Forming Future Catholic Priests in a Pentecostal World... 67 C H A P T E R 5 Forming Future Catholic Priests in a ‘Pentecostal World’: Challenges and Prospects John Segun ODEYEMI Introduction Modern Ecumenism and Pentecostalism are two different phenomena which have occurred in the Christian world in the last hundred years. Even though Pentecostalism was criticized initially by the established churches as theologically unsystematic, lacking in doctrine and dogma, yet its appeal and rate of growth remain undeniable, giving birth to a totally new ecclesial community. This growth is now recognized and acknowledged among the World Council of Churches as perhaps the new ‘Pentecost’ of our age. Some make the claim that Pentecostalism will be the new face of Christianity within a few decades and into the next millennium. Using Nigeria as a template, this essay investigates the relationship between Pentecostalism and Catholic seminarians in formation. These seminarians will be priests within an existing but fragile ecumenical union. Hence, there is the need for a framework by which one can critically explore Pentecostalism’s future challenges and prospects vis-à-vis future Catholic priests. In the spring of 2016, Missio Aachen, in Germany awarded me some grant to pursue a study of the impact of Pentecostalism in West Africa with a specific focus on ecumenism. I had grown up in 68 Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation. This country is also the most diverse in terms of language and ethnic affiliations, it happens to be home too for Pentecostalism in West Africa. Growing up within these complexities of ethnic, lingual and multiple religious identities made me query the idea of the production of multiple meanings within Christianity. It is necessary to state, that these multiplicities of the production of interpretations cut through traditional missionary founded Churches, the African Independent Churches(AICs), the evolution of classical Pentecostal Churches, the birth of Charismatic and Neo-Pentecostal bodies and currently the newest form of Pentecostalism which I refer to as Pentecôtistes nouvelle génération; (PNG).1 Let me clarify that Pentecostalism in Nigeria and in West Africa, from my fieldwork across Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast and Sierra Leone has its own peculiarities and distinctiveness from Pentecostalism in the global West. At the turn of the twentieth century, Pentecostalism in sub- Saharan Africa had become a phenomenon that no serious scholar of religion could ignore. Through its evolutionary stages from the 1920s, Pentecostalism for various reasons, which we shall explore later, continued to grow and expound thereby impacting the societies it exists in on all fronts; culturally, economically, socially, politically, and religiously. Consequently, it is said that “the Pentecostal genre of Christianity is becoming the dominant form of Christianity in contemporary Africa.”2 Cephas Omenyo, reflecting on the genre which in and of itself is not mono but existing in pluriformity, states, “The variety and diversity of African Pentecostalism is palpable. It is sometimes suggested that we should speak of ‘African Pentecostalisms’ rather than ‘African Pentecostalism’ because of the existing complexities of categorization.”3 The diversities spoken of here deserve another script and research, starting from classical to Neo-Pentecostals of contemporary times. It can be argued that Pentecostalism is the fastest-growing religious phenomenon around the globe currently. Some call it a revival of traditional Christianity, which is said to have grown lukewarm. Cardinal Walter Kasper calls this a “third wave of Christian history” or a third phase where the mission is no longer ‘ad gentes’ – to the nations/peoples of the world, but ‘inter gentes’ – between peoples of same religious commitment.4 This growth is adduced to evangelical movements, Pentecostal Churches, and Charismatic movements. Forming Future Catholic Priests in a Pentecostal World... 69 West African Pentecostalism may be popular, but it has considerable baggage of problems to deal with. For now, a brief reflection suffices; Pentecostalism is a proliferation and further splintering of the Christian Church that was born out of the 16th century Reformation. As young as Pentecostalism is within Christianity and the history of the Southern hemisphere, it continues to suffer multiplications and splintering or breakaway factions. In all of the West African countries I visited, most notorious are Ghana and Nigeria, where the Pentecostal billboards and signposts litter the city skyline. Television and radio broadcasts are filled daily with competing Pentecostal Churches, founders and general overseers jostling for adherents and making promises of