protestant movement were Nicolaus Zinzendorf, George Fox, John Wesley, George Whitefield, Jonathan Edwards, Billy Graham, Bill Bright, Harold Ockenga, Gudina Tumsa, John Stott, Francisco Olazábal, William J. Seymour, Martyn Lloyd-Jones.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The movement has long had a presence in the Anglosphere before spreading further afield in the 19th, 20th and early 21st centuries. The movement gained great momentum during the 18th and 19th centuries with the Great Awakenings in Great Britain and the United States.


title: Evangelicalism

text: In 2016, there were an estimated 619 million evangelicals in the world, meaning that one in four Christians would be classified as evangelical. The United States has the largest proportion of evangelicals in the world. American evangelicals are a quarter of that nation's population and its single largest religious group. As a transdenominational coalition, evangelicals can be found in nearly every Protestant denomination and tradition, particularly within the Reformed (Calvinist, Presbyterian, Congregational), Baptist, Methodist (Wesleyan, Holiness), Arminian, Lutheran, Moravian, Free Church, Mennonite, Quaker, non-denominational, interdenominational, Pentecostal and charismatic churches.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The word "evangelical" has its etymological roots in the Greek word for "gospel" or "good news": "euangelion", from "eu" "good", "angel"- the stem of, among other words, "angelos" "messenger, angel", and the neuter suffix -"ion". By the English Middle Ages, the term had expanded semantically to include not only the message, but also the New Testament which contained the message as well as more specifically the Gospels, which portray the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. The first published use of "evangelical" in English was in 1531, when William Tyndale wrote "He exhorteth them to proceed constantly in the evangelical truth." One year later, Thomas More wrote the earliest recorded use in reference to a theological distinction when he spoke of "Tyndale [and] his evangelical brother Barns".


title: Evangelicalism

text: During the Reformation, Protestant theologians embraced the term as referring to "gospel truth". Martin Luther referred to the "evangelische Kirche" ("evangelical church") to distinguish Protestants from Catholics in the Catholic Church. Into the 21st century, "evangelical" has continued in use as a synonym for Mainline Protestant in continental Europe. This usage is reflected in the names of Protestant denominations, such as the Evangelical Church in Germany (a union of Lutheran and Reformed churches) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The German term , more accurately corresponds to the broad English term "Protestant" should not be confused with the narrower German term evangelikal," which is used to described Evangelicalism in the sense used in this article. Mainline Protestant denominations with a Lutheran or semi-Lutheran background like the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of England, who aren’t evangelical in the “evangelikal”" sense but Protestant in the "“evangelisch“" sense have translated the German term "“evangelisch“" (or Protestant) into the English term “Evangelical,” although the two German words have different meanings but are translated the same in English. In other parts of the world, especially in the English-speaking world, evangelical (German: evangelikal) is commonly applied to describe the interdenominational Born-Again believing movement.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Christian historian David W. Bebbington writes that, "Although 'evangelical', with a lower-case initial, is occasionally used to mean 'of the gospel', the term 'Evangelical', with a capital letter, is applied to any aspect of the movement beginning in the 1730s." According to the "Oxford English Dictionary", "evangelicalism" was first used in 1831. In 1812, the term "evangelicalism" appeared in "The History of Lynn" by William Richards. In the summer of 1811 the term "evangelicalists" was used in "The Sin and Danger of Schism" by Rev. Dr. Andrew Burnaby, Archdeacon of Leicester.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The term may also be used outside any religious context to characterize a generic missionary, reforming, or redeeming impulse or purpose. For example, "The Times Literary Supplement" refers to "the rise and fall of evangelical fervor within the Socialist movement". This usage refers to evangelism, rather than evangelicalism as discussed here; though sharing an etymology and conceptual basis, the words have diverged significantly in meaning.


title: Evangelicalism

text: One influential definition of evangelicalism has been proposed by historian David Bebbington. Bebbington notes four distinctive aspects of evangelical faith: conversionism, biblicism, crucicentrism, and activism, noting, "Together they form a quadrilateral of priorities that is the basis of Evangelicalism."


