The story
History
Dr. Raphael Thomas founded FBCM in 1928. He was also the founder of two schools, Doane Evangelistic Institute (DEI) and Manila Evangelistic Institute (MEI). Jointly with MEI, the church rented the facilities owned by Christian Missions until 1937 when MEI erected a building in Ermita on property bought by ABWE (Association of Baptists for World Evangelism) on the corner of Pennsylvania (now Leon Guinto Sr.) and Oregon (now Padre Faura) streets. For the use of the building and utilities, the church was paying twenty pesos a month. In the early 1930s Dr. Thomas transferred leadership in the FBCM to Dr. Paul Culley. The building was destroyed by the Japanese in World War II. A new church building was built on the same site in 1951.
AFBCP
The Fundamental Baptist churches which were the fruits of ABWE, BBSI and DBBI ministries formed the Association of Fundamental Baptist Churches in the Philippines (AFBCP) with 7 regional associations some of which were organized even earlier:
Association of Baptist Churches in Northern Luzon
Association of Baptist Churches in Central Luzon
Association of Baptist Churches in Southern Tagalog
Palawan Association of Baptist Churches
Visayan Fellowship of Fundamental Baptist Churches
Bukidnon Association of Baptist Churches
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Davao Association of Fundamental Baptist Churches
Providentially, the AFBCP became a member of the International Council of Christian Churches and was frequently represented by Pastor Antonio Ormeo and Pastor Epifanio de la Pena in the early days of their involvement with the AFBCP and the ABWE. As the AFBCP was the National Association representing the ICCC in the Philippines, so was the National Council of Churches in the Philippines for the World Council of Churches (WCC). This sparked the already seething controversy between Biblical Christianity and the "Laodicean" version of Christianity in the country.
FECCC
In 1951, the Far Eastern Council of Christian Churches (FECCC) was formed at the First Baptist Church of Manila with Pastor Ormeo as president, Dr. Timothy Tow as vice president, Rev. K.C. Quek as secretary and Pastor Epifanio de la Pena as treasurer. The AFBCP became one of the original national associations that joined this Far Eastern Regional Bible Fundamental(ist) movement. In 1999, the AFBCP and the ABCLVM (Association of Baptist Churches in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao) co-hosted the 15th FECCC Congress at the Caliraya Re-Creation Center in Laguna, Philippines. This event was a marvelous reunion of "Senior Citizens" Fundamental Bible Pastors and Missionaries in the Philippines and from the neighboring countries: Dr. K.C. Quek, Pastor Antonio Ormeo, Dr. Ernesto Rivera, Dr. Roberto Gequillana, Dr. Antolin Zamar, Dr. Mariano Leones and a host of second-generation leaders like Pastor Ed Ormeo, Dr. Quek Swe Hwa, Dr. Choi, Pastor Ebenezer Nacita, Pastor Fidel, Rev. Collado Dr. Kwang Jae and the special presence of Dr. Carl McIntire, though on a wheelchair.
History of ABCLVM splits
First split
From 1965 to 2002, many important events had taken place within the ABCLVM. The first break-away was in 1972, when Pastor Gavino Tica came back from his studies at the Tennessee Temple Schools in the United States, and started his own Baptist Association in the Philippines. Many churches, particularly in Eastern Rizal who were members of the ABCLVM joined his BIMI. His group was the first split from the ABCLVM. The issue involved was not doctrinal because he remained a Fundamentalist. The reason for the split was a shift from his former indigenous missions policy to foreign sponsorship and subsidy. With this change in the philosophy of support, he could no longer be comfortable with the ABCLVM which insisted that Filipino ministries should be supported by the tithes and offerings of the membership of the local churches or through joint missions partnership where both partners share in the burden of the work.
Second split
The second group that pulled out of the ABCLVM in 1989 was the Hilltop Ministries and the Center for Biblical Studies led by former New Tribes Mission missionaries who in 1972 joined the ministries of FBCM and who were adopted by the ABCLVM, Rev. Dan Ebert III and his two sons, Rev. Dan Ebert IV and Rev. Bill Ebert and some Filipino leaders; and later joined Rev. Willie Bona and Rev. Laudemar Lubaton, Rev. Samuel Comising and others. Issues involved were very complicated because they ranged from controversies over the Dispensational approach to Biblical interpretation; differences in philosophy of missions operation and support; Bible institute training priorities; conflicting approaches to church discipline and rehabilitation; indigenous policy; bible translation preference and other minor administrative problems mixed with interpersonal conflicts.
Third split
The third group that became separate from the ABCLVM is the Filipino Baptist Fundamental Fellowship International led by Rev. Rocky Diaz and the late Rev. Gideon Romero organized in 2000. The issue was partly impatience over the very slow reactivation of the national activities of the ABCLVM and the wrongly perceived attitude that FBCM and its Senior Pastor Ptr. Ebenezer Nacita was no longer interested with the ABCLVM as a national association. Another reason could have been the delinquent status of the ABCLVM with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Still another significant reason may have been the shift from the Indigenous Missions Policy to foreign support which this new group has adopted soon after its organization.
From Wikipedia’s article on First Baptist Church of Manila, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.3