The Holy Spirit, The Missing Finger: Comparing the Pneumatology of Alexander Campbell and Don Basham
The Holy Spirit was the missing finger in the life of the church for 180 years. From the beginning, Holy Spirit pneumatology and its dynamism were muted because reason was placed over the Spirit’s work in the life of a believer. Alexander Campbell had a gateway to provide the Spirit through his association with Walter Scott. Yet, he accepted John Locke’s rationalism as a basis for faith and living. This action created a church movement built on an overemphasis of the mind to the detriment of the Spirit. In comparison, “John Wesley demonstrated that a warm, spiritual religion is as possible in an high church, liturgical tradition as within the more plain and simple style of Puritans and Presbyterians.”[47] Wesley, though educated and scholarly, did not allow the intellect to become preeminent over the Spirit. Additionally, Don Basham, though trained as an educated, traditional Disciples minister, appropriated Wesley’s approach and imagined a ministry more compatible to Cane Ridge than the Campbellite religion. The Holy Spirit was the missing finger of Campbell’s faith that Basham recaptured. To this end, Don Basham revealed that the pneumatology of the charismatic renewal was the needed corrective to a rational mode which most mainline churches feature in the life of their congregations.
PR
Bibliography
Basham, Don. Can a Christian Have a Demon. Monroeville, PA: Whitaker Books, 1971.
—. Deliver Us From Evil. Grand Rapids: Chosen Books, 1972.
—. Face Up With a Miracle. Northridge, CA: Voice, 1967.
—. A Handbook on Holy Spirit Baptism. Monroeville, PA: Whitaker Books, 1969.
—. A Handbook on Tongues, Interpretation and Prophecy : 27 Questions and Answers on the Inspirational Gifts of the Holy Spirit. Monroeville, PA: Whitaker Books, 1971.
—. A Manual for Spiritual Warfare. Greensburg, PA: Manna Books, 1974.
—. Willing to Forgive. Ft. Lauderdale, FL: CGM Publishing, 1977.
Burgess, Stanley M., Gary B. McGee, Patrick H. Alexander, eds. Dictionary of Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1998.
Campbell, Alexander. The Christian System. Cincinnati: H.S. Bosworth, 1866; reprint, Salem NH: Ayer, 1988.
Conkin, Paul K. Cane Ridge: America’s Pentecost. Madison, WI: The University of Wisconsin Press, 1990.
Cummins, D. Duane. A Handbook for Today’s Disciples in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). St. Louis: CBP Press, 1974.
Dorough, C. Dwight. The Bible Belt Mystique. New York: Random House, 1962.
Foster, Douglas A. and others. Encyclopedia of the Stone-Campbell Movement. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2004.
Garrett, Leroy. The Stone-Campbell Movement. Joplin, MO: College Press, 1994.
Garrison, Winfred Ernest and Alfred T. DeGroot. The Disciples of Christ, A History. St. Louis: Bethany Press, 1958.
Hoekema, Anthony A. The Bible and the Future. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1979.
Kay William K. and Anne E. Dyer, eds. Pentecostal and Charismatic Studies: A Reader. London: SCM Press, 2004.
Ranaghan, Kevin and Dorothy. Catholic Pentecostals. New York: Paulist Press Deus Books, 1969.
Synan, Vinson. Century of the Holy Spirit: 100 Years of Pentecostal and Charismatic Renewal. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2001.
—. An Eyewitness Remembers the Century of the Holy Spirit. Grand Rapids, MI: Chosen Books, 2010.
Notes
[1] Kevin and Dorothy Ranaghan, Catholic Pentecostals (New York: Paulist Press Deus Books, 1969), 255.
[2] Leroy Garrett, The Stone-Campbell Movement (Joplin, MO: College Press, 1994), 103.
Category: Church History, Winter 2015
Followers
Fans
