Since its inception in the summer of 1984 Victory Tabernacle has been a ministry founded on Christ and built in love. Proving that great things come from humble beginnings, Victory started as a bible study class that Pastor Butler held first in his living room and later in the lobby of Jenkins Funeral Home. From that small, but dedicated, gathering of what were then South Carolina State College and Claflin College students, came a slow, but, steady increase to a membership of over 300 hundred.

 

The church has been blessed to make three great moves.  Beginning from a house on Sprinkle Avenue; to a small edifice on North Road; then to a larger building on Glover street; and finally to its’ current place of worship at 681 Broughton Street. It’s evident that enormous growth comes from great love and great dedication. Renovations have just been completed to the present dwelling which the ministry has occupied since 2001. Through the growth and expansion of the church and the move into their present edifice, the 5-fold ministry remains a viable part of Victory’s purpose and mission. The ministry has also recently been restructured to accommodate the increasing needs of a growing church and community.

 

Victory became an affiliate ministry of the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, Inc. in October of 1996 and Suffragan Bishop Butler currently serves as the Chairman of the South Carolina State Council of the 24th Episcopal District under the leadership of Presiding Bishop Charles H. Ellis, III.

 

From the perseverance and calling of one anointed Man of God, Victory now has a comprehensive ministerial staff, an encompassing network of auxiliaries, and a dedicated outreach ministry. At the forefront and foundation of the outreach branch of the ministry is the MCB Community Development Center along with its extensive health ministry.

 

An integral part of the health ministry is the partnership with the Minority AIDS Council and the “A Family   Affair” HIV/AIDS Awareness and Outreach Support Group. Victory also houses the Orangeburg site for the USC Export Grant for HIV/Cervical Cancer, which is a program designed to assist with ending health disparities in minority women. Additionally, the health center holds health awareness meetings and Wellness Screening Clinics to check blood pressure and blood sugar.

 

If you ask Bishop Butler how the ministry has accomplished so much, he will tell you that, “Victory Tabernacle, has come this far by faith”. The Lord has greatly blessed Bishop Butler and the Victory Tabernacle family, and we have seen steady growth. God has rewarded his people for staying the course in the midst of adversity and opposition. The ministry has received several local and national honors including the God’s Trombone Award given by the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition. In 2013, Bishop Butler became the first African-American Mayor of the city of Orangeburg.

 

As a dedicated people, in the service of a great God, we shall accomplish great things.   As we look towards God for a greater blessing that is to come, we anticipate breaking ground on our family life center in the near future.

Suffragan Bishop Michael C. Butler was born to Mr. L. C. Glover and Mother Mabel (Butler) Partlow on August 21st in Auburn, Alabama. The family relocated to Atlanta, Georgia when he was two.  The eldest of two children, he has one sister, Lisa Butler (Rodney) James. Although Bishop Butler does not have any biological children, he helped rear two special sons; the late Matthew Millhouse of North, SC and currently Collins Bentley Williams of Orangeburg, SC.   He attended Hooper Elementary and later graduated from Avondale High School in Atlanta, GA.  In 1983, he received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Education from Claflin University in Orangeburg, SC.   Bishop Butler later went on to complete graduate courses at South Carolina State University and the University of South Carolina.  He obtained a Master of Education Degree in Curriculum Instruction and Assessment from Walden University.  He is a life member of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated.

 

In 1978, Suffragan Bishop Michael C. Butler received his calling into the ministry. A great woman of God told him that he would go to South Carolina and do a great work for the Lord.  When Bishop Butler moved to Orangeburg to attend college, little did he know he would not be returning to Atlanta to live. God had other directions for his life. He began his work in ministry by establishing a bible study in the summer of 1984.  He later became the founding Pastor of Victory Tabernacle Deliverance Temple of the Apostolic Faith, Inc. (PAW).

