CYBERJOURNAL
FOR PENTECOSTAL-CHARISMATIC RESEARCH
Word and Spirit, Church and World
The Final Report of the International Dialogue between
Representatives of the
World Alliance of Reformed Churches
And
Some Classical Pentecostal Churches and Leaders
1996-2000
Introduction
1.
This is a report from the participants of an
international Dialogue (1996-2000) between the World Alliance of Reformed
Churches (WARC) and leaders from some classical Pentecostal churches. It had its beginnings in the 22nd
WARC General Council in Seoul, Korea, which proposed exploration of the
possibility of organizing an international dialogue with Pentecostal
churches. This was made possible
through the contacts made in 1993 between the General Secretary of the World
Alliance of Reformed Churches, Milan Opočenský, and Professor of Church
History and Ecumenics at Fuller Theological Seminary, Cecil M. Robeck, Jr., a
Pentecostal minister. Over the next two
years, they exchanged correspondence and talked with one another about the
possibility that such a dialogue might be held. They attempted to discern both the need for such a conversation,
and the potential outcomes that might result.
Finally, they agreed to bring together a small group of scholars who
could explore the potential for such a dialogue with them.
2.
In 1995, Dr. Opočenský received encouragement from
the executive committee of the WARC to pursue an exploratory meeting with the
Pentecostals. Dr. Opočenský
appointed Dr. Henry Wilson of the WARC staff to facilitate the discussion from
the WARC side. Dr. Robeck acted in that
capacity for the Pentecostals. They
convened a small exploratory committee at Mattersey Hall in Mattersey, England,
July 8-9, 1995.[1] The committee determined that a dialogue
between the WARC and Pentecostals might serve several useful purposes. They noted that those who are disciples of
Jesus Christ are all members of the one Church. They were concerned, however, that this reality receive attention
not merely at an abstract theological or ideological level, but that it receive
some attention at the practical level where the churches of the Reformed tradition
and the churches of the Pentecostal movement touch the lives of one another
directly.
3.
The committee noted that in many places around the
world, members of the Pentecostal and Reformed communities are uncomfortable
with one another. Sometimes they are
openly antagonistic toward one another.
In a few places such as South Korea, Brazil, and South Africa, tensions
between the Reformed and Pentecostal communities were clearly evident and often
painful for both parties. The committee
was concerned that there was no identifiable, formal way for these communities
to relate to each other. These facts
seemed to indicate that conversation between the various parties involved was
not only advisable; it was essential.
4.
The exploratory committee believed that some of these
tensions were the result of the state of ignorance that these communities often
manifested towards one another. Other
tensions seemed to emerge as a direct result of honest theological
disagreement. Some of these issues were
rooted deeply in the history of one group or the other, while other issues were
the result of more recent claims. Still
other tensions could be attributed to certain contemporary practices in which
one group or the other was engaged. In
some places in the world these practices yielded public charges of unfair
competition, proselytism, fanaticism, or dead religion. The committee believed that this state of
affairs was not only unhealthy for Christians to endure, but that it communicated
the wrong message to the world. If the
Gospel of reconciliation seemed to lack the power necessary to help Christians
to resolve differences between themselves, how could it be trusted to bring
reconciliation between human beings and their God?
5.
As a result of these considerations, the committee
concluded that an international Dialogue between representatives of these
traditions would go far to help both groups gain a greater understanding of one
another, to explore their common concerns, and to confront their differences. They established three limited goals by
which the Dialogue could begin. First,
they hoped that such a Dialogue would increase mutual understanding and respect
between the churches of the Reformed and Pentecostal traditions. Second, they asked that the Dialogue seek
ways to identify areas of theological agreement, disagreement, and convergence
so that both communities might be mutually strengthened. Third, they suggested that those who would
engage in the dialogue would help these two communities by exploring various
possibilities for common witness. They also hoped that by entering into the
life of these local communities the Dialogue might be an encouragement to
Christians who were embattled, or who were looking for new ways to validate
their message of reconciliation before the world.
6.
The next step was more difficult. Since members of the Pentecostal community
and members of the Reformed community did not already have close relations, the
exploratory committee looked for ways by which to enter such a dialogue. There is no international Pentecostal group
that is equivalent to the World Alliance of Reformed Churches. Thus, there was no formal organizational
source willing or able to provide support or direction for the Pentecostal participants. While this fact held the potential for some
inequity in the process, the committee believed that it was better to begin the
conversation than not. This would be a new experience for many of the
participants. The committee struggled
with what topics should be addressed and with what methodologies of exploration
they would recommend
7.
The committee recommended that the dialogue begin with
a tentative discussion of contemporary understandings of spirituality as it is
viewed and practiced in these respective communities. To aid the Dialogue in understanding spirituality, not only
theologically, but also as experienced practically, the committee recommended
that the Dialogue be hosted in alternate years by each of the traditions. They further recommended that the Dialogue
include as part of its ongoing life together, opportunities for worship in each
of the traditions. It was agreed that
the members of the subsequent dialogue teams would engage in acts of common
prayer and Bible study on a daily basis, but further, that they would enter into
the parish life of the local community of the team that acted as host. This tradition of common worship and witness
has proven to be one of the most significant tools for helping both teams
understand one another.
8.
The first official meetings of the international
Reformed-Pentecostal Dialogue was finally convened May 15-20, 1996 in Torre
Pellice, Italy. The Waldensian Church
served as the Dialogue's host. Abival
Pires da Silveira and Cecil M. Robeck, Jr. were asked to serve as
Co-chairs. The Dialogue included
delegates from the Pentecostal and Reformed traditions that literally came from
throughout the world. The theme for the
opening discussion was “Spirituality and the Challenges of Today.” Papers were offered by members of both
teams in the following three areas, “Spirituality and Interpretation of
Scripture,” “Spirituality and Justice,” and “Spirituality and Ecumenism.”[2] Each of these papers provided insight into
the similarities and differences between the traditions, but as the members of
the dialogue felt their way into the lives of each other, they began to
recognize two things. First, it was too
much to ask for the members of the Dialogue to do justice to all the material
that was presented in these papers in the time allotted. Second, various members of the teams lacked
an adequate understanding of the other tradition, and therefore, often lacked a
language by which the two could communicate.
They decided that they would seek fewer papers at their next meeting and
spend more time exploring the ideas that were presented.
9.
The Dialogue held its second meeting in Chicago,
Illinois, USA, May 11-15, 1997. While
the Pentecostal team hosted this meeting, McCormick Theological Seminary
provided the facilities. The theme was “The Role and Place of the Holy
Spirit in the Church.” Three papers
were presented at this meeting. One was
presented on “The Relation of the Holy Spirit to the Bible.” The other two explored the role of the Holy
Spirit in proclamation and the place of charismatic manifestations within the
Church.[3] While both groups found commonality in God’s
revelation of Jesus Christ as the Scripture bore witness to it, they struggled
to understand the implications of ongoing revelation for faith and practice. They recognized the sovereign role of the
Spirit in the bestowal of gifts upon the faith community as it seeks to address
the diverse needs that arise in the Church, society and the world. Both teams began to note that they had much
in common, but they took note of the fact that they differed on some important
issues as well. While the number of
papers they had solicited for this round of discussions was half that solicited
during the first round, they concluded that they needed to solicit even fewer
papers for the third round.
