Pentecostalism and Charismatic Movements in Nigeria: Factors of Growth and Inherent Challenges Matthews A
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The Pentecost Event in Acts 2: Significance for Contemporary Christian Missions Paul Kang-Ewala Diboro1
June 2019 Issue Volume 1 Number 2 ISSN 2458 – 7338 Article 10 pp 100 – 111 DOI: https://doi.org/10.32051/06241910 © 2019 Copyright held by ERATS. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ THE PENTECOST EVENT IN ACTS 2: SIGNIFICANCE FOR CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS PAUL KANG-EWALA DIBORO1 ABSTRACT The Pentecost Event in the Acts of the Apostles has been interpreted from many perspectives within the context of the Pentecost text. Accordingly, the issues raised from the interpretations focused on the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, empowerment for missions, the emphasis on the vernacular language for the apprehension and comprehension of the Christian faith among others. These issues are based on the interpretation of the happenings on the day of Pentecost in Acts. This article attempts to draw attention to the significance of Pentecost Event in the light of contemporary Christian missions particularly in Africa. The article engages the Pentecost narrative or text (Acts 2:1-13) critically and exegetically to unearth its contemporary significance. It argues that, the happenings on the day of Pentecost is the root of Pentecostalism. Some theological and linguistic, missiological and ecclesiological significance are noted and discussed. INTRODUCTION The interpretations and analyses of the Pentecost narrative in Acts chapter two has gained a lot of scholarly attention recently. Accordingly, the issues raised from the interpretations and analyses focused on the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, empowerment for missions, the emphasis on the vernacular language for the apprehension and comprehension of the Christian faith2 among others. This article attempts to examine the Pentecost event in Acts of the Apostles and its significance for contemporary missions particularly in Africa. -
5 Starter Facts About Pentecostal Christianity
5 Starter Facts About Pentecostal Christianity 1. Pentecostalism is was born out of the evangelical revival movements of the late 19th century. There are ~13 million adherents in the United States and ~279 million worldwide. 2. There is no central governing body for Pentecostalism, but many churches belong to the Pentecostal World Fellowship. Most Pentecostals believe they practice a pure and simple form of Christianity, like the earliest stages of the Christian Church. They believe the Bible is the word of God and completely without error. 3. Speaking/interpreting tongues, prophecy, and healing are believed to be gifts from the divine. During worship, Pentecostals allow and even encourage dancing, shouting, and praying aloud. Many believe in lively worship because of the influence of the Holy Spirit. There is praying aloud, clapping and shouting, and sometimes oil anointments. 4. There is a great amount of variety within Pentecostalism due to questions over the trinity vs oneness of deity and whether upholding divine healing means modern medicine should be rejected or embraced. 5. The day of Pentecost, the namesake of the denomination, is the baptism of the twelve disciples by the Holy Spirit. It is celebrated as a joyous festival on the Sunday 50 days after Easter. Learn more at: http://pentecostalworldfellowship.org/about-us http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/subdivisions/pentecostal_1.shtml These five points are not meant to be comprehensive or authoritative. We hope they encourage you to explore this spirituality more deeply and seek out members of this community to learn about their beliefs in action. -
Roman Catholicism Versus Pentecostalism: the Nexus of Fundamentalism and Religious Freedom in Africa
Verbum et Ecclesia ISSN: (Online) 2074-7705, (Print) 1609-9982 Page 1 of 7 Original Research Roman Catholicism versus Pentecostalism: The nexus of fundamentalism and religious freedom in Africa Author: Today’s Christians in the age of secularism and other kinds of ideologies struggle to make 1 Felix E. Enegho their impacts felt as they assiduously labour to plant the gospel in the hearts and minds of Affiliation: many. Amid their struggles and worries, they are often confronted with other challenges 1Department of Christian both from within and outside. The aim of this research was to assess the Roman Catholic Spirituality, Church History Church and her struggle in the midst of other Churches often tagged ‘Pentecostals’ in the and Missiology, Faculty of areas of fundamentalism and religious freedom in Africa and most especially in Nigeria. Human Sciences, University of South Africa, Pretoria, Pentecostal theology was aligned with Evangelism in their emphasis on the reliability of the South Africa Bible and the great need for the spiritual transformation of the individual’s life with faith in Jesus Christ. They emphasise personal experience and work of the Holy Spirit and therefore Corresponding author: see themselves as a selected few, who are holy, spiritual and better than others. Some of them Felix Enegho, [email protected] even claim to have the monopoly of the Holy Spirit. This researcher was one scholar who holds the view that there was no church more Pentecostal than the Catholic Church which Dates: has survived for more than 2000 years under the influence and direction of the Holy Spirit. -