title: Evangelicalism

text: Conversionism, or belief in the necessity of being "born again", has been a constant theme of evangelicalism since its beginnings. To evangelicals, the central message of the gospel is justification by faith in Christ and repentance, or turning away, from sin. Conversion differentiates the Christian from the non-Christian, and the change in life it leads to is marked by both a rejection of sin and a corresponding personal holiness of life. A conversion experience can be emotional, including grief and sorrow for sin followed by great relief at receiving forgiveness. The stress on conversion differentiates evangelicalism from other forms of Protestantism by the associated belief that an assurance will accompany conversion. Among evangelicals, individuals have testified to both sudden and gradual conversions.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Biblicism is reverence for the Bible and high regard for biblical authority. All evangelicals believe in biblical inspiration, though they disagree over how this inspiration should be defined. Many evangelicals believe in biblical inerrancy, while other evangelicals believe in biblical infallibility.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Crucicentrism is the centrality that evangelicals give to the Atonement, the saving death and the resurrection of Jesus, that offers forgiveness of sins and new life. This is understood most commonly in terms of a substitutionary atonement, in which Christ died as a substitute for sinful humanity by taking on himself the guilt and punishment for sin.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Activism describes the tendency toward active expression and sharing of the gospel in diverse ways that include preaching and social action. This aspect of evangelicalism continues to be seen today in the proliferation of evangelical voluntary religious groups and parachurch organizations.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The word "church" has several meanings among evangelicals. It can refer to the universal church (the body of Christ) including all Christians everywhere. It can also refer to the church (congregation), which is the visible representation of the invisible church. It is responsible for teaching and administering the sacraments or ordinances (baptism and the Lord's Supper, but some evangelicals also count footwashing as an ordinance as well).


title: Evangelicalism

text: Many evangelical traditions adhere to the doctrine of the believers' Church, which teaches that one becomes a member of the Church by the new birth and profession of faith. This originated in the Radical Reformation with Anabaptists but is held by denominations that practice believer's baptism. Evangelicals in the Anglican, Methodist and Reformed traditions practice infant baptism as one's initiation into the community of faith and the New Testament counterpart to circumcision, while also stressing the necessity of personal conversion later in life for salvation.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Some evangelical denominations operate according to episcopal polity or presbyterian polity. However, the most common form of church government within Evangelicalism is congregational polity. This is especially common among nondenominational evangelical churches. Many churches are members of a national and international denomination for a cooperative relationship in common organizations, missionary, humanitarian as well as schools and theological institutes. Common ministries within evangelical congregations are pastor, elder, deacon, evangelist and worship leader. The ministry of bishop with a function of supervision over churches on a regional or national scale is present in all the Evangelical Christian denominations, even if the titles president of the council or general overseer are mainly used for this function. The term bishop is explicitly used in certain denominations. Some evangelical denominations are members of the World Evangelical Alliance and its 129 national alliances.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Some evangelical denominations officially authorize the ordination of women in churches. The female ministry is justified by the fact that Mary Magdalene was chosen by Jesus to announce his resurrection to the apostles. The first Baptist woman who was consecrated pastor is the American Clarissa Danforth in the denomination Free Will Baptist in 1815. In 1882, in the National Baptist Convention, USA. In the Assemblies of God of the United States, since 1927. In 1961, in the Progressive National Baptist Convention. In 1975, in The Foursquare Church.


title: Evangelicalism

text: For evangelicals, there are three interrelated meanings to the term "worship". It can refer to living a "God-pleasing and God-focused way of life", specific actions of praise to God, and a public Worship service. Diversity characterizes evangelical worship practices. Liturgical, contemporary, charismatic and seeker-sensitive worship styles can all be found among evangelical churches. Overall, evangelicals tend to be more flexible and experimental with worship practices than mainline Protestant churches. It is usually run by a Christian pastor. A service is often divided into several parts, including congregational singing, a sermon, intercessory prayer, and other ministry. During worship there is usually a nursery for babies. Children and young people receive an adapted education, Sunday school, in a separate room.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Places of worship are usually called "churches". In some megachurches, the building is called "campus". The architecture of places of worship is mainly characterized by its sobriety. The latin cross is one of the only spiritual symbols that can usually be seen on the building of an evangelical church and that identifies the place's belonging.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Some services take place in theaters, schools or multipurpose rooms, rented for Sunday only. Because of their understanding of the second of the Ten Commandments, some evangelicals do not have religious material representations such as statues, icons, or paintings in their places of worship. There is usually a baptistery on what is variously known as the chancel (also called sanctuary) or stage, though they may be alternatively found in a separate room, for the baptisms by immersion.


title: Evangelicalism

text: In some countries of the world which apply sharia or communism, government authorizations for worship are complex for Evangelical Christians. Because of persecution of Christians, Evangelical house churches are the only option for many Christians to live their faith in community. For example, there is the Evangelical house churches in China movement. The meetings thus take place in private houses, in secret and in illegality.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The main Christian feasts celebrated by the Evangelicals are Christmas, Pentecost (by a majority of Evangelical denominations) and Easter for all believers.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Evangelical churches have been involved in the establishment of elementary and secondary schools. It also enabled the development of several bible colleges, colleges and universities in the United States during the 19th century. Other evangelical universities have been established in various countries of the world.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The Council for Christian Colleges and Universities was founded in 1976. In 2021, the CCCU had 180 members in 21 countries.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The Association of Christian Schools International was founded in 1978 by 3 American associations of evangelical Christian schools. Various international schools have joined the network. In 2021, it had 23,000 schools in 100 countries.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The International Council for Evangelical Theological Education was founded in 1980 by the Theological Commission of the World Evangelical Alliance. In 2015, it would have 1,000 member schools in 113 countries.