10.
The Dialogue seemed to find its rhythm when it met May
14-19, 1998 in Kappel-am-Albis, Switzerland.
It provided a unique opportunity for participants to hear from Professor
Walter J. Hollenweger, a former Pentecostal pastor of the Swiss Pentecostal
Mission, now a minister in the Swiss Reformed Church, and to meet with the host
of the Dialogue, President of the cantonal Reformed Church of Zürich, the
Reverend Ruedi Reich. In the absence of
the Reverend Abival Pires da Silveira, the Reverend Salvatore Ricciardi acted
as the Reformed Co-Chairperson for this session. The Dialogue studied two papers on a single
topic, one from each team. The topic
was “The Holy Spirit and Mission in Eschatological Perspective.”[4]
11. It became apparent within that context that
the Dialogue would be significantly aided if there were greater continuity of
the members of the Dialogue through the years.
While those providing leadership to the Dialogue had hoped to include
people for whom an international encounter would be an experience of personal
growth, the lack of understanding of global Christianity by some participants
continued to be a handicap to the project.
Similarly, it had been hoped that the Dialogue would be composed of
people at a variety of educational levels from within the respective
traditions. This also proved to be a
handicap in the sense that the group continued to lack a common language and
methodology by which to pursue their assigned tasks. At the close of this third session, then, the leaders determined
to bring teams to the table that embodied greater parity.
12.From
May 14-20, 1999, the Dialogue discussed, “The Holy Spirit, Charisma, and the
Kingdom of God” in Seoul, South Korea.[5] The Reverend David Yonggi Cho and Yoido Full
Gospel Church served as the hosts of the Dialogue this year. From this
point on, the members of the Dialogue felt that the teams that could best
facilitate their common task were finally in place. Furthermore, the venue provided members of the Dialogue with a
first-hand opportunity to observe members from both the Reformed and
Pentecostal communities where tensions were known to exist. While the primary discussion at the table
focused on the topic at hand, what took place at the times of common worship,
in the visits to local churches, and at other specified times proved to be
significant to the hopes expressed by the exploratory committee. Local guests from both communities were
invited to sit in and observe some of the discussions. At times, members of the local Christian
press as well as the secular press were invited to observe particular
sessions. On several occasions, members
of the Dialogue offered press interviews that allowed them opportunity to talk about
the hopes of the Dialogue and address some of the concerns that were present in
the Presbyterian and Pentecostal communities in Seoul. These limited encounters proved to be highly
successful in building bridges between the communities at that time.
13.The first five-year round
of discussions between the WARC and Pentecostals concluded in São Paulo,
Brazil, May 20-24, 2000. The
Independent Presbyterian Church of Brazil and the First Independent
Presbyterian Church of São Paulo jointly hosted the Dialogue. During this session, Milan Opočensky served
as chairperson for the Reformed team.
The papers that had been presented in each of the previous four years,
agreed accounts from these meetings, and a working draft that was largely
derived from these accounts became the materials from which members of both
teams drew while preparing this report.
Work was undertaken in plenary sessions, and in four groups, each
working on one of the four major sections of the body of this report.
Specialists were invited to work on the language of the text and to provide the
introduction. One day was taken for the
two traditions to meet in caucus in order to clarify their concerns. In the end, the report was submitted to the
plenary for final approval.
14.This process, upon which
both teams agreed, allowed for the recognition of new insights and information
that could only be seen at the end of the discussion. Each year had a way of providing parts to the total
discussion, but they begged for integration.
The members of both teams, therefore, believe that the following
statements fairly represent not only their personal concerns, but the concerns
of those they sought to represent in this ongoing discussion.
I.
Spirit and Word
The Spirit and the Word in the Context of
the Trinity
15.Together, the members of
the Pentecostal and the Reformed teams agree that we stand in communion
with the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, in our belief that the Holy Spirit is
the Lord and Giver of Life and, together with the Father and the Son, is to be
worshipped and glorified. We also believe
that the Father and the Son and the Spirit send the Church into the world.
16.We regard the older
conception of the contrast between the Reformed and Pentecostal families as
consisting of a difference in emphasis between the Word (Reformed) and the Spirit
(Pentecostal) to be in need of correction.
Both the Reformed and Pentecostal traditions consider Jesus Christ to be
the criterion for the work of the Holy Spirit.
17.Pentecostals are aware
that some have viewed the Pentecostal Movement as overly concerned with
the Holy Spirit. Though Pentecostals
draw attention to the work of the Spirit, they do not generally detach this
work from a Trinitarian understanding of God's activity. Pentecostals, in general, tend to agree
together that God's work and our worshipful response have a certain Trinitarian
structure (involving the Father through the Son in the power of the
Spirit). Most Pentecostals accept a
Trinitarian understanding of the Godhead, although a wing of the Pentecostal
Movement affirms only the Oneness of God.[6]
If there is a center to the Pentecostal message, it is the Person and work of
Jesus Christ. From the beginning of the
Pentecostal Movement, its central message has referred to Jesus Christ as
Savior, Sanctifier, Spirit Baptizer, Healer, and Coming King. In fact, Pentecostal practice strives to
conform to the biblical injunction that the yardstick of Christ must judge
those things ascribed to the Holy Spirit.
18.In the context of the
Holy Trinity, Reformed churches have affirmed the Christological criterion for
the Spirit's work but they have also paid special attention to the work of the
Triune God in creation. The world is a
good work of the Triune God who called it into existence through the Word by
the Spirit and continues to sustain it.
In spite of sin and rebellion, the earth remains the “theater of the
glory of God.” There is, as a
consequence of this focus on the earth giving glory to God its Creator, an
openness in the Reformed tradition to the work of the Spirit in creation and
culture. We must fulfill our vocation
in this world, over which Jesus Christ is Lord and which by the Spirit will be
renewed and brought to its final consummation.
The Spirit and the Word in Creation and
Culture
19.We agree that God has revealed God’s Self decisively in Jesus Christ, the One in whom the fullness of the Godhead dwells. God's Son is the eternal Word of God, who became flesh (Cf. John 1:14, Hebrews 1:1-2, and Colossians 2:3, 9). In addition, God has revealed God’s Self through the Scriptures and Scripture, as the Word of God, is not to be isolated from the agency of the Holy Spirit.
20.We agree that the Holy Spirit is present and active, not only in the Christian Church, but also in human history and in various cultures. The work of the Spirit is broader than we think. Nevertheless, we believe that every culture, as well as our own churches, is in need of being reshaped by the Holy Spirit in accordance with the revelation in Jesus Christ as witnessed to in Scripture. We believe that Jesus Christ, the One in whom the fullness of God dwells, is the perfect icon of God, the decisive self-revelation to human beings (Hebrews 1).