Tracing the “Spirit”: the Role of Poverty, Revival, And
TRACING THE “SPIRIT”: THE ROLE OF POVERTY, REVIVAL, AND INCLUSIVITY IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CHRIST APOSTOLIC CHURCH by DANIELLE LYNN CLAUSNITZER (Under the Direction of IBIGBOLADE ADERIBIGBE) ABSTRACT Since the first Pentecostal Revival in Wales in 1904, a series of factors have influenced the growth of Pentecostalism around the world. As missionaries carried this message of the Pentecost first to the United States and later to West Africa, the theological and social benefits of Pentecostalism became abundantly clear. When this message of equality in turn reached hinterland Nigeria, it affected a permanent shift in religious sensibility, consequently revealing the potency and universality of the Pentecostal message. Recognizing the clear Pentecostal influence that has pervaded Nigerian culture throughout its history as well as in the postcolonial period, this thesis will argue that the socioeconomic status of its constituents, the role of revival in spreading the Pentecostal message, and the inclusivity and access to God provided in the theological understanding of glossolalia all provided the impetus for the overwhelming and continued growth of this Pentecostal denomination into the postcolonial era. INDEX WORDS: Religion, Religious Studies, African Traditional Religion, Christianity, Pentecostalism, Nigeria, Xenoglossy, Glossolalia, and Christ Apostolic Church. TRACING THE “SPIRIT”: THE ROLE OF POVERTY, REVIVAL, AND INCLUSIVITY IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CHRIST APOSTOLIC CHURCH by DANIELLE LYNN CLAUSNITZER Bachelor of Arts, Dickinson College, 2014 A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF ARTS ATHENS, GEORGIA 2016 © 2016 Danielle Lynn Clausnitzer All Rights Reserved TRACING THE “SPIRIT”: THE ROLE OF POVERTY, REVIVAL, AND INCLUSIVITY IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CHRIST APOSTOLIC CHURCH by DANIELLE LYNN CLAUSNITZER Major Professor: Ibigbolade Aderibigbe Committee: Carolyn Jones Medine Sandy D. -
Anglican Church and the Development of Pentecostalism in Igboland
ISSN 2239-978X Journal of Educational and Social Research Vol. 3 No. 10 ISSN 2240-0524 MCSER Publishing, Rome-Italy December 2013 Anglican Church and the Development of Pentecostalism in Igboland Benjamin C.D. Diara Department of Religion and Cultural Studies, University of Nigeria, Nsukka- Nigeria Nche George Christian Department of Religion and Cultural Studies, University of Nigeria, Nsukka- Nigeria Doi:10.5901/jesr.2013.v3n10p43 Abstract The Anglican mission came into Igboland in the last half of the nineteenth century being the first Christian mission to come into Igboland, precisely in 1857, with Onitsha as the first spot of missionary propagation. From Onitsha the mission spread to other parts of Igboland. The process of the spread was no doubt, marked with the demonstration of the power of the Holy Spirit; hence the early CMS missionaries saw the task of evangelizing Igboland as something that could not have been possible without the victory of the Holy Spirit over the demonic forces that occupied Igboland by then. The objective of this paper is to historically investigate the claim that the presence of the Anglican Church in Igboland marked the origin of Pentecostalism among the Igbo. The method employed in this investigation was both analytical and descriptive. It was discovered that the Anglican mission introduced Pentecostalism into Igboland through their charismatic activities long before the churches that claim exclusive Pentecostalism came, about a century later. The only difference is that the original Anglican Pentecostalism was imbued in their Evangelical tradition as opposed to the modern Pentecostalism which is characterized by seemingly excessive emotional and ecstatic tendencies without much biblical anchorage. -
Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements Don Fanning Liberty University, [email protected]
CORE Metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk Provided by Liberty University Digital Commons Liberty University DigitalCommons@Liberty University Trends and Issues in Missions Center for Global Ministries 2009 Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements Don Fanning Liberty University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/cgm_missions Recommended Citation Fanning, Don, "Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements" (2009). Trends and Issues in Missions. Paper 7. http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/cgm_missions/7 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Center for Global Ministries at DigitalCommons@Liberty University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Trends and Issues in Missions by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@Liberty University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Pentecostal/Charismatic Movements Page 1 Pentecostal Movement The first two hundred years (100-300 AD) The emphasis on the spiritual gifts was evident in the false movements of Gnosticism and in Montanism. The result of this false emphasis caused the Church to react critically against any who would seek to use the gifts. These groups emphasized the gift of prophecy, however, there is no documentation of any speaking in tongues. Montanus said that “after me there would be no more prophecy, but rather the end of the world” (Philip Schaff, History of the Christian Church, Vol II, p. 418). Since his prophecy was not fulfilled, it is obvious that he was a false prophet (Deut . 18:20-22). Because of his stress on new revelations delivered through the medium of unknown utterances or tongues, he said that he was the Comforter, the title of the Holy Spirit (Eusebius, V, XIV). -