deliverance, healings and breakthroughs. Particularly, in Nigeria, this splintering becomes a battle for bodies and minds of people, every new assembly vying for social relevance and survival. Within the raucousness, some of these newly founded and self-appointed church ministers create a fundamentalist following deeply steeped in proselytizing. The Jesuit theologian, Roger Haight sees some of these movements not only individualistic and fundamentalist, but extremely suspicious and exclusivistic of other Pentecostal assemblies. Haight avers, “… so individualistic is their anthropology and piety that they scrupulously avoid all social involvement except for an extreme conservative type; and so independent and at times hostile to the interests of the mainline churches that they reject any ecumenical cooperation.”5 The various ecclesial communities may be witnessing an explosion in numbers across the continent currently but they risk an implosion in the future due to present inaction. The authenticity of a true Christian spirit lies in its witnessing, the power of her truth, her forthrightness in speaking against unjust structures and not the domination of the poor. An appeal to divine authority for a ‘gospel of prosperity’, the collection of tithes, the promise of deliverances, revivals, night vigils etc., may not be a veritable vehicle of truth that builds real and enduring faith. If the Church cannot speak this language of freedom and be at the forefront of the liberation of the people, political and economic forces will take the driver’s seat. When a new and progressive era dawns in Africa and in Nigeria, 70 Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age particularly, Christianity runs the risk of becoming irrelevant, as it has happened to some other continents. It is important, therefore, that seminarians pay attention to the complexities that will mark ecumenical relationships between Pentecostals and Orthodox Christian faiths. This initial formation prepares future priests to be disposed to ecumenical exchanges, which by now should be seen as inevitable. Refusal of ecumenical exchanges denies the unifying action of the Holy Spirit in the Christian community. It is the same Holy Spirit that vivifies the proclamation of the Goodnews. It is this sort of unity that gives the Christian message credibility and makes for authentic and lasting conversions. According to Killian McDonnell, at a more pragmatic level, it is exactly the Church’s credibility that is called into question, “At the level where most persons experience the Church… it is the want of holiness, the lack of fruit, and the manifest disunity which make her efforts at evangelization ineffective and constitutes a threat to the power of the gospel.”6 McDonnell states further that a real commitment to Jesus consists of entering into a community of human persons totally committed to resisting popular values “which see the ultimate goal in an ever-increasing, ever higher, standard of living, of resistance to mindless consumerism, and to social values which sanction racism and the exploitation of the poor.”7 The Specificity of Nigerian Pentecostalism: A Staring Point for Ecumenical Formation in the Seminaries The first step towards understanding any natural phenomenon is a careful study of its history and growth. For seminarians to be adequately prepared to engage Pentecostalism in ecumenism, it is important, given their philosophical, theological and scholastic studies to engage in academic research and when possible fellowship and joint acts of praying or worship. The following is an abridged history that is illustrative of the Pentecostal movement in Nigeria. Western and European scholars tend to locate the origin of the renewal of Pentecostalism solely to the Azusa Street mission of 1906, born out of an African American prayer group in Los Angeles.8 Some other scholars from South America, Asia and Africa trace a different historical origin different from the Azusa mission. For instance, Ogbu Kalu in his seminal work on Pentecostalism clarifies that from the very beginning, “African Pentecostalism did not Forming Future Catholic Priests in a Pentecostal World... 