does anyone know what apostolic is about?

As I understand it, they say they can trace the lineage of their overseers, appointment to appointment, back to the Apostles.

theres two different churches both claiming to be 'apostolic' but they aren't the same - RCC and Pentecostal/Word of Faith

So it could be either of those.

Basically the understanding of apostolic which is given in the Bible is Ephesians 2:20
However you have to remember that Jesus is the cornerstone. So even the apostles and prophets are not the key foundation - Jesus is.

janny108 said:

what is apostolic church mean?

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Where ?

apostles - meaning the 12 disciples that became apostles and sent out including Paul (Judas was not)
prophets- all the prophets of the OT and including John the Baptist who was the last prophet before Jesus.

different denoms interpret 'apostolic' differently.

As previously mentioned, there are two types of groups referred to as Apostolic. There are those churches that have a valid apostolic succession (EO, RCC, OO, even Anglican iirc) which goes all the way back to the apostles themselves (who founded the various Sees).

Then there are those churches, which are basically Pentecostals, are all about holiness standards (which includes no cutting of the hair, no make up, no jewelry, women must wear skirts and dresses), and they don't believe in the Trinity (they will say they are Oneness or Jesus Only). So, they reject the Trinity and only Baptize in Jesus' Name. For this reason, this group does not qualify as Christian.

janny108 said:

there is a church in my city that is under apostolic and I'm trying to decide what group they fall under. It's holiday weekend so I can't call them

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Ah- if they flat out refer to themselves as apostolic in the phone book- then they're the Pentecostal denying the Trinity type.

Not all the churches that use the term Apostolic are non Trinitarian.

A quick look in Wikipedia turned up the International Apostolic Church, which is conservative Wesleyan. Indeed I associate the term Apostolic with the holiness tradition, which is often orthodox, because historically it came from the Wesleyan tradition. But I agree that it is also used by non-trinitarian Pentecostals, and perhaps that's now more common.

Also, while most of the traditional apostolic churches call themselves Catholic or Orthodox, looking for churches with Apostolic in NJ, I find Sts. Vartanantz Armenian Apostolic Church. It is apostolic in the traditional sense. I'm pretty sure it's Trinitarian.

hedrick said:

I'm not sure all the churches that use the term Apostolic are non Trinitarian.

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I've never heard of one that didn't deny the Trinity. If you know of any apostolic churches that aren't Jesus Only, then I'd love to know which ones those are. In fact, UPCI is one group that broke away from the Assemblies of God over a disagreement regarding the Trinity and Jesus' Only baptism. This is, literally, one of the defining characteristics of this movement, besides the usual Pentecostal stuff. Growing up Pentecostal (Assemblies of God)- they made sure I knew the difference.

seashale76 said:

...
Then there are those churches, which are basically Pentecostals, are all about holiness standards (which includes no cutting of the hair, no make up, no jewelry, women must wear skirts and dresses), and they don't believe in the Trinity (they will say they are Oneness or Jesus Only). So, they reject the Trinity and only Baptize in Jesus' Name. For this reason, this group does not qualify as Christian.

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I've heard the word Pentecostal used a lot, and never have heard it used to refer to the non-Trinitarian movement or its adherents. To me, your list of attributes is a list that defines what a Pentecostal is not.

I think in its most basic form, Pentecostal just refers to people who believe that the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost still happens today, and doesn't say anything else about beliefs (or unbelief). In common usage, though, there is a strong connection with the belief that God still grants gifts of the Holy Spirit as described in 1 Corinthians 12 and 14. What additional connotations there are depend on who you ask, and (apparently) there's a crazy amount of variation.

There is a lack of consistency about what people believe the Azusa Street Revival or the Holiness movement to mean. To some people they are simply events that are believed to be the pouring out of the Holy Spirit without saying anything about associated Christian (or non-Christian) beliefs, and fit comfortably with a mainstream view of core beliefs.

All the above applies to the use of apostolic, too, in my experience, except it is a reference to the mainstream-accepted Christian beliefs built on the apostles. There's sometimes an aroma of fundamentalism to it, as well (although what that word means is another story).

One of the best known Pebtecostal groups, the UPC, is non Trinitarian. But that doesn't mean they all are.

It depends what definition of apostle they're using. "High" churches allow only the original Twelve, minus Judas and plus Matthias and Paul, and require tracing apostleship generationally back to them. But the NT uses the word apostle in its more generic form as well, including more than the 13.

Others are more concerned with the gifts and callings of the office. For instance, many decades ago two young men in a remote province of China found a New Testament, read it and believed on Christ. This was strictly illegal, and there was no one to baptize them, so they baptized each other in a river, and then proceeded to start house churches - many house churches. This was an apostolic movement. There have been many such in China over the past 70 years, and the growth and vitality of the church there has been phenomenal.

Basically, it hearkens back to the earliest centuries, when churches were essentially of independent governance, woven together under the guidance of an itinerant apostle or prophet.

seashale76 said:

Then there are those churches, which are basically Pentecostals, are all about holiness standards (which includes no cutting of the hair, no make up, no jewelry, women must wear skirts and dresses), and they don't believe in the Trinity (they will say they are Oneness or Jesus Only). So, they reject the Trinity and only Baptize in Jesus' Name. For this reason, this group does not qualify as Christian.

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Those are false accusations against the Pentecostals, without merit.
The disciples in Scripture always immersed in Yeshua's Name - they never used the famous 'formula' you like.
This had nothing to do with rejecting the Trinity.

paul1149 said:

then proceeded to start house churches - many house churches. This was an apostolic movement. There have been many such in China over the past 70 years, and the growth and vitality of the church there has been phenomenal.

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I'd love to hear that this has happened all over the world, ....
and perhaps it has ....
but since they are "illegal" in many countries, they don't seek attention for themselves
nor advertise - like honest doctors, they don't want their names and locations published -
same as Corrie ten Boom warned 'Churches' in the untied states back in the 70's and 80's, (but few listened, apparently... ... ... oh, wait, ... if they DID listen, they are underground, un-heard of/ below the radar mostly.... GOOD HOPE ANYWAY ! )