2.1 How Did the Pentecostal Movement Come to Canada?

[John]

Early Pentecostals experienced resistance from their previous organized religions and therefore the idea of organization seemed as if it would quench the Spirit’s moving in individual lives. The late 1800’s saw the rise of modernism which many in main line denominations accepted liberal ideas such as Biblical criticism, doubts of the reliability of the gospels etc. Early Pentecostals followed the narrative of coming out to be separate from those who lost their first love.

[Charla]

The unorganized spread does not surprise me at all. As has already been mentioned in the discussion that pattern has been seen in movements since the early church in Acts. I think the resistance to organization was a natural part of the movement, people were trying not to hinder what they were experiencing in Holy Spirit and needed time to process what ministering as Pentecostals would look like. As the movement matured I think people realized that there was potential to reach more people through organizing. I think that although there can be complications in organizing, the encouragement and accountability was a healthy benefit of becoming connected to like-minded ministers.

[ECO]

@smythc1 this is a great answer. Pentecostalism values the “prophethood of all believers” (everyone can hear from the Spirit), so the need for leadership and organization was not a high value in the early days of the movement. Rather, we can trust God to lead his church. This is sometimes referred to as a grassroots movement, but it may very well be part of the lifeblood of a vibrant pentecostal movement (Acts 2:18 – “even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy”).

[Jenn]

I think it was wise not to organize. Pentecostalism was new. There were no limits on what Holy Spirit would do. Making sure the motivations were coming from a place of seeking Jesus was important and could only happen with close fellowship with those around you. It was easier to simply follow the leading of the Spirit without an organized set of rules and ordinances. People would have been bogged down with debate, and this division would have hindered the spread of Pentecostalism even more, in my opinion.

[Alexander]

I would imagine and hope that early pentecostals began to organize themselves in order to encourage one another in their faith and common beliefs, as well as to learn from one another. How it spread in Canada doesn’t seem surprising as we see this in multiple church movements through history from Acts right through the middle ages and beyond.