The Pentecostal Mission in Palestine: The Legacy of Pentecostal Zionism
Ebook
Overview
The Pentecostal mission in Palestine is a virtually unknown episode in the history of Pentecostalism. Its story begins in 1906 at the Azusa Street Revival, from which missionaries were sent to Palestine. In its first thirty years, the Pentecostal mission in Palestine gained a foothold in Jerusalem and expanded its reach into Jordan, Syria, and Iran. It was severely tested and lost traction during the tumultuous period of the Arab Revolts, World War II, and the Partition Crisis. With the catastrophic war of 1948, the Pentecostal missionaries fled as their Arab clients were swept away in the Palestinian Diaspora. After 1948, a valiant attempt was made to revive the mission, but only with relative success. Although the Pentecostal missionaries failed in their objective of converting Jews and Muslims, they were eyewitnesses of the formative events of the Arab-Israeli conflict. Newberg argues that the Pentecostal missionaries functioned as brokers of Pentecostal Zionism. He offers a postcolonial assessment of the Pentecostal missionaries, crediting them for advocating philosemitism, yet bringing them up short for disregarding the civil rights of Palestinian Arabs, espousing Islamophobia, and contributing to the forces working against peace in the Holy Land.
”Newberg is a historian, theologian, and gifted storyteller who
has crafted a fascinating account of the Pentecostal mission in
Palestine. This book is the first historical account of Pentecostal
missionaries to Jews and Muslims; it is the first theological
portrayal of Pentecostal Zionism; and it is an astute contribution
to peace and justice that should be read beyond the realm of the
Pentecostal movement."
--Wolfgang Vondey
Associate Professor of Systematic Theology, Regent University
Author, Beyond Pentecostalism: The Crisis of Global Christianity
and the Renewal of the Theological Agenda (2010)
“Students of global events know the importance of the Middle East.
Pentecostals have often been well intentioned in their support of
Jewish people, based upon the promise in Genesis 12:3. Yet, their
embrace of Zionism has often been naive and uncritical. Newberg
outlines this Pentecostal-Zionist history, including the Arab side
of this story. This important retelling challenges current
Pentecostal participation in Islamophobia, human rights abuses, and
a languishing peace process. It begs for a thoughtful Pentecostal
response."
--Cecil M. Robeck Jr.
Professor of Church History and Ecumenics and Director of the David
du Plessis Center for Christian Spirituality, Fuller Theological
Seminary
"Eric Newberg sets a new and exceedingly high standard for
Pentecostal historiography in a late modern and postcolonial
context. The hagiographic propensities of earlier ‘insider’
accounts are here replaced by a sophisticated and sympathetic, but
yet not uncritical, examination that sheds light on and
interrogates both Pentecostal mission history and contemporary
global Pentecostal attitudes to Jerusalem, Israel, and the Middle
East. Historians and all others interested in the present
Arab-Israeli crisis are urged to read this groundbreaking
book."
--Amos Yong
J. Rodman Williams Professor of Theology, Regent University
Author, The Spirit of Creation: Modern Science and Divine Action
in the Pentecostal-Charismatic Imagination (2011)
"This is an excellent work that should be read and used widely,
especially by those who desire peace with justice for both Israelis
and Palestinians."
--Paul Alexander
Professor of Social Ethics, Palmer Theological Seminary, Eastern
University
Author, Peace to War: Shifting Allegiances in the Assemblies of
God (2009)
- Title: The Pentecostal Mission in Palestine: The Legacy of Pentecostal Zionism
- Author: Eric Nelson Newberg
- Publisher: Pickwick Publications
- Print Publication Date: 2012
- Logos Release Date: 2020
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Ebook
- ISBNs: 9781630875787, 9781498261173, 9781610975537, 1630875783, 1498261175, 1610975537
- Resource ID: LLS:9781630875787
- Resource Type: Monograph
- Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-29T19:08:11Z
Eric N. Newberg is Associate Professor of Theological and Historical Studies at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa.