Prophetic vs. Priestly Religion: The Changing Role of Women Clergy in Classical Pentecostal Churches
Little has been written regarding the inauspicious beginnings of Pentecostalism, a uniquely American modern religious movement. Prophetic female figures were central to the genesis and subsequent growth of the movement. Two Pentecostal denominations alone were founded entirely by women: the Apostoli...
| Authors: | ; |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Sage Publications
1980
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| In: |
Review of religious research
Year: 1980, Volume: 22, Issue: 1, Pages: 2-17 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Non-electronic
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| Summary: | Little has been written regarding the inauspicious beginnings of Pentecostalism, a uniquely American modern religious movement. Prophetic female figures were central to the genesis and subsequent growth of the movement. Two Pentecostal denominations alone were founded entirely by women: the Apostolic Faith and the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel. Routinization of charisma has occurred in both denominations as present leadership is in the hands of the founding mothers' sons. This paper explores Weber's (1963) insight that "the religion of the disprivileged classes,... is characterized by a tendency to allot equality to women." As a corollary, Weber contended that only in rare cases does this practice extend beyond the first stage of a religious community's formation. Thereafter, a reaction occurs against pneumatic manifestations of charisma among women, which come to be regarded as undesirable. When the symbolic function of Pente-costal leadership shifted in the 1920s from "prophet" to "priest," the number of women in leadership positions rapidly declined. The conclusion will be informed by a content analysis of the Minutes of the General Council of the Assemblies of God, the largest white Pentecostal denomination, and through statistical data regarding the sex ratio among four Pentecostal denominations. |
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| ISSN: | 2211-4866 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Review of religious research
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.2307/3510481 |