Blumhofer, Edith L. (1993), Restoring the Faith: The Assemblies of God, Pentecostalism, and American Culture, Urbana and Chicago, Illinois: University of Illinois Press, ISBN 978-0-252-06281-0 . Bastian, Jean-Pierre. 2008. "The New Religious Economy of Latin America". pp. 171–192, In Salvation Goods and Religious Markets: Theory and Applications, edited by J. Stolz: Peter Lang. Abstinence: A Biblical Perspective on Abstinence" (PDF). General Council of the Assemblies of God. Springfield, MO. 1985. p.2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-02-15 . Retrieved 2009-03-31. Through Durham's ministry, Italian immigrant Luigi Francescon received the Pentecostal experience in 1907 and established Italian Pentecostal congregations in the US, Argentina (Christian Assembly in Argentina), and Brazil ( Christian Congregation of Brazil). In 1908, Giacomo Lombardi led the first Pentecostal services in Italy. [65] In November 1910, two Swedish Pentecostal missionaries arrived in Belem, Brazil and established what would become the Assembleias de Deus (Assemblies of God of Brazil). [66] In 1908, John G. Lake, a follower of Alexander Dowie who had experienced Pentecostal Spirit baptism, traveled to South Africa and founded what would become the Apostolic Faith Mission of South Africa and the Zion Christian Church. [67] As a result of this missionary zeal, practically all Pentecostal denominations today trace their historical roots to the Azusa Street Revival. [68] Eventually, the first missionaries realized that they definitely needed to learn the local language and culture, needed to raise financial support, and develop long-term strategy for the development of indigenous churches. [69]

Protestantism: The fastest growing religion in the developing world". The Manila Times. 18 November 2017. Archived from the original on 19 July 2021 . Retrieved 15 February 2022. At the heart of this religious resurgence are Islam and Pentecostalism, a branch of Protestant Christianity. Islam grew at an annual average of 1.9 percent between 2000 and 2017, mainly as the result of a high birth rate. Pentecostalism grew at 2.2 percent each year, mainly by conversion. Half of developing-world Christians are Pentecostal, evangelical or charismatic (all branches of the faith emphasize the authority of the Bible and the need for a spiritual rebirth). Why are people so attracted to it?. Just as fruit should be evident in the life of every Christian, Pentecostals believe that every Spirit-filled believer is given some capacity for the manifestation of the Spirit. [143] It is important to note that the exercise of a gift is a manifestation of the Spirit, not of the gifted person, and though the gifts operate through people, they are primarily gifts given to the Church. [142] They are valuable only when they minister spiritual profit and edification to the body of Christ. Pentecostal writers point out that the lists of spiritual gifts in the New Testament do not seem to be exhaustive. It is generally believed that there are as many gifts as there are useful ministries and functions in the Church. [143] A spiritual gift is often exercised in partnership with another gift. For example, in a Pentecostal church service, the gift of tongues might be exercised followed by the operation of the gift of interpretation. The main purpose of the experience is to grant power for Christian service. Other purposes include power for spiritual warfare (the Christian struggles against spiritual enemies and thus requires spiritual power), power for overflow (the believer's experience of the presence and power of God in their life flows out into the lives of others), and power for ability (to follow divine direction, to face persecution, to exercise spiritual gifts for the edification of the church, etc.). [113] The ordinance of Holy Communion, or the Lord's Supper, is seen as a direct command given by Jesus at the Last Supper, to be done in remembrance of him. Pentecostal denominations, who traditionally support the temperance movement, reject the use of wine as part of communion, using grape juice instead. [186] [187]

