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The book 'Charismatic Christianity in Finland, Norway, and Sweden' explores the historical and contemporary developments of Pentecostalism in the Nordic region, highlighting its significance as a missionary movement. Edited by Jessica Moberg and Jane Skjoldli, it presents multidisciplinary case studies that reveal the unexpected prominence of Nordic countries in the global Pentecostal movement. The volume underscores the complex origins and evolution of Charismatic Christianity, emphasizing its connections to earlier revivalist movements and the impact of migration on its growth.

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PALGRAVE STUDIES IN NEW RELIGIONS AND ALTERNATIVE SPIRITUALITIES

CHARISMATIC
CHRISTIANITY IN
FINLAND, NORWAY,
AND SWEDEN
CASE STUDIES IN HISTORICAL AND
CONTEMPORARY DEVELOPMENTS

EDITED BY JESSICA MOBERG

AND JANE SKJOLDLI
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Series editors
James R. Lewis
University of Tromso – The Arctic University
Tromso, Norway

Henrik Bogdan
University of Gothenburg
Gothenburg, Sweden
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Charismatic Christianity in Finland, Norway, and Sweden : Case Studies in Historical and Contemporary Developments,
edited by Jessica Moberg, and Jane Skjoldli, Springer International Publishing AG, 2018. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/e
Created from etf on 2024-07-20 14:22:53.
Palgrave Studies in New Religions and Alternative Spiritualities is an inter-
disciplinary monograph and edited collection series sponsored by the
International Society for the Study of New Religions. The series is devoted
to research on New Religious Movements. In addition to the usual groups
studied under the New Religions label, the series publishes books on such
phenomena as the New Age, communal & utopian groups, Spiritualism,
New Thought, Holistic Medicine, Western esotericism, Contemporary
Paganism, astrology, UFO groups, and new movements within traditional
religions. The Society considers submissions from researchers in any
discipline.

More information about this series at

http://www.palgrave.com/series/14608
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Charismatic
Christianity in
Finland, Norway,
and Sweden
Case Studies in Historical and Contemporary
Developments
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Palgrave Studies in New Religions and Alternative Spiritualities

ISBN 978-3-319-69613-3 ISBN 978-3-319-69614-0 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69614-0

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017960949

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2018. This book is published open
access.
Open Access This book is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution
4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits
use, duplication, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long
as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the
Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.
The images or other third party material in this book are included in the work’s Creative
Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if such material is not
included in the work’s Creative Commons license and the respective action is not permitted
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

by statutory regulation, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to
duplicate, adapt or reproduce the material.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are
exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information
in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the
publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to
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Printed on acid-free paper

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I commend this volume to you wholeheartedly. This volume on

Pentecostalism in the Nordic region is full of intriguing multidisciplinary
studies that have relevance not only for this region, but for the study of
Pentecostalism elsewhere. Despite the difficulties of definition mentioned
by several authors in this collection, I have always been fascinated by how
what we may term “Pentecostal and Charismatic” movements often present
surprises. That Scandinavia and Finland, with their relatively low popula-
tions, became the founding region for European Pentecostalism as a
whole, is one of those surprises. Relative to its position in the rest of western
Europe, Pentecostalism became a significant movement within Nordic
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Christianity within a short period of time and was probably as well estab-
lished there as anywhere else in the world. Undoubtedly, the towering fig-
ures in this remarkable story were those of Thomas Ball Barratt of Oslo and
Lewi Pethrus of Stockholm. Both these early leaders were to have enor-
mous international significance in the development and expansion of
Pentecostalism. They were not the first or the only significant figures, as
papers in this book show. But it was from Norway and Sweden that
Pentecostalism spread to the other Nordic countries, and also to Britain,
Germany, Switzerland, and Russia.
Pentecostalism was from its beginnings fundamentally a missionary
movement. The Spirit had told them to “go.” From the earliest years
before the First World War, Nordic missionaries went out not only to
other European countries, but also much further to Brazil, Argentina,
Mexico, and to Southern and Eastern Africa, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), India,
and China. The largest “classical” Pentecostal denomination in the world,

the Assembleias de Deus in Brazil, was started by two Swedish migrants to

the United States, Gunnar Vingren and Daniel Berg. The enormous
Pentecostal denominations in present-day Ethiopia owe their origins to
Finnish and Swedish missionaries (Haustein 2010). We must also not
overlook the significant role also played by Danish missionaries, whose
impact was far greater abroad than it was at home (Christensen 2017). To
say that Scandinavia was one of the epicenters of global Pentecostalism is
no exaggeration. If we understand Pentecostalism as being essentially a
missionary and evangelistic movement (Anderson 2007), we will also
understand the outward thrust by Nordic missionaries, and particularly
women, amply illustrated in the chapter in this volume by Mikaelsson.
Pentecostalism was relatively weak compared to the dominant Lutheran
state churches in Nordic countries, but the Nordic impact on the rapid
internationalization of Pentecostalism far outweighed its small numbers at
home. This was especially the case in Denmark, where the growth of
Pentecostalism was relatively small, aggravated by internal schisms early on
in its history, as the recent history by Nikolaj Christensen (2017) shows.
Because there is no article on Denmark in this volume, I will give some
attention to the related events there. Although contemporary Danish
Pentecostalism is extremely small, this does not mean that nothing signifi-
cant has happened there. Christensen reveals that an important factor for
the lack of Pentecostal growth in Denmark (unlike other Nordic coun-
tries) was the absence of active religious minority groups. The state church
monopoly in Denmark was still virtually intact, and though the earliest
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Pentecostals were largely members of the state church, even this was per-
ceived as a threat by traditionalists and especially by Evangelical and
Holiness factions. Denominational organization also made the Swedish,
Norwegian, and Finnish Pentecostals more robust, whereas early Danish
Pentecostals tended to pursue obscure doctrines like universalism and the
ineffective restorationism of the Welsh-led Apostolic Church.
I have long advocated a “multiple origins” theory of Pentecostalism in
contrast to the many attempts at making this a movement whose primary
genesis comes from the United States. At the same time I have avoided
suggesting that the American forms springing from Los Angeles and other
centers were not influential, as indeed they were in many places. There are
at least three considerations that the present volume illustrates. Firstly,
there was much continuity with Evangelical, Holiness and healing revival-
ist movements that preceded early Pentecostalism in the nineteenth cen-
tury. Stenvold’s chapter on Norway makes this clear. The links with

