Australasian Pentecostal Studies

Editorial

2023-12-07T20:48:02-08:00

While Pentecostalism began as a mechanism for renewal, their understanding of how renewal is enacted has shifted over time. This is perhaps reflective of their changing eschatology. If renewal in the earlier Pentecostal community emphasised separation from the depraved and corrupt world, renewal for the present Pentecostal community—particularly in Western contexts—is about transforming the world. It is a shift from an other-worldly outlook to a this-worldy emphasis. This shift is perhaps most reflected in our engagement with society and culture. Pentecostalism today seeks to be an alternative community that is shaped by the biblical narrative that overflows in mission to the world and engagement with culture. This perspective is reflected, albeit in different ways, in each of the articles of the current issue of Australasian Pentecostal Studies.

Review of Christopher Watkin, Biblical Critical Theory: How the Bible’s Unfolding Story Makes Sense of Modern Life and Culture

2023-12-07T21:13:47-08:00

I met Chris Watkin in an integrative scholars’ network in Australia, and it is a great pleasure to review his new book Biblical Critical Theory.

The work comes at the task of thinking Christianly in a thoroughly and uniquely biblical way. Chris seeks to bring biblical notions in contact with contemporary thinkers who are largely, but not exclusively, of the continental European philosophy tradition - hence “critical theory” in the title. What makes the book unique is that he not only brings biblical concepts in touch with our contemporaries, but he does so in such a way that his work inherits certain aspects of the bible itself.

Review of Paul S. Baker, Pentecostal Imagination and the Retrieval of Identity: Towards a Pneumatology of History

2023-12-07T21:17:30-08:00

Pentecostal identity and Pentecostal history are closely intertwined, though many Pentecostals are unaware of their history, or indeed of history generally. Modern Pentecostalism began at the outset of the twentieth century, seemingly as a completely new phenomenon. This immediately raised questions. Was this an authentic Christian movement or not? If it was genuinely Christian, why were its distinctive features not heard of before, at least not since the New Testament (at best)? How did it relate to the broader church? What were the roots of the modern Pentecostal movement? And what of the Pentecostals’ claim that theirs was/is the “apostolic faith”? Was there any evidence that this was so?

Review of Wolfgang Vondey, The Scandal of Pentecost: A Theology of the Public Church

2023-12-07T22:22:44-08:00

The bifurcation of theory and practice within theological pursuits has contributed to the privatization of faith since the Enlightenment Era. Such segregation generates individualistic and ahistorical hermeneutical methods. Theological endeavors dependent upon the segmentation of theory and practice produce theological methodologies incapable of supporting theology in the public realm. Wolfgang Vondey advocates in The Scandal of Pentecost: A Theology of the Public Church a robust public theology will require embracing ecclesiological structures whereby Pentecost serves as the primary theological and public narrative. Vondey proposes a repositioning of Pentecost as a public expression of faith, arguing that the prevailing portrayals of Pentecost as a predominantly private affair fall short of capturing the fullness of the Pentecost narrative. Repositioning Pentecost in a public sphere exposes the resistance from those in the marketplace who are unable to harmonize the existing social and religious norms with the claims by the disciples that Christ poured out the Spirit upon all flesh. It is this tension that Vondey classifies as the Scandal of Pentecost.

Book Review: Stephen Judd, John Swinton, and Kara Martin, Keeping Faith: How Christian Organisations Can Stay True to the Way of Jesus (Sydney: Acorn Press, 2023). 140 pp. RRP $24.99 Paperback.

2023-06-18T18:09:30-07:00

The Spirit of Pentecost, Social Transcending Communities, and Renewing Embodied Life:

