Wes Rasbury
East African Ecumenical Prayer: Anglican and Pentecostal
Dr. Foster
Issues in Global Christianity
BIBH 640.W1
May 3, 2014
The global center of Christianity has shifted from its beginnings in the Middle East, across Europe, and southto the African continent.[1]The expressions of Christianity have changed as well as it encountered different cultures around the world. Yet the differences are not only due to the spread of this faith, but also to the denominations that have sprung from within Christianity. It is in each of these denominations that different expressions of Christianity arise; some churches emphasize this over that, while others say these words during worship rather than those words. Yet, could there be a stark difference between the language and practices of Christians who, although identified as two different denominations, find themselves within the same geographical region? The following is an exploration of prayer among both Anglican and Pentecostal Christians insome East African contexts- namely Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania.
However, before going into the differences in prayer between these two different denominations, a common understanding must be provided. The author will give a brief overview of prayer first, in order to show the framework of prayer from which this paper operates. Then, a short history will be given first of the Anglican tradition, then of the Pentecostal tradition. The rise and spread of each is important in understanding where these two traditions stand now. Included in this brief historical synopsis of each of these traditions will be an examination of the major theological tenets of each tradition, as well as, and more pointedly for the purposes of this paper, how each views or understands prayer in a very general sense. Next, a short historical account of Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania will be provided for the reader in order that he or she might better understand the current religious situation within this country. Finally, the paper will move to intended and identified purpose of comparing the prayers of Christians in Anglican churches and of Christians in Pentecostal churches in these countries.
Prayer:
Prayer is one of the oldest practices of religion in general, dating back to the time of Jesus and his ministry, and even before the common era.[2] Thus, Christianity cannot claim prayer as a solely Christian construct or invention.However, althoughprayer may be universal to religion as a whole, prayer has become a pillar in the Christian faith across all of its denominations. As Charles Hodge asserts, “A prayerless Christian and pulseless man are alike impossible.”[3] We see the importance of prayer in Christianity through the multiple examples seen in both the Old and New Testaments, through the different illustrations of prayer and discussions on prayer from the founding mothers and fathers of Christianity,[4]as well as through, (to borrow Brandon’s language), humanity’s need to communicate with the supernatural and the divine, prayer has found a strong presence in the Christian faith.[5]
Prayer within the confines of Christianity is often defined as “communication with God.”[6] These exact words are given in The New Dictionary of Theology as a description and discussion of the theology of prayer.[7] The ability to communicate with God rests on the understanding and belief that the Christian God is a relational god, and desires a personal relationship with those who would choose to follow him.[8] Thus, prayer is most commonly understood in Christianity as the open line of communication between the Christian adherent and the Christian God. Prayer is an expression of the “dynamic, transformative, dialogical relationship between humans and the triune God…”[9]Prayer is the way in which Christians both ask God for blessings and cry out to God in pain and sorrow; it is where Christians can openly express each and every possible human emotionimaginable to God.[10] As Donald G. Bloesch puts it:
Christian prayer is born out of the realization that human beings in and of themselves are incapable of saving themselves from the forces of darkness within and about them. In genuine prayer, we come to God with empty hands trusting solely in his mercy…we do not bring God offerings that can win his favor, but we do bring before him the petition of an earnest heart.[11]
Prayer is a necessity for human beings at large, but it has become particularly important in the life and practice of Christianity.
However, prayer looks differently and is expressed differently depending on a variety of different factors.[12]In fact, in her overview of Christian spiritual disciplines, Adele Calhoun lists and describes fourteen different types of prayer.[13]Situations might call for certain prayers, such as prayers for sick friends or family members, for financial blessings, or even for praise and thanksgiving to God for God’s work in their life. For the purposes of this paper, the following five categories of different types of prayer will be considered as the framework for prayer: adoration, confession, intercession, petition, and thanksgiving.[14]Yet it does not only provide a means of communication between humans and God, nor does it just function as a way for humans to ask their gods for blessings, but prayer also serves a cathartic role in the lives of humans.[15]This cathartic function or role of prayer is precisely why prayer is practiced across religions. It is a human desire to pray, and the practice of praying serves to fill a cathartic function that one cannot find elsewhere.
