VU Research Portal Sharing in God's Mission: The Evangelical Pentecostal Union of Venezuela and The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States 1960-1980 Alvarez, C.E. 2006 document version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Link to publication in VU Research Portal citation for published version (APA) Alvarez, C. E. (2006). Sharing in God's Mission: The Evangelical Pentecostal Union of Venezuela and The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States 1960-1980. General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal ? Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. E-mail address: [email protected] Download date: 02. Oct. 2021 VRIJE UNIVERSITEIT Sharing in God’s Mission: The Evangelical Pentecostal Union of Venezuela and The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States 1960-1980 ACADEMISCH PROEFSCHRIFT ter verkrijging van de graad Doctor aan de Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, op gezag van de rector magnificus prof.dr. T. Sminia, in het openbaar te verdedigen ten overstaan van de promotiecommissie van de faculteit der Godgeleerdheid op woensdag 10 mei 2006 om 10.45 uur in het auditorium van de universiteit, De Boelelaan 1105 door Carmelo Álvarez geboren te Bayamón, Puerto Rico promotoren: prof.dr. M.E. Brinkman prof.dr. C. van der Laan To Raquel, Nina, and Margarita In loving memory of Mami, Papi, and Elizabeth. CONTENTS Table of Contents v Preface vii Acronyms ix Summary in English xii Samenvatting xvii Resumen en español xx Chapters 1. INTRODUCTION 1 Sharing in God’s Mission: An Ecumenical Partnership 1 Mission and Unity in a Globalized World 2 The Dissertation Theme and Its Importance 4 The Main Objectives 5 The Thesis 5 Examining the Issues 6 History and Mission: Methodological Perspectives 6 Methodological Principles 7 Delimitations of this Study 8 Geographical 8 Ecclesiological 8 Research Methodology 8 Participation-Observation 8 Interviews 8 2. SHARING IN GOD’S MISSION: BIBLICAL AND THEOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS 10 Mission as Missio Dei 10 Koinonia as Sharing in Partnership 17 Sharing in Partnership: Ecumenical and Feminist Perspectives 20 Philippine and Latin American Experiments in Partnership 23 The United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP) 23 The Sao Paulo Process 25 Conclusions 27 3. MAINLINE PROTESTANTISM IN SEARCH OF IDENTITY 28 Identity and Mission: Protestant Interpretations 28 Protestant Presence in Latin America and the Caribbean 31 Mainline Protestant Churches Searching for Identity 34 Conclusions 44 4. PENTECOSTALS IN SEARCH OF IDENTITY 47 Ecumenism of the Spirit 47 Ecumenism of the Spirit: Four Leading Voices 48 In Search of Pentecostal Mission and Unity 52 v Pentecostal Churches: Searching for Identity in Latin America and the Caribbean 56 Classical Pentecostalism 61 The Assemblies of God 61 The Church of God (Anderson, Indiana) 62 The Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) 62 The Foursquare Gospel Church 63 Indigenous Pentecostalism 63 Divine Healing and Prosperity 68 Conclusions 70 5. SHARING IN GOD’S MISSION: MISSION AS KINGDOM BUILDING 73 Disciples of Christ Mission Strategy 73 Mission Strategy: Mission as Kingdom Building 74 Frontier Mission Strategy 75 The Strategy of Restoration and Reform 77 The Strategy: Mission and Unity 80 Disciples Look Outward 81 Missionary Strategy: From Missions to Mission 82 Mission Strategy: Unity in Mission 87 Conclusions 88 6. SHARING IN GOD’S MISSION: MISSION AS LIBERATING SPIRIT: EVANGELICAL PENTECOSTAL UNION OF VENEZUELA MISSION STRATEGY 90 Reclaiming Roots 90 A New Church is Born 94 Toward an Ecumenical Vocation 97 Toward an Integral Spiritual Formation 100 Leadership Development: Empowering the Church 101 Women in Ecumenical Leadership 102 Mission and Unity in the Power of the Spirit 103 A New Crisis of Identity and Mission 103 Mission and Unity: Discerning the Signs of the Times 104 An Ecumenical Commitment 105 Conclusions 106 7. PARTNERSHIP IN MISSION: AN EXPERIMENT IN ECUMENICAL SHARING 108 Initial Contacts, 1959-1972 108 An Experiment in Cooperation 112 Consolidation of an Ecumenical Partnership, 1972-1980 120 From an Experiment in Cooperation to an Ecumenical Partnership 122 Results of Partnership in Mission 123 Conclusions 127 8. FORWARD IN MISSION: AN ECUMENICAL PARTNERSHIP 130 Bibliography 134 Index 153 vi PREFACE The completion of this research and its publication has been both an academic and spiritual satisfaction. It closes an important part of my life in ministry both in the church and the seminary. But it also affirms the blessing in that ministry: to be able to combine these two separate dimensions of ministry in a creative