title: Evangelicalism

text: In matters of sexuality, several evangelical churches promote the virginity pledge among young evangelical Christians, who are invited to commit themselves during a public ceremony at sexual abstinence until Christian marriage. This pledge is often symbolized by a purity ring.


title: Evangelicalism

text: In some evangelical churches, young adults and unmarried couples are encouraged to marry early in order to live a sexuality according to the will of God.


title: Evangelicalism

text: A 2009 American study of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy reported that 80 percent of young, unmarried evangelicals had had sex and that 42 percent were in a relationship with sex, when surveyed.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The majority of evangelical Christian churches are against abortion and support adoption agencies and social support agencies for young mothers.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Masturbation is seen as forbidden by some evangelical pastors because of the sexual thoughts that may accompany it. However, evangelical pastors have pointed out that the practice has been erroneously associated with Onan by scholars, that it is not a sin if it is not practiced with fantasies or compulsively, and that it was useful in a married couple, if his or her partner did not have the same frequency of sexual needs.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Some evangelical churches speak only of sexual abstinence and do not speak of sexuality in marriage. Other evangelical churches in the United States and Switzerland speak of satisfying sexuality as a gift from God and a component of a Christian marriage harmonious, in messages during worship services or conferences. Many evangelical books and websites are specialized on the subject. The book "" published in 1976 by Baptist pastor Tim LaHaye and his wife Beverly LaHaye was a pioneer in the field.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The perceptions of homosexuality in the Evangelical Churches are varied. They range from liberal to fundamentalist or moderate Conservative and neutral. A 2011 Pew Research Center study found that 84 percent of evangelical leaders surveyed believed homosexuality should be discouraged. It is in the fundamentalist conservative positions, that there are antigay activists on TV or radio who claim that homosexuality is the cause of many social problems, such as terrorism. Some churches have a Conservative moderate position. Although they do not approve homosexual practices, they show sympathy and respect for homosexuals. Some evangelical denominations have adopted neutral positions, leaving the choice to local churches to decide for same-sex marriage. There are some international evangelical denominations that are gay-friendly.


title: Evangelicalism

text: For a majority of evangelical Christians, a belief in biblical inerrancy ensures that the miracles described in the Bible are still relevant and may be present in the life of the believer. Healings, academic or professional successes, the birth of a child after several attempts, the end of an addiction, etc., would be tangible examples of God's intervention with the faith and prayer, by the Holy Spirit. In the 1980s, the neo-charismatic movement re-emphasized miracles and faith healing. In certain churches, a special place is thus reserved for faith healings with laying on of hands during worship services or for evangelization campaigns. Faith healing or divine healing is considered to be an inheritance of Jesus acquired by his death and resurrection. This view is typically ascribed to Pentecostal denominations, and not others that are cessationist (believing that miraculous gifts have ceased.)


title: Evangelicalism

text: In terms of denominational beliefs regarding science and the origin of the earth and human life, some evangelicals support young Earth creationism. For example, Answers in Genesis, founded in Australia in 1986, is an evangelical organization that seeks to defend the thesis. In 2007, they founded the Creation Museum in Petersburg, in Kentucky


title: Evangelicalism

text: and in 2016 the Ark Encounter in Williamstown. Since the end of the 20th century, literalist creationism has been abandoned by some evangelicals in favor of intelligent design. For example, the think tank Discovery Institute, established in 1991 in Seattle, defends this thesis. Other evangelicals who accept the scientific consensus on evolution and the age of Earth believe in theistic evolution or evolutionary creation—the notion that God used the process of evolution to create life; a Christian organization that espouses this view is the BioLogos Foundation.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The Reformed, Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, Churches of Christ, Plymouth Brethren, charismatic Protestant, and nondenominational Protestant traditions have all had strong influence within contemporary evangelicalism. Some Anabaptist denominations (such as the Brethren Church) are evangelical, and some Lutherans self-identify as evangelicals. There are also evangelical Anglicans and Quakers.


title: Evangelicalism

text: In the early 20th century, evangelical influence declined within mainline Protestantism and Christian fundamentalism developed as a distinct religious movement. Between 1950 and 2000 a mainstream evangelical consensus developed that sought to be more inclusive and more culturally relevant than fundamentalism while maintaining theologically conservative Protestant teaching. According to Brian Stanley, professor of world Christianity, this new postwar consensus is termed "neoevangelicalism", the "new evangelicalism", or simply "evangelicalism" in the United States, while in Great Britain and in other English-speaking countries, it is commonly termed "conservative evangelicalism". Over the years, less conservative evangelicals have challenged this mainstream consensus to varying degrees. Such movements have been classified by a variety of labels, such as progressive, open, postconservative, and postevangelical.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Outside of self-consciously evangelical denominations, there is a broader "evangelical streak" in mainline Protestantism. Mainline Protestant churches predominantly have a liberal theology while evangelical churches predominantly have a fundamentalist or moderate conservative theology.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Some commentators have complained that Evangelicalism as a movement is too broad and its definition too vague to be of any practical value. Theologian Donald Dayton has called for a "moratorium" on use of the term. Historian D. G. Hart has also argued that "evangelicalism needs to be relinquished as a religious identity because it does not exist".