71 originate from Azusa Street and is not an extension of the American electronic church.”9 For Kalu, African Pentecostalism was as a result of the response to missionary enterprise by the indigenous African Christians (also known and referred to as African Independent Churches, (AICs).10 Citing the Ethiopian movement as an example, which was an attempt at a recovery of African identity through religion; Kalu makes the claim “Ethiopianism was a muscular movement that operated with a certain theodicy claiming that God has not deserted Africans to their humiliation but has raised a people to restore Africa’s lost glory.”11 This, Kalu perceived to be an African spirituality that will be anti-structure, anti-colonialism which will give birth to a vibrant nationalism. It will empower and energize African Pentecostalism post-independence. So, the first question to be asked is, how will seminarians understand and perceive African spirituality in relating to their own scholastic and format theological training? Despite the foregoing, there is a clear distinction between the Pentecostal movements through the decades, which makes contextualizing a necessity but labelling difficult and unnecessary. In proper context, therefore, one can historically begin to see the emergence of African Pentecostalism, revivals and identity from 1900 to 1960. Various indigenous ‘Prophets’ were already crisscrossing different parts of Africa from 1910 when European missionaries were gathered in Edinburgh to discuss further mission work in Africa. Kalu sums up this all-important clarification as follows, From the historical discourse, it can be demonstrated that the movement in Africa did not start from Azusa Street… I conclude that a charismatic wind blew through the African continent in the post-independent period that first hit the youth and women, and later overawed the resistance of the mainline Churches. In each country, certain socioeconomic and political factors determined the pattern of the early concerns. But various strands connected across national boundaries.12 This argument does not exclude a variety of missionary influences. What remains clear according to Kalu is that the emergence of 72 Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age missionary evangelical Pentecostalism came to Africa to find these religious impulses already in existence. While they initially coexisted, various factors forced a separation. African Pentecostalism took its roots from the indigenous impulses.13 It would be difficult to argue successfully that it has remained the same ever since. With the emergence of this new face of Pentecostalism, a topological distinction is made between the AICs, the first wave of neo-Pentecostalism and the current mega auditoriums, and jet-flying Pentecostalism. The development and timeline seem to be one and the same along the West African Coast and in Africa generally.14 Brigit Meyer concludes that given the current state of African Pentecostalism and its classifications and categories it can give way to, “albeit contested, processes of de-essentializing such notions as African, authentic, or local, de-temporalizing tradition, deconstructing modernity, blurring the boundary between religion and politics, and even de-universalizing religion.”15 Whatever the case might be, Pentecostalism, especially of Nigerian persuasion continues to expound and enlarge. For instance, J.D.Y. Peel notes, “The Yoruba16 have exported their brand of Neo-Pentecostalism all over sub-Saharan Africa, especially to major cities like Nairobi and Johannesburg. And in Europe too, whether to serve mainly their own in the diaspora or to light the Pentecostal fire in a native white population (as with the Embassy of God in Ukraine.)”17 All over Europe and America, Pentecostals offer a chaplaincy of welcome and safe haven for the throngs of African migrants. The contention of the relationship between future priests, who are now seminarians takes on another extension worthy of consideration; as we begin to experience a ‘reverse re-evangelization’ of the West by African priests, pastors and preachers, it is important to pay attention to ecumenical relationships in the diaspora. The Pentecostals believe there is a trend which constitutes a “major paradigmatic change in the Christian mission, popularly labelled a ‘reverse mission.’ African Pentecostals are convinced that God’s mandate to them is to reach out to the entire world. This conviction is captured by their including words such as ‘global’, ‘international,’ and ‘world’ in their nomenclature.”18 And the history of European missionaries’ relationships in the evangelization of Nigeria is well documented and not much of it reflects ecumenical embrace or friendship. In the United States, Catholics, Evangelicals and African Forming Future Catholic Priests in a Pentecostal World... 