21.With a focus on preaching and experiencing the ministry of Jesus Christ, Pentecostals have generally emphasized the work of the Spirit in culture as a preparation for the ministry of Christ through the Church in the world. The corresponding emphasis has been on the sinfulness and needs of a “world without Christ.” More recently, some Pentecostals have begun to reflect on the role of the Spirit in creation and culture to reveal God and to accomplish God’s just and holy will, but not to the extent of believing that there is saving grace outside of the ministry of the Gospel. Jesus Christ is “the Way, the Truth, and the Life.” On the other hand, without diminishing the unique role of Jesus Christ in God’s saving plan, the Reformed tradition has regarded the role of the Spirit in culture more expansively and positively than solely as a preparation for the ministry of the Gospel.
Spirit, Proclamation, and Spiritual
Discernment
22.Together, we stress the mutual bond of the Word and the Spirit. Through the Holy Spirit, the Bible speaks the Word of God. The indispensable action of the Spirit makes the text into a living and life-giving testimony to Jesus Christ, transforming the lives of people, for the Scripture is not a dead text. This confession involves more than an articulation of a biblical truth, or an expression of doctrine. It communicates how we understand, relate to, and engage the Bible in everyday life. The Bible nourishes the People of God and enables them to discern the spirits.
23.Pentecostals and most Reformed Christians believe that Jesus Christ is “the way, the Truth, and the Life” and, therefore, that no one can come to the Father except through the Son (John 14:6). The Holy Spirit convinces people of sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8-11), leading toward a personal response to the divine invitation to seek him and to find him (Acts 17:27). Both traditions acknowledge that the Holy Spirit is at work among all peoples, including peoples of other faiths, preparing them to receive the proclaimed Word (Ps. 139; Acts 14:15-17). There is, therefore, a common challenge for believers from both traditions to learn together the ways in which the Spirit of God teaches the Church to utilize various cultural elements in the service of God and the proclamation of the Word of God.
24. Pentecostals affirm that Christians must continue
to work for Jesus Christ through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. By
proclaiming the Gospel, healing the sick, and confronting demonic powers,
Pentecostals seek to be involved in a vibrant proclamation of the Gospel,
accompanied often by manifestations of the power of God. Healing is probably
the most common manifestation of God’s power among Pentecostal churches
worldwide. Healings (including exorcisms) manifest the presence, compassion,
and power of God.
25. For Pentecostals, the anointing of the Spirit
makes proclamation an event and an encounter between people and God. A
Spirit-empowered proclamation of the scriptural message thus holds an important
place in Pentecostal worship services. But the communication of God’s will and
action in Pentecostal services is not confined to the event of proclamation.
There are multiple gifts of the Holy Spirit at work in Pentecostal worship to
channel God’s presence and to communicate God’s will. The locus of discernment
tends to be distributed in many Pentecostal churches among the entire
congregation, so that whether gathered in worship or dispersed in society, all
members are called to exercise their gifts in ministry. In various times and
places, some Pentecostals have even reported that the Spirit worked so
dramatically through multiple, extraordinary gifts in a particular church
service, that the preached Word of God was not given as it usually is. There is
a tendency in many Pentecostal congregations to decentralize the communication
of God’s Word and to encourage ordinary believers to speak for God alongside
the preaching ministry of the ordained minister.
26. Reciprocity is established between Word, Spirit, and community so that the Spirit enlivens the Word, the Word provides a context for the Spirit’s work, and the community lives out the Spirit’s directions. Pentecostals place priority on the “leading of the Spirit” both individually and corporately.
27. While Pentecostals employ different methods and approaches to interpret the Bible, central to their interpretation is the conviction that the Word of God speaks to today’s world. Pentecostals strive to hear what the Word of God has to say to them and their era as they live in restored and ongoing continuity with the mighty acts of God recorded in the Bible. For Pentecostals, the Bible is a story; they read their lives into that story and that story into their lives. They stress returning to the experiences of God to which Scripture bears witness, but also moving forth into the world to witness to the deeds of God multiplied through them in new contexts. Essential to hearing the Word, therefore, is the spiritual openness and fitness of the interpreter. The gap between the Bible and the contemporary world, which is emphasized among Pentecostals, is not historical but spiritual.
28. Pentecostals generally advocate a disciplined study of the Bible that employs methods that do not alienate the reader from the text or cast doubt on the miraculous nature of God’s deeds, whether in biblical times or now. For this reason, they have often been wary of historical-critical methods of interpreting the Bible. Some also follow the fundamentalist defenses of the inerrancy of Scripture and strive to enter the modernistic struggle over the proper use of historical method in interpreting the Bible. Others are trying, instead, to explore postmodern interpretations of the Bible in order to transcend the limits of historical investigation in encountering the meaning of Scripture. But Pentecostals normally emphasize that the Bible speaks and transforms lives only through the work of the Holy Spirit.
29. While Pentecostals originally came from diverse denominational backgrounds, they sought to go beyond what they had commonly experienced as “dead forms and creeds,” to a “living, practical Christianity.” Thus, the revelation of God through the preaching of the Bible was aided, not by conscious devotion to past denominational traditions, but to various signs and wonders of the Spirit indicating the last days, one of the important ones being prophecy. It is a Pentecostal conviction that the Spirit of God can speak through ordinary Christians in various ways that are consistent with the biblical message (I Cor. 12-14). Ideally, these inspired words aid the preached word in making the will of God revealed in Scripture dynamic and relevant to particular needs in the Church. As the Acts of the Apostles shows, the Church is to be directed today by the Spirit prophetically. “Let those who have an ear to hear, hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches (Rev. 1-3).”
30. The Bible is essential to Reformed faith and life. People entering a Reformed church normally find a Bible on the communion table or the pulpit. That the Bible is open indicates that God wants to speak. The Word of God wants to answer questions that people may carry in their hearts. The Word also wants to put a vital question to those who enter the church. Keeping an open Bible in the church is a symbolic act, which affirms that the Bible is central in Reformed experience and worship. The decisive moment in the worship service is, indeed, the reading and preaching of the Word. The entire liturgy is structured to keep preaching of the Word at the center. However, the Bible is not an end in itself, for both Scripture and preaching point to the living Word, Jesus Christ.
31. Reformed churches understand that the Word of God is addressed to the whole People of God. Thus, congregations emphasize teaching, studying, discussing and learning the Scriptures so that the community of faith and all its members may hear the Word of God in its fullness.
32. In previous centuries, Reformed theologians usually said that all signs and wonders were confined to the apostolic age. Increasingly, theologians, pastors, and church members see that this opinion finds no ground in the Scriptures. However, a careful reading of Paul's letters leads Reformed Christians to the conviction that it would be wrong to concentrate attention on the so-called supernatural gifts, such as glossolalia and healing. In the Pauline lists of spiritual gifts, the more common gifts, such as leading, organizing, and teaching, are mentioned in juxtaposition with the more spectacular gifts. In fact, we cannot sharply differentiate “supernatural gifts” from “natural” gifts. What we see as “natural” can be seen as a miracle, whether in nature, personal experience, or the history of humankind. This is evident in the “miracles” of the growing concern for the equality of women and men, the abolition of apartheid, and the struggle for the abolition of weapons of mass destruction. In these events and efforts, we may see the Spirit working in our day for the healing of the world.
