The Church of God full Gospel Establishment & Short
Bio Resume
The Church of
God full Gospel in Greece was founded in 1964 by brother Herodotus
Kourpas.
He was already the Pastor of a group of born again and Spirit-filled
believers since 1956,
and since
1958 until 1964 they were Christians of
the “International
Church of the Foursquare
Gospel” officially.
In 1964 Brother Vessie Hargrave of the Church of God
in USA
proposed to Brother Kourpas to cooperate with the International Church of God.
That was accepted and so started the operation of the Church
of God in Greece officially.
Pastor Herodotus Kourpas was also the Overseer of the
Churches of God in Greece
until 1998 when he passed away to
the Lord. During his ministry, with the love and support, and by the close and
devoted cooperation and assistance of his blessed wife Sister Fotini Kourpas and of his daughters Despoina, Vaso, Efterpi, as
well as of several workers of the Lord, the Gospel of Jesus Christ was spread
over in many places of Greece.
Despite the troubles and the opposition of the
official Orthodox Church, thousands of people were evangelized, got the Bible and
the New Testament and hundreds of them gave their hearts to the Lord. Many were
blessed by receiving salvation, healing, deliverance from sin, from Satan, and his doings.
God
used His people – the ministers of the Church of God
- to establish missions to some places of the country and three churches:
in
Athens, in Thiva,
and in Kokkinos Mylos as well as few home Bible-studies.
The
main ministers that the Lord raised and used or is using them for the extension
of His Kingdom, the growth and the development of His Church were/are the
following brothers, who honored God through their dedicated life and
disinterested ministry: Chronopoulos, Moshos,
Andreadis, Bogdis John, Pateras Jim, Lekkas Anastasios, Korbos Pnayiotis, Kalamakas Stelios, Jim Pateras. George Pappas, Costas Gatzelias who
have passed away to the Lord. Costas Gatzelias who served
as an Elder of the Church, helped and supported it and Pastor Herodotus for
many years, as a house Pastor and as the Greek Church Pastor in the years 1998-2001. George Pappas,
was called by the Lord and went to South Africa for many years and
established and independent church. He returned to Athens few years ago pasturing
an independent church called “HARVEST’’– located close to the central Church of
God in Athens. Some months before he passed away, his congregation called “THERISMOS
– HARVEST” cooperated with the “CHURCH OF GOD” moving in the same church
building for about one year and a half. Brother Dimitris Lekkas, who was the
youth pastor of the Church in 1989 – 1992, and since then he is the pastor of
the “ATHENS CHRISTIAN CHURCH” in the center of Athens. Brother Costas Gatzelias
who served as an elder beside Herodotus Kourpas, and served as a home pastor
for many years. Alkis Gatzelias who graduated from the EBS and serveδ as pastor
in our Church in Kokkinos Mylos the years 1997-2018.
The call of Bro. Anastasios Aronis, his
joining to the Athens CoG, & his approval
In 1992, the Lord added to the Athens Church, a young Spirit-filled man called
Anastassios (Tassos) Aronis, with a strong calling of God’s love to serve God
and His people, and to work fully dedicated for the Lord’s will and purposes.
The personal call from God to him was given in 1987, as he was praying down on his knees meditating the
Word of God in the book of Joshua 1: 1-9
The Holly Spirit talked to him that he is going to preach REPENTANCE to God’s people! And that he will
bring back God’s people to the Land of his forefathers!
Since then, he liked to give his testimony not only to the Body of
Christ, but also to the people of his environment wherever God opened doors to him,
with warm and fervent zeal. He evangelized the most of his coworkers during his
secular jobs, in a period of about 10 years.
That man was led by a special sign of the Lord, after prayer, to meet with and know Efterpi the third
and youngest daughter of Pastor Herodotus Kourpas in order to get married.
Thus, in 1992,
Brother Tassos Aronis and Efterpi Kourpas got married and now they have three
children: one boy Nikitas and two daughters Chrysanthi and Ero.
Brother Anastasios Aronis was inspired and was
educated to love and do the ministry in action, by following his first Pastor
who led him to the Lord, Brother Andreas Papadopoulos (1984-1991) and his second Pastor and father in
law Herodotus Kourpas within the years 1992–1998.
