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The International Ministerial Association (IMA) is an association offering credentials and support to Pentecostal ministers holding to the non-Trinitarian theology of Oneness and affiliated membership to Oneness Pentecostal churches. It was founded in 1954 by a group of ministers who left the larger United Pentecostal Church International (UPCI). The current headquarters of the IMA is located in Shell Lake, Wisconsin.

History
The history of the origins of the IMA is in the early days of the Pentecostal movement when a split took place over a doctrinal dispute concerning the nature of God and the formula for baptism. An early leader of the group advocating for a non-Trinitarian, Oneness understanding of God and for baptism in the name of Jesus was a man by the name of W. E. Kidson. Kidson would later go on to become the leader of the group of ministers who would form the IMA.

Faith & Practice
A key distinction of the IMA is its rejection of what the UPCI and many other Oneness Pentecostals refer to as the “Bible standard of full salvation”. This doctrine teaches that one must repent, be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the purpose of having one’s sins removed, and then give evidence of having received the baptism in the Holy Spirit by speaking in tongues. Instead, the IMA doctrinal statement reads, “We believe our redemption has been accomplished solely by the shed blood of our Lord Jesus Christ ... and by believing in this finished work, we are justified before God, cleansed of all our sins and redeemed from the curse of the law.” Water baptism in Jesus’ name and baptism in the Holy Spirit evidenced by speaking in other tongues are described as actions which take place after conversion and are not tied to one’s salvation.

Also, noticeably absent from the IMA doctrinal position are the holiness teachings associated with the UPCI from which it emerged and are practiced in some degree by many other Oneness Pentecostal groups. These teachings include such things as forbidding women wearing make-up or cutting their hair, forbidding all members from attending theaters and dances and from owning a television. Many ministers and members of IMA churches will own televisions and will participate in various forms of popular entertainment and culture. Women in most IMA churches are not forbidden from wearing make-up or from cutting their hair.

The IMA self-consciously identifies as an association and not as a denomination. In its literature it emphasizes the freedom this gives ministers and affiliated churches. Likewise, in its constitution it states, "Each church shall be considered sovereign and the pastor is the bishop of his own church or churches."

External Link
IMA Website