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83 Models and Ministry The role of models for effective ministry is a subject long acknowl- edged as important in Pentecostal and charismatic circles. Most frequently the call is to follow Jesus as the model par excellence. The apostle Paul saw himself as an eminently worthy model, however, when he lauded the Thessalonians for becoming “imitators of us and of the Lord…” (1 Thessalonians 1:6a). But his ability to act as a model for these relatively new Christians was intrinsically linked to his own imita- tion of the Lord toward whom he pointed. Models are helpful in the work of ministry. Paul had his Barnabas, Silas, and Timothy while Barnabas had his Mark. To the extent that they keep the Lord and His ministry in sight they perform a valuable service. Yet early in the Pentecostal movement Howard Goss observed that sometimes models were artificial. As a result their quirks rather than their strengths inadvertently provided canons of dress, action, and thought that their followers took on. “Some might yell a quick ‘Amen* in a happy falsetto,” he observed, “like Brother Pinson. Another might jerk his head a little to one side as Brother Durham did when the touch of God came upon him.” [The Winds of God, Ethel E. Goss, ed. (Hazelwood, Mo.: Word Aflame Press, rev. 1977), 266-267] In the ministry of scholarship there is still a need for models. Fortu- nately for younger Pentecostal scholars there have been a series of such person who have participated in the Society for Pentecostal Studies: Vinson Synan, William Menzies, Gordon Fee, and Russell Spittler, are just a few of those who have modeled scholarship and spirituality, rationality, and experience. These scholars have encouraged many younger scholars to explore and stretch and continue to seek the truth. Yet none of them has had the apparent impact upon Pentecostal scholars in the US in quite the same way as Walter J. Hollenweger has had on Pentecostal scholars in Europe. This is probably because he alone has been in a position to serve as a mentor for doctoral candidates. Professor Hollenweger has for many years served as Professor of Missions at the University of Birmingham in England. Many a disserta- tion has been produced under his tutelage. One of his students, Fr. Peter Hocken, writes in this issue of Pneuma about Cecil Polhill, the wealthy, influential member of the “Cambridge Seven” who pioneered what was probably the first organized Pentecostal missionary sending agency. In a sense, his biographical account of Polhill’s work as a Pentecostal Anglican provides another early model worth reviewing. David Bundy is the product of the Catholic University in Lueven, Belgium. In his study he has assessed a portion of the life of Louis Dalli6re who was a young intellectual in the Reformed Church of France and a philosopher and pastor who received a Pentecostal experience during the 1930s. As an intellectual, he sought for a number of years to 1 84 an articulate apologetic on behalf of Pentecostalism. tual level because of pressures Still, his attempt is worthy Models may also be found University of Calgary charismatic movements North American Pentecostalism. tread a careful line of integration, presenting Ultimately, he stopped writing at the intellec- which were brought to bear upon him. of review, and perhaps, of imitation. in institutions. Professor Poewe of the has noted parallels in South African independent clusions useful in light of contemporary between black and white churches and in Her study is interesting and her con- events in the political world of we owe a debt to the EPTA us to print the South Africa. As with the previous Bulletin and to Dr. Jean-Daniel articles by Fr. Peter Hocken originally Research in Europe held issue of Pneuma, Pleüss for allowing and David Bundy. They were presented as papers at the Conference on Pentecostal and Charismatic at Gwatt, Switzerland, Cecil M. Robeck, Jr. Editor August 12-15, 1987. 2
