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232
book reviews
Lee Roy Martin, ed.
Pentecostal Hermeneutics: A Reader (Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2013). viii +
302 pp. $48.00 paper.
Pentecostal Hermeneutics: A Reader advocates a definable, defensible and prof- itable methodology for biblical interpretation—a Pentecostal reading, a Spirit- reading—that challenges the hegemony of the historical-critical approach to the text. The compilation of fifteen articles, mostly reprinted from the Jour- nal of Pentecostal Theology and arranged in chronological order to illustrate the development of the field from 1987 to the present, presumes that the way Pentecostals have traditionally heard/read the Scriptures is not to be discarded along the path to the Academy. Rather, a Pentecostal hermeneutic reflects the hermeneutical sensibilities of the Scripture writers themselves, and with cur- rent trends in biblical studies, it has an opportunity to flourish in the field of biblical interpretation.
The chapters fall into two general categories: theoretical considerations for a Pentecostal hermeneutic and applications of the hermeneutic to a biblical text. Most contributors are from a Pentecostal tradition, with a few from the Charismatic Movement (e.g., Clark Pinnock, John McKay). The collection’s worth is raised considerably by the excellent summary given by the editor at the outset (and again in his article “Hearing the Voice of God,” chapter 12) and by the inclusion of a bibliography on Pentecostal hermeneutics. I can testify to the book’s value as a primer for further study because it helped me understand and appreciate the potential of a field about which I was relatively uninformed.
All of the articles are significant, having been chosen for their contribu- tion to Pentecostal hermeneutics, but the sum is certainly more than its parts, and in some unexpected ways. The fact that many of these authors have dia- logued together (some as colleagues from Church of God [Cleveland] schools, and many as members of the Society of Pentecostal Theology) contributed to the sense that I was listening to a conversation where the participants respond to and build upon each other’s insights. The effect was created by repeated refer- ences in the later articles to earlier works in the collection, such as, Jackie and Cheryl Bridges Johns’ piece on the implications for Pentecostals that knowl- edge of God (yada) is essentially experiential, or Chris Thomas’ use of the Acts 15 Jerusalem Council meeting as a model for a Pentecostal hermeneutic, or Ken Archer’s and Scott Ellington’s formulations of the theoretical parameters of such an approach.
I was surprised that most of the pieces whose primary focus is exegetical treat Old Testament texts. As I have come to understand, this is indicative
© koninklijke brill nv, leiden, 2016 | doi: 10.1163/15700747-03801008
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book reviews
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of the leading role being taken by Pentecostal Old Testament scholars in this field. The two exceptions are the article written by Thomas on Acts 15 and the chapter by Robby Waddell, “The Spirit of the Book of Revelation.” I also did not expect to have my affections stirred. Rickie Moore’s testimonial of how reading Deuteronomy enabled him to deal with the insecurity he carried as a Pentecostal into his academic training was deeply moving and unforget- table.
As might be expected in an edited collection, there are summaries of the state of Pentecostal hermeneutics at the beginning of many of the articles. Although somewhat tiresome for those familiar with the topic, the repetition is pedagogically beneficial for the novice. Main ideas are reviewed, reinforced, and given fresh language and application in subsequent chapters. A common concern is the authors’ recognition that subjectivism is a danger for a Pente- costal hermeneutic, and a common antidote is the role of the community in hearing and interpretation. One of the strongest statements in the book for a Spirit-led reading of the Bible, unsurprisingly, came from one not raised Pente- costal. No Pentecostal scholar would give voice (in public) to a sentiment like John McKay’s that he had learned more about the content of the Bible “in the months following my own experience of Pentecost, than I had in all my years of theological study” (61).
On the whole, the authors’ critique of the historical-critical approach is intended to undermine its authoritative position in some academic quarters asthebiblical hermeneutic. Their argument is not that it has no value, but that its interpretive range is limited and the conclusions reached in its pursuit of authorial intent remain informed speculation.
Therefore, an integrated approach is necessary where historical criticism makes its contribution alongside a Pentecostal reading, which allows the Spirit to reveal other meanings beyond what (we think) the author intended. Indeed, a Pentecostal hermeneutic resonates with how Christians throughout the cen- turies have heard or read the Bible, and it echoes current approaches in biblical interpretation. Narrative criticism, rhetorical analysis, and social studies are reminding us that the first Christians heard and interpreted the Word when they heard it and experienced it together.
Van Johnson
Dean, Master’s Pentecostal Seminary@Tyndale, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
PNEUMA 38 (2016) 215–243
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