Over the years we have witnessed a revolving door of rampant sexual and financial scandals.
Now some will say that these events are not just experienced in the Pentecostal denomination but are seen in all other denominations including the Catholic Church. That may be true and anyone is welcome to post their own facts or disagree in their own thread. I am just posting what I have observed.
I thought then that I would give my thoughts on WHY we see this over and over.
#1. Endemic to Pentecostalism is a profoundly anti-intellectual ethos. For others who are from Alabama as I am, "ethos" is a word used today to refer to the practices or values that distinguish one person, organization, or society from others.
That being the case, the "ethos" of the Pentecostal denomination is manifested in a deep suspicion of scholars and educators and especially biblical scholars and theologians in the Pentecostal denomination. In those circles, the "anointing" is all that is needed to preach.
In plain English, the thought here is that those people who are educated are of no earthly good to the movement. WHY??? Because those people question what is actually taught from the Bible which eventually denounces the false teachings of the denomination.
#2. Deeply embedded within the Pentecostal movement’s ethos is a cult of personality; charismatic leaders are put on pedestals above accountability and are often virtually worshiped by many of their followers.
There are very few courses in basic ethics which are required in Pentecostal colleges. That is because many Pentecostals, especially older ones, assume that those who have the anointing are Holy Spirit-filled which guarantees the right behavior.
A simple search and a little homework and you will find out that too many pastors, and or their family handle the churches’ money and travel alone without having to account for their whereabouts or activities.
It’s the movement’s own dirty little secret: This kind of attitude speaks directly to mans "sin nature" and results in sexual promiscuity and financial misconduct and little is done about this unless a scandal becomes public and they are forced to deal with it. When it becomes public, then it is too late to fix.
#3. Still another aspect of Pentecostalism’s dark side is its tendency to condone dishonesty on the part of influential and popular evangelists and ministers.
That leads to very questionable claims and miraculous statements which are accepted by the members because of #2 above.
Playing fast and loose with the truth is rampant in Pentecostal circles, and is excused and even joked about as “speaking evangelistically.”
Andrew Womack claimed .....“My son died in 2001, on March 4, and he was dead for between four and five hours,” Wommack says. “And he was in a hospital; they had stripped him naked, put a toe tag on him, put him in the morgue on a slab. And then they called me to tell me what happened.”
Source: https://mycharisma.com/spiritled-li...w-wommack-s-son-moved-from-morgue-to-miracle/
Mark Crowder claimed.............He knew about a woman in a Pentecostal church that had a leg actually grow back.
After some rigorous questioning, he stated that her leg was missing from birth and grew back after she had received prayer.
Source:
Now.....this is not said to question the worship practices of the Pentecostals. Without question they have many spirit filled preachers who I like to listen to.
They have really good music which moves the soul. Personally I believe that they all by themselves revived the practice of raising hands during worship and added excitement to the dull worship services that we all to often see.
Now some will say that these events are not just experienced in the Pentecostal denomination but are seen in all other denominations including the Catholic Church. That may be true and anyone is welcome to post their own facts or disagree in their own thread. I am just posting what I have observed.
I thought then that I would give my thoughts on WHY we see this over and over.
#1. Endemic to Pentecostalism is a profoundly anti-intellectual ethos. For others who are from Alabama as I am, "ethos" is a word used today to refer to the practices or values that distinguish one person, organization, or society from others.
That being the case, the "ethos" of the Pentecostal denomination is manifested in a deep suspicion of scholars and educators and especially biblical scholars and theologians in the Pentecostal denomination. In those circles, the "anointing" is all that is needed to preach.
In plain English, the thought here is that those people who are educated are of no earthly good to the movement. WHY??? Because those people question what is actually taught from the Bible which eventually denounces the false teachings of the denomination.
#2. Deeply embedded within the Pentecostal movement’s ethos is a cult of personality; charismatic leaders are put on pedestals above accountability and are often virtually worshiped by many of their followers.
There are very few courses in basic ethics which are required in Pentecostal colleges. That is because many Pentecostals, especially older ones, assume that those who have the anointing are Holy Spirit-filled which guarantees the right behavior.
A simple search and a little homework and you will find out that too many pastors, and or their family handle the churches’ money and travel alone without having to account for their whereabouts or activities.
It’s the movement’s own dirty little secret: This kind of attitude speaks directly to mans "sin nature" and results in sexual promiscuity and financial misconduct and little is done about this unless a scandal becomes public and they are forced to deal with it. When it becomes public, then it is too late to fix.
#3. Still another aspect of Pentecostalism’s dark side is its tendency to condone dishonesty on the part of influential and popular evangelists and ministers.
That leads to very questionable claims and miraculous statements which are accepted by the members because of #2 above.
Playing fast and loose with the truth is rampant in Pentecostal circles, and is excused and even joked about as “speaking evangelistically.”
Andrew Womack claimed .....“My son died in 2001, on March 4, and he was dead for between four and five hours,” Wommack says. “And he was in a hospital; they had stripped him naked, put a toe tag on him, put him in the morgue on a slab. And then they called me to tell me what happened.”
Source: https://mycharisma.com/spiritled-li...w-wommack-s-son-moved-from-morgue-to-miracle/
Mark Crowder claimed.............He knew about a woman in a Pentecostal church that had a leg actually grow back.
After some rigorous questioning, he stated that her leg was missing from birth and grew back after she had received prayer.
Source:
Now.....this is not said to question the worship practices of the Pentecostals. Without question they have many spirit filled preachers who I like to listen to.
They have really good music which moves the soul. Personally I believe that they all by themselves revived the practice of raising hands during worship and added excitement to the dull worship services that we all to often see.