33. Reformed people acknowledge that the Word of God comes to them through the faithfulness of those who have preserved and proclaimed it, giving witness in ministry and mission throughout the centuries. The Apostle Paul underscores the importance of tradition when he gives instruction concerning foundational elements of the Christian message, such as the resurrection of Jesus Christ (I Cor. 15:3) and the Lord’s Supper (I Cor. 11:23). Because the Word has reached us over a long span of time, it should be approached through any means of interpretation that will make its message intelligible. One of these means, though not the only one, is the historical-critical method. No interpretative method may take the place of the Word itself. While exegetical work helps the Church discern meaning in Scriptures, it is only by the Holy Spirit that the Scriptures become the living Word of God for the Church.
34.
The Word of God addresses not only the Church or
individuals, but also the entire world, which God has deeply loved (John 3:16).
This is why proclaiming the Word and living in obedience to the Word is central
to the Reformed tradition, enabling the Church to oppose all oppressive
situations in the name of God. Such opposition is normally termed the
“prophetic” task of the Church, but it cannot be taken for granted that any
proclamation is “prophetic.” In any case, the prophetic Word is first addressed
to the Church and so the first task of the Church is to listen to the
prophets and then - faithfully and humbly - to make the meaning of God’s Word
clear to the present generation. The Word proclaimed by the Church may become
prophetic only when and where it pleases God, and it is only “after the fact”
that a proclamation by a church may be considered prophetic.
35.
Pentecostal and Reformed Christians conclude that the
Bible is the Word of God in its witness to Jesus Christ through the work of the
Holy Spirit. They tend to have
different expectations concerning the role of the Spirit in culture and the
significance of extraordinary gifts of the Spirit in manifesting the power of
God in the proclamation of the Gospel. Thus, we affirm the Bible as the Word of
God, an instrument of the Spirit to proclaim the grace of Jesus Christ to all
people. The Word of God inscripturated in the Bible becomes the living Word
that speaks by the action of the Spirit of God, because the Spirit, who speaks
through the Bible, is the same Spirit who was present in the formation of the
Scriptures. This role of the Bible as
an instrument of the Spirit may not be understood in an exclusive way, however,
for the Spirit cannot be confined to the text of the Bible. We of the
Pentecostal and the Reformed traditions may understand the prophetic task of
the Church somewhat differently, but we agree that the Spirit of God continues
to speak in and through the Church in a way consistent with the biblical
message.
II. The Holy Spirit and the Church
36.
The teams of Pentecostal and Reformed theologians share
the following affirmations about the Holy Spirit and the Church.
The Church is the Creature of the Word
and Spirit.
The Church is the Community of the
Holy Spirit's Leading.
The Church is the Community of the
Spirit's Gifts
The Church is in but not of
the World.
In each of these areas of common conviction, Reformed and Pentecostal
emphases are often different. These
differences are sometimes complementary, sometimes divergent. In all cases, however, ongoing dialogue
helps to clarify complementarities and divergences, as well as suggest ways of
deepening the ongoing conversations between us.
The Church is the
Creature of the Word and Spirit
37. Reformed and Pentecostal Christians share the firm conviction that the Church is God’s creation. The Church is a people called by the Word and shaped by the Spirit, all to the glory of God. The gracious action of God precedes all human forms, communities, and institutions. In speaking of the Church, we stress the mutual connection of Word and Spirit, and the Church as creature of the Word and Spirit called upon to respond to God’s grace by worship in Spirit and in Truth. However, Pentecostal and Reformed Christians may use different language to express this common conviction.
38. Reformed Christians tend to use the language of “covenant” to describe the initiative of God and the formation of God’s people. The covenant is the expression of God’s gracious action in Christ to reconcile us to Himself, and to one another. Reformed understanding of the Church is based on both the promises and the commandments of God. The deepest intention of the covenant is the reconciled life, for reconciliation in Jesus Christ is the basis and motive for life according to the will of God through the power of the Spirit. The shape of the covenant is expressed in the two great commandments - love of God and love of neighbor. Reformed Christians tend to identify the faithful Church as that community where the Word of God is rightly preached and heard, and where the sacraments are celebrated according to Christ's institution. Reformed Christians thus affirm that we receive the Gospel of Christ through the living community of faith, which is sustained and nurtured though the Word of God, as the Holy Spirit seals the Word in us.
39. Pentecostals tend to use the language of “the outpouring of the Spirit” to describe the initiative of God and the formation of the Church as the Body of Christ. They tend to identify the faithful Church as the community where Jesus Christ is lifted up, the Word of God is preached and obeyed, and where the Spirit’s gifts are manifested in the lives of believers. The Spirit sovereignly bestows charisms upon the community and its members. These gifts of the Spirit manifest themselves in a variety of ways so that the role of the Word and the function of the Spirit are contextualized within the community. Each Pentecostal community, formed by the outpouring of the Spirit and shaped by the Spirit’s gifts, discerns what the Spirit is saying to the Church through the Word and is thereby shaped by the Spirit in conformity to the Word.
40. From the covenant it follows that Reformed Christians nurture an awareness of living in congregations. Whereas Pentecostal Christians tend to focus more upon the life of the local assembly as it gathers together in the name of Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit.
41. The common affirmation that the Church is the creature of the Word and Spirit can lead us into fruitful conversations regarding the ways the Word is given space among us and the ways the Spirit moves among us. Both Pentecostal and Reformed Christians understand worship as the Church’s primary response to God’s grace. Furthermore, both understand that it is the Spirit who enables faithful worship by the community. Yet the two communities of faith express the Spirit’s presence and action differently. Much more conversation should occur on the concrete reality of worship. Deeper dialogue concerning the role of sacraments or ordinances, and the place of the Holy Spirit’s gifts, may lead to mutual enrichment.
The Church is the Community of the Holy
Spirit’s Leading
42.
Both Pentecostal and Reformed Christians recognize the
Spirit’s leadership in the Church as the Church confesses its faith, gathers as
a community of worship, grows in edification and fellowship, and responds to
its mission in the world. In these and
other ways the Church is facilitated by the Spirit’s guidance in the process of
spiritual discernment.
43.
Reformed communities affirm that the Spirit leads the
Church as a community in ongoing confession of Christian faith. Reformed people have always been
confession-making people, exercising their God-given freedom and obligation to
confess the faith in each time and place.
From the earliest beginnings of the Reformation through the 20th
Century, Reformed churches have formulated creeds and confessions that express
the lived faith of concrete communities.
The churches acknowledge the ongoing guidance of the Spirit to lead the
community of faith into the truth and to make the Gospel intelligible and
relevant to specific places and times.
This ongoing re-formulation of confessions is based on fidelity to the
Scriptures - the Word of God that bears witness to the incarnate Word of God.
44.
Reformed churches strive to reach consensus through
mutual discernment of Word and Spirit.
Yet we confess that we are imperfect hearers of the Word who may resist
the Spirit’s leading. As a community of
redeemed sinners, we remain sinners nonetheless. “Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to
the churches.”
45.
While some Pentecostals have enacted confessions or
statements of faith written in formal propositions, frequently they manifest
their beliefs through expressions of personal testimony made in daily life and
worship. Pentecostals explicitly affirm
that it is the Spirit who both leads and enables them to worship God. They attempt to be sensitive to the movement
of the Holy Spirit because they believe that the Spirit leads them into all
truth and points them towards Jesus Christ.
