International Pentecostal Denomination Just Appointed Its Next Leader
Bishop Arthur Douglas Beacham, Jr., was reelected to a second term as general superintendent of the International Pentecostal Holiness Church (IPHC) at the 28th IPHC General Conference July 26. The first day of the three-day conference—held this year in Orlando, Florida—featured worship, teaching and intense Parliamentary votes.
The main action took place at the Wednesday Business Session, where delegates from every IPHC conference gathered to vote on new leadership and bylaw amendments. The race for general superintendent was stirring but uneventful. Beacham ran unopposed and was unanimously reelected to his position. After the vote, he took the stage to a standing ovation and, voice breaking, thanked the crowd for letting him lead them. He also honored his wife, Susan, for her many years of support.
The race for executive director of evangelism USA was much closer, with five different candidates and three rounds of runoff voting. The initial vote was waylaid by technical issues with the voting devices; during the third attempt to cast votes, one board member joked, “I’m wondering, Mr. Chairman, if the Russians may not have hacked us?”
Eventually, Rev. Garry Bryant won the vote, narrowly beating runner-up Rev. Stacy Hilliard. Bryant said he would use the position to continue the mission of evangelizing America. Bishop Preston Mathena, Rev. W. Terry Fowler and Bishop Tom L. Murray were also nominated. Dr. Luis Avilar was nominated by his peers but declined the nomination.
Most bylaw changes were simple word changes or updates to reflect new times, but one motion was particularly controversial. The Bylaws Committee Report proposed an amendment to extend Executive Committee members’ term limits from two to three terms. IPHC Executive Committee members may only remain in a position past their term limit if they win two-thirds approval in a vote, as opposed to a simple majority before their term limit. Several delegates voiced their opposition to this amendment and motioned for the amendment to be struck down.
Bishop Randall Drake spoke in favor of the amendment: “We have a saying in Oklahoma: I don’t have a dog in this hunt. I happen to be in my fourth term and the only individual on the Council of Bishops to be in his third or fourth term. I believe our conferences are capable of making decisions after one or two terms by a simple majority.”
Ultimately, the opposition motion failed, and the amendment was approved by 56.5 percent of the delegates.
Following the votes, delegates were excused until the evening service, where Beth Moore gave a sermon on Hebrews 10 and also shared her connection to the IPHC.