title: Evangelicalism

text: Fundamentalism regards biblical inerrancy, the virgin birth of Jesus, penal substitutionary atonement, the literal resurrection of Christ, and the Second Coming of Christ as fundamental Christian doctrines. Fundamentalism arose among evangelicals in the 1920s to combat modernist or liberal theology in mainline Protestant churches. Failing to reform the mainline churches, fundamentalists separated from them and established their own churches, refusing to participate in ecumenical organizations such as the National Council of Churches (founded in 1950). They also made separatism (rigid separation from nonfundamentalist churches and their culture) a true test of faith. According to historian George Marsden, most fundamentalists are Baptists and dispensationalist.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Mainstream evangelicalism is historically divided between two main orientations: confessionalism and revivalism. These two streams have been critical of each other. Confessional evangelicals have been suspicious of unguarded religious experience, while revivalist evangelicals have been critical of overly intellectual teaching that (they suspect) stifles vibrant spirituality. In an effort to broaden their appeal, many contemporary evangelical congregations intentionally avoid identifying with any single form of evangelicalism. These "generic evangelicals" are usually theologically and socially conservative, but their churches often present themselves as nondenominational (or, if a denominational member, strongly deemphasize its ties to such, such as a church name which excludes the denominational name) within the broader evangelical movement.


title: Evangelicalism

text: In the words of Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, confessional evangelicalism refers to "that movement of Christian believers who seek a constant convictional continuity with the theological formulas of the Protestant Reformation". While approving of the evangelical distinctions proposed by Bebbington, confessional evangelicals believe that authentic evangelicalism requires more concrete definition in order to protect the movement from theological liberalism and from heresy. According to confessional evangelicals, subscription to the ecumenical creeds and to the Reformation-era confessions of faith (such as the confessions of the Reformed churches) provides such protection. Confessional evangelicals are represented by conservative Presbyterian churches (emphasizing the Westminster Confession), certain Baptist churches that emphasize historic Baptist confessions such as the Second London Confession, evangelical Anglicans who emphasize the Thirty-Nine Articles (such as in the Anglican Diocese of Sydney, Australia), Methodist churches that adhere to the Articles of Religion, and some confessional Lutherans with pietistic convictions.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The emphasis on historic Protestant orthodoxy among confessional evangelicals stands in direct contrast to an anticreedal outlook that has exerted its own influence on evangelicalism, particularly among churches strongly affected by revivalism and by pietism. Revivalist evangelicals are represented by some quarters of Methodism, the Wesleyan Holiness churches, the Pentecostal and charismatic churches, some Anabaptist churches, and some Baptists and Presbyterians. Revivalist evangelicals tend to place greater emphasis on religious experience than their confessional counterparts.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Evangelicals dissatisfied with the movement's conservative mainstream have been variously described as progressive evangelicals, postconservative evangelicals, Open Evangelicals and postevangelicals. Progressive evangelicals, also known as the evangelical left, share theological or social views with other progressive Christians while also identifying with evangelicalism. Progressive evangelicals commonly advocate for women's equality, pacifism and social justice.


title: Evangelicalism

text: As described by Baptist theologian Roger E. Olson, postconservative evangelicalism is a theological school of thought that adheres to the four marks of evangelicalism, while being less rigid and more inclusive of other Christians. According to Olson, postconservatives believe that doctrinal truth is secondary to spiritual experience shaped by Scripture. Postconservative evangelicals seek greater dialogue with other Christian traditions and support the development of a multicultural evangelical theology that incorporates the voices of women, racial minorities, and Christians in the developing world. Some postconservative evangelicals also support open theism and the possibility of near universal salvation.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The term "Open Evangelical" refers to a particular Christian school of thought or churchmanship, primarily in Great Britain (especially in the Church of England). Open evangelicals describe their position as combining a traditional evangelical emphasis on the nature of scriptural authority, the teaching of the ecumenical creeds and other traditional doctrinal teachings, with an approach towards culture and other theological points-of-view which tends to be more inclusive than that taken by other evangelicals. Some open evangelicals aim to take a middle position between conservative and charismatic evangelicals, while others would combine conservative theological emphases with more liberal social positions.


title: Evangelicalism

text: British author Dave Tomlinson coined the phrase "postevangelical" to describe a movement comprising various trends of dissatisfaction among evangelicals. Others use the term with comparable intent, often to distinguish evangelicals in the emerging church movement from postevangelicals and antievangelicals. Tomlinson argues that "linguistically, the distinction "[between evangelical and postevangelical]" resembles the one that sociologists make between the modern and postmodern eras".


