Podcast Episode 6: Defining the Charismatic Church

This Podcast is a Ministry of Good Samaritan Anglican Church in Buford, Georgia
goodsamaritanbuford.com

Hosts

David Wickenden - Fr. Dan Shoemake 

What does it mean to be Charismatic/Pentecostal?

Charismatic Christians emphasize the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the use of Spiritual Gifts and miracles as a normative expression of the truth of the Gospels. Furthermore charismatics affirm and exercise the working of miracles and spiritual gifts in the current Church as a regular demonstration of the Chrstian life. 

The distinctive beliefs of Charismatics and Pentecostals are:

1. Miracles and signs of God’s supernatural intervention are currently occurring in the Church today.

2. The active operation of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit.

3. An event subsequent to salvation called the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, in which the Spirit empowers the Christian for the work of the Church.

DEFINITIONS

First: When using the word charismatic in this context - I am not referring to people with strong personalities. 

Charismatic - Greek word - Charis (Favor or Gift)

• Refers to the gifts of the Holy Spirit described in Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12 & 14.

So Charismatic Christians are those who operate under the gifts of the Holy Spirit. We will talk further about what exactly those are in our next episode when we break down the scriptural merit for the Charismatic movement. 

Pentecostalism - Greek Pente-coste (50th) = Festival of Weeks - in Hebrew, Shavuot  (Deuteronomy 16:10 & Exodus 34:22) which occurs 50 days after the Festival of Passover.

This particular label refers to the event in Acts chapter 2, when the disciples were gathered together in the upper room 50 days after the Resurrection of Jesus and tongues of fire fell upon each of them, and they began to speak in tongues. 

Baptism in the Holy Spirit -  

Refers to a phrase spoken by John the Baptist (Matt 3:11, & Lk 3:16) and the risen Christ in Acts 1:5 “you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” This refers to an event where a Christian is empowered with the Holy Spirit - the distinctive Pentecostal belief is that the initial physical evidence of this indwelling is speaking in tongues - much like the events in Acts 2:3. 10:46, 19:6.

Distinction between Charismatic and Pentecostal

I’ll be using the terms interchangeably.

The movement that began the global revival in the 20th century is commonly called Pentecostalism. Later revivalist movements have identified themselves using the distinction “Charismatic.” In a broad sense the difference between these two movements is about some disagreements about the concept of Baptism in the Holy Spirit.

The Beginnings of Modern Pentecostalism

Although there have been various examples of charismatic and mystics like Hildegard of Bingen, St. Theresa of Avila, and others, the modern conception of tongues has its historical roots in Azuza, California. A one eyed black preacher man named William Seymour began a small mission that became the catalyst for the movement. This led to a transformation in protestant and Catholic experiences of the Holy Spirit. 

The Prevalence of the Pentecostal Movement

The Pentecostal and Charismatic movement has completely overtaken the globe. Today it is most prevalent within the charismatic Catholic movement - but has also had an effect on evangelical, and mainline protestant movements. The historic black Church has also widely practiced charismatic worship.