In 1994, Anastasios Aronis was ordained by the Eldership of the Church of God
as an Evangelist, according to his warm sharing of the Gospel of Christ to many
people of his working environment place,
and according to the Holly Bible – the Word of God – Paul’s epistle to Ephesians
4: 7-16.
On October 1996, in the Church of
God in Athens, when took place the second semi Annual Meeting of the Greek
Pentecostals Ministers Fellowship, God used br. Aronis to call all the present
workers of the Lord (more than 50 people from all around Greece) to ask forgiveness from the Lord, for the
broken spiritual wall of the unity to His Church in the country, to forgive one
another and rehabilitate the broken relationships between those that had splits
in their churches, proclaiming from Nehemiah 2: 17
“Come, let us rebuild (together) the wall (of the
Church in Greece),
and we will no longer be in disgrace.”
The message
for repentance had been shared to the leaders of the people of God in Greece!
On September 1998, after Brother Kourpas passing away, Brother Costas Gatzelias – a
faithful and good coworker of Brother Kourpas, since the beginning of the Church of God
ministry in Greece, who
served as an Elder, Evangelist and home – Pastor - took over the leadership of
the Athens’
church until the end of 2001.
On
November 2001, two months
after September 11th, while the Christians
and the other people of the USA and of the rest of the world
were crying to God, because of the terrorists’ attacks and the death of
thousands people, the Lord lifted br. Anastasios up among hundreds of
ministers, to call His people in
Europe to REPENT through interpreted tongues, during the
European Conference of the Church of God, in Kircheim of Germany!
The
main message for repentance that was given was the following: “My people in Europe,
I am He Who loves you and died on the cross for you, to save you and redeem
you. I keep you in my hands, and I say to you REPENT, as My people in USA is
now repenting….!”
The Greek
Church of God in Athens
since 2002
Same
year, after Brother’s Costas Gatzelias suggestion and the approval of the
church members Br. Anastasios Aronis was given the leadership of the Athen’s
church of God. It was a
personal promise of God given to br. Anastasios few years ago: ‘You will take over this church some day’. Pastor C. Gatzelias advised the church
members: ‘Love, support and obey Br. Tassos’. Οn February 2002
was
approved as the official Pastor of the Church of God in Athens, by the Ministry
of Education and Religion of the Greek State.
On
June 2002
the
Head Quarters of Church of God Cleveland Tennessee appointed him as an Exhorter
in the Church of God, while the World Missions Board has approved Aronis’
appointment as Chairman of the Church of God in Greece five times: 2000-2002,
2002–2004, 2004–2006, 2006-2008 and for 2008-2010,
2010-2012, 2012-2014, 2014-2016, 2016-2018 General Assembly Period. These appointments
have also been approved by the General Executive Committee of the Church of God. Pastor Aronis has been also
approved and entitled as Ordained Minister and Ordained Bishop of the Church of
God, after written examinations upon theology, and practice leadership of the
Bible.
It was during 2001-2002, that God put into Pastor Anastasios’ heart His
message, that:
He
will do the Church of God in Greece
a MULTINATIONAL Church!
He
immediately started sharing this Vision with the church, by faith, waiting upon
His time, seeking the Lord’s Face and expecting Him to fulfill His promise!
Pastor
Anastasios has ministered the Gospel of Jesus Christ into various jails of
Greece, together with other brethren and mission. On December 20, 2003 to more than
300 young men
prisoners, and in April of 2004, and May of 2005, to other
groups of young people into same jail just before Easter.
The
witnessing of the Word of God was wonderful and the response of the prisoners
to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord was great, during
those three missions, while the most of them got the New Testament!
The Church of God in Thiva
Thiva is one of the very ancient Greek
cities, with a long - deep history into the centuries, 80 kilometers away from Athens.
It has 35.000 of total population.
The Greek people of Thiva are working to the agriculture (farmers, industry workers,
traders and shop owners). Out of them are Pakistan’s and India’s
refugees, Albanians, and Romanians.
