Ole Forseth was instrumental in bringing A. W. Rasmussen to conduct meetings at Bethel Pentecostal Church in the Peace River area of Alberta in the early 1940s. Pastor Rasmussen saw the need for a central gathering point to rally the many small groups, and so he moved his family to Edmonton and Edmonton Gospel Temple was established.  He was soon joined by T. E. Crane, and together they founded Temple Bible College. The Edmonton church hosted conventions twice a year, in the spring and the fall.

In answer to much prayer, the first building came in the form of two "Texas Huts" purchased from the US army at Dawson Creek.  They were taken apart in the Peace River area and shipped by rail to Edmonton where they were reconstructed into a 30ft by 54ft tabernacle.  A small entry was added for restrooms and also space for a gas furnace to heat the structure.

Edmonton Gospel Temple was incorporated in the province of Alberta in 1946.  We are an evangelical, outward reaching, missionary minded church with a strong commitment to preaching and teaching the Bible as foundational for living.  We are a congregational church with our roots in the Pentecostal movement.

In 1996, Edmonton Gospel Temple received official documentation registering a name change of Richfield Christian Fellowship.

Richfield Christian Fellowship is a local, self-governing autonomous assembly extending and appreciating fellowship with churches of similar beliefs and practices including cooperative affiliation with the Fellowship of Christian Assemblies of Canada.

Historical Timeline

1944 - Pastor Rasmussen and Family arrived from Chicago and 23 members established the very first meetings being held at the Orange Hall. 

1945 - Edmonton Gospel Temple and Temple Bible Institute were incorporated and an army hut was purchased and moved onto property that was purchased at 10330-95^th Street. 

1948 - The first missionaries, Dave and Gwen Schmidt were sent out from the church to Mongolia. 

1950 - Pastor Rasmussen returned to Chicago and Pastor Sievert Amudson became EGT’s pastor.

1958 - Temple Bible College temporarily closed as the church underwent a pastor search. 

1961 - Pastor Crane accepted the call to return to Edmonton Gospel Temple and a building program was initiated.

1962 - In October of 62 the new church building was dedicated, this year also saw the reopening of Temple Bible College.

1975 - A new property was purchased at 3715-85^th (Richfield area of Millwoods in Edmonton) and a new facility for the church and Bible College was planned, construction began a year later. 

1978 - The building was completed and dedicated on Oct 22^nd and the church and Bible School continued to grow and thrive. 

1996 - Edmonton Gospel Temple approved a name change to Richfield Christian Fellowship and during October of 1996 celebrated 50 years of ministry in Edmonton, Canada.

Today Richfield Christian Fellowship has seen a transformation from it’s Scandinavian roots to a thriving multicultural congregation.  Our desire is to see an outpouring of the Holy Spirit and as our founding pastor first laid a vision, “to build His house and a center of evangelism and missions to the world.”