American Methodism also had great significance in the beginnings of

Pentecostalism in India, Chile, and West Africa, among others.
Pentecostalism did not suddenly appear from heaven, as some would have
us believe. Even speaking in tongues, one of the most divisive aspects of
the early movement, did not suddenly appear at the beginning of the cen-
tury. Tongues speaking has been recorded throughout the history of
Christianity among various groups and revival movements. In Finland, the
Laestadian movement (briefly mentioned in the chapter by Mantsinen) is
an example of this. Furthermore, in Europe at least, many of the early
Pentecostals remained in their church denominations until forced to leave.
In some cases, they never did leave the old churches.
Secondly, there was no one place of origin, despite the fairly widespread
claims that it all began at Azusa Street in downtown Los Angeles in 1906.
It is true, as these chapters show, that Nordic Pentecostalism was at first
influenced by events in the United States, but that was a transitory period.
Contemporary Charismatic Christianity in Nordic countries (as through-
out the world) is the product of a long process of development with prec-
edents going back to a much earlier time. Its history was in continuity
with the revivalist movements out of which it emerged. Azusa Street was
indeed an important centre for the early internationalizing of the move-
ment, but there were other significant networks and centres of influence
worldwide. Perhaps the most significant in Europe was that initiated by
Methodist pastor T.B. Barratt in Oslo. In Barratt’s mission, the founding
father of Pentecostalism in Britain, Anglican vicar Alexander Boddy, had
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

his first experience of Pentecostalism. Boddy never left the Church of

England. Of course, there are many new examples of centres that have
appeared over the past century in many places worldwide. One of the
more recent was that of Ulf Ekman in Uppsala. Pentecostalism as we know
it today has had many beginnings, which are sometimes connected, but
sometimes isolated. It was in a process of formation for at least its first two
decades and arguably, it has never stopped being in a process of formation
and reinvention.
Thirdly, there have been many iterations or waves of Pentecostalism
throughout the past century. Even the threefold classification of
Hollenweger and others into “Pentecostal”, “Charismatic,” and
“Neocharismatic” can no longer be applied without countless exceptions
and additions. It is as incorrect to speak of three “Waves” of Pentecostalism
in North America as it is anywhere else in the world. Besides the threefold
typology of classical Pentecostalism, the Charismatic movement, and the

so-called “Third Wave,” there were other significant movements in North

America that do not easily fit into this schema like the “Latter Rain” move-
ment beginning in the late 1940s and the “Jesus People,” from the late
1960s. All of these movements impacted on events in Europe, and vice
versa. One could also speak of the “Word of Faith” movement that domi-
nates several global megachurches today, based on the doctrine of the late
Kenneth Hagin, Jr. in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The most prominent Nordic cen-
ter was of course the Livets Ord in Uppsala under the enigmatic Ulf
Ekman, with significant influence in Eastern Europe and Russia. Much
more could be written about this but perhaps that has already been done
(Coleman 2000). As a side issue, it would be interesting to look at Ekman’s
more recent conversion to Roman Catholicism and what the nature of his
journey from Lutheran priest to “Word of Faith” leader to Roman Catholic
adherent was. Perhaps it was not as great a leap as some have thought.
We cannot discuss Pentecostalism in Europe without mentioning the
enormous impact of the so-called “migrant” or transnational churches,
many of which have now become national churches in their own right in
the countries where they have been planted. Migration has brought new
life to Pentecostalism in the Western world, although it might be argued
that this is a different kind of Pentecostalism. After the 1980s, the
“Pentecostalization” of older churches outside the Western world, espe-
cially in Africa and Asia, accelerated as these churches adjusted to the rapid
growth of new churches in their midst. They began to adopt the latters’
methods, particularly appealing to the young and urbanized. Simulta
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

neously, the new form of Pentecostalism exhibited a fierce independence

that eschewed denominations and preferred associations in loose
“fellowships.” The Pentecostal megachurches operate in cities like Lagos,
Rio de Janeiro, Seoul, and Singapore, but also in unexpected European
places like Kyiv (a Ukrainian church with a Nigerian leader), Budapest,
and of course, Uppsala. Each of these European cases is (or was at one
stage) the largest congregation in its respective country; and in London
the largest congregation is predominantly Nigerian. The megachurches
form networks of similar churches across the world, and these transna-
tional associations are not only North–South, but also South–South and
East–South. In most cases, the transnational churches in the North have
been unable to break free from their ethnic minority character. However,
the migrant churches have not inflated the numbers of Pentecostals in
Nordic countries as much as they have in other Western countries like
Britain, France, or Germany or, indeed, in the United States itself.

Within a century of their commencement, Pentecostal and Charismatic

forms of Christianity now exist in most countries and have affected all
forms of Christianity in our contemporary world—however we regard or
manipulate the statistics on affiliation. Pentecostalism has certainly
changed world Christianity in the twenty-first century, and perhaps reli-
gion as a whole. Whatever our opinion or personal experience of
Pentecostalism might be, these are movements of such vitality that
Christianity has been irrevocably changed. The mushrooming growth of
Pentecostal and Charismatic churches and the “Pentecostalization” of
older, both Protestant and Catholic churches––especially in the majority
world––is a fact of our time. With all its failings and schisms, these com-
plex movements continue to expand and increase across the globe. The
growth may well have halted or even decreased in northern Europe, but
the enormous growth of Charismatic Christianity in Asia, Africa, and Latin
America also means that it may continue to expand and influence all types
of Christianity there. In creative ways Pentecostalism has promoted a glo-
balized Christianity that has not lost touch with its local context. It is able
to preserve both global and local characteristics, making it possible to
speak at the same time of “Pentecostalism” and “Pentecostalisms.” So at
least for the foreseeable future, the continued vitality of Charismatic
Christianity is probably assured. Where it will go in Nordic countries is
anyone’s guess. This volume gives us a glimpse into that possible future,
but also reminds us that Pentecostalism in Europe itself is really insignifi-
cant in comparison with other forms of Christianity that have been here
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

much longer.