These people came here for a better future and life, to find a job and live
better than their countries. We the Greeks have always embraced these people,
getting them to our jobs and living with piece and respect to them.
Panayiotis
Bakousis, who serves as Thiva’s church Pastor, is working together with his
brother Costas Bakousis, who served for many years being the youth leader of
the area’s Pentecostal churches.
They have evangelized a large area of their territory together with
other brethren of similar Pentecostal churches.
During the last few years, the Holly Spirit is working
among the Muslim Gypsies who came from Albania
to Greece
for a better life. Starting with 2-3 children who visited Pastor P. Bakousis shop begging money, the Lord
Jesus has saved and brought to our church more than 12 young children. Sister Virginia Bakousis-Papaloukas
(daughter of Pastor Panayiotis) together with her husband Christos Papaloukas
are teaching the Christian gypsies children, in the Sunday school of Thiva’s
church.
In Easter of 2002 Pastors Anastasios & Panayiotis together with their families
preached the Gospel to three of the gypsies’ camps, and evangelized more than 200 people.
By our Lord’s help and power, and despite
the bad propaganda against us and the persecution of the Orthodox – state
Church the previous years – we are moving forward, being in evangelistic action
by common efforts and activities that have been already developed since the
previous years.
Plus, each Sunday morning, before the
Service of the church, we teach the Word of God to twelve children – refugees from Albania former Moslems – who are
accepting the truths of the Gospel of our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ. After
the Bible lesson we offer them food.
Our prayer, desire and vision is to see
many of these Gypsy Muslim children and their relatives – parents and so on
(who live in camps) to receive Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Lord,
and change their community, where they live in. Our vision which is growing into our hearts is a School for these
children, that might me established, where we could teach them Greek and
English language – as they are (children and old people) totally illiterate –
and mainly the Word of God. We are praying for the needed resources and the
funds, that we do not have, as we are a small church which has many needs.
On Sunday afternoons, as we visit the Home
for the Aged of our town, God uses us to give His love, comfort and mercy to
the needful old people of Thiva.
They become very blessed and happy as they
feel and see that someone cares for them!
We also are guided by the Lord to visit
regularly many ill and sick people to the hospitals. During the last years we
have visited those people many times, by our merciful Lord’s love and grace! We suffered together with people who were in
mourning and hardship and have connection with our church loving and supporting them.
Being always inspired by our Christ’s
Spirit and our Overseer’s Brother Anastasios Aronis action for a united
witnessing church, we keep on participating to the regular meetings of the
“Greece’s Pentecost Churches Brotherhood”, in which there are members from more
than forty Pentecostal churches of Greece.
Beyond our common mission and evangelistic
efforts, we are also activated in evangelism individually, concerning to the
people with whom we come in personal conduct in all places we live daily: in
our workplaces, in our neighborhoods, with our relatives and schoolmates.
Abiding to our Master’s promise that He
will be always with us, if we keep His Word, we work and fight very hard daily,
“the good fight of faith”, so that the Church of God might grow
up spiritually and numerically.
Thus, let us be fully assured and
convinced that our Good Shepherd will reward our labor accordingly.
Our Blessed Sunday School in the church at Thiva!
The Filipino Church
of God in Athens Building
During March of 2004, our Lord God brought among us
and added to the church
of Athens a group of
about 25 Filipino brethren, most of them were new
believers. It happened after Pastor Anastasios offered to them the Athens CoG
building to use it for their services, as they didn’ t have any church building
for their meetings.
The encouraging and prophetical word of Pastor Anastasios to their
Pastor Biernes (Dong) Mentoza – who was already approved as an Exhorter by the Church of
God in USA – was the following: “Brother Dong, if you want to cooperate with
us and serve together the Lord and His people united with His love, God will
make you double until next year same time!”
On March 2005, when
they celebrated their 1st Anniversary
as Filipino Church of God, under the devoted, the
diligent and inspired leadership of their Spirit-filled Filipino Pastor Dong
Mentoza, this congregation numbered more than forty five souls! Pastor Anastasios
during this anniversary encouraged them again saying that, ‘If we continue united with Christ’s love, next year you ‘ll be double too!’ As of now, they are more
than ninety souls as they are growing wonderfully, by
the Lord’s precious – mighty leading!
