This study examines that which forms the 'centre' of Pentecostal Missiology and
makes it particularly relevant to the South African context. In order to arrive at
my conclusions I have concentrated on the history and present situation in postapartheid
South Africa of the three oldest classical Pentecostal movements, the
Apostolic Faith Mission, the Full Gospel Church of God and the Assemblies of
God.
Chapter one describes the rise of the Pentecostal movement and its arrival in
South Africa shortly after the Second Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902). That
Pentecostalism took root among the poor in this country is a matter of historical
record. The dimensions of poverty in South Africa are probed in order to evaluate
Pentecostalism' s success with that class of people. Chapter two examines the
Pentecostal model of mission and its essentially holistic nature in order to
understand why it so effectively helped the poor to escape the enslaving cycle of
poverty. However, Pentecostalism around the world and in South Africa appears
to be in crisis. Chapter three discusses the reasons for the crisis and outlines the
nature and evidence of it - the 'centre' of Pentecostalism seems to be
fragmenting, and with it the relevance of the Pentecostal Church to the South
African situation.
The book of Exodus provides a metaphor that naturally holds together dimensions
of the model of mission essential to Pentecostalism. Chapter four describes the
metaphor, how it applies to Pentecostal missiology and why the struggle for the
'centre' is a struggle vital to the mission of the Pentecostal Church. The thesis
concludes with a reminder that Pentecostals have a history of 'success' among the
poor and that perhaps it is within this stratum of society that Pentecostals should
focus their efforts. With a renewed model of mission the Pentecostal Church can
still be relevant to the situation of poverty in post-apartheid South Africa.
However, Pentecostals need to clarify the distinctives that lie at the 'centre' of
their existence and mission and be prepared to struggle for them / Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / D.Th. (Missiology)
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:unisa/oai:umkn-dsp01.int.unisa.ac.za:10500/17850 |
| Date | 06 1900 |
| Creators | Watt, Charles Peter |
| Contributors | Saayman, W. A. (Willem A.) |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Detected Language | English |
| Format | 1 online resource (xii, 241 leaves) |
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