Our hiSTORY

Evangelistic Temple Assembly of God is the spiritual offspring of the Pentecostal Movement that saw its beginnings in the Spirit-led Azusa Street Revivals of the early 1900s in the United States. In 1928, an Assemblies of God missionary from the South Florida District, Rev. I. G. Roberts, visited New Providence to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to Bahamians. After Rev. Roberts left The Bahamas, a small group of believers, organized under the unofficial leadership of S. B. Pinder, carried on this spiritual work. Then in 1932, Vivian Weech was elected the official leader of this group of Pentecostal believers. Two years later in 1934, Rev. Vivian Weech, along with the members, built a wooden structure on a piece of property located on Kemp Road in Nassau to accommodate the large crowds that were joining the group on a regular basis. This building was dedicated and named Pentecostal Lighthouse Tabernacle, the very first name given to Evangelistic Temple by its spiritual forefathers. In l935, Pentecostal Lighthouse Tabernacle was accepted and officially recognized as a member of the Assemblies of God, South Florida District. It became the very first Assembly of God Church to be established in The Bahamas.

Pastor Curry, as he is affectionately called by members and his religious colleagues, distinguishes himself as the longest serving Pastor of Evangelistic Temple from 1978-2012. Led by Pastor Curry, Evangelistic Temple made a considerable impact in the Bahamian community. In 1979 the radio program Temple Time on ZNS1 was started and still airs today. In 1981, the first local Christian television program was produced entitled "Reflections." In 1981 Temple Christian Pre and Elementary School was established, birthed out of Toddlers Academy which was started a few years earlier by Pastor Curry's wife, Sis. Myrtle Curry.  A few years later, in 1989, Temple Christian School was established. In 1999, a new church birthed out of Evangelistic Temple; Temple of The Word, was planted in Pinewood.  In 2011 the doors of a brand new edifice were opened as Pastor Curry completed his final goal as Sr. Pastor of Evangelistic Temple.  After thirty-four years of faithful service to Evangelistic Temple he retired from the Senior Pastor position.

In June of 1989, after six years of pastoral ministry in Freeport, Grand Bahama, Rev. Dr. Vaughan L. Cash and his family returned home to Nassau and began attending Evangelistic Temple. After six months at the Temple, he was invited to work with Trinity Assembly, a new Assemblies of God Church in Nassau. In March of 1993, Pastor Cash and his family returned to Evangelistic Temple and were received into official membership. In mid-1995, Pastor Cash was invited by Rev. Dr. Gary Curry, who was the Senior Pastor at the time, to join him in pastoral ministry at Evangelistic Temple in the position of Associate Pastor. On Sunday, August 13th, 1995, Dr. Cash began officially serving as Associate Pastor.

As Associate Pastor, and later on as Senior Associate Pastor, his portfolio covered the following responsibilities: general pastoral oversight, pastoral administration, Sunday morning services in the absence of the Senior Pastor, all pastoral duties in the absence of the Senior Pastor, assistance with all special services and events, Deputy Chairman of E.T. Church Board, Deputy Chairman of T.C.S. School Board, personal counseling, premarital counseling, marriage counseling, weddings, funerals, baby dedications, hospital visitation, home visitation (sick and shut-in), Sunday night preaching, Wednesday night Bible study, marriage ministry, evangelism ministry, adult Sunday School class, E.T. School of Ministry, Temple Time Broadcast, deacon’s training, ministers training, ministry leaders and workers training, and compiling and/or developing training material.

Pastor Cash served as Associate and Senior Associate Pastor of Evangelistic Temple for a total of seventeen years. Shortly after Evangelistic Temple moved into its new Worship Centre on Sunday, December 4th, 2011, Pastor Gary Curry announced that he would be stepping down as Senior Pastor the following year and named Pastor Cash as his successor. At the Church’s Business Meeting in March of 2012, the membership overwhelmingly elected Pastor Cash to the position of Senior Pastor Elect. On the evening of Monday, August 13th, 2012, he was installed as Senior Pastor of Evangelistic Temple. Over the next eleven years, Pastor Cash continued building upon the foundation of his predecessor, Rev. Dr. Gary Curry, while embracing the vision and assignment that God had given to him for the future spiritual life of Evangelistic Temple.

Some of the areas of ministry he focused on were: biblical teaching and preaching, Holy Spirit-led worship services, the consistent operation of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit in church services, revival, increasing the pastoral staff, establishing E.T. as God’s house of prayer, appointment of a prayer pastor, training and appointing new ministers, ongoing training of ministry leaders and workers, expanding the E.T. missions ministry, the continued growth and development of Temple Christian School, re-establishment and growth of the Spanish Church, rebuilding of the E.T. youth ministry, growing the E.T. membership, establishing new ministries to enhance the spiritual growth of members and followers, adult education classes, computer and technology training classes, community outreach, Fusion small groups, E.T. Olympics, paying off the mortgage on the new Worship Centre and the establishment of Elders for the first time in Evangelistic Temple's history.