Spirit-Baptism and Pentecostalism

1970 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 397-407 ◽  
Author(s):  
James D. G. Dunn
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Great Weight ◽  
Spirit Baptism ◽  
Distinct Event ◽  
The Gift ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
History Of ◽  
Christian Thought ◽  
Catholic Tradition ◽  
Two Stages

Within Christianity down through the centuries there has always been a strain of teaching which holds that salvation, so far as it may be known in this life, is experienced in two stages: first the event of becoming a Christian; then, as a later and distinct event, some special and distinctive operation or gift of the Holy Spirit. In the history of Christian thought this disjointedness was first clearly formulated in the Catholic sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation. According to A. J. Macdonald, the idea that Confirmation confers the gift of the Spirit was held without question until the time of Wyclif. And today in anglo-catholic tradition, although the episcopal laying on of hands is commonly thought of as bestowing a strengthening gift of the Spirit, some continue to speak as though the Spirit is first received at that time. Indeed, since the question was reopened by F. W. Puller in 1880, it has been regularly argued, often with great weight, though not infrequently with greater ingenuity, that far greater significance (in terms of the Spirit) should be attributed to Confirmation than to Baptism.

scholarly journals GLOSSOLALIA: DIVINE SPEECH OR MAN-MADE LANGUAGE? A PSYCHOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF THE GIFT OF SPEAKING IN TONGUES IN THE PENTECOSTAL CHURCHES IN BOTSWANA

2015 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
James N Amanze ◽  
Tino Shanduka
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
World Religions ◽  
Speaking In Tongues ◽  
Psychological Analysis ◽  
The Gift ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
History Of ◽  
Pentecostal Churches ◽  
Other World ◽  
The Church

Glossolalia is a very important element in the life of Pentecostal Churches and is at the centre of their spirituality. This paper examines the gift of speaking in tongues from a psychological perspective in order to find out what psychologists say about this very important gift of the Holy Spirit. The paper begins by looking at the history of speaking in tongues in the Church from the day of Pentecost and how it has become the symbol of God’s presence in the life of believers in Pentecostal Churches in Botswana today. The paper interrogates glossolalia on whether it is divine language or human language spoken by people who are emotionally charged. This research was undertaken in order to understand glossolalia better, since it is a contested area not only among Christians but also in other world religions where this phenomenon is widely manifested. The present work shows that while theologians are justified to consider glossolalia as divine language, there are indications that in some instances speaking in tongues can be a result of anxiety and human attempts to prove that the Holy Spirit is truly present in one’s spiritual life. This conclusion has been reached especially in cases where it has been found that glossolalia is a learned language. 

Der Geist und das Reich im Lukanischen Werk: Konkurrenz oder Konvergenz zwischen Pneumatologie und Eschatologie?

2013 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 325-345
Author(s):  
Klaus B. Haacker
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Kingdom Of God ◽  
The Gift ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
Long Time ◽  
The Church

Since 1950, studies of Luke–Acts have been influenced by a downgrading of eschatology (at least of the expectation that the goal of history would be near). Conzelmann's slogan ‘Die Mitte der Zeit’ (the earthly mission of Jesus as the ‘centre of history’) suggested a long ‘time of the Church’ with the gift(s) of the Holy Spirit as a substitute (and not a foretaste) of the kingdom of God. The present study challenges this influential view of Luke's theology and its impact on definitions of the genre of Acts.

Is there Any Possibility of Reconciliation between Erasmus and Luther?

2021 ◽  
pp. 172-187
Author(s):  
Miikka Ruokanen
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Real Point ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
Cross Of Christ ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Catholic Tradition ◽  
God's Grace

After five centuries, would it be possible to see any chance of reconciliation between Erasmus and Luther? Looking at this question from the point of view of the three dimensions of the doctrine of grace, we might say some hopeful words. As to the first (1) dimension of grace, at many points even Erasmus admits that human choice must be empowered by God’s grace in order to move in the direction willed by God. But here the real difference is that, for Erasmus, free choice is enabled by the grace given in the creation and it is still naturally efficient in the sinners, whereas Luther sees that there is no freedom because of the human being’s enslavement by unfaith —there is a need for the efficient prevenient movement of the Holy Spirit which alone can create faith. As to the second (2) dimension of grace, following the Catholic tradition, Erasmus knows the conception of (2a) the forensic-juridical forgiveness of sins based on the atonement by the cross of Christ—in this respect there is no real point of controversy between the two. But Erasmus knows nothing about (2b) the union of the sinner with Christ in the Holy Spirit, the Trinitarian participatory conception of justification, central for Luther. In respect to the third (3) dimension of grace, both see possible the cooperation of the believer with God, the difference being Erasmus’ more anthropocentric concept of sanctification if compared with Luther’s emphasis of growth in love enabled by the Holy Spirit.