73 Pentecostals are already experiencing tensions based on proselytization. There is much work to be done in this area so as to bridge the existing widening gap between Christians in the diaspora. From my personal experience, most Africans who arrive in Europe and America and who practice the older forms of Christianity usually have problems with ‘sombre and solemn’ liturgies they encounter in their new homes. Unlike the celebratory and lively worship back home, the migrants encounter a cold and impersonal style. In some instance, their white hosts fail to extend a hand of welcome and sure enough, they begin to “shop” around. Once they find the Pentecostal communities, they immediately feel at home. They network and are helped to settle down, get accommodation, jobs, social security cards and even for the illegal immigrant, he or she finds welcome and fellowship. Pentecostals in the diaspora fulfil a role the older generational Churches are unable to fill. Gradually, Pentecostalism is beginning to impact the host European and American communities. Perhaps the Pentecostals will be at the forefront of the re-evangelization of the global West. Here, the challenge for training future Catholic priests in the new evangelization of the next century becomes a paramount task to be fulfilled. A Pentecostal Perspective on Ecumenism Nigerian Pentecostals generally seems ambivalent when it comes to the question of ecumenism. Neo –Pentecostals in the West who are beginning to build a viable theological base are willing to engage in ecumenical encounters better than evangelical and Neo-Pentecostals found mostly in the Southern hemisphere. Based on my fieldwork and research findings, Pentecostals in West Africa think that ecumenism is important, but in reality, I did not find many instances of ecumenical associations between Pentecostals, Catholics and other denominations. There are a few instances where Pentecostals had to work with other denominations borne out of immediate expediency. For instance, in Sierra Leone, immediately after the civil war and the aftermath of the Ebola decimation, a coalition between churches was formed to try and respond to the humanitarian needs at the time. 74 Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age This sort of situation found in Sierra Leone is one of the examples that show the state of Christianity in its supposed glorious upsurge on the face of the continent. Interestingly, Frank Macchia calls attention to ‘the tongues of Pentecost.’ Macchia avers, “The tongues of Pentecost may provide a pregnant metaphor for a distinctly Pentecostal reflection on ecumenical exchange with Roman Catholics.”19 Macchia clarifies further, “The tongues event of Pentecost exposes the scandal of both a complacent sectarianism that offers no need to strive for unity and a complacent Catholicism that is convinced such unity already exists.”20 Because the Pentecostals lay claim to the centrality of ‘tongues’ as it was given on Pentecost day, Pentecostalism cannot be sectarian, therefore must be ecumenical. Macchia goes further to state, The event of Pentecost by nature resists domestication as a metaphor that inspires the narratives of just one movement or segment of the people of God. Pentecost is an ecumenical event. It should make Pentecostals feel uneasy and insecure within the closet of Pentecostal piety. It urges them to come out of that closet and to discover ‘Pentecostalism’ in communions other than their own, especially in ways unfamiliar to them. It reminds them that being Pentecostal in the full sense of the word means transcending the boundaries of the Pentecostal movement in directions unexpected and quite dramatic. It means, in part, facing the ecumenical promise and challenge implied in the presence of the Roman Catholic Church.21 To focus on the mystery and transcendence of tongue-speech, according to Macchia is an important theological foundation for understanding and affirming diversity among the various Christian traditions. Language, culture and doctrinal traditions are relative to the mystery of God who is present in these diversities of traditions where diversity stands for the communion of free humanity with a free self-revealing God. Macchia, therefore, concludes that “such diverse communions can fellowship and work together as equal partners as they dialogue across ecclesiastical lines. Tongues as a prodigium that breaks in upon us from God’s spirit functions on one level as a kind of ‘anti-language’ that reveals the utter futility of any effort to attribute status to anyone language of faith.” 22 Forming Future Catholic Priests in a Pentecostal World... 75 Allan H. Anderson, one of the most acknowledged theologians to have carried out thorough research on Pentecostalism views the connection between ecumenical work and contemporary Pentecostalism as almost void. Anderson posits that despite the belief of evangelicals and Pentecostals dating back to Azusa Street, it was presumed that this new surge of the spirit will become an Apostolic Faith. This idea, that the Pentecostal movement will sweep over the known Christian Church holds sway till date, and more so in the nerve centre of neo-Pentecostalism of the Southern hemisphere. Anderson asserts that Pentecostals saw unity in a spiritual sense, but not unity in creed or doctrine. Anderson alludes to one area in which