46.
Reformed worship is the place where the gathered
community confesses common faith. In
creeds and confessions from the early church, the Reformation period, and
contemporary settings, the worshiping assembly gives voice to the beliefs that
bind individual believers together in common faith, life, and witness.
47.
Ideally, spiritual discernment plays an essential role
in Pentecostalism. The practice of Pentecostal
spirituality collectively prepares congregations, ministries, and denominations
to discern God’s will in concrete situations.
Functioning within many dimensions of the Church as community, the
discernment dynamic relies upon the Spirit’s assistance and leadership for an
authentication of communal prayer. This
is manifested in a collective inner witness that is consistent with
Scripture. Prayerful deliberations or conversations
enable the local church to arrive at consensus about its response to an issue
or situation. Included in the communal
discernment is the interaction between Pentecostals and society.
48.
Societal changes and development sometimes awaken a
Christian group to the need to wrestle with an issue. Coupled with communal discernment is personal discernment by each
member. Each person participates in the
discernment, ascertaining her/his judgment on the emerging or established
consensus. Pivotal in personal
discernment is the role of conscience.
While the term is rarely used among Pentecostals, it is often
implied. In the personal discernment of
individual Pentecostals, the conscience is shaped, in part, by their
spirituality.
49.
The Pentecostal expectation is that the exercise of
discernment is distributed throughout the entire congregation, so that whether
gathered in worship or dispersed in society, all members are called to exercise
their gifts in ministry. All
individuals are accountable to the group and any individual may challenge the
group as to who has “the mind of the Spirit” on an issue. Discernment, then, requires active
participation by all the members of the community. They listen for the Spirit to speak through the Word communicated
by preaching, teaching, testimony, and action.
They are encouraged to bring their Bibles to meetings and to read them
for themselves. They weigh the value of the proclamation they hear by reference
to Scripture as well as “promptings” of the Spirit and prayerful reflection.
The Church is the Community of the Spirit's
Gifts
50.
Although the gifts of the Spirit are often associated
with Pentecostal churches, Reformed churches also acknowledge that the Church
is established and maintained by the gracious presence of the Spirit who gives
gifts to the people of God. Pentecostal
and Reformed ways of speaking about and also receiving the gifts vary, yet both
affirm that the Holy Spirit’s charisms are constitutive of ecclesial life.
51.
Pentecostals affirm that spiritual gifts enhance the
faith of believers, deepen their fellowship with God, edify the Church, and
empower mission in the world.
Pentecostals love and respect the Word of God, so they expect God’s
Spirit to reveal his power through manifestations of grace. These manifestations of spiritual gifts are
signs that God is with God’s people.
Spiritual gifts such as healing, prophesying, casting out demons,
speaking in tongues, and other charisms enrich the lives of persons and the
life of the community of faith.
52.
The participants in this Dialogue affirm that the gifts
of God to the Church are real, the Holy Spirit is the Giver of gifts to the
Church, and the gifts are given to the Church to work together for the common
good. Reformed as well as many
Pentecostal churches acknowledge that their understanding of the Spirit’s gifts
is broader than the classic list of spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians
12:8-10. Furthermore, consideration of
the Spirit’s gifts is shaped by the overarching theme found in 1 Corinthians
12:4-7, “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit, and there are
varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities,
but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given a manifestation of the
Spirit for the common good.”
53.
Reformed Christians affirm that the Spirit’s gifts are
experienced in the congregational life of Reformed churches. Every congregation can point to numerous
instances where, in official and unofficial ways, words and acts have led
congregations in faithfulness. Wherever
in the church acts of reconciliation are initiated, words of the good news of
Christ are proclaimed, gestures of consolation are shared, injustices
addressed, or prayers for healing and wholeness are uttered, the Holy Spirit is
at work among the people of God. Yet
representatives of Reformed churches confess that their churches are sometimes
too casual in seeking and receiving the Spirit’s gifts. Reformed Christians must proclaim forcefully
that it is God who gives the gifts, and not we ourselves.
54.
As we, the Reformed and Pentecostal participants in
this Dialogue, have reflected on the biblical texts and the life of the Church,
we have been convinced that no single gift or set of gifts is normative for
every believer, every congregation or every church in every time, or place. We share the conviction that gifts are not
permanent possessions of believers or congregations, for the Spirit gives
various gifts at different places as those gifts are needed.
55.
We also agree that no biblical listing of gifts is a
template to be laid over the entire Church.
On the one hand, we recognize that many Pentecostals limit the gifts of
the Holy Spirit to those mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10. They do not value the charismatic nature of
those mentioned elsewhere in the Bible (Cf. 1 Corinthians 12:27-30; Romans
12:3-8; Ephesians 4:11; 1 Peter 4:10-11).
On the other hand, many Reformed Christians recognize the theoretical
possibility that the gifts mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 might somewhere
be appropriately exercised, but normally they do not encourage or even sanction
them to be exercised in their own services.
In addition, there are those in both traditions who value one gift over
the contribution of another, or who seem to limit the Holy Spirit’s sovereign
distribution of gifts.
56.
These things being said, it is important to note that
most Pentecostals affirm the fact that the gift of tongues is not expected to
be given to all Christians. Many of
them do argue, however, that the ability for Christians to speak in tongues
enjoys a privileged position. They
contend that the Pentecostal experience enjoyed by the 120 in Acts 2, an
experience in which they spoke in other tongues as the Spirit gave them
utterance, is ultimately available to all who believe (Acts 2:38-39). In this sense, many Pentecostals distinguish
between speaking in tongues as a gift of the Holy Spirit (not available to all)
and speaking in tongues as sign or evidence (potentially available to all) that
one has been baptized with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8, 2:1-4).
57.
It is our mutual conclusion that these positions are
ultimately no less than concessions to the reality of our separated existence
as Christian churches. We believe that
those who embrace these positions, or elevate their status by giving voice to
them in doctrinal or political statements, must be challenged to recognize
their limitations. They need to be
asked to broaden their understanding of the gifts, which the Holy Spirit
desires to give to the Church. Only in
so doing can they enter fully into the life of the Church as the body of
Christ. Only in so doing can they
participate in what it means to be a priesthood of all believers. Only in so doing can they experience the
fullness of what Joel prophesied, and Peter proclaimed on the Day of Pentecost,
that God’s Spirit would be poured out on all flesh, thereby equipping them to
participate in God’s work in the world.
58.
Reformed Christians affirm that God calls men and women
and endows them with different gifts to exercise various forms of ministry in
order to equip the whole people of God for mission in the world. Reformed churches express this conviction by
affirming that all are commissioned to ministry by their baptism. The classic understanding of “priesthood of
all believers” leads Reformed churches to encourage all Christians to
participate fully in the life and ministry of the Church. Some Reformed churches embody the ministry
of the whole people of God by not confining ordained office to the ministry of
Word and Sacrament. These churches
ordain persons as elders and deacons to be full partners with ministers in the
service of the Church. Other churches
commission members to such ministries of the church as caring for the poor and
the marginalized, teaching Sunday school, leading youth ministries, furthering
women’s ministries, and more. Thus, the
gifts given to individual members are recognized and encouraged.
