Evangelicals have been scandalized by their association with Donald Trump, their megachurches summarily dismissed as “religious Walmarts.” In The Subversive Evangelical Peter Schuurman shows how a growing group of “reflexive evangelicals” use irony to critique their own tradition and distinguish themselves from the stereotype of right-wing evangelicalism. Entering the Meeting House – an Ontario-based Anabaptist megachurch – as a participant observer, Schuurman discovers that the marketing is clever and the venue (a rented movie theatre) is attractive to the more than five thousand weekly attendees. But the heart of the church is its charismatic leader, Bruxy Cavey, whose anti-religious teaching and ironic tattoos offer a fresh image for evangelicals. This charisma, Schuurman argues, is not just the power of one individual; it is a dramatic production in which Cavey, his staff, and attendees cooperate, cultivating an identity as an “irreligious” megachurch and providing followers with a more culturally acceptable way to practise their faith in a secular age. Going behind the scenes to small group meetings, church dance parties, and the homes of attendees to investigate what motivates these reflexive evangelicals, Schuurman reveals a playful and provocative counterculture that distances itself from prevailing stereotypes while still embracing a conservative Christian faith.
This is open access under a CC BY 4.0 license The history of Charismatic Christianity in the Nordic countries reaches as far back as Pentecostalism itself. The bounds of these categories remain a topic of discussion, but Nordic countries have played a vital role in developing this rapidly spreading form of world-wide Christianity. Until now, research on global Charismatic Christianity has largely overlooked the region. This book addresses and analyzes its historical and contemporary trajectories in Finland, Norway, and Sweden. Through a selection of cases written by Nordic scholars from various disciplines, it demonstrates historical and contemporary diversity as well as interconnections between local, national, and global currents. Highlighting change and continuity, the anthology reveals new aspects of Charismatic Christianity.
In his classic Surprised by the Power of the Spirit, Jack Deere looked at the reason why many Christians (including himself at the time) struggle to believe in miraculous gifts, and he provided a groundbreaking biblical defense of the Holy Spirit's speaking and healing activities today. In Why I Am Still Surprised by the Power of the Spirit, the former Dallas Seminary professor revisits his earlier subject matter with fresh insight and even stronger conviction: the Scriptures teach that God is healing and speaking today just as he did 2,000 years ago. Having almost entirely rewritten Surprised by the Power of the Spirit, this new edition comes at a time when the theological landscape has dramatically changed, and most evangelicals do believe in all the gifts of the Spirit. But many of us are still unsure how to understand those gifts, and there is much confusion today on what it means to be filled with the Spirit. This book is for those familiar with Deere's work and for newcomers alike. In it, he: Explains the nature of spiritual gifts, defining each of them. Offers sound advice on discovering and using spiritual gifts in church. Tells documented stories of modern miracles and encounters with demonic powers. Examines the New Testament use of the phrase "filled with the Spirit" to show why and how God still fills his servants with the Holy Spirit. Introduces the newest literature defending and explaining the gifts of the Spirit. With the care of a scholar and the passion of personal experience, this new edition builds upon the legacy of Surprised by the Power of the Spirit and the profound impact it's had among Christians of many traditions.
This 2000 book analyses the revival of charismatic Protestant Christianity as an example of globalization. Simon Coleman shows that, along with many social movements, these religious conservatives are negotiating their own interpretations of global and postmodern processes. They are constructing an evangelical arena of action and meaning within the liminal, chaotic space of the global. The book examines globalization not only as a social process, but also as an embodied practice involving forms of language and ritualized movement. Charismatic Christianity is presented through its material culture - art, architecture and consumer products - as well as its rhetoric and theology. The book provides an account of the incorporation of electronic media such as television, videos and the Internet into Christian worship. Issues relating to the conduct of fieldwork in contexts of globalization are raised in an account which is also a major ethnography of a Faith ministry.
Studies of religion have a tendency to conceptualise 'the Spirit' and 'the Letter' as mutually exclusive and intrinsically antagonistic. However, the history of religions abounds in cases where charismatic leaders deliberately refer to and make use of writings. This book challenges prevailing scholarly notions of the relationship between 'charisma' and 'institution' by analysing reading and writing practices in contemporary Christianity. Taking up the continuing anthropological interest in Pentecostal-charismatic Christianity, and representing the first book-length treatment of literacy practices among African Christians, this volume explores how church leaders in Zambia refer to the Bible and other religious literature, and how they organise a church bureaucracy in the Pentecostal-charismatic mode. Thus, by examining social processes and conflicts that revolve around the conjunction of Pentecostal-charismatic and literacy practices in Africa, Spirits and Letters reconsiders influential conceptual dichotomies in the social sciences and the humanities and is therefore of interest not only to anthropologists but also to scholars working in the fields of African studies, religious studies, and the sociology of religion.
FROM THE BEST-SELLING AUTHOR OF GOD AND DONALD TRUMP 64% of Americans believe cancel culture is a threat to their freedom. This book will help you realize the seriousness of the battle before us and illuminate the present circumstance for the purpose of doing good-to bring hope. It will document what is happening in our country, how believers can respond, and why we can look expectantly to the future. This is the time for neither religious fatalism nor political inaction. No matter how bad things get in the culture or in government, the Bible is true and God has plans and purposes we don't understand-and in the end we win. Things are chaotic in America. Liberal policies are advancing. A rash of executive orders appears to be moving the nation closer to socialism and a one-world government. And conservatives, including many Christians, are being censored as never before. There's even a term-cancel culture-which 64 percent of Americans believe poses a threat to their freedom, according to a Harvard CAPS-Harris Poll. (Among Republicans, that figure is even higher at 80 percent.) The term applies to all conservatives who oppose the politically correct crowd, but it's part of a bigger effort to cancel Christianity and those who espouse biblical principles. It almost seems this is the beginning of the end and the Antichrist will appear at any time. You pick the cultural or political issue, and there likely is not even the semblance of widespread agreement. It seems that Christians are in an unprecedented season of fragmentation, potential division, and actual separation on many fronts. Instead of going forward, much of the church seems to be moving backward or standing still, waiting for what's next. The body of Christ is a big, diverse family, and we must choose to cheer one another on rather than get into circular firing squads. We are called to advance on every front. This book will assess and affirm the different approaches playing out. The body needs clarity and unity- and has little of both right now. Wounded armies want hope, focus, and encouragement. This book will not throw anyone overboard who is standing for the truth in some positive way. Rather, it will allow readers to look critically at the various approaches vying for our allegiance and attention here in the middle of 2021. In the course of this survey, we will find reason to affirm where people are fighting on the battlefield and validate the perspectives they bring. Featuring interviews with a cross section of leaders, this book will document what is happening in our country, how believers can respond, and why we can look to the future with hope. Even though things are bad, we must understand that conditions have been this bad or worse in the past and God always came through. He has plans and purposes we don't understand. Christians must not lose heart. We must stand strong and not be intimidated. We must pray, and we must believe God for a great awakening. No matter how bad things get in the culture or in government, the Bible is true and "all things work together for good to those who love God" (Rom. 8:28, MEV). That's because we are called according to His purpose. A purpose never goes in reverse. This book will reveal what that looks like in its various forms in the day in which we live. It gives a great handle for promoting unity and appreciation of one another when that is breaking down so badly elsewhere. Indeed, maybe the love Jesus spoke about that makes us recognizable to the world will be seen as this book illuminates the supernatural unity among people of very diverse opinions and approaches while pointedly addressing these various hot-button areas.
The Bible teaches us that we are to be filled with God's Spirit and that God's presence and grace is manifested among his people as they serve, love, and minister to one another. Yet some of the gifts that God offers to his people aren't commonly seen in many churches today. Gifts of prophecy, healing, tongues, and other supernatural gifts of God seem to be absent, and many Christians are unsure how to cultivate an atmosphere where God's Spirit can work while remaining committed to the foundational truth of God's Word. How can Christians pursue and implement the miraculous gifts of the Spirit without falling into fanatical excess and splitting the church in the process? In Practicing the Power, pastor and author Sam Storms offers practical steps to understanding and exercising spiritual gifts in a way that remains grounded in the word and centered in the gospel. With examples drawn from his forty years of ministry as a pastor and teachers, Storms offers a guidebook that can help pastors, elders, and church members understand what changes are needed to see God move in supernatural power and to guard against excess and abuse of the spiritual gifts. If you long to see God's Spirit move in your church and life, and aren't sure why that isn't happening or where to begin, this book is for you.
Charismatic Chaos thoughtfully and carefully shines the light of Scripture on teaching that is not only gaining massive and loyal television followin, but also leading to disunity on a worlwide scale and promising to fuel controversy for years to come.