ecumenism seems to function even if not profoundly taken to heart; the interaction between Pentecostals and Charismatic Renewals in the older Christian traditions. Anderson argues, “At the grassroots level, the Charismatic movement brought people together from many different denominations in an unprecedented way… ‘A sense of unity was generated through the sharing of the divine experiences in the spirit which washed away denomination barriers at the grassroots level’…”23 Anderson concludes that the greatest weakness of modern Pentecostals is their inability to embrace their potentials for ecumenical diversities and unity. The Task of Ecumenism Today: Roman Catholics, AICs, Pentecostals Relationships Our theological ‘elders’ forewarned us when in 1986 they gathered in Mexico for the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians (EATWOT) that the task of Africa’s theology must be ecclesial, cultural, political and liberating. They posit the following wise words, …. we begin our common methodology of theologizing as people who feel in our bodies not just our own hearts but the pain of others. We theologize together and individually from our suffering and humiliation. We stand by our prior agreements to do theology and live our faith from the energy that flows from ecumenism and to which we pray our theology should make a contribution. Together we define 76 Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age poverty, in the comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon, as whatever robs human beings and groups of peoples of their humanity. All who are impoverished because the culture they created has been trampled upon by others, all who’s right to be human is challenged by socio-political, economic, and religious structures and demands that humiliate, all who have to struggle to have their humanity recognized and respected – all these are poor.24 It is to these poor that the Goodnews about the kingdom of God must be preached. It is to them that the Christian Church must serve, and not dominate, plunder or subjugate further than where they have already been marginalized by the corruption of governments and multi-million dollar corporations. From my experience and fieldwork in West Africa, the relationship between Catholics, African Independent Churches and the Pentecostals in ecumenical work is not easily navigated. It is different from one socio-cultural milieu to another. In most situations, these relationships are based on mutual suspicion and disregard. While Catholics are accused of worshipping images and idolizing Mary, the indigenous African Churches are accused of syncretism and the Pentecostals are perceived to be proselytizers and con artists. At best their relationship can mostly be described as a mutual tolerance or intolerance. The possible avenue by which these Christian traditions can ever come together is usually under the auspices of the association of Christian Churches in each particular Church or region as the case might be. In Nigeria for instance, (and this Nigerian example is almost the exact template of the same situation along with the governments and peoples of the coastline of West Africa), Christians come together under the auspices of the Christian Association of Nigeria, (CAN). Before CAN, the Nigerian Anglican/Roman Catholic Commission (NARCC) had existed as an ecumenical body, wherein joint days of prayers for unity are held, and theological discussions ensued. Upon the arrival of the Pentecostals and in the light of the unstable economic and political situation in the country, it was imperative for the various Christian blocs under CAN to have a common voice facing the new political realities in the nation. There Forming Future Catholic Priests in a Pentecostal World... 77 have been calls to prayers nationwide and several communiques and papers presented commonly from CAN in response to burning social issues at different times. Most researchers who have made significant contributions to the study of Neo-Pentecostalism usually do not make concise connections between Ecumenism, the Christian Church, Pentecostalism, politics and social impact. It is true that many government officials along the West African coastline are known to frequent prayer camps and Pastors. According to John Mansford Prior, Pentecostalism is yet to understand “the imperative of channelling its formidable power into the needs of the temporal world, towards the gospel call to transforming the social order according to the plan of God.”25 John Prior asserts that Pentecostalism “has confined itself to a spirituality of conversion, of holiness and fellowship, failing to galvanize its adherents into a force of advocacy and action against the structures of sin.”26 Pentecostalism with its numbers is naturally expected to