Our Blessed Filipino congregation on Christmas 2014!
Since
January 1, 2006 the
Lord added to us thirty one more souls of a Filipino Church called “Christ The Mighty God Fellowship
Ministry”, after their leader’s Sister Lourdes Panoussis request to join
CoG in Greece and to be fully united with us. This happened because of Pastor’s Dong spirit of
unity and cooperation, who suggested to Sis. Lourdes
this cooperation, and after a special sign that she received from the Lord to
join the Church of God in Greece.
The “Romanian
Church of God in Crete”
On July 2005, the Romanian Bishop of the
Church of God in USA Bishop Johnny Buia, together with Pastor Anastasios helped
and assisted the Romanian Pastor Daniel Karacsony to organize and establish the
first “Romanian Church of God in Crete”. This
house group church was formed to be a church in a rented house since last
February 2005,
in the island of Crete,
in the village Tsesmes.
The situation shows that God might use them to plant and establish
more Romanian churches in Greece.
Praise to God! As of
October 2008,
the Lord ‘gave birth’ to one house church at Heraklion and to one more at
Ierapetra, consisted by three Romanian families who believe in the Lord,
worship Him and started following His Word!
On summer 2016 our blessed coworker Alex Kira took over the Leadeship of the Church after His Ordination, as well His official Licence from the Ministry of Religions
On summer 2016 our blessed coworker Alex Kira took over the Leadeship of the Church after His Ordination, as well His official Licence from the Ministry of Religions
A
Blessed & Precious Cooperation
In the years 1992 – 2005, the Leadership of the
Church of God
in Athens ceded
its building to be used freely for its services and meetings by the Apostolic
Church of Pentecost in which the Pastor was Rev. Vasilios (Bill) Giannakopoulos
– the first son in law of Pastor and Overseer Herodotus Kourpas - until the end
of the year 2005. This happened because the
above mentioned church was expelled out of its building due to an internal
leadership problem, in 1992.
Within the above years there was a very good cooperation
between the two churches living together in same building. That is why on 2005,
Pastor Anastasios Aronis officially invited the leaders of the Apostolic Church
of Pentecost to join the Church of God and become one unified church due to
some leadership problem of this church. However, they decided that it was the
time to go to their ‘home’, as they told to Br. Aronis, without their Pastor
Bill Giannakopolos. So, they left our Church of God building thanking us for
our good hospitality and cooperation. Pastor Tassos embraced Pastor Bill and
his wife together with all members of the Greek Church of God and kept loving
them, trusting them and having Pastor Bill to serve God and His people in the Church of God.
Thus, since January 2006, Pastor
Vasilios (Bill) Giannakopoulos and his wife Vasiliki (Used to play the organ) – the second daughter of
Rev. Herodotus Kourpas ministered the Athens Church of God till 2012, when the left COG.
Pastor Bill, who has a great heart of God, likes to assist Pastor Anastasios
not only by teaching and preaching the people of God in the Church, but also
outside it by visiting and consoling them with the love of Christ.
The 1st
National Convention of the Churches of God in Greece
On Sunday March 5, 2006, we had a very fruitful 1st
Convention of the Churches of God in Greece,
here in Athens - Greece
among the Church
of God members - churches
- Greeks, Romanians and Filipinos, and African as well. It was a time of
praising the Lord, getting acquainted with each other and spending time
together even in food fellowships prepared by these nationalities.
We see that a new and more active vision in action is what the
Lord is putting in our hearts, especially among leaders to work together in
spite of our ethnic and cultural differences, but being one in the Spirit of
the Lord and in mother denomination.
We were glad to have Dr. Grant McClung, Field Director of the Church of God
in Europe
WesternMediterranean / Middle East as our
guest speaker, challenging us to redeem the time that the days are few. With
the theme: “The Lord Jesus Christ Is
Coming Soon. Who Shall See Him?”
We recognize our mandate as the Lord has
called us to expand His kingdom on earth.