University of Birmingham Allan H. Anderson

References
Anderson, Allan H. Spreading Fires: The Missionary Nature of Early Pentecostalism.
London/Marynoll/New York: SCM & Orbis, 2007.
Christensen, Nikolaj. 2017. Flickering Flames: The Early Pentecostal Movement in
Denmark, 1907–1924. Ph.D. thesis. University of Birmingham.
Coleman, Simon. The Globalisation of Charismatic Christianity. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 2000.
Haustein, Jörg. Writing Religious History: The Historiography of Ethiopian
Pentecostalism. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2011.

No book is created in a vacuum, and the present volume is the product of

cooperation with and support from colleagues, friends, and institutions.
Most essential among these have been our contributing authors, whom we
would like to thank for their contributions and their patience during the
editing process. We are especially grateful to James R. Lewis for introducing
us to one another and setting us upon this path in the first place, and for his
everlasting encouragement and continuous support. We would also like to
extend special thanks to Allan H. Anderson for generously agreeing to write
the Foreword. Finally, we would like to thank the University of Bergen for
funding Open Access for this volume, making it available to a wider audi-
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

ence than otherwise would have been possible. On a more personal note,
we thank our supportive friends, partners, and family members.

1 Introduction 1
Jessica Moberg and Jane Skjoldli

Part 1 Historical Perspectives on the Early Pentecostal

Movement 23

2 Paving the Way for Pentecostalism: A Historical

Exploration of Post-Reformation Revivals in Norway 25
Anne Stensvold
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

3 The Norwegian Pentecostal Foreign Mission: A Survey

of Mission History with an Emphasis on Organization,
Expansion, and Gender 49
Lisbeth Mikaelsson

Part 2 Internal Dynamics 79

4 In the Wake of God’s Fire: Transforming Charisma

and Charismata in the Reconstruction of a Local Church 81
Jane Skjoldli

xiii

5 The Finnish Pentecostal Movement: An Analysis

of Internal Struggle as a Process of Habitual Division 109
Teemu T. Mantsinen

6 Knutby Filadelfia: A Schismatic New Religious

Movement Within the Pentecostal Context 137
Liselotte Frisk

Part 3 Novelties and Contemporary Innovation 159

7 Faith Healing Revisited: A Charismatic Christian

Intervention to the Therapy Culture in Finland 161
Tuija Hovi

8 Sharing and Holy Hugs: The Birth and Development

of Intimization in Charismatic Stockholm 187
Jessica Moberg

9 Televangelism in Sweden—Now? Is Channel 10 in

Älmhult in Fact a Telechurch? 213
Jan-Åke Alvarsson

10 Postscript: Embers from a Global Fire 239

Jessica Moberg and Jane Skjoldli

Index 243

Jan-Åke Alvarsson is a professor of cultural anthropology at Uppsala

University, and the Director of the Institute for Pentecostal Studies in
Uppsala. Among his publications are several works on Pentecostalism
among indigenous peoples in Bolivia, Pentecostal missionaries in Latin
America, as well as the American origin, history, and developments of the
Swedish Pentecostal Movement.
Liselotte Frisk is a professor of religious studies at Dalarna University
and Vice-chairman of the Association for Research and Information on
Alternative Spirituality (FINYAR), Sweden. Frisk has published exten-
sively on New Age and new religious movements in Sweden. Recently
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

(2008–2011), Frisk has, together with Peter Åkerbäck, mapped new spiri-
tualities in Dalarna. She presently studies children in minority religions.
Between 2010 and 2013, Frisk was coeditor of the International Journal
for the Study of New Religions and the Director of the International Society
for the Study of New Religions. She is currently coeditor of Aura.
Tuija Hovi is a senior lecturer and an adjunct professor in comparative
religion at the University of Turku, Finland. She teaches ethnography and
methodology in the study of religions, as well as psychology of religion.
Hovi’s research interests include the diversity of Charismatic and
Pentecostal Christianity, social psychology of religious experience, identity
construction, vernacular religion, and narrative inquiry. She is a member
of the steering group of the recently founded Centre for the Study of
Christian Cultures.

Teemu T. Mantsinen is a researcher and anthropologist of religion at the

University of Turku, Finland. His main research interests include
Pentecostalism and apostasy. His PhD dissertation (2014) explored the
relationship between Pentecostal religiosity and social class in Finland,
based upon ethnographic fieldwork.
Lisbeth Mikaelsson is professor emerita of the study of religion at the
University of Bergen, Norway. Having published in both English and
Norwegian, her research focuses on Norwegian Christian mission, with
special emphasis on mission literature and gender, New Religious
Movements, Lutheran church religion, and contemporary pilgrimage in
Norway.
Jessica Moberg is a senior lecturer in religious studies at the University
of Gothenburg, Sweden. Her main research interests include contempo-
rary Neo-Pentecostalism and various forms of new spiritualties. Moberg
has taken interest in issues of religious change, and in the lived religiosity,
emphasizing ritual, narrative, and material dimensions. Moberg is on the
editorial board of the Alternative Spirituality and Religion Review.
Jane Skjoldli is a PhD candidate in the study of religion at the University
of Bergen, Norway. Her research interests focus on contemporary
Christianity, primarily Catholicism and Charismatic Christianity. Particular
aspects of interest are World Youth Day, public events, digital game stud-
ies, ritual studies, pilgrimage studies, Weberian charisma, and evolutionary
approaches to religion.
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Anne Stensvold is a professor of history of religion at the University of

Oslo. Her academic interests mainly center on modern and contemporary
Christianity. She has published on a wide range of topics including Catholic
piety, religion and television, and contemporary religious developments in
Norway. Lately, she has worked on interrelations between religion and
politics.

