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ASIAN PENTECOSTAL THEOLOGIZING: Agendas and Issues

ASIAN PENTECOSTAL THEOLOGIZING: Agendas and Issues. DATES: 28 Sept 2007 VENUE: AGBC, Singapore. THE TRADITIONAL DIVISIONS IN A SEMINARY CURRICULUM. Bible – Biblical Theology Theology – Systematic Theology History – Historical Theology Praxis – Practical Theology.

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ASIAN PENTECOSTAL THEOLOGIZING: Agendas and Issues

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  1. ASIAN PENTECOSTAL THEOLOGIZING: Agendas and Issues DATES: 28 Sept 2007 VENUE: AGBC, Singapore

  2. THE TRADITIONAL DIVISIONS IN A SEMINARY CURRICULUM • Bible – Biblical Theology • Theology – Systematic Theology • History – Historical Theology • Praxis – Practical Theology

  3. “Book-ends” Model – The Pentecostals’ Leap of Faith EARLY CHURCH 20th/21st C. CHURCH Church History BIBLE PRAXIS TheologyHistory

  4. Doing Theology in a Community We believe that truth is not found in Spirit-illuminated individuals, but in a community of Spirit-illuminated individuals. Therefore, we believe that the Body of Christ, both alive and dead, must come together to understand theology, shaping it from many perspectives and differing experiences. This is doing theology in a community.

  5. Why not “Western” Theology? • It perpetuates Western world-view, values and theological presuppositions. • It relieves churches of other lands of the urgent priority to develop their own theologies. • It unconsciously perpetuates an unacceptable theological imperialism – the idea that West is right & better.

  6. Reasons for Rejection of non-Western Cultures by Western Missionaries • The Rise of Colonialism • Demonstrated the superiority of Western civilization • The Theory of Cultural Evolution • Evolution legitimized superiority of Western civilization in terms of history • The Triumph of Science • Science and Christianity provided the intellectual foundations for Western superiority Therefore, period from 1800-1950 was “anti-contextual.” (Paul Hiebert)

  7. Ralph Winter’s “25 Unbelievable Years” • Peak of Western expansion in 1945 when 99.5% of non-Western world was under Western domination • By 1969, 99.5% of the world became independent! • Rise of nationalism and desire to express Christianity in own cultural forms resulting in uncritical contextualization

  8. Beyond Culture • Developmental Stages: • Superstition – spiritistic worldview • Religion – communalistic worldview • Culture – materialistic worldview • TEF’s contextualization: Missiology, theological approach, educational method, educational structure • Now includes “technology” . . .

  9. Culture and Christianity • The encounter between Christianity and any culture is governed by the dialectic of rupture and continuity • There is no contextualization without a process of creative re-interpretation • Christianity never encounters a culture in its “pure” form: the cultural and religious elements are always intermingled. Geffre, “Christianity and Culture” IRM 84 (1995): 17-31

  10. Christ and Culture – 5 possibilitiesAdapted from Richard Niebhur Agreement: Culture idealized; we are to perfect it Synthesis: Christ stands above culture and yet embraces it in its highest aspects to transcend it Tension: Live the gospel in an unconquerably immoral society separating from culture Conversion: Culture is fallen but redeemable; we seek to recreate it by converting it to Christian community Opposition: Deny or reject culture

  11. Beyond the “Indigenous Church Principle” Henry Venn & Rufus Anderson : • Self-governing • Self-supporting • Self-extending/propagating John Nevius’ Method China’s “Three-Self Church” But, still saddled with Western theological systems, Western presuppositions, etc. A 4th category is needed:Self-theologizing

  12. Proposition revelation is propositional in nature; the goal is to communicate the Christian faith propositionally across cultural and linguistic barriers. Existential revelation is the subjective experience of God; the goal is to communicate the Christian faith in light of the historical and cultural context (and moment) and God’s work towards human fulfillment within that moment. Two views of Revelation Hellenistic Hebraic

  13. Static Faithfulness to the eternal message of the Word of God “Technical” Revelation Dynamic Sensitivity to the ever-changing contexts of the world “Popular” Relevance TWO POLES:

  14. Bipolarity in Pauline Theology (Beker) Local Contingencies Coherent Center Think about “Center” and “Circumference” in a circle . . .