collaborate in ecumenical efforts particularly when it speaks to social justice issues; on paper, West African Pentecostals (pastors and adherents) agree that ecumenism which pays attention to social justice issues is essential. However, in reality, this is not true. This question can also be asked of the older Christian traditions. It can be asked of those who design the curriculum for seminaries in the training of future priests. The preaching of the gospel can no longer be without its political and liberational dimensions. Future Priests, Ecumenism and Pentecostalism: Prospects and Challenges. There is a complexity in approaching the question of anything in the future since no one knows the future. We can try to predict possibilities in the future, but there are too many factors at play beyond human control that can reshape the future. The future of Catholic priests and Pentecostals at home and abroad, engaging in ecumenical work is bleak. The reality is that both sides view each other with suspicion. The future as far as it can be perceived puts a great challenge on the part of the priests of the next generation. Again, there is an urgent need to review the curriculum in the seminaries especially as it affects Homiletics, evangelization and 78 Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age managing ecumenical outreach. Awareness is essential as the future of Catholicism in the global west may now be the missionary responsibility of the next generation of Catholic priests. The following points are the essentials that I consider a necessity for preparing men who will bear witness to our catholic and apostolic faith in the very near future.  Pentecostalism is a reality of the Christian Church today. We have all to learn to live together as we lay claim to proclaiming Christ to the world. Pentecostalism in Nigeria and on the West African landscape is still very amorphous in nature to be approached in an ecclesial setting. The onus is on the existing older traditions to continue to extend the hands of fellowship to those in the Pentecostal assemblies willing to work with others in an ecumenical setting.  There is an urgent need for our seminaries to undertake a theological and ecclesiological understanding of Pentecostal teachings, to review its hierarchical/governmental structures. To understand Pentecostalism in its various forms is a step forward in building a relationship, that lessens the existing tension and mutual suspicion.  For the Christian message to endure on the continent, the Pentecostals cannot afford to make the same mistakes their older brothers of the older traditions have made in the past; the idea that it is cosy and safe within their own assemblies, thereby becoming exclusive and not desirous of interacting with other Christian Churches. The Christian Church in sub- Sahara Africa faces a silent but potent threat from globalization and extreme liberalism. As cultures collide and penetrate each other through technology and the new wave of the internet and electronic media, a common front and ecumenical handshake across the divide is a necessity for the Pentecostals and other Christians.  In the West African region what makes ecumenical work, a must is the unrelenting insurgency of extreme and radical Islam. In Nigeria, the hotbed of Boko Haram insurgency, and in Ghana and Sierra Leone, skirmishes have been recorded between radical Islamic Jihadists against Christians and sometimes against moderate Muslims. In Nigeria for instance, there are public statements, unrefuted by the federal Forming Future Catholic Priests in a Pentecostal World... 79 government that there is an agenda to Islamize the entire country by Jihad. In this volatile situation, presenting a common ecumenical front in protecting the Christian population is a necessity.  It seems the future of Christianity lies in the soil, sons and daughters of Africa, yet the issues, which disunite us, are more than the issues that unite us. Ecumenical work, especially in constant dialogue, is the only way forward if the new Pentecost breathing in the panting heart of Africa will reverberate and will engage in the new evangelization of lands previously home of Christianity, out of which the good news came to us.  