FAITH TEMPLE HISTORY
Serving JESUS since 1922
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The early history of Faith Temple of Sulphur, Louisiana, dates back to 1922 when
Rev. J. S. Frederick and Victor Hebert began a work which would come to be known
as the first Pentecostal church to be started in the area. They were both newly
filled with the baptism of the Holy Ghost and were early pioneers of the
Pentecostal movement in this area. Prior to 1922, cottage meetings were held in
the home of Mr. and Mrs. Vic Hebert as early as 1919. They had previously
received the Holy Ghost at a tent revival in Port Arthur, Texas. The Heberts had
friends in attendance at their meetings who also received the Holy Ghost, such
as Mr. and Mrs. Rudolph (Lezida) Saunier, Mr. and Mrs. E. C. Boutte, Mr. and
Mrs. DeBarge, Mr. Caesar Hebert, Mrs. Odile Hebert, and Mr. and Mrs. J. S.
(Edell) Frederick. The meetings were moved to Bayou D'lnde in a one room vacant
house (owned by Mr. Mike Leyton) by the Hamburg's place. When the meetings came
to this area, Mrs. Lydia Johnson Vincent said she had been praying for seven
years for the Lord to send someone to her area to preach. She had previously had
a personal experience with the Lord. At these meetings in Bayou D'lnde, other
believers added to the new work were Mr. and Mrs. John P. (Irene) Areno, Mr. and
Mrs. Henry (Pauline) Hafer, Mr. and Mrs. Joe (Tini) LeDoux, Mr. and Mrs. H.N.
Broussard, Mrs. Virgie Montgomery, and Mr. and Mrs. Amady Hebert. Rev. Frederick
became pastor of this group of believers and they built a church in Sulphur off
Burton Street going towards the old Sulphur mines. Later, the little church was
tom down and another church was built in the 300 block of Main (N. Huntington)
Street.
On March 18, 1929, the church was officially chartered as the Pentecostal
Assembly of Sulphur, Louisiana, with Rev. J. S. Frederick, Victor Hebert, Henry
Rarer, John P. (Pennie) Areno, and Amady Hebert serving as the first Board of
Trustees.
The church was later moved about three blocks to the location on Irwin Street.
Even though the building was small, as many as 400 were reported to be in
attendance at the church in the 1940's. During this time, the Pentecostal
movement really took root and other churches were established in the area, many
of them as an outgrowth of this original church. They were: The Little Country
Church in Hollywood, The Gospel Lighthouse (now Lighthouse Tabernacle), The
First Pentecostal Church of Sulphur, and the United Pentecostal Church. Also,
the Assemblies of God churches in Sulphur had their start with this original
church. At one point in time, there was only ONE Pentecostal church, ONE Baptist
church, ONE Catholic church, and ONE Methodist church in Sulphur and they were
all on Main (N. Huntington) Street.
Rev. Frederick was pastor of the church from its beginnings until 1948, when
Rev. C. C. Williarms assumed the pastorate. He was to remain in that position
until 1962. Under the dynamic leadership of Rev. Williams, the church was drawn
into the "Latter Rain" movement of the early 1950's and in 1951, the church
withdrew from the United Pentecostal organization and became a
non-denominational full gospel church. The "Latter Rain" movement was a
tremendous revival time and outpouring of the Holy Spirit in which people from
all denominations were worshipping together and experiencing a "coming together"
as one in the Lord. The "Charismatic Renewal" which followed in the 1970's and
1980's was much like the "Latter Rain" movement of the 1950's. In 1955, the
church name was officially changed to Faith Temple of Sulphur, Louisiana. During
this time a second building of brick was constructed on the corner of Lincoln
and Irwin Streets to house the sanctuary and Sunday School classrooms with the
original building being used for a fellowship hall and parsonage.
Rev. Frederick and Rev. Williams were the pastors of Faith Temple for its first
forty years. During this time, the church work was carried on by families such
as Hebert, Koonce, Miller, Hoffpauir, Areno, Rafer, LeJeune, LeDoux, Lyons,
Vincent, Boutte, Eccles, Saunier, Franklin, Guillotte, Smith, and Chapman.
Faith Temple has always been mission minded.
In 1937 Faith Temple help in the support of Brother Thomas, a missionary
to the Middle East, Baghdad, Saudi Arabia and Israel. Rev. J. W. Byrd became pastor in 1962 and was followed by a succession of interim and short-term pastors. They were Revs. Mack Quinn, Sam Ravia (deceased), Odell Allen, Dwayne McCormick, Jessie Coplin (deceased), Birchie Mae Rountree (deceased), and Don Whitt. In 1971, Rev. Sidney Fontenot began the first of three occasions to serve as pastor.
While Rev. Fontenot was pastor, the "Charismatic Renewal" began to take hold and
the congregation began experiencing a need for larger facilities. Attempts were
made to purchase property adjacent to the old church location but they were
unsuccessful and the board began to look elsewhere.
In August 1978, Rev. Larry LaFleur began his service at
Faith Temple. A decision to move the church location was made by the
congregation and 4.2 acres were purchased at 1200 Patton Street in 1980. Plans
for the new facility were drawn up under building committees consisting of
Marvin Robinson, Steve Aguillard, Darrell Istre, Roger Cox, John Stokes, Ken
Morris, and Rev. LaFleur. Actual construction of the new facilities was directed
by Clyde Irby as contractor and Ellis Benckenstein as President of the Board of
Trustees, along with other board members-Al Spence, Al Sharp, Willis Firestone,
Jesse Motes, Chuck White, Ray Lyles, and Janice Areno. The church complex is
valued in excess of $600,000 and consists of 18,000 square feet. The sanctuary
contains 6000 square feet with the remaining space allocated to Sunday School
classrooms, fellowship hall, nursery, and administrative offices. Services were
held in the fellowship hall beginning April 17, 1983, and the first service in
the new sanctuary was held October 9, 1983. Formal dedication services were held
December 11, 1983. The King's Kids Day Care was started shortly thereafter . After Rev. LaFleur's departure in October 1984, Rev. Sidney Fontenot returned as interim for the next several months. In September 1985, Rev. Gene Vincent began his tenure as pastor. Rev. Vincent decided to return to the evangelism field and Rev. Charles Holt became pastor in January 1989. In April 1992, Rev. Fontenot returned until November 1998. Rev. Charles S. Owens, III, served the church from November 1999 until June 2000. In September 2000, Rev. R.Brooks Fleig began his service as the sixteenth pastor of Faith Temple. In 2004 Rev. Don Robinson joined Faith Temple as it's seventeenth pastor. |