Roger Olson critiques Pentecostalism

Not every critque of the Pentecostal movement is friendly or irenic. Roger Olson's is.

Olson is a professor of theology at Baylor University's George W. Truett Theological Seminary and a prolific writer (his The Story of Christian Theology, for instance, is a treasure).

He has also spoken in tongues and was, in fact, raised in a Pentecostal home. But, he is Pentecostal no longer. The anti-intellectualism of the movement was one of the factors that drove him away.

Olson's critique of the Pentecostal movement was printed in The Christian Century in 2006, the 100th anniversary of the modern Pentecostal movement.

His comments that specifically addressed Pentecostal anti-intellectualism went this way:

"Endemic to Pentecostalism is a profoundly anti-intellectual ethos. It is manifested in a deep suspicion of scholars and educators and especially biblical scholars and theologians. Yes, there are some Pentecostal scholars who are respected outside the movement: Russell Spittler served as a dean at Fuller Theological Seminary for years; Gordon Fee taught New Testament at Regent College in Vancouver and produced highly regarded volumes in biblical studies; Amos Yong holds a Ph.D. from Boston University and teaches in the doctoral program at Regent University Graduate School of Divinity. Yet too many Pentecostal leaders hold even their own scholars at arms length and view them with suspicion. Merely being a member of the Society for Pentecostal Studies often brings a Pentecostal scholar’s commitment to the movement into question.

"This is without doubt the main reason I drifted away from the movement and eventually broke from it. I was not satisfied with the pat answers I was given by my mentors and teachers to questions I had about Pentecostal doctrines and practices ....

"Not all Pentecostals are anti-intellectual or revel in incoherence. But a deep antipathy to critical rationality applied to theology is a hallmark of the movement. Too often spiritual abuse in the form of shame is directed at those, especially young people, who dare to question the teachings of highly placed Pentecostal ministers and evangelists.

"I was one of the first Open Bible members to attend seminary and, like most Pentecostals who did that, I left the movement. I felt pushed out for wasting my time on intellectual pursuits rather than becoming a missionary or evangelist. Today evangelical seminaries are full of Pentecostal youths. Many of them still find doors closed when they return to their home denominations for ordination or for leadership positions in churches. Pentecostal scholars too often have to work outside Pentecostal institutions and live in the shadows and on the margins of the movement.

"Shaking off this anti-intellectual attitude won’t be easy for the movement; it is part of Pentecostalism’s DNA. A good beginning would be to draw those Pentecostal scholars who work on the margins into the movement’s centers of power and leadership. Honest and open dialogue between Pentecostal leaders and the movement’s own intellectuals -- with promises there will be no negative consequences -- could help shake off some of the mutual suspicion and fear that haunts their relationships. And Pentecostal leaders need to pledge never again to subject eager, faithful and intellectually inclined young people to shame merely for asking tough questions about Pentecostal distinctives."

The full article entitled, "Pentecostalism's Dark Side", can be read here.

Zondervan has published a book that addresses anti-intellectualism in the Pentecostal movement. Assemblies of God missionary Rick Nanez is the author of "Full Gospel, Fractured Minds?" My review of Nanez' book was published in 2006 in Ministry Today magazine. That review can be read here (readers will need to scroll down that linked page to get to the review).