Catholic seminaries hold a wealth of spiritual and intellectual traditions in the training of future priests. This process must now be updated to include methods and approaches by which the priest to be is equipped in religious dialogue broadly. The interaction of traditional Christianity with the new face of Pentecostalism is only one stage in the dialogical process. There are Muslims and traditional religions to encounter and embrace, especially in regions such as ours so deeply polarized and divided. Catholic seminaries must begin to produce priests for the future who will take leadership roles in these dialogues.27 Conclusion A seeming lack of interest on the part of Pentecostals in questions of political engagement, the struggle for liberation and freedom from political oppression and social justice, widens the gap and makes ecumenical work more difficult. In Nigeria, one gets a sense of a disconnect between social involvement and evangelism in the Christian Churches generally. While the Pentecostals fill up auditoriums and stadiums for revivals and crusades, most of them are unable to put programs in place which supports social services.28 Both Pentecostals and the older Christian traditions are guilty of building social services like schools and hospitals, which most of their congregants cannot afford monetarily to use. This is very prevalent across the board on the West African coast. It is easily 80 Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age noticeable in private secondary schools, polytechnics and universities owned by Pentecostal pastors or General Overseers (GOs). This extreme lack of social consciousness builds a wall that wedges any kind of effort at an ecumenical embrace. According to Anderson, for the Pentecostals, “There has not been a clearly articulated theological foundation for social ministry.”29 Contrarily, they seem to focus on what Anderson refers to as an ‘otherworldly’ spirituality that avoids ‘worldly’ issues. Most prominent and at the forefront of Pentecostal evangelism is material wealth, suppression of demonic forces, healings and miracles, and speaking in tongues – all of which will not feature on the agenda of an ecumenical meeting. In this work, I examined the possible connections between Catholic seminarians, who will become future priests, contemporary Pentecostalism and the notion of a possible ecumenical engagement towards social, political and religious reconstruction. While acknowledging Nigerian Pentecostalism and its phenomenal growth over the last few decades, it could well be said that it is the future face and phase of African Christianity. However, there is the distressing news; Nigerian brand of Pentecostalism lack a coherent ecclesiology especially as it focuses mostly on "health and wealth" doctrines. If Nigerian Pentecostalism would thrive, it must connect and reach out ecumenically, by committing itself to social justice issues. It is also clear that there is work to be done to adequately equip young seminarians ordained into Catholic ministry in the coming decades as they encounter their brothers and sisters of the Pentecostal persuasion. We all know where we are today, but where we shall be tomorrow is in the hands of God. We can only pray and work assiduously, and together so that “His kingdom may come.” End Notes 1 John Segun Odeyemi. Pentecostalism and Catholic Ecumenism in Developing Nations: West Africa as a Case Study for a Global Phenomenon. (Eugene, Oregon: Wipf & Stock Publishers, 2019), 52 2 Cephas N. Omenyo. 2014. “African Pentecostalism” in Cecil M. Robeck Jr and Amos Yong (Eds). The Cambridge Companion to Pentecostalism. (NY: Cambridge University Press), 132 3 Ibid. Forming Future Catholic Priests in a Pentecostal World... 81 4 Johannes Muller & Karl Gabriel (Eds.) 2015. Evangelicals, Pentecostal Churches, Charismatics: New Religious Movements as a Challenge for the Catholic Church. (Quezon, Philippines: Claretian Publications), 9-10 5 Roger Haight, SJ. “Responding to Fundamentalism in Africa: Three Questions for the Mainline Churches. “ In the New Theology Review: An American Catholic Journal for Ministry. Vol 7, no.1, Feb. 1994, 60 6 Killian McDonnell. 1978. The Charismatic Renewal and Ecumenism. (NY: Paulist Press), 16-7 7 Ibid., 18 8 This also is debated by some other scholars who give credence to the missionary work of Charles Parham in Texas where Pentecostal charisms had already been experienced before the Azusa street prayer meeting. Of the Azusa street ministry, Thomas Rausch writes, “It was extraordinary in a number of ways. First, those coming to the mission rejoiced in extraordinary gifts of the Holy Spirit, including an ecstatic form of worship. Second, though it originated in an African American prayer meeting in a still segregated Los Angeles, the congregation was soon interracial, with blacks and whites praying and singing together. Third, from its beginnings the movement spread like wildfire. Within six months, members and others interested in the Azusa Mission had founded several new congregations in Los Angeles and its environs. Its participants held meetings in neighboring communities, often in tents or rented storefronts. By September, its evangelists had traveled from San Diego to Seattle, by December they were active across the country, and at least 13 missionaries had been sent to Africa. In the next two years the movement spread to Mexico, Canada, Europe, Africa, even to Northern Russia. cf. Thomas P. Rausch. "Catholics and Pentecostals: Troubled history, new initiatives." Theological Studies 71, no. 4, 2010, 928 9 Ogbu Kalu. African Pentecostalism: An Introduction. 