title: Evangelicalism

text: Evangelicalism emerged in the 18th century, first in Britain and its North American colonies. Nevertheless, there were earlier developments within the larger Protestant world that preceded and influenced the later evangelical revivals. According to religion scholar Randall Balmer, Evangelicalism resulted "from the confluence of Pietism, Presbyterianism, and the vestiges of Puritanism. Evangelicalism picked up the peculiar characteristics from each strain – warmhearted spirituality from the Pietists (for instance), doctrinal precisionism from the Presbyterians, and individualistic introspection from the Puritans". Historian Mark Noll adds to this list High Church Anglicanism, which contributed to Evangelicalism a legacy of "rigorous spirituality and innovative organization".


title: Evangelicalism

text: During the 17th century, Pietism emerged in Europe as a movement for the revival of piety and devotion within the Lutheran church. As a protest against "cold orthodoxy" or against an overly formal and rational Christianity, Pietists advocated for an experiential religion that stressed high moral standards both for clergy and for lay people. The movement included both Christians who remained in the liturgical, state churches as well as separatist groups who rejected the use of baptismal fonts, altars, pulpits, and confessionals. As Radical Pietism spread, the movement's ideals and aspirations influenced and were absorbed by evangelicals.


title: Evangelicalism

text: When George Fox, who is considered the father of Quakerism, was eleven, he wrote that God spoke to him about "keeping pure and being faithful to God and man." After being troubled when his friends asked him to drink alcohol with them at the age of nineteen, Fox spent the night in prayer and soon afterwards he left his home in a four year search for spiritual satisfaction. In his "Journal", at age 23, he believed that he "found through faith in Jesus Christ the full assurance of salvation." Fox began to spread his message and his emphasis on "the necessity of an inward transformation of heart", as well as the possibility of Christian perfection, drew opposition from English clergy and laity. In the mid-1600s, many people became attracted to Fox's preaching and his followers became known as the Religious Society of Friends. By 1660, the Quakers grew to 35,000 and are considered to be among the first in the evangelical Christian movement.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The Presbyterian heritage not only gave Evangelicalism a commitment to Protestant orthodoxy but also contributed a revival tradition that stretched back to the 1620s in Scotland and northern Ireland. Central to this tradition was the communion season, which normally occurred in the summer months. For Presbyterians, celebrations of Holy Communion were infrequent but popular events preceded by several Sundays of preparatory preaching and accompanied with preaching, singing, and prayers.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Puritanism combined Calvinism with a doctrine that conversion was a prerequisite for church membership and with an emphasis on the study of Scripture by lay people. It took root in the colonies of New England, where the Congregational church became an established religion. There the Half-Way Covenant of 1662 allowed parents who had not testified to a conversion experience to have their children baptized, while reserving Holy Communion for converted church members alone. By the 18th century Puritanism was in decline and many ministers expressed alarm at the loss of religious piety. This concern over declining religious commitment led many people to support evangelical revival.


title: Evangelicalism

text: High-Church Anglicanism also exerted influence on early Evangelicalism. High Churchmen were distinguished by their desire to adhere to primitive Christianity. This desire included imitating the faith and ascetic practices of early Christians as well as regularly partaking of Holy Communion. High Churchmen were also enthusiastic organizers of voluntary religious societies. Two of the most prominent were the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (founded in London in 1698), which distributed Bibles and other literature and built schools, and the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, which was founded in England in 1701 to facilitate missionary work in British colonies (especially among colonists in North America). Samuel and Susanna Wesley, the parents of John and Charles Wesley (born 1703 and 1707 respectively), were both devoted advocates of High-Church ideas.


title: Evangelicalism

text: In the 1730s, Evangelicalism emerged as a distinct phenomenon out of religious revivals that began in Britain and New England. While religious revivals had occurred within Protestant churches in the past, the evangelical revivals that marked the 18th century were more intense and radical. Evangelical revivalism imbued ordinary men and women with a confidence and enthusiasm for sharing the gospel and converting others outside of the control of established churches, a key discontinuity with the Protestantism of the previous era.


title: Evangelicalism

text: It was developments in the doctrine of assurance that differentiated Evangelicalism from what went before. Bebbington says, "The dynamism of the Evangelical movement was possible only because its adherents were assured in their faith." He goes on:


title: Evangelicalism

text: The first local revival occurred in Northampton, Massachusetts, under the leadership of Congregationalist minister Jonathan Edwards. In the fall of 1734, Edwards preached a sermon series on "Justification By Faith Alone", and the community's response was extraordinary. Signs of religious commitment among the laity increased, especially among the town's young people. The revival ultimately spread to 25 communities in western Massachusetts and central Connecticut until it began to wane by the spring of 1735. Edwards was heavily influenced by Pietism, so much so that one historian has stressed his "American Pietism". One practice clearly copied from European Pietists was the use of small groups divided by age and gender, which met in private homes to conserve and promote the fruits of revival.


