Do
we have a theology of Renewal?
This
is one of the criticisms of Renewal that has surfaced in recent decades.
It seems that now one has to look at everything through the eyes of
theology in order to ask the right questions for our time.
In 1995 Tom Smail, Andrew Walker and Nigel Wright
wrote a book entitled Charismatic Renewal – in search of a theology.(SPCK)
This book is a critical assessment of charismatic renewal by
three people who have been involved in it, they come from very different styles
of churchmanship.
Each gives an account of their experience and seeks to put it on a sound
theological standing in order to show its relevance to the whole church.
Before
I bought this book, in about 2002, I was already familiar with Tom Smail as the
author of The Giving Gift (1988,
1994 D.L.T), a very helpful book on the Holy Spirit, or rather the
Trinity and the Holy Spirit’s part in it.
His approach is such that he acknowledges that we have questions to ask
and answers to find.
The primary questions are, who is the Holy Spirit and what is his
role? Naturally
these lead to other questions about the Trinity and we need to recognise that
these facts have been important to the Christian Church throughout the
centuries.
It is the Holy Spirit that points us to the Father (Galatians 4:6) and
also the Holy Spirit that causes us to recognise that Jesus is Lord (1
Corinthians 12:3).
This work must come before we can be concerned with the charismatic gifts
and all the joys of charismatic worship.
We
are indeed blessed to have received such experience and we must allow that to be
our starting point, to become more enlightened to the needs of the churches
today.
It is too easy to think that because we have the Spirit we have all the
answers but we are as likely as any other Christian, in our enthusiasm, to try
to do God’s work for him.
We must know and understand the scriptures relating to the Holy Spirit
and to the Kingdom and allow the Spirit to direct us and lead us.
“If
you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he
will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth.
The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you
know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.”
( John 14:15-17 NIV)
When
I first had an experience of the Holy Spirit taking over in my prayer and
setting me on fire, I didn’t know what was happening, I didn’t know that ordinary
Christians could experience such things.
No one had taught me.
I was already a committed Christian and thought I knew all that was
expected about the Holy Spirit.
Now I am not saying that I had the academic learning of theologians but
simply that I understood all that the clergy in the various churches I had
attended had chosen to preach about.
I knew what the Bible says in those wonderful chapters like John 14 and
Romans 8 but I had not seen it in practice.
Conservative evangelicals would teach that charismatic gifts died out
after the apostolic age and that we had the Word to guide us today.
Now
we praise the Lord that the Spirit and the Word are coming together as the
Charismatic Renewal becomes more mature.
This is where we in A.R.M.(Wales) need to be so we must allow God the
space in our hearts and minds that we might grow together in Christ and in love.
I
have been thinking a lot recently about what we can do to serve the Church.
Being involved with the magazine I naturally think of writing and for
A.R.M.(Wales) to produce some simple literature for teaching on Renewal.
ReSource (A.R.M. England) are once again producing material and I rejoice
in that but I believe that there is also a need for Welsh material alongside the
English.
I am not thinking of translations but rather that we produce booklets
covering the same material in both Welsh and English, so that it can be written
in language suitable for the ordinary person.
Also
as a part of my placement for reader training I have attended some confirmation
classes for 10-11 year olds.
Unfortunately there is only about ten weeks to equip these young people
with what they need to know.
I believe this to be fairly typical in rural churches with only a few
seeking confirmation in a year.
Although the clergy are putting a lot into the various courses, they
cover the basics of Christianity in a way that is not going to be memorable to
those who don’t attend church regularly and who aren’t going to get much
teaching after the confirmation service.
The fact that we must confirm them before we lose them to the senior
school shows that we haven’t got a God directed plan.
So
what will these young people know about the Holy Spirit when they come before
the Bishop?
If I can say that I hadn’t experienced his presence in the church in
any real way, are we expecting it to be any different for today’s candidates?
This
is why I believe that we must be clear about our theology and see the need for
understanding our faith in order to have a dialogue with the rest of the Church.
This
issue reports on our current thinking in the Exec. so I hope that you will read
it before the A.G.M. on 11th November and come with your ideas for
the year ahead.
I
am pleased to include an article from Linda Mary Edwards who is now at Pennant
Melangell, this is another watering hole in Wales from which we could
learn.
I believe that
Linda Mary
is a long-time friend of many of you.
May
He bless you all.
Mary Newsom