Daniel Wilburn Layne, who usually went by “Danny,” was raised in the Church of God in California, where his father was a minister. In early adulthood, Layne developed a heroin addiction and became a petty criminal and drug dealer to support his habit. His autobiography recounts a period of significant psychological distress, including a stay in a psychiatric hospital, episodes of petty theft, and a suicide attempt in which he tried to sever his arms with a meat cleaver.
In May 1980, when he was 36 years old, Layne experienced what he described as a conversion experience. After he founded his own branch of the Church of God, the year 1980 would become central to its theology. His conversion was said to mark the end of a 50-year “silent period” that was believed to have begun around 1930, when the Church of God was seen to have departed from its original teachings. The movement teaches that 1980 represented the sounding of the Seventh Trumpet in the Book of Revelation, signifying a divine call to restore the true church.
During the 1980s, Layne formally established the Church of God (Restoration). He taught that he had been divinely directed to restore the church to the purity described in the Book of Acts and identified the new denomination as the sole continuation of the true church. Layne initially worked within the Church of God in California but left in 1989, citing what he saw as increasingly liberal doctrine. He subsequently established an independent congregation in Ontario, Canada.
In its early years, the movement expanded through active outreach among other religious groups, including the Evening Light Saints and several Mennonite communities. Layne took the title of “Apostle” and served as the primary leader of the movement. Accounts from former members describe him as exercising extensive influence over daily life, including matters such as dress and family structure.
The Church of God (Restoration) maintains a strict code of conduct emphasizing separation from the world. Members wear plain clothing in dark colors, women do not cut their hair and typically wear it in a bun, and jewelry is prohibited. The group teaches entire sanctification as a second work of grace and holds that any willful sin results in the loss of salvation.
The church has drawn criticism and controversy over time. Former members have accused it of exercising excessive control over followers, limiting access to outside information such as the internet, regulating social relationships through practices like shunning, and promoting obedience through fear of spiritual consequences.
Layne died in 2011. Leadership of the church continued under a hierarchical structure overseen by the General Ministerial Body, which holds doctrinal authority. In recent years, the church has been involved in public controversies, including opposition to government health measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Church of God (Restoration) now has roughly 20 congregations worldwide.
Key Sources:
Claiborne, W. (2001, August 2). Canadians Flee in Spanking Dispute. The Washington Post.
Grabish, A. (2021, June 17). Church fighting pandemic restrictions is cult-like, former worshippers, expert allege. CBC News.
Kitching, C. (2023, January 31). Paying for pastor’s, church’s sins. The London Free Press.
Sher, J. (2002, February 14). Authorities consider investigating Church of God pastor’s brother. The London Free Press.
Encyclopedia of Cults, Sects, and New Religious Movements 