 

When Victory became a member of the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, Inc., with the affiliation came elevation and involvement for Bishop Butler.  In 1999, he was elevated to a District Elder and served in Region 3 of the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, Inc.  Two years later, he was elevated from District Elder to Suffragan Bishop and he currently oversees six (6) churches in Region 6 of the South Carolina State Council, 24th Episcopal District under the leadership of Bishop Richard E. Young, Sr.   In 2007, Bishop was elected as the Assistant Chairperson for the South Carolina State Council.   He currently serves as the Chairman of the South Carolina State Council under the leadership of Diocesan Bishop Charles H. Ellis III, Pastor of the Greater Grace Temple City of David in Detroit, Michigan.

 

Bishop Butler has taken the church to a new level in the community.   He has a heart for the people which through his effort, has resulted in the establishment of a partnership with the Minority AIDS Council and EXPORT (Cervical Cancer Center of Excellence and Partnership Community Outreach Research on Health Disparities and Training Institute for Partnership to Eliminate Health Disparities, The University of South Carolina and Claflin University) to provide assistance to persons with HIV/AIDS and Cancer; An ongoing outpatient screening clinic for blood pressure and blood sugar.  Most recently, Bishop Butler has established a partnership with the SC Works Orangeburg to establish the “Community Connection” offering assistance with: SC Work On-line Registration, job placement assistance/referrals, internet connections, basic computer skills, resume writing and employability/training workshops and much more at Victory Tabernacle every Thursday from 8:30am-5:00pm.   He is always working to add outreach and community services to the current offerings of the MCB Community Development Center.

 

Bishop Butler has been employed in various occupations which include an elementary school teacher; a case manager at the Orangeburg and Barnwell County Department of Social Services; a Social Services Specialist V with the Department of Disabilities and Special Needs in Bamberg County; an administrative assistant and assistant principal at North Middle School; and HIV Counselor. In 1984, he became the founding Pastor of Victory Tabernacle Deliverance Temple of the Apostolic Faith, Inc.   In October of 2006 Bishop Butler was the recipient of the God’s Trombone Award through the Citizenship Education Fund of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, under the leadership of the Reverend Jesse Jackson, Sr.   After campaigning on seven pillars of city revitalization: championing economic development, revamping neglected properties, reducing neighborhood crime and violence, reducing unemployment, promoting an educated workforce, creating greater collaboration between the city and the county and serving college student needs; Bishop Butler was elected the first African American mayor for the city of Orangeburg, November 2013.  Most recently in June 2014 Bishop Butler became a Certified City Official in Municipal Government with the Municipal Association and joined the African American Mayors Association.  He is currently employed with the Orangeburg Consolidated School District 5 at the - Technology Center.

 

Bishop Butler lives his motto “I CANNOT COME DOWN, I AM PREPARING FOR THE OVERFLOW”. It is as true today as it was when he began.

Apostolic Doctrinal Statement

(As Adapted by the P.A.W. from Bishop R.W. McMurray, 1979)

 

WE believe that the Bible is the inspired and infallible (unalterable) word of God, written by holy men of old, as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

 

WE believe in ONE God who is infinite in power, holy in nature, attributes and purposes, as well as omniscient and omnipresent.

 

WE believe He was revealed to us as FATHER in creation, SON in redemption, and as the HOLY SPIRIT in his comforting grace that never leaves those who trust Him.

 

WE believe that in Jesus dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, for it pleased the Father that in Him should all the fullness dwell.

 

WE believe in the virgin birth, Jesus was both human and divine.  He was God manifested in the flesh.

 

We believe in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.  WE believe that He ascended on high and has sent His Spirit  (The Holy Ghost), which was poured out at Jerusalem over 2000 years ago, and it is this same Spirit that is filling the hearts of those who diligently seek him today.

 

WE believe in baptism in water by immersion in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and the baptism of the Holy Ghost, speaking in other tongues as the Spirit of God gives utterance. This constitutes the new birth.

 

WE believe in a holy, sanctified life. WE believe in divine healing, communion and foot washing. WE believe also in the glorious catching away of the saints when Jesus returns in the clouds in glory to take His people to heaven (the Rapture).

 

OUR chief aim is to glorify the Savior, who is Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us that He might redeem us from all iniquity and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.