a contextual missiology of the spirit - eTheses Repository ...

helps to ‘create the bonds of mutual accountability’ between the local and the
global. 87
Following Schreiter, Bevans affirms the significant role of the faith community in
the development of contextual theologies. He convincingly argues that the trained
theologian has an important but limited role in the theological process. According
to Bevans, the theologian’s role is to articulate more clearly the expression of the
community, ‘deepening their ideas … and challenging them to broaden their
horizons….’ Furthermore, as the context is taken seriously in contextual theology,
‘theology cannot be understood as a ‘finished product, produced by experts, that is
merely delivered to a Christian community for its consumption,’ and at the same
time, ‘theology cannot be the mere recording of what “the people think.”’ Instead,
theology must be ‘an activity of dialogue, emerging out of a mutual respect
between’ the faith community and ‘listening professionals.’ 88
As Anderson observes, Pentecostal theology is ‘more than written and academic
theology,’ but is ‘found in the preaching, rituals and practices of churches.’ He
refers to the ‘enacted theology’ (theology in practice) seen in global
Pentecostalism. 89 While discussing the problems of Pentecostal traditioning,
Simon Chan points out that the ‘strength of Pentecostal traditioning lies in its
powerful narratives,’ but its ‘weakness lies in its inability to explain itself.’ 90
87
Schreiter, Constructing Local Theologies, 18.
88
Bevans, Models of Contextual Theology, 17-18.
89
Allan Anderson, ‘The Contextual Pentecostal Theology of David Yonggi Cho,’ AJPS 7, no.1
(1999): 102.
90
Simon Chan, Pentecostal Theology and the Christian Spiritual Tradition, JPTS Series 21
(Sheffield: SAP, 2000), 20.
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