References

During the 1910s, the Finished Work Pentecostal movement split over the nature of the Godhead into two camps – Trinitarian and Oneness. [8] The Oneness doctrine viewed the doctrine of the Trinity as polytheistic. [167] The first generation of Pentecostal believers faced immense criticism and ostracism from other Christians, most vehemently from the Holiness movement from which they originated. Alma White, leader of the Pillar of Fire Church—a Holiness Methodist denomination, wrote a book against the movement titled Demons and Tongues in 1910. She called Pentecostal tongues "satanic gibberish" and Pentecostal services "the climax of demon worship". [70] Famous Holiness Methodist preacher W. B. Godbey characterized those at Azusa Street as "Satan's preachers, jugglers, necromancers, enchanters, magicians, and all sorts of mendicants". To Dr. G. Campbell Morgan, Pentecostalism was "the last vomit of Satan", while Dr. R. A. Torrey thought it was "emphatically not of God, and founded by a Sodomite". [71] The Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene, one of the largest holiness groups, was strongly opposed to the new Pentecostal movement. To avoid confusion, the church changed its name in 1919 to the Church of the Nazarene. [72] According to Pentecostals, all manifestations of the Spirit are to be judged by the church. This is made possible, in part, by the gift of discerning of spirits, which is the capacity for discerning the source of a spiritual manifestation—whether from the Holy Spirit, an evil spirit, or from the human spirit. [144] While Pentecostals believe in the current operation of all the spiritual gifts within the church, their teaching on some of these gifts has generated more controversy and interest than others. There are different ways in which the gifts have been grouped. W. R. Jones [145] suggests three categories, illumination (Word of Wisdom, word of knowledge, discerning of spirits), action (Faith, working of miracles and gifts of healings) and communication (Prophecy, tongues and interpretation of tongues). Duffield and Van Cleave use two categories: the vocal and the power gifts. Within this radical evangelicalism, expressed most strongly in the Wesleyan–holiness and Higher Life movements, themes of restorationism, premillennialism, faith healing, and greater attention on the person and work of the Holy Spirit were central to emerging Pentecostalism. [25] Believing that the second coming of Christ was imminent, these Christians expected an endtime revival of apostolic power, spiritual gifts, and miracle-working. [26] Figures such as Dwight L. Moody and R. A. Torrey began to speak of an experience available to all Christians which would empower believers to evangelize the world, often termed baptism with the Holy Spirit. [27] According to a denomination census in 2022, the Assemblies of God, the largest Pentecostal denomination in the world, has 367,398 churches and 53,700,000 members worldwide. [215] The other major international Pentecostal denominations are the Apostolic Church with 15,000,000 members, [216] the Church of God (Cleveland) with 36,000 churches and 7,000,000 members, [217] The Foursquare Church with 67,500 churches and 8,800,000 members. [218]

In addition to the denominational Pentecostal churches, there are many Pentecostal churches that choose to exist independently of denominational oversight. [207] Some of these churches may be doctrinally identical to the various Pentecostal denominations, while others may adopt beliefs and practices that differ considerably from classical Pentecostalism, such as Word of Faith teachings or Kingdom Now theology. Some of these groups have been successful in utilizing the mass media, especially television and radio, to spread their message. [214] See, for instance, Thomas A. Fudge: Christianity Without the Cross: A History of Salvation in Oneness Pentecostalism. Universal Publishers, 2003. While a prophetic utterance at times might foretell future events, this is not the primary purpose of Pentecostal prophecy and is never to be used for personal guidance. For Pentecostals, prophetic utterances are fallible, i.e. subject to error. [148] Pentecostals teach that believers must discern whether the utterance has edifying value for themselves and the local church. [154] Because prophecies are subject to the judgement and discernment of other Christians, most Pentecostals teach that prophetic utterances should never be spoken in the first person (e.g. "I, the Lord") but always in the third person (e.g. "Thus saith the Lord" or "The Lord would have..."). [155] Tongues and interpretation [ edit ] Pentecostals pray in tongues at an Assemblies of God church in Cancún, Mexico Water baptism: Symbolic of dying to the world and living in Christ, water baptism is an outward symbolic expression of that which has already been accomplished by the Holy Spirit, namely baptism into the body of Christ. [107] The New Face of Global Christianity: The Emergence of 'Progressive Pentecostalism' ". Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project. 2006-04-12. Archived from the original on 2023-04-04 . Retrieved 2023-04-04.a b c d e f The New International Dictionary of Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements, s.v. "Spirituality, Pentecostal and Charismatic". Pentecostalism: Massive Global Growth Under the Radar". Pulitzer Center. 9 March 2015. Archived from the original on 20 July 2021 . Retrieved 28 October 2022. Massive Growth Under the Radar: Each day, 35,000 people are born again through baptism with the Holy Spirit. Zurlo, Gina A.; Johnson, Todd M.; Crossing, Peter F. (July 2019). "World Christianity and Mission 2020: Ongoing Shift to the Global South". International Bulletin of Mission Research. 44 (1): 16. doi: 10.1177/2396939319880074. ISSN 2396-9393. Miller, Donald E.; Sargeant, Kimon H.; Flory, Richard (15 August 2013). Spirit and Power: The Growth and Global Impact of Pentecostalism. OUP USA. ISBN 978-0-19-992057-0. Archived from the original on 7 April 2023 . Retrieved 28 October 2022. a b Levinson, David (1996). Religion: A Cross-cultural Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p.151. ISBN 978-0-87436-865-9. The Finished Work Pentecostals believed that conversion and sanctification were a single act of grace. The Assemblies of God, created in 1914, became the first Finished Work denomination.