The Church is in but not of
the World
59.
Both teams in this Dialogue affirm the fact that since
the Church is meant to be an instrument for the transformation of the world,
“it is in the world, but not of the world.” The Church as the community of believers
should be a “model,” making evident - even in an inadequate way - what the
future kingdom will be. Just as unity
in the faith is manifested on the local level through the reciprocal love of
the members of the congregation, similarly the unity of the Spirit already
granted to us by God is manifested in the relations between congregations,
groups, churches, and denominations on the regional, national, and global
level.
60.
The church works in fidelity with the Word and Spirit
to live out the message and will of God.
The members of the community offer themselves up as the eyes, ears,
mouths, and hands, which allow the Spirit and the Word to address needs that
arise in the Church or the world.
61.
From time to time, Reformed churches have been involved
in prophetic acts for altering oppressive situations in society. Sometimes, Reformed churches have been part
of oppressive structures. Thus, the
church’s life must be informed by the sustained study and application of
Scripture to various situations and social systems, and also by active
engagement in the various aspects of society as the Church bears witness to the
reign of God.
62.
Pentecostals focus more on individuals than on
structures, viewing persons as individuals.
When a person is in need, Pentecostals will often attend to the
immediate need without always analyzing the systemic issues that might give
rise to the situation. As they probe
more deeply, they uncover systemic issues that produce or aggravate the
pastoral issue being addressed. Some
Pentecostals, then, confront systemic issues out of strong pastoral concerns
about an individual or a group of people.
While Pentecostals have frequently been stereotypically portrayed as
passive and “other worldly,” programs of personal renewal at grassroots levels
have had far-reaching implications for social transformation.
III. The Holy Spirit and Mission
63.
The relation between the Holy Spirit and mission
clarifies the issue of who determines mission and how mission is best carried
out in each context. Is mission
primarily the work of the Church or does the Church participate in the mission
initiated by God?
Holy Spirit and Missio Dei
64.
When we say we are involved in Missio Dei it is
a correction of the earlier notion that the mission, in which Christians are
involved, is only the mission of the Church.
The Church is a sign of the reign of God that has been inaugurated by
Jesus Christ. While it has been called
into this privilege, it does not claim to limit God’s reign and sovereignty in
all God’s creation. We see that mission
has its source and authority in the Triune God. The biblical foundation points to the imperative for us to
witness to all people in word and deed (Matthew 28:18-20; Luke 24:46-47; John
20:21-23; Acts 1:8).
65.
We affirm that the Holy Spirit empowers women and men
for mission in God’s world. In the
Reformed community it is not usual to define this empowerment as the baptism
with the Holy Spirit. The empowerment
as a gift is implied in the grace given to the members of the communities. In recent times, however, it has been
recognized that bestowal of grace has a goal: that Christians may become
coworkers of God in Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 3:9). Therefore, some have proposed the concept of
‘vocation’ as an element with specific significance beside justification and
sanctification.
66.
In the experience of Acts 2, Pentecostals are convinced
that they have a mandate for mission before the return of the Lord. They see that mandate as rooted in the
eschatological significance of the prophecy in Joel 2:28-30. Most Pentecostals believe that baptism in
the Holy Spirit is for the empowerment of believers to be effective witnesses
of the Gospel to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). This empowerment includes divine calling, equipping,
commissioning, and the continuing presence of the Holy Spirit throughout
mission.
67.
Together, we affirm that Missio Dei has
implications for the ways we view culture and religions. We believe that the sovereign God is present
in all societies and cultures. We
believe that the Spirit of Christ goes ahead of the Church to prepare the
ground for the reception of the Gospel.
Holy Spirit and Culture
68.
Pentecostals and Reformed believers are both challenged
to learn together the ways in which the Spirit of God teaches the Church to
utilize various cultural elements and how these elements can be put into the
service of God, in accordance with the biblical revelation.
69.
The Holy Spirit is present and active in human history
and culture as a whole as well as in the Christian Church. However, every culture has to be transformed
and reshaped by the Holy Spirit, in accordance with the revelation of Jesus Christ
as witnessed to in Scripture.
70.
Pentecostals emphasize the work of the Spirit in
support of the missionary outreach of the Church in the world. Their conviction is that human culture
stands in alienation from God and God’s Truth.
The ministry of the Gospel is meant to liberate people from captivity to
that which is godless in culture.
They further believe that godlessness in culture degrades human dignity
and occasions, social oppression. The
ministry of the Gospel implies first the salvation of humanity, but also the
enhancement of human dignity and liberation.
71.
Pentecostals and Reformed people believe that cultures
are elements within God’s creation and so embody many positive elements despite
the existence of sin. The relationship
between the Gospel and culture is dialogical; no one operates in a cultural
vacuum. Therefore, witness to the
Gospel should be embodied in culture.
Our mission efforts demonstrate that we have not always paid due
attention to issues of culture.
72.
Whether there are salvific elements in other religions,
however, is an issue that is currently being debated by individual theologians
within the Reformed family. While
Pentecostals and many Reformed find it impossible to accept the idea that
salvation might be found outside Jesus Christ, some Reformed agree with the ecumenical
observation made at the World Conference on Mission and Evangelism at San
Antonio, Texas, U.S.A. in 1989, that “We cannot point to any other way of
salvation than Jesus Christ, at the same time, we cannot set limits to the
saving power of God,”[7]
(cf. Acts 17:28).
73.
On the whole, Pentecostals do not acknowledge the
presence of salvific elements in non-Christian religions because they view this
as contrary to the teaching of the Bible.
The Church is called to discern the spirits through the charism of the
Holy Spirit informed by the Word of God (1 Corinthians 12:10, 14:29; cf. 1
Thessalonians 5:19021; 1 John 4:2-3).
Pentecostals, like many of the early Christians, are sensitive to the
elements in other religions that oppose biblical teaching. They are, therefore, encouraged to received
the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
The Multifaceted Mission
74.
Within an eschatological perspective, the mission of
the Church is to witness to the truth that the Kingdom of God, which yet awaits
full consummation in the future, has already broken into the present age in
Jesus Christ. The ministry of Jesus
Christ, therefore, continues in the world by the power of the Spirit working
through the eschatological people of God.
The integrity of mission is bound up in a commitment to
multi-dimensional mission. Those
dimensions include, but are not limited to proclamation of the Gospel (Matthew
28:19-20, Acts 1:8), fellowship (2 Corinthians 5:17-20), service to the world
(Matthew 25:34-36), worship, and justice (Acts 2:42-47).
Service
to the World
75.
The grace of
the Holy Spirit, given to us by Jesus Christ through the proclamation of the
reign of God, prompts us to serve and participate in the mission of God in the
world. This mission includes both
proclamation and social engagement, which cannot be separated. Mission is concerned with the righteousness
of our horizontal relationship with our neighbors and nature, as well as the
vertical relationship with God.
76.