Introduction

Jessica Moberg and Jane Skjoldli

Somewhere in Finland shoppers at a local mall saturated by sale offers and

lounge music are approached by a group of amiable strangers. The strang-
ers offer them healing and therapeutic methods with which to confront
their everyday problems. Solutions are offered through intercessory
prayer. Many of the intercessors are women involved in Charismatic
churches. Their aim is to carry out missionary work but, as they engage
with potential converts, they are careful to avoid open proselytization and
speaking in tongues during the prayer sessions. Both are strictly forbidden.
Elsewhere, in Sweden, an elderly Pentecostal sits down in front of her
television and tunes in to Channel 10 in order to enjoy “old-fashioned”
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Pentecostal songs and sermons, many of which are but a memory in con-
temporary Pentecostal congregations. Watching the church service on TV,
a quite recent phenomenon in the country, she feels at ease, reminded of
her childhood as a young Pentecostal. Turning to Bergen in Norway,
members of the country’s formerly largest independent church, previously
part of the Faith Movement, are taking on the herculean task of recreating

J. Moberg (*)
University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
J. Skjoldli
University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway

© The Author(s) 2018 1

J. Moberg, J. Skjoldli (eds.), Charismatic Christianity in Finland,
Norway, and Sweden, Palgrave Studies in New Religions and Alternative
Spiritualities, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69614-0_1

their organization after a collapse a few years back, when over half of the
members dropped out following the ousting of their founder and leader.
These three snapshots provide a small glimpse into the diversity of
contemporary Charismatic Christianity in Nordic countries. The region
is home to “classic” Pentecostal organizations and Faith Movement
churches, as well as Charismatic immigrant groups, Charismatic Luther
ans, newer networks like Hillsong Church, and various offshoots. A hun-
dred years ago, all three scenarios would have been unthinkable, and
not just because of the technological advances that had not yet been made
then. At that time, early pioneers had recently introduced Norway,
Sweden, and Denmark to the Pentecostal Movement, bringing influences
from the Azusa Street revival. The first preachers traveled widely, spoke in
tongues, and called people to “turn to Christ” before the end (see Anderson
2014, 93–94).
If we permit ourselves to indulge in a thought experiment whereby the
first Nordic Pentecostals travel to the present day, we can imagine they
would probably be surprised—perhaps even shocked. Vast changes have
occurred in culture, politics, technology, and administration. Additionally,
increased religious and ethnic pluralization has occurred within and with-
out the Pentecostal Movement. How might they have perceived develop-
ments within the Charismatic traditions? Would they marvel at the many
new orientations, ethnic minority churches, and new forms of organiza-
tional networks? Would they condemn alterations to traditions for which
they helped lay the foundation? So much has transpired in the span of a
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

mere century. Can we even claim to be speaking of the same tradition?

Such questions beg reflection, not only when we consider our hypotheti-
cal time travelers; they also bear implications on the academic level.

Definitions and Terminology

Like all terms and categories, those native to Pentecostal studies come
with their own sets of problems. As this field of study has developed, it has
attracted the attention of sociologists, psychologists, anthropologists,
theologians, historians, and scholars of religion. Today’s researchers strug-
gle to consolidate disparities that arise from the terms’ usage spanning the
last 100 years, and to encapsulate transformations that create distance to
Pentecostalism’s early heritage. Another problem is how interchangeabil-
ity between the terms “Pentecostal” and “Charismatic” is frequently taken
for granted. On the one hand, this problem reflects the emergence of

interdisciplinarity in Pentecostal studies. On the other, it conceals a lack of

consensus regarding problems of definition and delineation of the objects
of study.
In its nascency, Pentecostal studies focused on early movements, leading
to challenges in reconciling the categories and concepts that were created
early on with the descriptions and analyses of later developments. In response
to these complications, old ways of categorizing and naming different phe-
nomena have been revisited. Although contemporary scholars are careful in
emphasizing local variation, there is still some consensus regarding
Pentecostal-Charismatic Christianity as a distinct category, set apart by the
centrality of the gifts of the Spirit (see Droogers 2010). Some scholars have
defended this position by focusing on similarities in theology, common
roots, or practice. Norwegian theologian Nils Bloch-Hoell, who studied the
Pentecostal Movement of the early twentieth century, focused on the doc-
trine of baptism in the Holy Spirit as distinct from conversion, manifested in
the speaking of tongues (1964, 2). Another way of justifying Pentecostal-
Charismatic Christianity as a specific category has been by stressing the
common historical roots. Theologian Walter J. Hollenweger’s work has
been particularly significant to the field’s development in this respect (see
Hollenweger 2005). Hollenweger’s account traced the movement’s origins
to the Azusa Street revival, and then followed its spread to various corners
of the world, its influence on existing churches, and transformation into a
much wider Charismatic movement. This view is still prevalent (Anderson
2014; Cox 2001; Westerlund 2009).
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Attempts have been made to complicate and deconstruct “Pentecostalism”

and “Charismatic Christianity” as categories. Previously, the view that speak-
ing in tongues amounts to “evidence” of baptism in the Spirit was seen as
being a universal trait among Pentecostal-Charismatic Christians. Important
criticism has been leveled against this notion, revealing that the view was
shared only by a small number of early American Pentecostals (van der Laan
2010). More recently, critique has gravitated towards two topics: The first
regards phenomenological approaches that focus on common features in
order to justify the construction of Pentecostal-Charismatic Christianity as a
unique category. The second concerns the analytical value of the categories
thus constructed (cf. Bergunder 2010). Other critiques reflect the globaliza-
tion of Pentecostal-Charismatic Christianity, growing scholarly interest in
such groups, particularly in the developing world and the postcolonial turn
(Anderson 2005, 2014; Jenkins 2006, 2007; Lindhardt 2014; Martin 1990,
Meyer 2010). Furthermore, global studies scholars have called into question