We also noticed that the Church of God hall was already full due to the overflowing attendance. We had to add more chairs to accommodate everyone, though many were still outside and opted to stand. Ministers in Greece had the opportunity also of knowing each other. Some of them came even from far away place, and Romanians came from the island of Crete. Indeed harvest is about to accelerate in this part of the world. And the Church of God is being imputed by the Lord into our hearts to be active partners in the ministry here.
We also noticed that the Church of God hall was already full due to the overflowing attendance. We had to add more chairs to accommodate everyone, though many were still outside and opted to stand. Ministers in Greece had the opportunity also of knowing each other. Some of them came even from far away place, and Romanians came from the island of Crete. Indeed harvest is about to accelerate in this part of the world. And the Church of God is being imputed by the Lord into our hearts to be active partners in the ministry here.
May the Lord of harvests bless us
spiritually all the more in the days ahead as we see more of His wondrous works
displayed upon the church and upon the heathens as well. May souls come to know
the Lord in these last days. Jesus is the Lord of all the earth!
Two new Filipino Churches join the Church
of God in the beginning of 2008.
In the beginning of 2008, by our Lord’s grace, walking step by step following His will and
working diligently our call from God, the Lord used our Filipino head pastor
Biernes (Dong) Mendoza and added to the
Church of God two Filipino churches consisted of about forty souls each:
1) The ‘Athens
Full Gospel Fellowship’ under the leadership of pastora Celerina (Shirley)
Mapile, and
2) The ‘Lift Jesus Higher Fellowship’ under the leadership of pastor
Arthur Casas.
The leaders of these two churches, after they were informed about and
were given the Church of God in Greece doctrines – teachings as well the Church
of God World Missions policy, submitted an application to Chairman/ Overseer
Tassos Aronis, in order to become fully unified with the Church of God.
Their
applications were accepted and thus were registered to the Church of God
in Greece
under the “Union Preacher of Truth of The Church of God In Greece.”
Marriage reneal vows of our blessed Filipino pastor Arthur Casas & his wife on 2014!
Our Church operating in the Spirit of unity & cooperation hosted the evangelistic event with Michael Koulianos (Benny Hin's son in law) on June 2013!
That night was a very blessed one by God's Spirit as many brethren from different churches lifted up the name of our Savior and Lord. Pastor Michael Koulianos shared God's Word that Jesus Christ saves, heals and breaks bondages today. His Holly Spirit touched those who came in front of the pulpit at the end of the meetings with a wondeful encounter.
OUR
BRILLIANT VISION
& CALL IS BEING
FULFILLED STEP BY STEP!
All
the Glory and Honor and Adoration belongs to Him!
In the beginning of the 21st century, the vision, the
work and the ministry of Anastasios Aronis’ leadership together with the most
of the workers and the members of the Church of God, is that many people will
come to know Jesus Christ as personal Savior and Lord, in Greece.
To be added to His Church and follow Him, to be educated and minister
God, so that many new churches might be planted and the name of our Lord God might be glorified, until His
second coming to catch His people up in the clouds.
Our brilliant vision looks like that of the
‘tentmaker’ Paul. It is that “The Pearl of East” – Our Savior, Lord, Master and
coming King – might shine gloriously to all over our nation, our region,
Balkans, Middle East, and rest of the
world! We are very thankful to our faithful
Lord and Master for His Love, care and Great Commission that He has given us.
We also thank all the brethren of the Church
of God in USA and of all the other countries
for their prayers and their support.
Especially we are so thankful to the Leading Administration
of the Church of God
in USA, Europe
and the World Missions Department for their love and support, in order to
accomplish His Mission.
With
great anticipation into our hearts for all these things that our Precious and
Wonderful Master and King is going to perform in the coming future, you are
very kindly requested to keep on praying for the salvation of Greece, as well
as God to raise up workers, to send a Holly revival and to save millions of
people for His Glory for ever and ever! AMEN!
Our newly renovated Church is prepared to host one portion of the souls that the Lord of the coming harvest will add among us to come to know Him, to love Him, to adore Him and follow Him!
Since summer 2014 till the beginning 0f 2015 the Blessed Spirit of God Who had motivated pastor Anastasios to renew the Church, gave the needed Grace in plan, in people, in strength, in work, in finances to achieve a good renovation to all the operational systems.
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