We recognize
that the understanding of mission varies with the social location of the given
situation. The Holy Spirit empowers and
leads us to work for the structural transformation of society as well as the
individual transformation of ourselves without committing the Church to a
specific political ideology. This
transformation is an ongoing process and realization of the prayer for the
coming of the Kingdom of God.
IV.
Spirit and Kingdom
Definition
of the Kingdom
77.
The Kingdom
of God is apocalyptic and prophetic, both present gift and future hope. The Kingdom of God is the broad
theological term that represents God’s sovereign, gracious, and transformative
reign of righteousness and truth in the face of, but also beyond the forces of
evil and sin. The Kingdom cannot be
identified strictly with earthly rule, although God reigns and acts in
history. Neither can the Kingdom be
identified strictly with the Church, although the Church and all creation exist
in the eschatological hope of the fulfillment of the Kingdom.
Spirit,
Kingdom, and Eschatology
78.
Eschatology
has often been confined to a theology of the last things, related to the
consummation of the Kingdom of God. For
Reformed and Pentecostal churches, eschatology is not only a theology of the
last things as the concluding part of our doctrinal system, but also an overall
perspective of our theology and life.
Although the Kingdom of God has already come in Jesus Christ through the
power of the Spirit, it is yet to be fulfilled in the future with the return of
Christ. Until then, God rules in the
world in the power of the Spirit, who grants a foretaste of the fulfilled
kingdom (2 Corinthians 1:22; 5:5; Ephesians 1:7-14). God calls us to proclaim and participate in the kingdom of God.
79.
Reformed and
Pentecostal churches agree that the Church is birthed by the Spirit and serves
as an instrument of the kingdom that Jesus Christ proclaimed and
inaugurated. The Church is called to
serve the Kingdom rather than be self-serving or an end in itself. The Spirit’s role in ushering in the kingdom
relates to its presence in the Church
80.
Both Reformed
and Pentecostals also agree that the Gospel that is at the heart of the
Church’s mission, therefore, is not only directed to individual life in the
Spirit and to hope for life after death, but is also future oriented and
directed to the resurrection of the dead and the new heavens and the new
earth. Christian hope is not just
individual and heaven bound, but is social and cosmic (Romans 8) and directed
toward the Kingdom-to-come at Christ’s return.
81.
Thus, for
Pentecostal and Reformed Christians to hold eschatology as a context for
understanding mission means that the ultimate demands of God’s eternal kingdom
continue to confront Christians and the churches with the challenge of
obedience. Our experience of God’s
Spirit as an experience of “eternity” in time must be viewed in relation to the
horizon of God’s ultimate future for humanity and all of creation, which is yet
to be fulfilled. The victory of Christ
over sin and death and the presence of God’s Holy Spirit urge us toward courage
and hope in our obedience to God’s missionary call. But since the Kingdom of God has not yet come in fullness, we
confront trials and weakness with patience.
We experience the dynamic tension between the “now” and the “not yet” of
the fulfillment of God’s Kingdom in the world by engaging in patient action and
active patience. Our actions and our
prayers yearn patiently but fervently for God’s will to be done on earth as it
is in heaven.
82.
Reformed
churches affirm the second coming of Christ.
Yet we are aware that God’s time is different from ours. Thus, every form of prediction of the end
time is excluded. The final victory of
Christ gives ultimate significance to life in this world as God’s time breaks
into our time. Life in Christ is
eschatological life.
83.
The Reformed
community knows that Christ will come as Judge, but stresses that the Judge is
none other than the Savior. Judgment is
not confined to the future, for judgment of sin and death happens in our time
as well. The motive and attitude of our
mission should always be love and compassion, reflecting the grace of the Lord
Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit.
84.
Pentecostalism
was born in a milieu of growing disillusionment with 19th Century,
theological optimism concerning the coming of the millennial reign of
Christ. This post-millennial theology,
in Britain and America at least, was being displaced in some circles by a
premillennial eschatology, which focused on the return of Jesus to rapture the
Church. It was the personal return of
Christ to bring the kingdom rather than the return of Christ to receive the
kingdom, which was already to have been established on earth. This eschatology has shaped Pentecostal
missions since that time. It implies a
focus on mission as evangelism.
85.
Pentecostals
believe that Christians move relentlessly toward that ultimate fulfillment of
God’s kingdom through prayer and battle against the forces of evil. Meanwhile, this tension between the “now”
and the “not yet” of Christian hope grows ever more intense as the Spirit of
God is poured out in ever-greater abundance in the direction of final
fulfillment at Christ's return.
86.
From their
inception, Pentecostals have held to a firm belief that the return of Christ
was close at hand. Early Pentecostals
zealously proclaimed the message of the Gospel to the whole world, in light of
the return of Christ. Scripture
passages such as John 16:12-16, Matthew 25:31-46, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17, and
2 Peter 3:8-9 continue to fuel the missionary zeal of Pentecostals. The Holy Spirit’s work in inspiring
Pentecostals to missionary activity, service, and giving is in anticipation of
the kingdom of God. The eschatological
urgency that Pentecostals feel, therefore, should not be thought of only as the
hope for the return of Christ, but a firm realization that there remains a
responsibility to humanity of providing for the needs of people, such as
shelter, education, food, and medical concerns.
87.
Generally,
Pentecostal mission cares for the total person. Indeed, prayer for healing and ministry to the personal needs of
people such as food and education have always been present in Pentecostal
missions. It does suggest, however,
that Pentecostal missions have not always challenged social, or structural
issues prophetically. There are at
least two reasons for this. The first
is that the social location of Pentecostals was, on the whole, marginal to
society and Pentecostals had limited access to the power centers of the social
establishment. Second, those structures
were viewed as the part of the system, which Jesus’ coming would replace by the
righteous reign of God.
Spirit,
Kingdom, Creation
88.
The
relationship of creation to the Spirit and the Kingdom is a pivotal
eschatological theme for many churches, both Reformed and Pentecostal. The topic challenges restricting the signs
of God’s reign to human history.
Creation as a topic within Spirit and Kingdom introduces the cosmos as
an object of God’s engagement.
89.
For Reformed
and Pentecostal churches, the Holy Spirit is integrally involved in
creation. Both recognize the Spirit’s
role at the beginning of creation as well as acknowledge the Spirit’s role in
the sustaining and renewing of creation.
For Reformed churches and some Pentecostal churches, the expectation of
the kingdom includes the restoration and renewal of the cosmos.
90.
In Pentecostal worship, sighs too deep for words are
given expression. These are often understood as speaking in tongues (Romans
8:26), offered in anticipation of the Kingdom of God yet to come in
fullness. Such a yearning for the
Kingdom implies a desire for the salvation of the lost and the redemption of
the entire creation. Examples of their
concern for creation are demonstrated through Pentecostals’ prayer for rain,
especially during droughts, or their prayer for a bounteous harvest. All creation benefits from this concern, and
they believe that without God’s blessing, creation itself will not be
sustained.
91.
For the Reformed churches, the expectation of the
coming of our Saviour does not exclude, but includes the expectation of the
Kingdom. The fulfilled Kingdom is not
just the collection of all believers but the Shalom for the totality of
creation. It represents the restoration
and renewal of the cosmos. Churches of
the Reformed tradition, strive to be faithful to the creation because God
remains faithful to it. Human beings
are part of the cosmos, and so together with the whole creation, are invited to
participate in the celebration of life.
