Reflections on Pentecostalism 5: The copper snake has to go (Thoughts and observations regarding Black Pentecostalism in South Africa)!

I write this piece many years a pastor in a Pentecostal denomination. What I put forward here are personal observations and thoughts with no scholarly pretense. Ever since I entered pentecostal ministry I never cease to be amazed at the general lack of theological reflection in the pew and the pulpit. Beliefs are received and held without critical questioning. In fact one may find some people with some critical faculty who would still endorse popularly held beliefs which in private they doubt if not reject. In this instance, what matters most seems to be the upholding of certain images long established in the pentecostal circles against the developing consciousness of their flaws or untenability. For an example: a new belief was developing in certain quarters of the pentecostal/ charismatic leadership in my town that tent campaigns by evangelists were no more productive as means of evangelism. In fact they were proving too expensive and burdensome to the churches of the area where the campaign was to be conducted. Furthermore, they disrupted ecumenical relationships which some pentecostals were fostering with the mainline christians as well as disrupt the local churches ministry programs. This belief as I have already indicated was developing based on empirical observations. The pastors in this town talked and agreed to no more allowing themselves to be used in the way that some described. However, this did not stop tent campaigns coming and having some of our colleagues as champions. It is unfortunate that their enthusiastic endorsement of most if not all these campaigns was never matched by their experiences of the same. And I looked on, wondering what would it take to awaken these dear servants of Christ to the truth behind these campaigns. For I honestly hold to a view that they might have worked and brought such blessing to many. But they are now an outdated mode for the advancement of the gospel. They have become expensive and self serving.

What is this destructive side of the tent campaigns, you ask? Well, let me outline a scenario for you. This scenario is based on real experience in my town.

An itinerant evangelist plans to come into town for an evangelistic meeting spanning two weeks. He phones one of the pastors and asks him to organise him a meeting with the pastors. This the pastor does. At the meeting the evangelist states that God wants him to hold a campaign in this town and that he needs the participation of the local congregations to make it happen. He also indicates that the said campaign will be in three weeks time. Between then and the present, he needs pastors to go to the municipal offices concerning space for the tent, provision of water and lights. He indicates that the churches will have to share the financial burden of seeing to it that such municipal services are availed. Shock comes to the faces of those present (in a later meeting) when they realize that the initial cost, before the evangelist ascends the stage stretches well up to R14 000. But of course he allays their fear by telling them that they should not worry about other things as he hopes to take offering from those who will attend the sessions thereby covering the cost of conducting the campaign and providing some thing for him too. The evangelist will need people who will put up posters all over, pitch the tent, usher people during sessions and take the tent down at the end of the campaign. As for followup of those supposedly converted in this campaign, the participating churches will share the decision cards and follow them up.

During the campaign, the evangelist might ridicule other churches in the community, disparage traditional beliefs and practices, mock those who seek solace in this beliefs and tell his listeners to leave a 'cold and dead' church. All these he does to loud shouts of laughter mingled with amens. Of course the gospel is being preached and people's response sought. Names of those who 'decide for Christ' are being registered. Offering is also being asked for and taken 'in order for the gospel to go forward'. With the campaign over and the tent taken down, the local pastors now are faced with rounding off whatever matters regarding the event. The first, problem comes from the decision cards which have to be shared by all equally in order to follow up those who responded to the preaching. The problem is that most of these are already members of the churches which participated in the event. For indeed very few real sinners attend this meetings these days. This means that some churches naturally take more cards if they are allowed to keep the names of their members because only those cards whose people indicated that they are unchurched or are from the mainline churches get to be shared. Secondly, there might not be capacity to followup all the people whose names have been received. Thirdly, because of the suddenness of the campaign and the fact that it was unsolicited, most churches will find it hard to divert their human resource and schedule time to attend to the new converts. Fourthly, because of the same reason above, it sometimes becomes difficult for some churches to pick up their services where they left them in hassle of organising the campaign. Thus even if the new converts were to come, they would find a church not ready to handle them. Fifthly, most churches experience a reshuffling of members as they have been told to leave a dead church (a concept that was left broad enough to allow any perception to fit in). And I have not mentioned that the soliciting for money in the during the course of the event is generally so aggressive and succesful that a congregational pastor would be lucky not to be asked for money by a congregant who has emptied everything during the campaign!

I also think that what I wrote about as my personal struggles with the pentecostalism of my earlier years among the working class is still valid today and in a broader context. I know of a section of our town where churches literally popup just like popcorns. The lifespan of some of them is not more than six months. Their founders are generally young pentecostals with no theological training at all. They generally would hold all the views of the section of society they come from and their socio-theological naivety would be so pronounced. One can only wonder at the kind and depth of impact their shortlived ministries have on the church landscape and the observing community. I know from interaction with and observation of the pastors of such churches that they are highly gullible with almost non-existent critical faculties when in the presence of Tent campaigners. They also laud the campaigners greatly and are open to suggestions and promises of coming again to 'pitch the tent and preach the gospel'. Of course why would they be not? After all, it is in these campaigns where most of them make their debut into pentecostal ministry. It is here where they are endorsed by this stranger (itinerant evangelist who knows little about the dynamics of the local context and may care less sometimes) as pastors. Also, if they did not have a small following already, it is in this campaign where they stand to share in the spoils of evangelism. Thus it is difficult to arouse them to the destructive side of the campaigns so organized for they benefit significantly.