2023-12-07T20:42:24-08:00

Exuberant charismatic worship and spirituality characterise Pentecostal experience. Social and economic mobility, however, are also common fruits of Pentecostal experience. This article considers two historical and two contemporary cases in the Pentecostal movement. The early Pentecostal experiences at Pandita Ramabai’s (1858–1922) Mukti Mission and William J. Seymour’s (1870–1922) Azusa Street revivals fostered social transcending communities—communities that transcended social, class, and ethnic bigotries. By enacting the inclusive community of Pentecost, they indicted the racist and chauvinist societies that surrounded them. Vietnamese and Latin American Pentecostals demonstrate that the Pentecostal experience of grace renews embodied life. Participating in Pentecostal renewal transforms the material circumstances of peoples’ lives. Charismatic worship and spirituality do not sublimate the need for addressing bleak social and economic conditions. On the contrary, they are the incubators for the Holy Spirit to empower new patterns of life in and for this world. Sociological analyses, relying on a Weberian paradigm, often suggest that social mobility is a by-product of Pentecostalism (e.g., Miller and Yamamori’s “Pentecostal ethic”). The theological yield of this investigation of historical and contemporary cases in the Pentecostal movement is that the social and material experience of redemption among Pentecostals is intrinsic to the grace of the Spirit of Pentecost. The social and material features of Pentecostal experience, moreover, map to the ministry of the Spirit anointed Christ and the inclusive community of the Spirit of Pentecost.

Shame and Restoration in Ezekiel

2023-12-07T20:52:12-08:00

There is a distinct difference between the modern individualistic concept of “guilt or innocent” in a person’s behaviour and repentance, and the biblical motif of shame and honour in the book of Ezekiel. The former seeks to excuse one’s behaviour and related consequences. The second seeks restoration of relationship by dealing with deeper heart issues, and obtaining a new moral self that will not repeat the harmful behaviour. This has implications for ministry today. We need to be aware of Ezekiel’s cycle of restoration to empower a deeper relationship with God, and with other humans. Restoration and healing can only happen when we acknowledge that our behaviour has caused shame to God and humans, and by taking back that shame we enable honour to come on the injured party, who can then share that honour with us.

Pentecostal Thought and the Education Enterprise

2023-12-07T20:57:20-08:00

The paper explores the contribution that Pentecostal thought might make to public education, and specifically how Pentecostal parents, teachers and administrators can potentially influence curriculum and school life. The overarching goal is to extend the implications of recent Pentecostal reflection to the development of a theology of the Spirit for the classroom. Part of approach is concern not only for the development of the intellect for the betterment of society, but the development of values, and more importantly, the awakening of the transformative qualities of the soul, such as humility and compassion. These aspects of human flourishing need to be firmly established in early education but can also be emphasized in the secondary school environment where Pentecostal parents clearly concerned with the future welfare of their young people especially their character formation, can seek to become active participants. The conclusion is that Pentecostals can have a legitimate voice at the wider table of learning. It will mean an effort not just to adopt a generic evangelical educational methodology, but to place greater emphasis on the affective domain of human learning, the realm of aspects and habits of the heart. The paper invites ongoing discussion toward the development of a thoroughgoing ‘pneumatological’ approach to Christian learning both in person and virtually.

The Spirit and Leadership

2023-12-07T21:05:26-08:00

The assumption that leadership theories can be imported into ecclesial environments needs to be critically examined. Pentecostal spirituality provides an opportunity to engage in such a critical analysis of the compatibility of leadership theory(s) as a valid expression for communities. The interpretive strategies employed by Pentecostal spirituality serve an alternate to the positivist methodologies that dominate leadership theory. This paper will explore the person-centred theory classification of leadership theory espoused by John Dugan through the lens of Amos Yong’s pneumatological imagination as the primary expression of Pentecostal spirituality. The critical examination will produce concrete applications for the incorporation of Pentecostal spirituality into the leadership practices of spirit-filled communities of faith.

Worship

2023-12-07T21:08:36-08:00

This article explores worship from a Pentecostal perspective. Grounded in a framework of Pentecostal spirituality, the biblical foundations for Pentecostal corporate worship are first discussed. This leads to, second, a consideration of the rites of Pentecostal worship, which are outlined using the categories of Daniel Albrecht. This includes worship as a way of Christian life; the entire liturgy of a worship service; and a specific portion within the liturgy (or a section, or rite). Third, the distinctive features of Pentecostal worship are identified as experiential, embodied, narratival, and missional. Pentecostal corporate worship is an experience in which participants express their loving devotion to God while encountering the transforming presence of God. This results in mission as an eschatological hope of Pentecostal worship, as the renewed community reflects the love of God in mission to the world.