the “common origins” hypothesis, highlighting its Americentrism. Allan

H. Anderson has pointed out that this form of Christianity did not originate
at Azusa Street, but emerged in various places in the world at about the same
time, emphasizing the importance of early movements in India, Korea, and
Chile. These findings were formulated in the now famous “multiple begin-
nings thesis” (Anderson 2005, 2014).
Others have gone even further. Michael Bergunder and André
Droogers, among others, consider “Pentecostal” and “Charismatic” to be
constructs of scholarly discourse (Bergunder 2010; Droogers 2010).
Taking such perspectives into consideration, it has become a vital task to
inquire into what alternative perspectives the category Pentecostal-
Charismatic Christianity obscures; it conceal diachronic developments and
synchronic connections to other Christian and non-Christian religions. As
pointed out by Bergunder, it also clouds Pentecostalism-Charismatic
Christianity’s roots in previous Protestant revivals, as well as its immediate
heritage in the twentieth century’s broader revivalist milieu (2010, 60–64).
In a similar vein, Donald E. Miller suggests that what are often described
as “Neo-Charismatic movements” may be seen as a kind of second
Reformation, with roots stretching back to the sixteenth century (1997,
11). As illustrated by George Chryssides (2000, 66), Mary Jo Neitz
(2012), and Linda Woodhead and Paul Heelas (2000), there are also strik-
ing similarities between Pentecostal-Charismatic movements and non-
Christian new spiritualities.
Attempts have also been made to defend the umbrella category
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“Pentecostal-Charismatic Christianity,” and to outline suggestions for

how this form of Christianity may be studied. Anderson, drawing on
Ludwig Wittgenstein, notes that Pentecostal-Charismatic movements
share traits of “family resemblance” in terms of “character, theology and
ethos” (Anderson 2010, 15). Another option, hinted at by Droogers, is to
think of it as a Weberian ideal type (2010). Other more recent suggestions
involve network analysis (Bergunder 2010, 52–56).
We generally agree with the critique presented above, and concur with
Droogers regarding classifications in that they are scholarly constructs that
inevitably entail simplification and universalization of local perspectives.
However, we also share his opinion that they are necessary and useful (2008;
cf. Bergunder 2010). As such, we treat Pentecostal-Charismatic Christianity
as an umbrella category for the purpose of this anthology. There are two main
reasons for this: Firstly, as an established category, it grounds the anthology in
a global field of research, thus enabling us to communicate with other scholars

of Pentecostal studies. Secondly, it offers us a way of pinpointing certain

historical and contemporary processes that have been important influences on
the religious Nordic scene in the last 100 years. Furthermore, it invites com-
parison with similar movements on the global level.
Our approach is inspired by Anderson’s “family resemblance.” The fea-
tures that we would consider key to our understanding of this category are:
emphasis on connecting with the Holy Spirit; the centrality of healing and
charismata; the prominence of individual experiences; and bodily involve-
ment in ritual participation (cf. Lindhardt 2011). That said, we aim to avoid
the pitfalls of essentialization by presenting case studies from different his-
torical periods and settings, all of which situate and exemplify “Pentecostal-
Charismatic Christianity” in broader religious landscapes. We also hope to
inspire, but also demonstrate, continuing elaboration of the nuances
denoted by Pentecostal-Charismatic religiosity as a distinct category.
One of the pleasures of academia involves the recognition that new
problems arise whenever a solution to an existing problem is reached.
Applying this category includes the classification and labeling of different
strands and movements, and their terminological disentanglement.
Hollenweger distinguished between the early “classic” Pentecostals, the
“Charismatic Movement” within mainline churches, and indigenous
Pentecostalism in the developing world (2005). His approach has been
rethought and new categories developed. A presently strong threefold
model involves distinguishing between “classic” Pentecostalism, the
Charismatic Movement, and Neo-Pentecostalism, which emerged in the
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postwar period. The latter is characterized by emphasis on well-being here

and now, worship, global church networks, and so on (see Anderson 2010,
19–20; cf. Hunt 2010, 184). Of course, this “triad” has also been scruti-
nized; the label Neo-Charismatic in particular has been criticized for being
a “leftover category,” lumping together highly diverse movements with
different roots and orientations (van der Laan 2010, 204). Moreover, this
approach may be a blunt tool when researching contemporary groups,
since their origins as Pentecostal or Neo-Pentecostal may say little about
their current orientation. As illustrated in Teemu T. Mantsinen’s chapter,
Pentecostal organizations may transform in Neo-Pentecostal directions,
and Pentecostal and Neo-Charismatic features coexist in the same denom-
ination or even congregation.
Except for the classification dilemma (“what goes where”) semantic
problems arise. One kind of scholarly cop-out is illustrated by the creation
of neologisms by adding the “neo” prefix to terms in order to signal new

developments. While this reflects awareness of religious movements’ inher-

ent dynamism, it also causes terminological issues for future labeling, as
well as for precision in describing developing movements; what counts as
“neo” changes continuously. Emic labels and terminologies may also cause
confusion. In the Nordic countries, the Pentecostal Movement (in Finnish
“Helluntaiherätys,” in Norwegian “Pinsebevegelsen,” and in Swedish
“Pingströrelsen”), the term or terms that researchers use for referring to
early revivals, is homonymous to the emic names of denomination-like
structures coming out of these movements. If we apply the term “Pentecostal
Movement,” we not only risk conflating the emerging organizational out-
come with the wider transdenominational revival, but also concealing the
many other Charismatic groups and influences on alternate Christian
denominations. Noting the particular emic Nordic terminology, we have
chosen to use the term “Charismatic Christianity” as an umbrella term in
the introduction. The term “Pentecostal” refers exclusively to organization
structures that have roots in the revival of the early twentieth century. We
further find the term “Charismatic Movement” useful for describing
Charismatic expressions taking place in established churches, including
Nordic state churches, older Baptist churches, and independent churches.
“Neo-Charismatic” is used to refer to a range of traditions emerging in the
post-World War II period and onwards. It includes materially oriented
movements like the Faith movement, and more socially inclined and low-
key movements like the Vineyard Movement. Current expressions involve
a spectrum of different organizations that focus on wellbeing in the here
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and now, emotional healing, adoption and sacralization of popular music,

and new media, and that tend to favor network structures to well-defined
denominations. However, we are well aware that not all terms map per-
fectly on to all case studies included in the anthology. As such, we have let
the authors make their own definitions in the respective chapters.

