NAZARENES. - A sect of Wesleyan origin, which arose at the beginning of the 20th century (Church of the Nazarene).
It was a widespread opinion among Protestants that after Wesley's death (1791) the idea of "perfect sanctification" had no longer been insisted upon, having almost disappeared during the 18th century, owing to the enormous development of Wesley's other doctrine of "conversion." Here and there groups of "holiness" and Pentecostal groups sprang up, which claimed to revive in Christians the idea of perfect holiness, manifested through the charisms granted by the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.
From three of these groups, which united in 1907, the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene arose. From three other groups gathered in 1904 the Holiness Church of Christ had been formed, which in 1915 merged with the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene. In 1919, at the General Assembly of Kansas City (Missouri), it was decided to drop the name "Pentecostal," retaining the name Church of the Nazarene. The reason for this change is due to the fact that, since many Pentecostal Churches had meanwhile developed, which regarded the "gift of tongues" as a manifestation of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, the General Assembly of Kansas City wished to make known that it rejected this doctrine.
The Church of the Nazarene, made up of certain elements taken from Methodism (v.) and from Pentecostalism, admits the necessity of repentance, which is followed by justification and regeneration. Entire sanctification is the act of God by which man, regenerated and freed from sin, is made perfect through the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. This perfection is also called "Perfect Love; Baptism of the Holy Spirit; fullness of blessings; Christian holiness," and it enables the Christian who possesses it to avoid, and in fact to avoid, all sins (a doctrine directly opposed to the Council of Trent, sess. VI, can. 23). The ecclesiastical government is similar to that of the Methodists. The N. have missions in Africa, Asia and Latin America, especially in Guatemala, and work at the formation of native ministers. They do not reach 100,000, but they are well organized.
Bibliography4 works
Camillo Crivelli