Yoruba Churches
Deidre Helen Crumbley. Spirit, Structure, and Flesh: Gender and Power in Yoruba African Instituted Churches. Africa and the Diaspora Series. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 2008. xv + 180 pp. $50.00, cloth, ISBN 978-0-299-22910-8. Reviewed by Derek Peterson Published on H-Africa (May, 2010) Commissioned by Brett L. Shadle (Virginia Tech) In the forty years since John Peel's pioneering and also enable, women's participation in the study, Aladura: A Religious Movement among the Aladura churches. Yoruba (1968), the Aladura (the "Owners of Crumbley's particular focus is on three Prayer") have become much more than a "reli‐ churches: the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), gious movement among the Yoruba." Between founded in the early 1920s by schoolteachers in 1992 and 2002, some seventy-five thousand Nige‐ Ijebu and Ibadan; the Church of the Lord Aladura rians made their home in the United States, and (CLA), formed in 1925 by the prophet Josiah Aladura churches now have congregations in New Oyelowo Ositelu; and the Celestial Church of York, London, and elsewhere in Europe and Christ (CCC), inspired in the late 1940s by the heal‐ America. There is a vibrant Aladura presence on er Samuel Bilehou Joseph Oshoffa. All three the Internet, and Aladura entrepreneurs are busi‐ churches, she shows, share a "certain unease-- ly composing their history, writing apologetics, sometimes subtle, sometimes glaring--with the fe‐ and participating in international conferences. In male body as a conduit of both divine power and Spirit, Structure, and Flesh, Deidre Helen Crumb‐ procreative potential" (p. 136). The CCC excludes ley offers guidance for those who wish to under‐ women from the leadership of the church; se‐ stand the gender politics of the Aladura churches. -
Theological Reflections on the Charismatic Movement – Part 1 Churchman 94/1 1980
Theological Reflections on the Charismatic Movement – Part 1 Churchman 94/1 1980 J. I. Packer I My subject is a complex and still developing phenomenon which over the past twenty years has significantly touched the entire world church, Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican and non-episcopal Protestant, at all levels of life and personnel and across a wide theological spectrum.1 Sometimes it is called Neo-Pentecostalism because, like the older Pentecostalism which ‘spread like wildfire over the whole world’2 at the start of this century, it affirms Spirit-baptism as a distinct post-conversion, post-water-baptism experience, universally needed and universally available to those who seek it. The movement has grown, however, independently of the Pentecostal denominations, whose suspicions of its non-separatist inclusiveness have been—and in some quarters remain—deep, and its own preferred name for itself today is ‘charismatic renewal’.3 For it sees itself as a revitalizing re-entry into a long-lost world of gifts and ministries of the Holy Spirit, a re-entry which immeasurably deepens individual spiritual lives, and through which all Christendom may in due course find quickening. Charismatic folk everywhere stand on tiptoe, as it were, in excited expectation of great things in store for the church as the movement increasingly takes hold. Already its spokesmen claim for it major ecumenical significance. ‘This movement is the most unifying in Christendom today’, writes Michael Harper; ‘only in this movement are all streams uniting, and all ministries -
Pentecostal Profits: the Prosperity Gospel in the Global South
University of Lethbridge Research Repository OPUS http://opus.uleth.ca Theses Arts and Science, Faculty of 2014 Pentecostal profits: the prosperity gospel in the global south MacTavish, Ron Lethbridge, Alta. : University of Lethbridge, Dept. of Religious Studies, 2014 http://hdl.handle.net/10133/3527 Downloaded from University of Lethbridge Research Repository, OPUS PENTECOSTAL PROFITS: THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH Ron MacTavish B.A. History, University of Alberta, 1973 B.Ed. (with distinction), University of Alberta, 1974 B.A. (with great distinction), University of Lethbridge, 2012 A Thesis Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies Of the University of Lethbridge In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF ARTS Religious Studies University of Lethbridge LETHBRIDGE, ALBERTA, CANADA © Ron MacTavish, 2014 PENTECOSTAL PROFITS: THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH RON MACTAVISH Approved: * (Print Name) (Signature) (Rank) (Highest Date Degree) _______________________ ____________________ ________ _______ ________ * Supervisor _______________________ ____________________ ________ _______ ________ * Thesis Examination Committee Member __________________________ _____________________ ________ ________ ________ * Thesis Examination Committee Member __________________________ _____________________ ________ ________ ________ * Thesis Examination Committee Member __________________________ _____________________ ________ ________ ________ * Thesis Examination Committee Member __________________________ _____________________ _________ ________ ________ * Chair, Thesis Examination Committee Abstract: This study explores the link between the development of the so-called prosperity gospel and the explosive growth of Pentecostalism in the Global South. It examines the evolution of the prosperity gospel as a strand of Pentecostalism in its country of origin, the United States. It then investigates the dramatic acceptance of the theology in selected pockets of the Pacific Rim, Latin America and Africa. -