Joachimist Influences on the Idea of a Last World Emperor

Traditio ◽  
1961 ◽  
Vol 17 ◽  
pp. 323-370 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marjorie Reeves
Keyword(s):  
Sixteenth Century ◽  
Middle Ages ◽  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Time Process ◽  
Third Age ◽  
The Third ◽  
Last Judgment ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
Christian Thought ◽  
Full Force

The question of the dramatis personae in the last great act of history was a subject of perennial interest in the Middle Ages. Parts, both good and bad, had to be cast and it is not surprising that national hopes and rivalries frequently crept into the various attempts to assign these tremendous cosmic roles. Although both the pessimistic expectation of a mounting crescendo of evil and the hope of a millennium had existed in Christian thought since its beginning, it was the Joachimist structure of history which most clearly brought together the final crisis of evil and the final blessedness in a last great act which was yet within history, separated from eternity by the Second Advent. The concept of an age of blessedness had three strands in it: first, the idea of the millennium, derived from the Apocalypse (20.1–3), in which Satan is bound for a thousand years; secondly, the concept of a Sabbath Age, symbolized in the Seventh Day of Creation when God rested from His labors; thirdly, the Trinitarian interpretation of history, finally worked out by Joachim, in which history was expected to culminate in the Third Age of the Holy Spirit. The first two ideas did not necessarily lead to the expectation of a last age of blessedness within time: the millennium was frequently interpreted as covering the whole period between the First and Second Advents, or again, as constituting a rule of Christ and His Saints beyond history; the Sabbath Age could be seen as a Sabbath beyond the Second Advent and Last Judgment and therefore also beyond history. It was only when these two concepts became linked with the Trinitarian view of history that they clearly symbolized a crowning age of history, set in the future and therefore not yet attained, whilst unmistakably within the time process, preceding the winding-up of history in the Second Advent and Last Judgment. The full force of Joachim's concept of the Third Age was rarely grasped, appearing usually in a much-debased form, but the program of Last Things, as worked out by Joachites of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, profoundly influenced the form which these expectations took in the later Middle Ages and, indeed, right down to the end of the sixteenth century.

scholarly journals Spirit baptism and the doctrine of initial evidence in African Pentecostal Christianity: A critical analysis

2020 ◽  
Vol 76 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mookgo S. Kgatle
Keyword(s):  
Public Service ◽  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Unique Feature ◽  
Spiritual Experiences ◽  
The Public ◽  
Speaking In Tongues ◽  
Spirit Baptism ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
Pentecostal Churches ◽  
Fruit Of The Spirit

Pentecostalism is known for the belief in Spirit baptism that is accompanied by the doctrine of initial evidence, that is, speaking in tongues. The practice of the doctrine of initial evidence has become a unique feature of Pentecostalism for many years since its beginning. Similarly, Spirit baptism and the doctrine of initial evidence are practised in African Pentecostal Christianity, especially in classical Pentecostal churches and charismatic movements. However, there are challenges with this doctrine: speaking in tongues is perceived as the only evidence, and there is an emphasis on gifts than fruit of the Holy Spirit and a great emphasis on public spiritual experiences than personal encounters with God. In re-imagining the doctrine of initial evidence in African Pentecostal Christianity, speaking in tongues should not be emphasised or practised as the only evidence of Spirit baptism because there are other evidences that demonstrate the baptism in the Holy Spirit. The emphasis should be on prayer than the speaking of tongues. In addition, priority should be given to the fruit of the Spirit and on a personal encounter with God. Finally, speaking in tongues should be accompanied by interpretation in a public service because the public cannot understand the language.

Is it possible to discover ‘the one’ intended meaning of the biblical authors?

