Liturgy 37.3: Pentacostalism and Historic Churches

Issue 37.3 of Liturgy is entitled “Pentecostalism and Historic Churches” and is guest-edited by Matthew Sigler. What follows is an excerpt from Sigler’s introduction to the issue.

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This issue of Liturgy explores the crosspollination between Pentecostal/Charismatic streams and what might be called “mainline” or “historic” denominations. These terms are fraught with difficulties. “Mainline” often refers to Protestant congregations in the US who have benefited from their relationship within American society. However, we do not limit our exploration to Protestant traditions in this issue and have opted for the term “historic churches.” Yet, this is equally problematic. The Church of God in Christ—the main denomination launched from the Pentecostal revival—is certainly historic in its own right. In using the term “historic churches” we are referring to those congregations who were not influenced by first-wave Pentecostalism but were later impacted by Pentecostal piety.

The first essay explores what will become an important thread in this issue, the piety of Pentecostal/Charismatic worship. In her essay, Debbie Wong shows how Charismatics in mainline congregations embraced common values for encountering God in worship, while upholding a wide array of liturgical traditions. My essay unpacks this further by looking at worship in Fr. Dennis Bennet’s Episcopal congregation in Seattle, Washington, during the 1960s. Billy Kangas shows how the Charismatic Renewal took root within Roman Catholic congregations, especially through Covenant Communities. The fourth essay is an insider’s report on the Union of Charismatic Orthodox Churches (UCOC) from Bishop Emilio Alvarez. Emily Snider Andrews traces the history of music ministry training within the Southern Baptist Church to show how the Charismatic Renewal has impacted the denomination. Lastly, Adam Perez and Victoria Larson consider ways in which the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America resisted the growing influence of Charismatic piety within its own liturgical practices.

The impact of the Charismatic Renewal is wide and varied; it is not always traced in clear lines, but scholars and practitioners of Christian worship should appreciate its continuing influence. All of the authors in this issue agree that additional work needs to be done to appreciate fully the crosspollination between Charismatic piety and the historic churches.