title: Evangelicalism

text: At the same time, students at Yale University (at that time Yale College) in New Haven, Connecticut, were also experiencing revival. Among them was Aaron Burr, Sr., who would become a prominent Presbyterian minister and future president of Princeton University. In New Jersey, Gilbert Tennent, another Presbyterian minister, was preaching the evangelical message and urging the Presbyterian Church to stress the necessity of converted ministers.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The spring of 1735 also marked important events in England and Wales. Howell Harris, a Welsh schoolteacher, had a conversion experience on May 25 during a communion service. He described receiving assurance of God's grace after a period of fasting, self-examination, and despair over his sins. Sometime later, Daniel Rowland, the Anglican curate of Llangeitho, Wales, experienced conversion as well. Both men began preaching the evangelical message to large audiences, becoming leaders of the Welsh Methodist revival. At about the same time that Harris experienced conversion in Wales, George Whitefield was converted at Oxford University after his own prolonged spiritual crisis. Whitefield later remarked, "About this time God was pleased to enlighten my soul, and bring me into the knowledge of His free grace, and the necessity of being justified in His sight by "faith only"".


title: Evangelicalism

text: Whitefield's fellow Holy Club member and spiritual mentor, Charles Wesley, reported an evangelical conversion in 1738. In the same week, Charles' brother and future founder of Methodism, John Wesley was also converted after a long period of inward struggle. During this spiritual crisis, John Wesley was directly influenced by Pietism. Two years before his conversion, Wesley had traveled to the newly established colony of Georgia as a missionary for the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. He shared his voyage with a group of Moravian Brethren led by August Gottlieb Spangenberg. The Moravians' faith and piety deeply impressed Wesley, especially their belief that it was a normal part of Christian life to have an assurance of one's salvation. Wesley recounted the following exchange with Spangenberg on February 7, 1736:


title: Evangelicalism

text: Wesley finally received the assurance he had been searching for at a meeting of a religious society in London. While listening to a reading from Martin Luther's preface to the Epistle to the Romans, Wesley felt spiritually transformed:


title: Evangelicalism

text: Pietism continued to influence Wesley, who had translated 33 Pietist hymns from German to English. Numerous German Pietist hymns became part of the English Evangelical repertoire. By 1737, Whitefield had become a national celebrity in England where his preaching drew large crowds, especially in London where the Fetter Lane Society had become a center of evangelical activity. Whitfield joined forces with Edwards to "fan the flame of revival" in the Thirteen Colonies in 1739–40. Soon the First Great Awakening stirred Protestants throughout America.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Evangelical preachers emphasized personal salvation and piety more than ritual and tradition. Pamphlets and printed sermons crisscrossed the Atlantic, encouraging the revivalists. The Awakening resulted from powerful preaching that gave listeners a sense of deep personal revelation of their need of salvation by Jesus Christ. Pulling away from ritual and ceremony, the Great Awakening made Christianity intensely personal to the average person by fostering a deep sense of spiritual conviction and redemption, and by encouraging introspection and a commitment to a new standard of personal morality. It reached people who were already church members. It changed their rituals, their piety and their self-awareness. To the evangelical imperatives of Reformation Protestantism, 18th century American Christians added emphases on divine outpourings of the Holy Spirit and conversions that implanted within new believers an intense love for God. Revivals encapsulated those hallmarks and forwarded the newly created Evangelicalism into the early republic.


title: Evangelicalism

text: By the 1790s, the Evangelical party in the Church of England remained a small minority but were not without influence. John Newton and Joseph Milner were influential evangelical clerics. Evangelical clergy networked together through societies such as the Eclectic Society in London and the Elland Society in Yorkshire. The Old Dissenter denominations (the Baptists, Congregationalists and Quakers) were falling under evangelical influence, with the Baptists most affected and Quakers the least. Evangelical ministers dissatisfied with both Anglicanism and Methodism often chose to work within these churches. In the 1790s, all of these evangelical groups, including the Anglicans, were Calvinist in orientation.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Methodism (the "New Dissent") was the most visible expression of evangelicalism by the end of the 18th century. The Wesleyan Methodists boasted around 70,000 members throughout the British Isles, in addition to the Calvinistic Methodists in Wales and the Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion, which was organized under George Whitefield's influence. The Wesleyan Methodists, however, were still nominally affiliated with the Church of England and would not completely separate until 1795, four years after Wesley's death. The Wesleyan Methodist Church's Arminianism distinguished it from the other evangelical groups.