  15. Dualism, Monism, Holism: A Simplistic Diagrammatic Representation DUALISM: Separated Categories. “Either/Or”Greek/Western“Neglected Middle” MONISM: Confused Categories. “Neither/Nor” Eastern Mysticism“Finding the Balance” HOLISM: Separated but Together. “Both/And”Biblical Holism“Holding the Tension”

  16. THEOLOGIZING: A CONTEXTUAL MODEL Methodology & Model

  17. STEPHEN BEVAN’S FIVE MODELS OF CONTEXTUAL THEOLOGY CreationOriented RedemptionOriented TranscendentalModel Anthropological Model Praxis Model Synthetic Model Translation Model CULTURESocial Change GOSPEL MESSAGETradition

  18. Evangelicals tend towards . . . RedemptionOriented GOSPEL MESSAGETradition CULTURESocial Change Translation Model

  19. “VERTICAL” ISSUES • Uniqueness of Christian revelation • Worship Forms, Christian sacraments, Church service • Ancestral Veneration, Funerary practices • Food offered to idols • The Church & the Christian

  20. “HORIZONTAL” ISSUES • Social Transformation, The Church and the Community, poverty, blessings, etc. • Filial Piety, memorial/history, etc. • Political involvement, church & state, church leadership, etc. • Family issues e.g. Marriage, Parenting, etc. • Ethics e.g. bribery, nepotism, etc. • Asian festivals

  21. EVANGELICALISM/ORTHODOXY As defined from Willowbank report: • “We recognize as central the themes of God as creator, the universality of sin, Jesus Christ as the Son of God, Lord of all and Savior through His atoning death and risen life, the necessity of conversion, the coming of the Holy Spirit and His transforming power, the fellowship and mission of the Christian church and the hope of Christ’s return.” Evangelicals are more interested in spiritual (“vertical”) issues . . .

  22. Bebbington’s Definition • Conversionism- the belief that lives need to be changed • Activism - the expression of the gospel in effort • Biblicism - a particular regard for the Bible • Crucicentrism - a stress on the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. A second sense is to look at evangelicalism as an organic group of movements and religious tradition

  23. Favored Positions of Asian Theology • Philosophy • East instead of West • Methodology • “from below” instead of “from above” • Politics • left instead of right • Issues • horizontal instead of vertical

  24. Traditional “Sources” for Christian Theology • Bible • Tradition (History) • Reason (Philosophy) Weightage depends on our traditions! • Roman Catholics • “Traditional” mainline churches • Evangelical churches

  25. TENSIONS IN THEOLOGY • Text-Context • Which one comes first? • Form-Content • Can they be separated? Can truth be expressed without form? • Meaning-Significance • Are they different? • Descriptive(Propositional)-Prescriptive • Which one is more important? • Etic-Emic • Should we choose one over the other? All these need not be “either-or” choices. We can have both alternatives held at tension.

  26. Globalized (“Universal”; “Planetary”) Theology • West and East still need each other: • Emic – Analysis from an “Insider” participant • Etic – Analysis from an “Outsider” participant

  27. Hermeneutical area of meaning and significance . . . REVELATION: RELEVANCE: READER:

  28. Parameters of the theological (hermeneutical) process: • Revelation • Text, Objectivity • Relevance • Theology, Contextuality • Reader • Theologian, Subjectivity All held in tension with each other

  29. Revelation:Text, Objectivity • CREATION (God’s Works) • The heavens declare . . . • CONSCIENCE (God’s Witness) • A natural instinct of right and wrong • CHRIST (God’s Word) • The highest revelation of God

  30. Relevance: Theology, Contextuality • ALL theology is contextual • Irrelevance: Middle Ages, Monastic, Cloistered Christianity • Kraft: theology, when perceived as irrelevant, is in fact irrelevant • History: Historical(Chronos) & Historic(Kairos) • The incarnational model

  31. Reader: Theologian, Subjectivity • Different “Readings” of the same text • Postmodernity and Reader-Response Hermeneutics • Internalizing (instead of rationalizing or relativizing) the truth

  32. To understand the tensions . . . REVELATION:Text, Subjectivity RELEVANCE:Theology, Contextuality READER:Theologian, Subjectivity

  33. To further clarify the picture . . . REVELATION:ORTHODOXY, HEAD, FACT RELEVANCE:ORTHOPRAXIS, HAND, REALITY READER:ORTHOPATHY, HEART, TRUTH