Response to Andrew K. Gabriel, the Lord Is the Spirit: the Holy Spirit and the Divine Attributes
RESPONSE TO ANDREW K. GABRIEL, THE LORD IS THE SPIRIT: THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE DIVINE ATTRIBUTES JEROMEY Q. MARTINI In The Lord is the Spirit: The Holy Spirit and the Divine Attributes, Andrew Gabriel presents a fresh assessment of the doctrine of God. Gabriel’s assessment is pneumatological in focus and Pentecostal in orientation. That is: although “the book aims to be a work in ecumenical theology in the sense that I [Gabriel] draw[s] on theologians from across the Christian traditions,” Gabriel is upfront that “this book is, at least in part, a contribution to Pentecostal theology” (p. 5). The book as a whole offers a serious critique of “classical the- ism,” specifically on the attributes of God. Although “classical theism” as a category is both fairly recent and variously defined, Gabriel finds it a useful heuristic “for identifying a historically prevalent view of God among [Western] Christian theologians” (p. 12). In the book, Gabriel criticizes the classical doctrine of God on two primary fronts. First, he observes that the Trinity is non-essential to most classical discussions of the divine attributes. Second, he observes that the Spirit is neglected in most classical discussions of the Trinity. In response, Gabriel argues first that the Trinity is essential to any dis- cussion of the divine attributes. Second, he argues that the Spirit is es- sential to any discussion of the Trinity. Consequently, Gabriel offers a study of the divine attributes that is both essentially trinitarian and self- consciously pneumatological in its trinitarian approach. This approach leads to three primary moves in the study. -
Pentecostalism, Social Life, and Political Economy on the Zambian Copperbelt
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO Ambitious Obligations: Pentecostalism, Social Life, and Political Economy on the Zambian Copperbelt A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology by Naomi Haynes Committee in charge: Professor Joel Robbins, Chair Professor Suzanne Brenner Professor Robert Cancel Professor Thomas Csordas Professor Jeremy Prestholdt Professor Rijk van Dijk 2012 The dissertation of Naomi Haynes is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication on microfilm and electronically: ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ Chair University of California, San Diego 2012 iii ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Copyright Naomi Haynes, 2012 All Rights Reserved ! Table of Contents Signature Page……………………………………………………………………... iii Table of Contents…………………………………………………………………... iv List of Figures…………………………………………………................................ vi A Note on Bemba Orthography and Pseudonyms…………………………………. vii Map……………………………………………………………………………........ ix Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………........ x Vita………………………………………………………………………………… -
Theatre, Gender, Religion and Cultural Memory
Vol. 7, no. 2 (2017), 147-163 | DOI: 10.18352/rg.10162 The Ghosts of Performance Past: Theatre, Gender, Religion and Cultural Memory ABIMBOLA A. ADELAKUN* Abstract This article studies the phenomenon of ghosting in religious performance through an examination of a famous Yoruba actress, Iyabo Ogunsola (Iya Efunsetan). Ogunsola once played the role of a 19th century historical character, Efunsetan Aniwura, on stage at a remarkable period of Yoruba history thus embedding her life and career trajectory with that of the culture. Iya Efunsetan has currently transited to an Aladura church leader and a gospel performer. Building on works by theatre/performance scholars who have studied how previously staged performances haunt the re-enactment of performances in another place, time, and context, I examine the religious aspect of the phenomenon of ghosting as it relates to Ase, Yoruba concept of metaphysical force. While Iya Efunsetan cannot shake off the ghosts of her theatrical past, I note that she mobilizes the Ase of her embodied theatrical history fame to authenticate herself as a religious leader. Keywords Aladura churches; theatre; ghosting; Efunsetan Aniwura; embodiment; cultural memory; motherhood. Author affiliation Abimbola A. Adelakun completed a Ph.D. in the department of Theatre and Dance at University of Texas at Austin. She also earned both a Master’s and a doctoral portfolio in African/African Diaspora Studies. She is currently a lecturer in the department of African/African Diaspora Studies, University of Texas at Austin. Her research interests are religion and society, feminist performance, Pentecostalism, Africana studies, and dramatic literature. *Correspondence: African/African Diaspora Studies Department, University of Texas at Austin, Gordon White Building, 210 W 24th St, Austin, TX 78705, USA.