Spirit, Kingdom, World
92.
The location of the world within the topic of Spirit
and Kingdom is central to identifying the boundaries of the arena in which the
Spirit and Kingdom intersect in history.
Key questions are: Is the work
of the Spirit confined to the Church?
Does the Kingdom engage the world?
Is the world an arena of the Spirit or the Kingdom?
93.
Reformed churches acknowledge that all Christians, as
stewards of the rich gifts of God, are called to act in responsible faith
towards all creation. Therefore, we are
called to proclaim, both in word and deed, the will of God concerning personal
and social injustices, economic exploitation, and ecological destruction. Moreover, Reformed churches affirm that the
Holy Spirit guides the faithful to work for both personal and structural
transformation of society, thus participating in the ongoing process and
realization of the prayer for the coming of the Kingdom of God.
94.
Pentecostals differ on how they view the role of the
Holy Spirit in sustaining, reforming, or transforming human society. Some Pentecostals interpret reality
dualistically. They understand that a
state of warfare exists between the People of God and “the world.” They believe
that the Holy Spirit is the one who will triumph over the “principalities and
powers and spiritual wickedness in high places.” How that warfare is defined varies from those who interpret the
warfare in moral terms, to those who employ the term “spiritual warfare” in
describing the battle between the godly and ungodly powers. Pentecostals who employ moral terms identify
the role of the Spirit as one who restrains evil in the world. Others identify the role of the Spirit as
one who invites Christians to engage in the reforming and transforming
of society. This perspective also
recognizes the role of the Holy Spirit in reproving the human society in terms
of righteousness.
95.
Some Pentecostals around the world engage the political
arena from the underside. Many are in
countries where there is no political space for them to engage the political
order directly. Their social locations
shape their understanding of the Holy Spirit.
However, among these are those who respond differently from the
majority. They create alternative
societies modeling resolutions to societal issues within their ecclesial
structures. The issues they address
include, but are not limited to such evils as racism, classism,
materialism, and sexism.
Conclusions
96.
Several clear benefits have emerged as a direct result
of this Dialogue. One of the obvious
fruits enjoyed so far has been the friendships that have been established
across denominational lines and the lines of our various traditions. These friendships have expanded beyond the
realm of everyday life into the recesses of our common spiritualities and our
ecclesial experiences. Genuine
ecumenism begins when Christians find each other and learn to enter into the
lives of one another.
97.
A second obvious benefit of the Dialogue to date has
been the individual studies that have been offered in the form of papers
presented. Some of these have found
their way into publication, thereby challenging those who cannot participate at
the limited space a dialogue table allows.
In addition, press reports from the meeting have been published in a
number of papers and journals, expanding the awareness of this Dialogue in a
number of ecclesial and scholarly communities.
They have found their way into classrooms and are contributing to the
ecumenical formation of the next generation of pastors and teachers in both
communities.
98.
Thirdly, the Dialogue has been able to give and to
receive from Christians in each of the regions in which it has convened its
meetings. It has delved into the lives
of Christians who live, sometimes in difficult situations, whether they be
members of a minority community in the Italian Alps, an African-American
community in the U.S.A., an affluent Reformed community in Switzerland, a
Pentecostal congregation separated from family members in Korea by an
artificial boundary, or a Reformed community in a large Brazilian city, teeming
both with hope and despair.
99.
Finally, the Dialogue had helped its participants
realize the critical necessity for ongoing contact between these two vital Christian
traditions. With the completion of this
report, the participants in this Dialogue wish to encourage others in their
respective communities to join in this mutual exploration.
Appendix
Portions of this
document were developed over the period of five years from 1996-2000. While many people during each of these years
made substantive contributions that led to this document, only those who were
present at the meeting in São Paulo, Brazil in May 2000 had a part in the final
drafting and editing of this document.
They are indicated with an asterisk (*). Those who chaired the meetings are indicated with a (c). Those who presented papers are indicated
with a (P) following the year in which they made their presentation. Those who attended the meetings as
observers, are indicated with an (o).
Those regular participants who were part of the original exploratory
committee are noted with attendance in 1995.
Pentecostal Participants
*Daniel Albright
Scotts Valley, CA, USA
1996 P, 1997, 1998, 2000
Miguel Alvarez
Honduras/Philippines
o 1999
Arto Antturi
Helsinki, Finland
1996
*Anthea Butler
Los Angeles, CA, USA
1996 P, 1997, 1998, 2000
*David Daniels
Chicago, IL, USA
1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000
Harold Hunter
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA
1996, 1997, 1998, 1999
Richard Israel
San Jose, CA, USA
1995, 1996 P, 1997, 1998, 1999
*Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen
Jyväskylä, Finland
1997, 1998, 1999, 2000
Byron Klaus
Costa Mesa, CA, USA
1998 P
*Julie [Jungjia] Ma
Baguio City, Philippines
1997 P, 1998, 1999, 2000
*Wonsuk Ma
Baguio City, Philippines
1997P, 1998, 1999, 2000
*Frank Macchia
Costa Mesa, CA, USA
1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999 P, 2000
*Jean-Daniel Plüss
Zürich, Switzerland
1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000
*c Cecil M. Robeck, Jr.
Pasadena, CA, USA
1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000
Reformed Participants
Solomon D. L. Alagodi
Balmatta, Mangalore, India
1996
Aldo Camba
Torre Pellice, Italy
1996 P
Hugh Davidson
Scotland
1995
*Paul A. Haidostian
Chouran, Beirut, Lebanon
1999, 2000
*Marsha Snulligan Haney
Atlanta, GA, USA
1997, 1998, 1999, 2000
*Yohan Hyun
Seoul, Korea
1997, 1998, 1999 P, 2000
Moses Jayakumar
Bangalore, India
1998
*Gesine von Kloeden
Bad Salzuflen, Germany
1999, 2000
Margaret M. McKay
England
1995
*Nisse E. Norén
Vétlanda, Sweden
1999, 2000
*Aureo R. Oliveira
Fortaleza, CE, Brazil
1999, 2000
*Cephas Omenyo
Legon, Accra, Ghana
1996 P, 1997 P, 1998, 1999, 2000
Jana Opočenská
Geneva, Switzerland
1999
*Milan, Opočenský
Geneva, Switzerland
1998, 1999, c 2000
Vlaudio Pasquet
Luserna San Giovanni, Italy
o 1996
Silas Pinto
Brazil [Wheaton, IL, USA]
1997
*Abival Pires da Silveira
São Paulo, SP, Brazil
c 1996 P , c 1997, c 1999, 2000
*Salvatore Ricciardi
Milano, Italy
1995, 1996, 1997, c 1998, 2000
Silvia Rostango
Ladispoli, Italy
1996
Sydney Sebastian Salins
Balmatta, Mangalore, India
1997
*Joseph D. Small
Louisville, KY, USA
1999, 2000
*Jan Veenhof
Gunten, Switzerland
1996, 1997 P, 1998, 1999, 2000
s Henry Wilson
Geneva, Switzerland
1996 P, 1997, 1998