2008 (New York: Oxford University Press), viii 10 Other designations for the AICs include African Initiated Churches, African Indigenous Churches, and African Independent Churches. 11 Ibid. 12 Ibid. 13 Kalu surmises the situation at the time in the following succinct words, “Classical Pentecostals appeared early in the African religious landscape and operated with a muscular indigenous agency to charismatize Africa … The crucial point is that none of the classical forms of Pentecostalism became important in the religious landscape until they benefitted from the spiritual renewal of the 1970s…. and certainly counter the impression that ‘new crusaders’ recently forayed into Africa bearing the insignia of fundamentalism. 82 Formation, The Catholic Priesthood and The Modern Age Pentecostalism emerged from the indigenous response of Africans to the missionary message; the missionary input from evangelical ministries such as Scripture Union, Campus Crusade, and such; from the increasing missionary forays of Pentecostals from the holiness tradition and Pentecostal denominations from various countries who utilized the labors of African agents; and from interdenominational parachurches, bolstered by the educational institutions of many American Bible colleges and many evangelical evangelizing outreaches. Cf, 64 14 Meyer expounds on the all too common features of the new Pentecostal leadership in the following way, “Many PCCs present themselves as ultimate embodiments of modernity. Building huge Churches to accommodate thousands of believers, making use of elaborate technology to organize mass-scale sermons and appearances on TV and Radio, organizing spectacular crusades throughout the country-often parading foreign speakers – so as to convert nominal Christians, Muslims, and supporters of traditional religions, creating possibilities for high-quality Gospel Music, and instigating trend-setting modes of dress all create an image of successful mastery of the modern world. Meyer,Birgit. “Christianity in Africa: From African Independent to Pentecostal-Charismatic Churches.” Annual review of Anthropology. 33, no.1,2004, 459 15 Ibid, 467 16 The Yoruba nation is the most dispersed ethnic group in Nigeria through the trans-Atlantic slave trade. They inhabit the South Western part of Nigeria. Among the Yorubas, the first impulse of Charismatic- Prophetism and indigenous forms of Christianity was born in Nigeria. 17 J.D.Y. Peel. Christianity, Islam, and Oriṣ a Religion: three traditions in comparison and interaction. 2016. (California: University of California Press), 214 18 Cephas Omenyo. “African Pentecostalism” in Cecil M. Robeck Jr and Amos Yong (Eds). The Cambridge Companion to Pentecostalism. Ibid,144 19 Frank D. Macchia. “The Tongues of Pentecost: A Pentecostal Perspective on the Promise and Challenge of Pentecostal/Roman Catholic Dialogue.” Journal of Ecumenical Studies, December 1, 1998, Vol.35, Issue 1. 20 Ibid. 21 Ibid., 2 22 Frank D. Macchia. Ibid., 8 23 Allan Heaton Anderson.. An Introduction to Pentecostalism (2nd Ed.) (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2014), 252 24 K.C. Abraham (Ed.) “Third World Theologies: Commonalities and Divergences.” Mercy Amba Oduyoye, contributor, Commonalities: An African Perspective. (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1990.), 103 25 John Mansford Prior (Maumere-Flores). “How Does the Catholic Church Deal with the New Religious Movements in a Constructive Way? (Focus on Asia)” In Forming Future Catholic Priests in a Pentecostal World... 83 Johannes Muller & Karl Gabriel (Eds.) Evangelicals, Pentecostal Churches, Charismatics: New Religious Movements as a Challenge for the Catholic Church. Op.Cit, 255 26 Ibid. 27 Most of this section can be found in my book earlier cited, John Segun Odeyemi. Pentecostalism and Catholic Ecumenism in Developing Nations: West Africa as a Case Study for a Global Phenomenon. Op. Cit. 28 While one must not make a blanket statement or over generalize on this matter, it must be stated that there are in the more established Pentecostal Churches, some who have some welfare plans for economically disadvantaged members. For instance in Nigeria and Ghana, there are clear evidences to show that some needy Pentecostal members are provided raw food, they are given financial support to pay hospital bills, school fees or in some instances some amount to start a personal small scale business. The problem lies with when you look at the wider picture. 29 Ibid. Allan Heaton Anderson, 278