  34. Theology in flux “The Bible is the Word of God” River of “Living” Theology “Jesus is Lord”

  35. Two banks of the “River of Living Theology”: “Living” suggests continuing change • Point of Departure: The Bible is Word of God • Climatic Declaration: Jesus is Lord Human and Divine tension BUT this is NOT relativism

  36. Incarnational Nature of the Bible

  37. ULTIMATE MISSION: “MISSIONS” • The only reason for Jesus leaving the disciples behind on earth was the Great Commission: • The Conclusion of Matthew’s Gospel: Matt. 28:16-20 • “Mountain” – The Climax • “Authority” – The Crux • “All” – The Comprehensiveness

  38. AN EVANGELICAL APPROACH TO CONTEXTUAL THEOLOGY TEXT:Revelation “The Bible is the Word of God” Missiological Motive: “The Great Commission” River of “Living” Theology Parameters for Contextual Hermeneutics “Jesus is Lord” CONTEXT:Relevance CRITIC:Reader ULTIMATE OBJECTIVE APPLICATIONS HERMENEUTICS

  39. TODAY PAUL GENERAL DIRECTIONS OF THEOLOGIZATION TEXT:Revelation “The Bible is the Word of God” Missiological Motive: “The Great Commission” River of “Living” Theology Parameters for Contextual Hermeneutics “Jesus is Lord” CONTEXT:Relevance CRITIC:Reader

  40. TODAY PAL IDEALLY, theologization should be BI-DIRECTIONAL . . . TEXT:Revelation “The Bible is the Word of God” Missiological Motive: “The Great Commission” River of “Living” Theology Parameters for Contextual Hermeneutics “Jesus is Lord” CONTEXT:Relevance CRITIC:Reader

  41. Pentecostal/Evangelicals • Pentecostals have all the elements of evangelicalism, with the addition of the Baptism in the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues. • Therefore, Pentecostals are sometimes referred to as “Evangelical Plus.” • Of course, we can also view Evangelicals (especially the Charismatics) as “Pentecostals Minus”

  42. TRINITARIAN CHRISTIANITY Creation CatholicsLiberals FATHER SPIRIT SON Easter Pentecost PentecostalsCharismatics Evangelicals

  43. Creation Cross FATHER SON SPIRIT Culmination 3 “Divine Intervention” Events It is in the concrete relational and experiential interface between God and man that the Trinity is understood better . . . and not in the traditional conceptual terms. The “Divine Intervention Events” are God’s “Missionary Acts”

  44. PENTECOSTAL TRINITARIANISM I suggest that this language is better than the oft-used restorative, revival, remnant terminologies. WHY? • Complimentary • Completive • Culminative NOT • To compete • To supplant • To replace

  45. Schwarz’s Trinitarian Approach According to Schwarz, this is based on our experiences of the Godhead. Therefore, this is not an abstract conception but a description of practical realities. Father, Creator, Body, World, Science, Liberal, Syncretism, Rainbow Spirit, Pentecost, Spirit, Church, Experience, Charismatic, Spiritualism, Dove Son, Calvary, Soul, Christ, Scripture, Evangelical, Dogmatism, Cross

  46. FATHER SON HOLY SPIRIT THE TRINITY AND SPIRITUAL GIFTS: A Simplistic Pentecostal Model. “GIVER” (creator/source) “MEDIATOR” (apportions) “GIFT” & “GIFTS” (empowers) “HUMAN VESSELS” (stewards) “ALL FLESH”

  47. FATHER SON FATHER HOLY SPIRIT HOLY SPIRIT SON TWO MODELS OF THE TRINITY EASTERN MODEL WESTERN MODEL

  48. Western ModelChristocentric and Holy Spirit may lose Its dignity in the Trinity but it will remain a “Christian” Spirit. Eastern Model Focus on God’s Fatherhood and Spirit may be “released from Christian bondage.” FATHER SON FATHER HOLY SPIRIT HOLY SPIRIT SON TRINITARIAN PNEUMATOLOGY

  49. FATHER FATHER SON SON HOLY SPIRIT HOLY SPIRIT PENTECOSTAL & WESTERN MODEL Theological model of most Pentecostals The “real” model of most Pentecostals

  50. Restoring Pentecostalism’s Eastern/Orthodox Heritage • History: Stanley Burgess • Spirituality: Simon Chan • Theology: Amos Yong

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