Thus, Christianity and prayer are very much enmeshed in one another. Although it cannot and should not be thought of as a Christian construct, prayer has become a central focus and practice of Christianity.Not only are the adherents to Christianity humans, and therefore have this desire- this “irrepressible yearning”- to pray, but they also find this cathartic role or function filled by the practice of prayer. Christians are also given, through prayer, the chance and opportunity to communicate with their God; prayer is a place where the creator and the created intersect. As a result of this intersection, prayer is the place where Christians are able to ask God for blessings, to pray for others, and to listen to God. Even more, Christians are given the example of prayer throughout the Bible, both in the Old as well as in the New Testament. And finally, at the very basic and very frank level, Christians are called to pray, and to pray often, time and time again throughout the Bible. Thus, prayer is now central toChristianity, and has, (since the third century), been a major area of study and thought within the Christian circle.[16]
Prayer is major part of Christianity, and can be expressed in a variety of ways. The five categories listed above help to narrow down the understanding of prayer to be discussed here. There is much more that could be said on prayer, specifically in relation to ways of prayer, (whether rehearsed or extemporaneous; whether in a group, in corporate worship, or in a private setting; whether one is talking to or even at God, or one is listening to try to hear God’s voice), on specific words and language used during prayer, and even on posture taken during prayer. However, most of these differences in prayer will be touched on later in this paper. With this categorized understanding of prayer, this paper will now move forward toward comparing prayers of Anglican and Pentecostal Christians in East Africa, but will first examine the rise, spread, and current status of both Anglicanism and Pentecostalism.
The Anglican Tradition:
Anglicanismwas officially created in the early to middle sixteenth century, amidst the chaos ensued by the creation of The Church of England, and its ‘separation’ from the Catholic church. When the king of England, King Henry VIII, desired an annulment from the Roman papal office of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, and when the pope refused to give such an annulment to him, he created the Church of England. Laws were passed that officially and legally set this church beyond the jurisdiction of the Roman Catholic Church and the Roman see. However, since this split was from the Catholic tradition and since this was the tradition that Henry VIII and the rest of England was familiar with, there was not much change to be seen initially. In fact, as Spinks says, “The result was that by 1536 the English church was an independent Catholic church.”[17] He goes on to say that although this new church aimed to abolish “popular devotional practices…until the death of Henry VIII, the Latin Catholic rites remained the norm of public worship in the English church.”[18]It was not until the late seventeenth century, (1689), under the reign of Elizabeth I, that the Toleration Act was passed, and the national church of England became a fully separate and established church in its own right.[19]
It is through the effort to form a unified church of the state, an effort which was a reaction against and separate from the Roman Catholic Church, that the Church of England emerged. Granted, at this same time, there were other Christian “greats” reacting against the Catholic Church, (such as Martin Luther, John Calvin, and Ulrich Zwingli).[20] However, the creation of the Church of England was a separate and distinct action from the Protestant Reformation, arising mostly out of the will of the king of England.[21]And this new sect was created, in order for the king to obtain a divorce from his wife, yes, but also for nationalistic and political purposes.[22]
Regardless of the exact and precise reason or reasons why, the Church of England was established in this time, and it appointed Thomas Cranmer as Archbishop of Canterburyon March 30, 1533.[23] Upon installation, Cranmer immediately set to work on further severing connections between the Catholic and the Anglican church, translating and publishing the litany in Englishinstead of Latin in 1544 as it had been in the Catholic church.[24]Archbishop Cranmer then published many other reforms to the liturgy including the Order of the Communion, and the Book of Common Prayer.[25] This latter publication was originally very simply a rendering of “the old services…into English,” but officially replaced all of the Latin Catholic rites on Pentecost Sunday, June 9, 1549.[26]
Yet, how did a denomination which started in England, and is even named “The Church of England, (ecclesia Anglicana),” become one that is present and has lasted outside of the borders of England? As Chris Hefling points out,
for a hundred years or so, the Prayer Book remained within the British Isles. It was introduced in Ireland and Scotland early on…its migration overseas began in the seventeenth century, as English settlers took their Anglicanism with them to newly founded ‘plantations’ and colonies.[27]
As this denomination continued to spread throughout the world, the title ‘Anglican’ itself “began to have the enlarged, non-geographical meaning it now has,” and the Book of Common Prayer “began to be translated into more and more non-European languages.”[28] More pointedly, however, its spread into the region of East Africa “was influenced by the different characteristics of two mission societies”: The Church Mission Society (CMS), and the Universities’ Mission to Central Africa (UMCA).[29] Eventually, as the mission continued to spread throughout the African continent, “A United Liturgy for East Africa, known as the East Africa United Liturgy (EAUL)” was created in 1965 and approved a year later.[30]In fact, according to Mombo, the Anglican tradition has spread so much throughout East Africa that the 20 different countries within this region are represented by nine different “provinces of Anglican communion,” and that each of these countries had a greater Anglican influence in 2006 than “little or no organized Anglican presence.”[31] Although it may be small in comparison to some other denominations present in this region, the Anglican church definitely maintains a presence among these countries.
