Document Actions
Research Project: Restorational Ecclesiology of Lewi Pethrus
This dissertation attempts to show the impact of Lewi Pethrus' restorational Ecclesiology on his philosophy of ministry; particularly the years he served as pastor for the Filadelfia church in Stockholm, 1911-1958.
BACKGROUND
The Swedish Pentecostal Movement has been a well-documented movement from its early beginnings. In 1928, Gustav E. Söderholm published a two-volume work on the history of the Swedish Pentecostal Movement from 1907 to 1927. Even earlier than that, in 1924, Emanuel Linderholm released a book concerning the Pentecostal movement, its potential and origins. A few decades later (1959), Carl Björkquist published another volume Den Svenska Pingstväckelsen, which continued the historical documentation of the Swedish Pentecostal Movement. In 1973, Arthur Sundstedt published the most comprehensive study of the Swedish Pentecostal movement addressing, in a five-volume work, the origins, the breakthrough, the development and worldwide impact of the Swedish Pentecostal Movement up until 1950. In June 2007, another two-volume set was published, which continues where Arthur Sundstedt’s study finished. The focus of this series is to describe the Swedish Pentecostal Movement’s development up until the present time. Thus, it goes without saying that the Swedish Pentecostal movement has been a well-documented phenomenon since its very beginning.
When perusing the literature concerning the Swedish Pentecostal Movement we also notice that academic attention has been given to the movement’s most prominent and influential figure, Lewi Pethrus. Numerous authors have alluded to Lewi Pethrus in their academic writing, describing his life, ministry and theology. What is remarkable, however, is how little has been written concerning the impact of Lewi Pethrus' theology on his own philosophy of ministry and the Swedish Pentecostal Movement as a whole. Thus, the interrelation between theology and praxis is often overlooked in the historiography of the Swedish Pentecostal Movement. This observation leads us to our research problem.
RESEARCH PROBLEM
As noted above, the Swedish Pentecostal Movement has been thoroughly documented from a historiographical point of view, but these works are often limit to the mere retelling of events rather than focusing on the core values, motives, and theological perspectives of significant individuals that shaped the outcome of these events. The present author believes that this inherent flaw in the documentation of the Swedish Pentecostal Movement is especially large when it comes to Lewi Pethrus, who was by far the movement’s most influential personality. Only when a thorough study of the underlying theological beliefs of a key person such as Lewi Pethrus is it possible for the movement as a whole to be more accurately understood. For example, the rapid numerical growth of the Swedish Pentecostal Movement under the leadership of Lewi Pethrus has been well documented, but Lewi Pethrus’ own perspective on this success has not been sufficiently examined. Furthermore, analyzing such underlying theological beliefs will shed light on the motivation that drove leaders, such as Lewi Pethrus, to accomplish the things they did. Thus, it is this inherent flaw in the documentation of the Swedish Pentecostal Movement that this dissertation hopes to begin to remedy.
PURPOSE STATEMENT
The purpose for this study is to evaluate to what extent a restorational ecclesiology influenced Lewi Pethrus’ philosophy of ministry; in particular during the years he served as pastor of the Filadelfia church in Stockholm, 1911-1958.
RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS
The hypothesis of this dissertation is that Lewi Pethrus’ philosophy of ministry stemmed from his belief in the Pentecostal movement’s divine call to mirror the Early Church in its beliefs and practices. This particular belief is often referred to as "restorational ecclesiology," and was commonly held among early Pentecostals. Even though Lewi Pethrus’ entire philosophy of ministry cannot be summed up in such a narrow framework, this dissertation will attempt to show that this particular belief was one of the most important factors in shaping Lewi Pethrus’ philosophy of ministry. In order to substantiate the hypothesis, it is essential that the evidence of the hypothesis be gathered from a wide variety of ecclesiastical matters. Thus, only if Lewi Pethrus' restorational ecclesiology may be seen in a variety of topics such as Pentecostalism, Pneumatology, Ecclesiology, politics and Missions etc. may the hypothesis be sufficiently proven.
RESEARCH METHOD
In order to find out to what extent a restorational ecclesiology influenced Lewi Pethrus’ philosophy of ministry, a mixed research method will be employed. Discourse analysis will be the primary method of investigation. Sources such as books, sermons, songs, letters, audio-tapes and articles will by analysed. Interviews and questionnaires will also be utilized to get the perspective of people who worked closely with Lewi Pethrus. Since the dissertation is dealing in the area of historical theology, the social, political and cultural contexts will be examined as well.
RESEARCH OBJECTIVE
The goal of the research is to provide a new framework by which to understand Lewi Pethrus' philosophy of ministry, and hopefully some of the peculiar features of the Swedish Pentecostal Movement.