title: Evangelicalism

text: At the same time, evangelicals were an important faction within the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Influential ministers included John Erskine, Henry Wellwood Moncrieff and Stevenson Macgill. The church's General Assembly, however, was controlled by the Moderate Party, and evangelicals were involved in the First and Second Secessions from the national church during the 18th century.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The start of the 19th century saw an increase in missionary work and many of the major missionary societies were founded around this time (see Timeline of Christian missions). Both the Evangelical and high church movements sponsored missionaries.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The Second Great Awakening (which actually began in 1790) was primarily an American revivalist movement and resulted in substantial growth of the Methodist and Baptist churches. Charles Grandison Finney was an important preacher of this period.


title: Evangelicalism

text: In Britain in addition to stressing the traditional Wesleyan combination of "Bible, cross, conversion, and activism", the revivalist movement sought a universal appeal, hoping to include rich and poor, urban and rural, and men and women. Special efforts were made to attract children and to generate literature to spread the revivalist message.


title: Evangelicalism

text: "Christian conscience" was used by the British Evangelical movement to promote social activism. Evangelicals believed activism in government and the social sphere was an essential method in reaching the goal of eliminating sin in a world drenched in wickedness. The Evangelicals in the Clapham Sect included figures such as William Wilberforce who successfully campaigned for the abolition of slavery.


title: Evangelicalism

text: In the late 19th century, the revivalist Wesleyan-Holiness movement based on John Wesley's doctrine of "entire sanctification" came to the forefront, and while many adherents remained within mainline Methodism, others established new denominations, such as the Free Methodist Church and Wesleyan Methodist Church. In urban Britain the Holiness message was less exclusive and censorious.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Keswickianism taught the doctrine of the second blessing in non-Methodist circles and came to influence evangelicals of the Calvinistic (Reformed) tradition, leading to the establishment of denominations such as the Christian and Missionary Alliance.


title: Evangelicalism

text: John Nelson Darby of the Plymouth Brethren was a 19th-century Irish Anglican minister who devised modern dispensationalism, an innovative Protestant theological interpretation of the Bible that was incorporated in the development of modern Evangelicalism. Cyrus Scofield further promoted the influence of dispensationalism through the explanatory notes to his Scofield Reference Bible. According to scholar Mark S. Sweetnam, who takes a cultural studies perspective, dispensationalism can be defined in terms of its Evangelicalism, its insistence on the literal interpretation of Scripture, its recognition of stages in God's dealings with humanity, its expectation of the imminent return of Christ to rapture His saints, and its focus on both apocalypticism and premillennialism.


title: Evangelicalism

text: During the 19th century, the megachurches, churches with more than 2,000 people, began to develop. The first evangelical megachurch, the Metropolitan Tabernacle with a 6000-seat auditorium, was inaugurated in 1861 in London by Charles Spurgeon. Dwight L. Moody founded the Illinois Street Church in Chicago.


title: Evangelicalism

text: An advanced theological perspective came from the Princeton theologians from the 1850s to the 1920s, such as Charles Hodge, Archibald Alexander and B.B. Warfield.


title: Evangelicalism

text: After 1910 the Fundamentalist movement dominated Evangelicalism in the early part of the 20th century; the Fundamentalists rejected liberal theology and emphasized the inerrancy of the Scriptures.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Following the 1904–1905 Welsh revival, the Azusa Street Revival in 1906 began the spread of Pentecostalism in North America.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The 20th century also marked by the emergence of the televangelism. Aimee Semple McPherson, who founded the megachurch "Angelus Temple" in Los Angeles, used radio in the 1920s to reach a wider audience.


title: Evangelicalism

text: After the Scopes trial in 1925, "Christian Century" wrote of "Vanishing Fundamentalism". In 1929 Princeton University, once the bastion of conservative theology, added several modernists to its faculty, resulting in the departure of J. Gresham Machen and a split in the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Evangelicalism began to reassert itself in the second half of the 1930s. One factor was the advent of the radio as a means of mass communication. When [Charles E. Fuller] began his "Old Fashioned Revival Hour" on October 3, 1937, he sought to avoid the contentious issues that had caused fundamentalists to be characterized as narrow.


title: Evangelicalism

text: One hundred forty-seven representatives from thirty-four denominations met from April 7 through 9, 1942, in St. Louis, Missouri, for a "National Conference for United Action among Evangelicals." The next year six hundred representatives in Chicago established the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) with Harold Ockenga as its first president. The NAE was partly a reaction to the founding of the American Council of Christian Churches (ACCC) under the leadership of the fundamentalist Carl McIntire. The ACCC in turn had been founded to counter the influence of the Federal Council of Churches (later merged into the National Council of Churches), which fundamentalists saw as increasingly embracing modernism in its ecumenism. Those who established the NAE had come to view the name fundamentalist as "an embarrassment instead of a badge of honor."


title: Evangelicalism

text: Evangelical revivalist radio preachers organized themselves in the National Religious Broadcasters in 1944 in order to regulate their activity.