It is the idea of a common book of different prayers that began the idea of this paper. Especially in contrast with extemporaneous and spontaneous prayer, having a set book in which the whole of the congregation can use to pray seems odd. In fact, these two would seem to be at opposite ends of the spectrum from each other: one is a well thought-out, revised, written book of prayers for an individual or a group of people to follow along with and read from; the other is prayer spoken impromptu and ‘on the spot.’ Granted, it is not the case nor should one assume that the prayers listed in the Common Book of Prayer are the extent of prayers that Anglican adherents pray. As Charles Hefling is very quick to point out, “The Prayer Book is not a prayer book, in the sense of a collection of separate prayers. It is more like a playbook, the ‘script’ actors use for performing a play.”[32]While there are pros and cons to both approaches in praying, and while this paper aims to explore just that, it will now shift to a discussion over the start and spread of the Pentecostal movement.
The Pentecostal Tradition:
The Pentecostal tradition has its origins in Topeka, Kansas with Charles F. Parham’s Bethel Bible School. It is suggested as a fairly young movement, (as opposed to Anglicanism or even Catholicism), starting just one hundred and thirteen years ago on January 1, 1901.[33]In the midst of one of Parham’s lessons on the connection between speaking in tongues and baptism in the Holy Spirit, the class is recorded as gaining the gift of glossolalia, (or tongue speaking). This message and movement was then picked up by William J. Seymour, (who had sat outside the classroom and had heard and witnessed these things), to Los Angeles, California. Here, Seymour preached in his Holiness style, proclaiming the message about this phenomenon, and calling for revival. It was in this context that the more well-known and more familiar connection with Pentecostalism is seen- Azusa Street.
Azusa Street is the common connection point with the start and spread of the Pentecostal tradition. Although some would argue for the earlier beginning with Parham and the Bethel Bible School, it was at the Azusa Street mission that much of the Pentecostal theology emerged.[34]
The excitement that this revival brought spread throughout the land, so much so that “Before long, Pentecostal revivals could be found in Canada, England, Scandinavia, Germany, India, China, Africa, and South America.”[35] Thus, Pentecostalism brought with it an unprecedented energy and excitement, and soon spread throughout each of the continents. In fact, this growth was so rapid that it by the middle of the twentieth century, the Pentecostal tradition was growing faster than almost every other Christian tradition.[36] Eventually, this growth led to the country of Ethiopia and its surrounding countries as well in the 1950’s, as a result of the work of Finnish and Swedish missionaries.[37] This initial movement gained speed quickly, and continued to grow and spread, as did a separate “indigenous Pentecostal movement” around the same time.[38]
Spirituality, then, within the Pentecostal tradition should also be discussed. As defined by The Dictionary of Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements, spirituality is “the pietistic habits of ordinary individuals.”[39] This dictionary then goes on to list “five implicit values” which are seen throughout and govern Pentecostal spirituality: 1) individual experience, 2) orality, 3) spontaneity, 4) otherworldliness, and 5) a commitment to biblical authority.[40] The author goes on to say:
The style of prayer and praise is instructive. Quite usual is collective oral prayer, all praying at once, mostly vernacular or mostly glossolalic or some mix of the two. This pattern expresses the personal experience of each. Such collective group prayer is usually cued by a leader, but it can be emerge spontaneously- in which cases glossolalia often predominates…Fasting often accompanies prayer, but it is rarely mandated for congregations. The raising of hands in joint or individual prayer reflects literal response to biblical precedents (Exod. 17:11-12) and commands (1 Tim. 2:8).[41]
He goes on to introduce ‘proxy prayer,’ as well as other various forms found within this distinct denomination.[42]While it is true that not every member nor every church practices every type of prayer, it is clear that the Pentecostal tradition practices a variety of different worship actions and disciplines, which can be seen as fitting into and illuminating the five different overarching values identified by Splitter.
With this understanding and overview of the different practices of those within the Pentecostal tradition, one can better understand the spirituality of someone who identifies as a Pentecostal. It is clear that there are a variety of different practices practiced by the whole of the tradition. However, not only do adherents to the Pentecostal tradition perform and practice many different types of worship and have many different expressions of their spirituality, but they also, (very clearly), practice many different forms and styles of prayer. As seen above, prayer within the Pentecostal tradition can be done in the form of dancing, proxy prayer, speaking in tongues, praying for healing, praying for freedom from demons for yourself or others, and gaining insight or wisdom or words of knowledge directly from God or the Spirit. Each of these types or expressions of prayer can be categorized into the already given classifications of prayer above: adoration, confession, intercession, petition, and thanksgiving. Prayers of exorcism fit both into the categories of intercession and petition; speaking in tongues could be understood as prayers of adoration, of confession (Rom. 8:26), or of thanksgiving; prayer in the form of dancing falls into the category of either adoration or thanksgiving.