2014 ◽  
Vol 67 (2) ◽  
pp. 178-194
Author(s):  
C. Jason White
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Biblical Studies ◽  
Intended Meaning ◽  
Major Purpose ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
Doctrine Of The Trinity ◽  
History Of ◽  
Objective Meaning ◽  
The One ◽  
Reference Tools

AbstractA major pursuit of biblical studies, especially since the dawn of the Enlightenment, has been to discover the one, intended, objective meaning of the various biblical texts. Over the last several hundred years, a plethora of methodological paradigms, biblical language and reference tools, historical studies, sociological analyses, comparative linguistic investigations, and anthropological and cultural examinations have all been published through many outlets by a host of people for the purpose of finding THE meaning the biblical authors wished to convey to their respective audiences. Although the results of all these works have positively contributed to our knowledge of scripture in profound ways, the problem is this: none can claim that they have actually discovered this one objective meaning. This is not to say, however, that there are not better understandings of scripture which point more adequately to the originally intended meaning, but simply that the best anyone can do is interpret scripture. The consequence of interpretation, though, is the relativity of meaning. In other words, there are several interpretations of scripture which can validly point to the intended meaning of the biblical authors and texts. One purpose of this article, then, will be to explore why it is not possible to find the one intended meaning of scripture, by defining some key concepts (e.g. tradition and presupposition) in the work of Hans-Georg Gadamer, who is one of the most influential names in the history of philosophical hermeneutics of the twentieth century, as interpreted by Merold Westphal.Some scriptural interpreters, especially evangelicals, are frightened by the idea that biblical meaning is relative because such a pluralistic approach can lead quickly to the demise of biblical infallibility and authority. A second major purpose of this article will be to help ease such fear by offering a biblically grounded theological justification for the interpretative plurality of scripture by looking at the relativity of meaning through the lens of the doctrine of the Trinity. This justification will suggest that the more we rely upon the Holy Spirit and act out our faith in God through Jesus Christ in and outside of the church, the better our interpretation of scripture will become.

John Zizioulas

2018 ◽  
pp. 466-486
Author(s):  
Paul McPartlan
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
The Gift ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
In Christ ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Further Development ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Trinity

The chapter explores three deeply interlinked aspects of John Zizioulas’s highly influential ecclesiology: the relationship between the church and the Trinity; the relationship between the church and the Eucharist; and finally the consequences of those relationships for the structure of the church. The church is a communion through its participation in the life of the Trinity. In Christ and by the power of the Holy Spirit, it receives and re-receives the gift of communion in every Eucharist, and communion has a shape that reflects the life of God. The Trinity is centred on the Father, and so in the church at various levels the communion of the many is centred on one who is the head. This is the purely theological reason why the synodality of the church requires primacy at the local, regional, and universal levels. The chapter concludes that, while prompting many questions and needing further development, Zizioulas’s proposal has great ecumenical value.

Luke's Understanding of Baptism in the Holy Spirit: A Pentecostal Dialogues with the Reformed Tradition

2008 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 86-101
Author(s):  
Robert P. Menzies
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Biblical Theology ◽  
Theological Reflection ◽  
Good News ◽  
Unique Contribution ◽  
Reformed Tradition ◽  
Spirit Baptism ◽  
The World ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
The Church

AbstractIn this article, Menzies notes that Reformed theologians have tended to read Luke's writings in the light of Paul's epistles. As a result, their theological reflection on the Spirit has centered more on his work in the Word and sacraments, the 'inner witness' of the Spirit, and less on his mission to the world. Additionally, this methodology has encouraged Reformed scholars to associate the Pentecostal gift (i.e. Spirit baptism) with conversion and regeneration. However, through an examination of key passages in Luke-Acts, Menzies argues that Luke has a unique contribution to make to a holistic biblical theology of the Spirit. Luke's understanding of baptism in the Holy Spirit is different from that of Paul. It is missiological rather than soteriological in nature. The Spirit of Pentecost is, in reality, the Spirit for others - the Spirit that compels and empowers the church to bring the 'good news' of Jesus to a lost and dying world. It is this Lukan, missiological perspective that shapes a Pentecostal understanding of baptism in the Holy Spirit. Menzies concludes that the clarity and vigor of Luke's message is lost when his narrative is read through Pauline lenses. Luke has a distinctive voice and it is a voice the church needs to hear.

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