The Nordic Backdrop

The Nordic countries (Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland)
have shared experiences in that they are all located in the northern hemi-
sphere, and in relatively scarcely populated areas. They also largely share a
common religious, cultural, and lingual heritage. The exception to the latter
is Finland, whose native language (Finland is bilingual Finnish–Swedish)
strongly differs from those of the other Nordic countries. Moreover, their
individual histories are intricately intertwined with each other. For example,

Sweden and Finland formed a union up until 1809, after which Finland
came under Russian rule. Norway, in turn, has been in union with both
Denmark and Sweden, and Iceland a part of Denmark. Norway gained its
independence in 1905 and Iceland in 1944. The histories of Christianity in
the Nordic countries have also taken similar trajectories, starting with
Catholic Christianization, the Protestant Reformation in the sixteenth cen-
tury, and close cooperation between monarchs and Lutheran state churches.
As a result of the Russian influence, Finland stands out with its two national
churches: one Lutheran and one Orthodox (see Alvarsson 2011, 19). While
the Reformation was implemented top-down, each of the countries have a
history of Protestant grassroots revivals, like the Pietist movements in the
late seventeenth century onwards. These popular movements arose and
took form within the state churches. In the nineteenth century, several pro-
cesses impacted the religious scene. Industrialization, urbanization, large-
scale migration, and the rise of popular movements changed the religious
topography. Among these, the revival movements led to the formation of a
number of different Free Church (i.e., state-independent) denominations,
mainly Baptist-, Methodist-, and Holiness-influenced ones. Yet, the state
churches that set the agenda for religious life in the public domain did not
welcome competition. Social stigmatization and legislation prevented larger
religious assemblies from outside the state churches from gathering together.
This led many members of emerging Baptist denominations to migrate to
the United States in pursuit of religious freedom and better economic pros-
pects (see also Martin 2002, 14–15). All these historical developments set
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the stage for and shaped Charismatic Christian presence in the region which,
in turn, fueled religious pluralization and globalization. While the earlier
revivals paved the way, the dominance of the state churches along with
Nordic modern developments seem to have made the region less fertile for
mission (cf. Hunt 2010, 190–191).

The Beginnings
Charismatic Christianity in the Nordic countries has relied upon and fur-
thered global connections since the outset (Anderson 2014, 93–99;
Bundy 2009, 1–3). In fact, the Pentecostal revival was introduced to
Norway and Sweden only a few months after the Azusa Street revival
caught on (Hunt 2010, 190). It is impossible to understand its early intro-
duction without considering the increased contacts with the United States,
and particularly the recently established migrant networks, between

Nordic countries and the United States (cf. Bloch-Hoell 1964, 65; Holm
1970, 16–17). First- and second-generation Nordic migrants, many of
whom had Free Church backgrounds, obtained new influences “over
there” that they recounted in letters to their families and friends in their
countries of origin. Besides, a substantial number returned as missionaries.
As pointed out by cultural anthropologist Jan-Åke Alvarsson, some of the
first Swedish Pentecostals, like Andrew Johnson (an anglicization of
Anders Johansson) and Emma Östberg, were active in William J. Seymour’s
prayer group (2011, 20, 2014, 23–32). Visiting New York, they also
encountered another émigré whose influence would be momentous in the
forming of Nordic Pentecostalism: Thomas Ball Barratt (1862–1940). A
few years after returning to Norway, the latter established the independent
Filadelfia Congregation in Kristiania (now Oslo). Barratt was closely con-
nected to other Pentecostal leaders to-be. For instance, he was baptized by
Swedish Pentecostal icon and colossus Lewi Pethrus (1884–1974). The
ministry of Barratt and his followers was of huge importance in spreading
Pentecostalism in Norway and in other Nordic countries (Anderson 2014,
76, 93–94, 84–88; Fell 1999, 288–291).
The new revival was characterized by strong emphasis on personal con-
version, ecstatic practices, baptism in the Holy Spirit, and the belief that
the return of Jesus was imminent. The practitioners were called “Friends
of Pentecost.” The movement mainly took root in the Free Church reviv-
alist scene. On the organizational level, the enthusiasts belonged to differ-
ent denominations and assemblies, and gathered around the gospel of
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rebirth in the Holy Spirit (cf. Nilsen 1984, 31). The early converts mainly
fit the pattern that has been detected in international studies; a major part
of them were women from the lower socioeconomic strata, for which the
movement served as a vehicle for upward social mobility (Alvarsson 2011;
Mantsinen 2014). In contrast to other parts of the world, where
Pentecostalism became a chiefly urban phenomenon, Nordic Pentecostalism
also developed a strong rural and small-town base (see Alvarsson 2007).
Although the new revival grew rapidly during the first decades,
Pentecostalism did not become a separate movement until around 1910.
At this time, tensions and conflicts within the older denominations in
which it had taken root led to divisions. Both Barratt and Pethrus were
excluded from their Methodist and Baptist denominations, leading the
enthusiasts to form independent Pentecostal networks (Alvarsson 2011,
25, 37; Bloch-Hoell 1964, 68–71). Consequently, Pinsebevegelsen
(Norway), Pingströrelsen (Sweden), and Helluntaiherätys (Finland) were

formed. These movements were comparably loosely organized, avoided

bureaucratization and centralization, and emphasized congregational
independence (Alvarsson 2011, 37; Bloch-Hoell 1964, 71). However,
over the years, they would become increasingly institutionalized and some
took the form of registered denominations.