title: Evangelicalism

text: With the founding of the NAE, American Protestantism was divided into three large groups—the fundamentalists, the modernists, and the new evangelicals, who sought to position themselves between the other two. In 1947 Harold Ockenga coined the term "neo-evangelicalism" to identify a movement distinct from fundamentalism. The neo-evangelicals had three broad characteristics that distinguished them from the conservative fundamentalism of the ACCC:


title: Evangelicalism

text: Each of these characteristics took concrete shape by the mid-1950s. In 1947 Carl F. H. Henry's book "The Uneasy Conscience of Fundamentalism" called on evangelicals to engage in addressing social concerns:


title: Evangelicalism

text: In the same year Fuller Theological Seminary was established with Ockenga as its president and Henry as the head of its theology department.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The strongest impetus, however, was the development of the work of Billy Graham. Graham had begun his career with the support of McIntire and fellow conservatives Bob Jones Sr. and John R. Rice. However, in broadening the reach of his London crusade of 1954, he accepted the support of denominations that those men disapproved of. When he went even further in his 1957 New York crusade, conservatives strongly condemned him and withdrew their support. According to William Martin:


title: Evangelicalism

text: A fourth development—the founding of "Christianity Today" ("CT") with Henry as its first editor—was strategic in giving neo-evangelicals a platform to promote their views and in positioning them between the fundamentalists and modernists. In a letter to Harold Lindsell, Graham said that "CT" would:


title: Evangelicalism

text: The postwar period also saw growth of the ecumenical movement and the founding of the World Council of Churches, which the Evangelical community generally regarded with suspicion.


title: Evangelicalism

text: In the United Kingdom, John Stott (1921–2011) and Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899–1981) emerged as key leaders in Evangelical Christianity.


title: Evangelicalism

text: The charismatic movement began in the 1960s and resulted in the introduction of Pentecostal theology and practice into many mainline denominations. New charismatic groups such as the Association of Vineyard Churches and Newfrontiers trace their roots to this period (see also British New Church Movement).


title: Evangelicalism

text: The closing years of the 20th century saw controversial postmodern influences entering some parts of Evangelicalism, particularly with the emerging church movement. Also controversial is the relationship between spiritualism and contemporary military metaphors and practices animating many branches of Christianity but especially relevant in the sphere of Evangelicalism. Spiritual warfare is the latest iteration in a long-standing partnership between religious organization and militarization, two spheres that are rarely considered together, although aggressive forms of prayer have long been used to further the aims of expanding Evangelical influence. Major moments of increased political militarization have occurred concurrently with the growth of prominence of militaristic imagery in evangelical communities. This paradigmatic language, paired with an increasing reliance on sociological and academic research to bolster militarized sensibility, serves to illustrate the violent ethos that effectively underscores militarized forms of evangelical prayer.


title: Evangelicalism

text: In Nigeria, evangelical megachurches, such as Redeemed Christian Church of God and Living Faith Church Worldwide, have built autonomous cities with houses, supermarkets, banks, universities, and power plants.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Evangelical Christian film production societies were founded in the early 2000s, such as Sherwood Pictures and Pure Flix .


title: Evangelicalism

text: The growth of evangelical churches continues with the construction of new places of worship or enlargements in various regions of the world.


title: Evangelicalism

text: According to a 2011 Pew Forum study on global Christianity, 285,480,000 or 13.1 percent of all Christians are Evangelicals. These figures do not include the Pentecostalism and Charismatic movements. The study states that the category "Evangelicals" should not be considered as a separate category of "Pentecostal and Charismatic" categories, since some believers consider themselves in both movements where their church is affiliated with an Evangelical association.


title: Evangelicalism

text: In 2015, the World Evangelical Alliance is "a network of churches in 129 nations that have each formed an Evangelical alliance and over 100 international organizations joining together to give a world-wide identity, voice, and platform to more than 600 million Evangelical Christians". The Alliance was formed in 1951 by Evangelicals from 21 countries. It has worked to support its members to work together globally.


title: Evangelicalism

text: According to Sébastien Fath of CNRS, in 2016, there are 619 million Evangelicals in the world, one in four Christians. In 2017, about 630 million, an increase of 11 million, including Pentecostals.


title: Evangelicalism

text: Operation World estimates the number of Evangelicals at 545.9 million, which makes for 7.9 percent of the world's population. From 1960 to 2000, the global growth of the number of reported Evangelicals grew three times the world's population rate, and twice that of Islam. According to Operation World, the Evangelical population's current annual growth rate is 2.6 percent, still more than twice the world's population growth rate.


title: Evangelicalism

text: In the 21st century, there are Evangelical churches active in many African countries. They have grown especially since independence came in the 1960s, the strongest movements are based on Pentecostal-charismatic beliefs. There is a wide range of theology and organizations, including some sponsored by European missionaries and others that have emerged from African culture such as the Apostolic and Zionist Churches which enlist 40 percent of black South Africans, and their Aladura counterparts in western Africa.