Presenter Information

Allan Anderson

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The beginning of the twentieth century constituted the formative time in Pentecostalism, in which the experience of the Spirit was the central motivation for sending missionaries out all over the world. This paper traces the role of experience among these first Pentecostal missionaries and how the realities on the field forced them to adjust pragmatically to a different context. The early experiences of “missionary tongues”, whether “genuine” languages or not, had a profound impact on the spread of Pentecostalism outside the western world. Many of the first Pentecostals were convinced that they had received these “missionary tongues” through the baptism of the Spirit, and that when they reached their destinations they would be able to speak miraculously to local people without having to undergo the arduous task of language learning. This paper looks at the formative experiences of some of the foreign Pentecostal missionaries and their so-called “native workers”, the indigenous leaders, and how these experiences molded their activities and decision-making. The Holy Spirit, as the above quotation put it, had entered the hearts of Pentecostals to cause them to rapidly migrate, “hastening away to the ends of the earth”. The baptism in the Spirit could not be limited to one place or nation, but such a great fire would “burn its way into every nation”. For early Pentecostal missionaries, the direct experience of God through the Holy Spirit was the foundation of their doctrine, life, and the primary motivation for missionary practice. This paper seeks to describe the role this experience has played in the global expansion of Pentecostalism and explores the ways in which their experience of God informed and shaped early missionary practices. The first part of this paper considers the international movement of hundreds of independent Pentecostals in the early twentieth century, and four factors creating impetus for this missionary thrust. The first three of these factors are treated by way of introduction to the fourth, the role of the experience of the Spirit. The second part of the paper looks at how this experience of the Spirit affected the missionary effort and outlines four consequences.

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Jan 1st, 12:00 AM

“Burning its Way into Every Nation: The Experience of the Spirit in Early Pentecostal Missions”

The beginning of the twentieth century constituted the formative time in Pentecostalism, in which the experience of the Spirit was the central motivation for sending missionaries out all over the world. This paper traces the role of experience among these first Pentecostal missionaries and how the realities on the field forced them to adjust pragmatically to a different context. The early experiences of “missionary tongues”, whether “genuine” languages or not, had a profound impact on the spread of Pentecostalism outside the western world. Many of the first Pentecostals were convinced that they had received these “missionary tongues” through the baptism of the Spirit, and that when they reached their destinations they would be able to speak miraculously to local people without having to undergo the arduous task of language learning. This paper looks at the formative experiences of some of the foreign Pentecostal missionaries and their so-called “native workers”, the indigenous leaders, and how these experiences molded their activities and decision-making. The Holy Spirit, as the above quotation put it, had entered the hearts of Pentecostals to cause them to rapidly migrate, “hastening away to the ends of the earth”. The baptism in the Spirit could not be limited to one place or nation, but such a great fire would “burn its way into every nation”. For early Pentecostal missionaries, the direct experience of God through the Holy Spirit was the foundation of their doctrine, life, and the primary motivation for missionary practice. This paper seeks to describe the role this experience has played in the global expansion of Pentecostalism and explores the ways in which their experience of God informed and shaped early missionary practices. The first part of this paper considers the international movement of hundreds of independent Pentecostals in the early twentieth century, and four factors creating impetus for this missionary thrust. The first three of these factors are treated by way of introduction to the fourth, the role of the experience of the Spirit. The second part of the paper looks at how this experience of the Spirit affected the missionary effort and outlines four consequences.