Post-World War II Nordic Contexts

Leaping forward to the postwar period, the Nordic countries underwent
significant changes that affected and shaped the Pentecostal movements.
Coming out of the war with different experiences, the countries began to
lay the foundation for a particular brand of Nordic postwar modernity,
based upon social democratic ideas and ideals. This model—a third way
between capitalism and communism—was characterized by its emphasis
on strong welfare states, including extensive state monopolies. The state
systems were to provide healthcare and education, by means of progressive
taxation, a system which would diminish gaps between rich and poor. The
postwar period also saw the weakening of the Lutheran state churches,
visible in legislation that ensured citizens increased religious freedom. In
parallel, organized Christianity lost ground in society and the wider cul-
ture, and both state churches and many Free Church denominations lost
members (Davie 2002, 5–8; cf. Stark et al. 2005).
Unlike many other Free Churches, the Pentecostal movements fared
very well during World War II (see Bloch-Hoell 1964, 91). Alvarsson,
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referring to Bloch-Hoell, claims that Sweden in the 1950s was the country
with the highest number of Pentecostals in the world. According to Bloch-
Hoell (1964, 91), they numbered around 92,000. Internal dynamics had
also contributed to changes within the movements. Correlated to other
factors, the increased numbers of practitioners born and socialized into
the movements turned Nordic Pentecostalism in a more institutionalized
and societally engaged direction. This, in turn, fueled various responses
and internal schisms. The churches also attained new visibility in the pub-
lic sphere, including in political debate. In 1945, the Pentecostal newspa-
per Dagen (“The Day”) was created in Sweden, giving voice to the
movement and confronting secularization. Another such attempt was the
founding of the Christian Democratic Party (Kristen demokratisk sam-
ling) in 1964 (Alvarsson 2011, 29–34). Other Charismatic movements
were also established, some of which were integrated into the Pentecostal
congregations. This was the case with the Jesus Movement, inspired by

hippie Christians in California, which attracted many young Pentecostals.

However, not everyone was happy with the current course. In the late
1950s and early 1960s, the Maranata Movement, influenced by William
Branham and Oral Roberts, took the form of a protest movement in
Norway and Sweden. Pentecostal pastors Aage Samuelsen and Arne Imsen
joined forces with Swedish collaborators, criticizing both institutionaliza-
tion and increased societal involvement, and calling on Pentecostals to
return to their more expressive and less “worldly” roots. The result was a
splinter movement. The 1960s also saw internal schism in Finland, as the
Free Pentecostal Movement (Soumen vapaa Helluntaiherätys) broke away
(Alvarsson 2011, 29–33).
As in many parts of the world, Nordic Pentecostalism continued to
grow until the 1970s, particularly in Finland, Norway, and Sweden.
Thereafter, the Nordic movements began to lag behind (Alvarsson 2011,
38). The presence of the full-fledged welfare states likely had a negative
impact in this regard (see Zuckerman 2009). As many scholars have empha-
sized, Charismatic Christianity has developed into the form of mass move-
ments in poorer, rapidly modernizing countries, while remaining marginal
in richer societies (see also Marshall 2009). Philip Jenkins, for one, has
called this form of Christianity “the most successful social movement of the
twentieth century” (Jenkins 2007, 9). If Pentecostalism’s success lies in its
ability to lift people from poverty, integrate them into communities, and
encourage civil discipline, Pentecostal organizations obviously met compe-
tition from welfare states, which took care of poverty, and offered free
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education and cheap healthcare from the cradle to the grave. Also, in the
postwar period, young people in the Nordic region gained other religious
options, such as various non-Christian new religions (Frisk 1998, 58, cf.
Frisk and Åkerbäck 2013; Gilhus and Mikaelsson 2005).
Pentecostalism’s rapid growth came to a halt in the 1970s. The same
decade witnessed the emergence of Charismatic movements within
Protestant and Catholic communities (cf. Csordas 1997; McGuire 1983).
In Norway and Sweden, Charismatic Lutherans organized themselves in
the Oasis Movement—a network above the parish level. In Norway, the
movement was founded in 1977 and in Sweden in 1984 (cf. Alvarsson
2011, 33–34). Today, the network exists in Denmark, Sweden, Finland,
and Norway (Svalfors 2012, 158). In the churches of Denmark and
Sweden, Alpha courses spread from the Free Churches and became impor-
tant for introducing Charismatic features since the 1990s (Svalfors 2012,
158–159, Thomsen 2012, 120–134).

Late Modern Developments

In the last three decades, the Nordic countries have taken new paths in
terms of economy and politics, and changed culturally and religiously. As
a consequence of increased global mobility, ethnic and religious pluraliza-
tion has expanded. Another prominent tendency in the late twentieth cen-
tury was the therapeutization of popular and religious culture, as well as
their intersections (Hornborg 2012; Kivivuori 1991, 1996; Moberg
2015). Although the extent of this has varied, the once strong welfare
states have been weakened, with privatizations of previous monopolies,
and no longer play the same role as provider of welfare and public services.
In the meantime, church attendance and membership rates have contin-
ued to drop in many churches—the Lutheran state churches as well as
many Free Churches. The state and church were officially (semi-)sepa-
rated in Sweden (2000) and in Norway (2012). Although this has often
been interpreted as evidence of secularization, such views have been called
into question by several Nordic scholars of religion who emphasize that
other forms of faith are growing. Migrants from different parts of the
world have brought with them their own forms of organized religion
(e.g., Islam, and Catholic and Orthodox Christianity), and nonorganized
spirituality is on the rise. Lisbeth Mikaelsson and Ingvild S. Gilhus have
criticized images emerging from large-scale quantitative studies, such as
the Pew Research Center’s depiction of Scandinavia as one-dimensionally
“secularized,” calling attention to the prolific establishment of new reli-
gious movements and their strong influence (Gilhus and Mikaelsson 2005;
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Kraft et al. 2015). Similarly, a Finnish research group involving one of the
contributors to this volume suggests that Finland is better described as a
postsecular country, where alternative spiritualities, Charismatic Christian
traditions, and migrant religiosity are transforming the religious landscape
(Åbo Akademi University 2017). In fact, some scholars have gone so far as
to suggest that the rise of non-Christian spiritualities in the region is a
form of massive popular revival (Hammer 2010; Hornborg 2012).
Charismatic Christianity has also pluralized, changing in terms of prac-
tice, organization, and orientation, including a shift from national denomi-
nations to international networks. Several new forms of Neo-Charismatic
movement have been born. In the 1980s, the international prosperity-
oriented Faith Movement took root. This movement, which became
equally influential and controversial, was vital for bringing about change.
The result was both the emergence of new churches, and the morphing of

