Pentecostal Churches in Transition Global Pentecostal and Charismatic Studies

Pentecostal Churches in Transition Global Pentecostal and Charismatic Studies Edited by Andrew Davies, Mattersey Hall Graduate School William Kay, Bangor University Advisory Board Allan Anderson, University of Birmingham Mark Cartledge, University of Birmingham Jacqueline Grey, Alphacrucis College, Sydney Byron D Klaus, Assemblies of God Theological Seminary, Springfield, MO Wonsuk Ma, Oxford Centre for Mission Studies Cecil M Robeck, Jr, Fuller Theological Seminary Calvin Smith, Midlands Bible College VOLUME 3 Pentecostal Churches in Transition Analysing the Developing Ecclesiology of the Assemblies of God in Australia By Shane Clifton LEIDEN • BOSTON 2009 This book is printed on acid-free paper. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Clifton, Shane. Pentecostal churches in transition : analysing the developing ecclesiology of the Assemblies ofGodinAustralia/byShaneClifton. p. cm. — (Global Pentecostal and charismatic studies ; v. 3) Based on the author's thesis (Ph. D.)—Australian Catholic University, 2005. Includes bibliographical references (p. ). ISBN 978-90-04-17526-6 (hardback : alk. paper) 1. Assemblies of God in Australia—History. 2. Australia—Church history. I. Title. II. Series. BX8765.6.A4C55 2009 262'.0994—dc22 2009013069 ISSN 1876-2247 ISBN 978 90 04 17526 6 Copyright 2009 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands. Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Hotei Publishing, IDC Publishers, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers and VSP. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Koninklijke Brill NV provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910, Danvers, MA 01923, USA. Fees are subject to change. printed in the netherlands CONTENTS Preface ................................................................. vii ChapterOne.PentecostalEcclesiology ............................... 1 ..DevelopingaConcreteEcclesiologicalMethod............... 7 ..AssessingProgressandDecline ............................... 21 ..Summary....................................................... 26 Chapter Two. From Faith Missions to Churches, s to s . 27 .. Pre-narrative: The Global Currents of Voluntarist Revivalism...................................................... 28 .. Analysis: Transcendence, Transformation and Breakdown . 38 .. Narrative: The Emergence of Pentecostalism in Australia . 50 ..Analysis:FromFaithMissiontoChurch...................... 68 ..Summary....................................................... 79 Chapter Three. Formation of a Democratised National Fellowship, s to s . ................................................... 81 ..Narrative:FormingaNationalAssembly ..................... 81 ..Analysis:AssessingInstitutionalisation....................... 113 ..Summary....................................................... 135 Chapter Four. Growth, Controversy and Revolution, s to present............................................................... 137 ..Narrative:CharismaticRevivalandRadicalChange ......... 137 .. Analysis: Global Debates about the Apostolic Revolution . 169 ..Summary....................................................... 205 Chapter Five. Conclusion: Looking Forward and Thinking Globally 207 ..SocialValues ................................................... 208 ..CulturalandTheologicalValues............................... 214 ..TheAustralianStoryandGlobalPentecostalism ............. 221 ..FinalComment ................................................ 225 vi contents Bibliography ........................................................... 227 Index................................................................... 243 PREFACE This book has its origins in my PhD dissertation, submitted to the Aus- tralian Catholic University in . My purpose in undertaking the research that informed the thesis was to reflect upon the developments that had occurred in the movement to which I belong, given my situation as an ordained Assemblies of God minister and a teacher at the national bible college. As readers will discover, Pentecostal churches in Australia have experienced remarkable growth and undergone radical change, and an understanding of the nature of these developments should be of value, not only to Australian Pentecostal churches, but to Pentecostal movements globally, which have undergone similar (and sometimes divergent) transitions. It is also likely that, at a time when many Western churches are experiencing decline, church leaders outside of the Pentecostal rubric will find it worthwhile to consider the changes that have occurred ina movement which has known rapid growth. At the time of commencing this research, it seemed only natural to study a topic about which I was passionate and, indeed, it is my hope that the end product benefits from the fact that the analysis is borne out of committement to the churches under investigation. What I had not expected was the challenges that would arise precisely because of my connection with the movement. In the first place it is notoriously difficult to maintain the necessary level of objectivity, although I am committed to the view that “genuine objectivity is the fruit of authentic subjectivity.”1 That is to say, my own challenge was firstly to recognise the fact thatmy personal perspectivces and biases would necessarily colour my analysis and, thereafter, commit to allowing the process of research to facilitate self-transcendence. I will leave it to you, the reader, to judge the extent to which this has (or has not) been achieved. The second challenge relates to the first, and concerns the difficul- ties inherent in communicating the results of critical analysis, espe- cially when the object of study is one’s own movement. It has, for this 1 Bernard Lonergan, Method in Theology (London: DLT, ), . viii preface reason, taken me a number of years to seek publication of the results of my research. My concern has been to tell the story of the movement and its changing ecclesiology (theology of church) in such a way that any criticism is both fair and constructive. The goal is what might be termed “faithful criticism,” constructed with the intention of facilitating understanding of the changes that have occurred, and providing a basis for judgements as to what has been gained and/or lost in the process of ecclesiological transition. It is also the case that PhD theses, at least in their original form, are not generally conducive to an audience of more than people (supervi- sors and markers). For this reason, this current text has been substantially reworked, with particular attention given to the earlier methodological chapter. As a theology teacher, I find myself having to constantly remind my students that “method is everything.”When it comes to the discipline of theology, most people simply want to know what they should think or believe about any particular topic. The reliability of theological conclu- sions, however, are dependant upon the assumptions and method that inform them. That is to say, it is not only what you believe that counts, but why you believe it and how you arrived at that belief. For this reason, while the primary focus of this book is the narrative of developing Aus- tralian pentecostlism, the first chapter is largely concerned with method. While I have taken some time to simplify this methodological discussion, readers who find they are struggling to understand this material might wish to skip forward to the narrative and analysis of subsequent chapters. While these chapters do follow the logic and concepts set out in the first chapter, the content should be more accessible and can stand on its own. Finally, there are a number of people to whom I owe a debt of grat- itude. Neil Ormerod has become much more than merely a supervisor of my research, but has shown his ongoing commitment to my academic development, even working with me in co-authoring another book, Glob- alization and the Mission of the Church. Anne Hunt acted as my second supervisor, and her friendship and encouragement was (and is) as important as was her detailed response to my work. My colleagues at Alphacrucis College have all provided encouragement and dialogue that has helped inform the research. In particular, Mark Hutchinson, Jacque- line Grey and Chris Simon all read early versions of chapters, and helped to correct and improve the text. The markers of the original thesis, John Capper, Frank Macchia, and Stuart Piggin, gave invaluable (and encour- aging) feedback, and I greatly appreciate the time they took to read and preface ix respond to the research. The current form of the manuscript has been reviewed by John Carter, Michael Murphy and Andrew Davies, and their input has helped me to turn the text into a more readable document. Iexpectthatsomepeoplewilldisagreewithsomeoftheconclusions that I reached in the process of my analysis. I trust that those disagree- ments, along with what I hope are moments of revelation and insight, encourage reflection and dialogue. Theology is, after all, a conversation, and whether or not readers agree with me, it is my hope that this book promotes discussion that bares fruit in the life and mission of churches. Shane Clifton, Sydney, . chapter

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