tension. This journey begins in Puerto Rico as a young pastor trying to discern the best way to more effectively serve God’s reign. My initial conviction that pastoral ministry was my vocation expanded as my ministry grew more multifaceted. Preaching, teaching, lecturing and advising became integrated in a dynamic process of local and international interaction. The journey included doctoral studies in Church History at Emory University (1971-1974). From 1974 until 1992 the ministry consisted of theological education and ecumenical service at the Latin American Biblical Seminary (Biblical University) in Costa Rica, Latin American Council of Churches, and the Ecumenical Research Department in Costa Rica. Upon my return to the United States (1992-2002) I was again deeply involved in theological education at Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis, Indiana. In 2002 the Latin American Evangelical Pentecostal Commission (CEPLA) and the Evangelical Pentecostal Union of Venezuela (UEPV) extended an invitation for me to join them as a missionary-consultant for both organizations, and the Common Global Board Ministries (CGBM) made the appointment. The narrative shared in this dissertation is intended as a witness of what the Pentecostal churches have shared with me for more than thirty years, as well as what my own churches in Puerto Rico and the United States have contributed to my life and ministry. I hope this book will help portray the complex, yet rewarding, experience of sharing for more than forty years in mission with two very different protestant denominations. The common witness of these two denominations in ecumenical partnership is a story worth telling to other churches and to the world. Many people have shared this journey, in different moments and circumstances. My wife Raquel has been a constant support and a faithful companion all the way. Her own service as a missionary and executive in mission is a blessing to us all. My two daughters, Nina and Margarita, are the living expression of God’s gift of love to us. They have endured in sharing and learning in mission during all these years in which they also became witnesses. Carmen Rodríguez-Rivera, my sister-in-law, provided an invaluable service in translating important material. The loving memory of my parents, Carmelo and Elisa, and my sister Elizabeth has been a witness of God’s love and peace as they continue to be a living presence in our lives. To this my loving family, mi familia, I dedicate this book. The late Robert A. Thomas and my friend Bill Nottingham deserve my deepest gratitude and recognition for supporting our ministry in good and bad times, always believing that our call was from God. I have served as a missionary under four executives in the Latin America and the Caribbean, first with the Division of Overseas Ministries of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the US and Canada, and then with the Common Global Board of Ministries of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the US and Canada and the United Church of Christ. These executives, Bill Nottingham, the late Ann Douglass, David Vargas, and Félix Ortíz, not only supported my work as a missionary, but also trusted in my capacity and willingness to serve, particularly in the Pentecostal churches. David Vargas was a key person in discerning, vii pondering, and supporting in very decisive moment. David Bundy and Julio de Santa Ana have been trusted friends and trusted colleagues. Over the years they have offered much encouragement, criticism and insightful observation in my academic work. My colleagues at Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis have been in more than one way a blessing from God. During the years I have served in different capacities at CTS under the leadership of Richard D.N. Dickinson and Edward L. Wheeler as presidents. I enjoyed their trusted friendship and support. In the process of completing this dissertation there are three persons that gave me their full support: Joyce Krauser, faculty secretary at CTS, who embraced this research as her own and offered not only professional assistance but also shared my passion for this project. Prof. Dr. Cornelis van der Laan and Prof Dr. Martien E. Brinkman, my advisors, provided not only the necessary advice and counsel, but also shared my enthusiasm, inspiring me to make every effort to conclude this investigation. Bishop Gamaliel Lugo of the Evangelical Pentecostal Union of Venezuela and his wife Elida have also offered their own vision, enthusiasm, and support during all these years. The Evangelical Pentecostal Union of Venezuela will always be close to my heart and mind: Yo les amo en el amor del Señor.