Pentecostal churches and congregations in the same direction. Word of

Life (Livets ord) in Uppsala in Sweden, led by Ulf Ekman, a former
Lutheran priest trained at Kenneth E. Hagin’s Rhema Bible Center in
Tulsa, Oklahoma, became the key center of the Nordic Faith Movement.
The Bible school at Uppsala became particularly important for furthering
the Faith Movement’s theology, its new worship music, and its styles of
preaching, all of which helped attract young people from all over the
Nordic region, especially from Norway. These students often founded sim-
ilar churches in their hometowns (Alvarsson 2011, 33–35; Coleman 2000).
The 1990s saw the establishment of several other Neo-Charismatic
groups, many of which were affiliated with global megachurches or mas-
sive networks (cf. Meyer 2010), such as the Vineyard Movement. Global
migration has also redrawn the Charismatic map of the region; migrants
from Latin America and western and eastern Africa have been particularly
important in this respect (Alvarsson 2011, 36; Malmström 2013). Since
the 2000s, the Charismatic field has become increasingly heterogenic as
new movements are continuing to be established. Several global churches
have both integrated local groups and planted new congregations;
Hillsong Church and Calvary Chapel are both examples of this. New gen-
erations of Charismatics are currently in the process of founding new com-
munities and cooperative networks where the boundaries between various
Charismatic traditions are often blurred (Hovi 2010, 41; Moberg 2013b).

Contemporary Numbers
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On the global stage, Charismatics dominate the Christian landscape,

together with Catholics. In the Nordic countries, however, the former
remains a small minority. Attempts have been made at estimating their
numbers. As a result of the diverging methods of counting and classifica-
tion used, diverse figures have been presented (cf. Anderson 2014, 92).
Stephen Hunt (2010, 190; cf. Anderson 2005, 92) suggests that less than
1 percent of the populations in Norway and Sweden respectively are classic
Pentecostals. Anderson (2014, 92), on the other hand, claims that Finland
and Norway stand out in a European-wide comparison in that they have
more than 4 percent, a number that includes different forms of Charismatics.
Alvarsson (2011, 38) estimates that there are 32,000 Pentecostals in
Norway, and 49,000 in Finland. In Sweden, the Pentecostal Movement
counted 84,700 members at the end of 2013 (Pingst—fria församlingar i
samverkan 2017). According to Alvarsson’s (2011, 38) assessment, the

number of Pentecostals and Neo-Charismatics is lower than 100,000 in

Sweden. Charismatic Christianity has never gained the same foothold in
Denmark, where it makes for an even more marginal phenomenon
(Anderson 2014, 96).1 Alvarsson (2011, 38) counts fewer than 4000
Pentecostals in Iceland and around 5000 in Denmark (see also Thomsen
2012, 122). There are, however, several difficulties with such estimations,
meaning that we should take them with a large pinch of salt. The first prob-
lem is that many scholars draw upon the membership statistics provided by
Charismatic organizations. The second problem is that Pentecostal denomi-
nations and old networks are far more organized, and it is therefore easier to
assess them than to trace Neo-Charismatic communities. Yet, reported fig-
ures for Pentecostals may also be inaccurate. For instance, people may
move and leave their congregations but remain listed. In Norway and
Sweden, congregations receive funding depending on their membership
rates, meaning that there are economic (and status) motives for not “del-
isting” them. For this reason, the overall figures may need to be lowered.
Still, there are many Neo-Charismatic groups that do not form part of
national denominations and do not keep track of their members. Some non-
organized groups fly under the radar entirely. Migrant groups in particular
seem to thrive, and then fade away from view. This means that the total
numbers of Charismatics must be increased. By and large, we have to rely
on estimates, particularly when discussing Neo-Pentecostalism. According
to Finnish scholar of religion Tuija Hovi (2010, 40), there are around 4000
members of Neo-Charismatic groups in Finland. Based on Alvarsson’s
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(2011, 38) estimation that the total number of Charismatics was lower
than 100,000 in Sweden, and the fact that the Pentecostal Movement
counts 84,000 of them, there would be at most 16,000 Neo-Charismatics.
Another problem is the binary “yes-or-no” approach which is often evi-
dent in general estimations, meaning that denominations/congregations
are understood as either Charismatic or non-Charismatic—Charismatics
are expected to appear solely in Charismatic denominations and churches.
This does not always reflect reality, and by following this principle, one
misses variations within denominations, as well as the levels of Charismatic
expression within them. Charismatics do exist in otherwise non-Charis-
matic denominations and churches, either because they were influenced by
the early Pentecostal revival or by later Neo-Charismatic ones. In Sweden,
such branches exist in many Free Church denominations. Moreover,
Sweden is home to the Charismatic denomination Interact—the result of
the fusion of three nineteenth-century Baptist denominations that were

pentecostalized in the early twentieth century but did not join the formal-
ized Pentecostal Movement. In 2013, Interact numbered 33,000 members
(cf. Moberg 2013a). Charismatics are also found within the Catholic and
Lutheran churches. Being listed as members of those churches, their
Charismatic involvement is not statistically visible (see Svalfors 2012).
Maria Thomsen (2012) claims that around 15,000 Danes are members of
Charismatically inclined congregations within the Evangelical Lutheran
Church (2012, 122). If this were the case, the number of Charismatics in
Denmark would be three times as high in the Lutheran church as in the
Pentecostal congregations. This could mean that the numbers of
Charismatics in Nordic countries are higher than commonly estimated.
On the contrary, many old Pentecostal congregations have more or less
ceased engaging in Charismatic practices. If one attends a service in one of
the largest Pentecostal congregations in Stockholm or Gothenburg, one
finds few if any indications that one is visiting a Charismatic organization.
This leads us to a more philosophical question: When is the level of
Charismatic expression so low that a group no longer qualifies as Charismatic?
These problems demonstrate the need to heed the nuances that complicate
issues of membership and Charismatic identity; there are spectrums of
involvement with variable features of identification. Perhaps discouragingly,
it is extremely difficult to pinpoint numbers of Charismatics based upon our
current knowledge. Nevertheless, as several of the upcoming chapters indi-
cate, Charismatic Christianity appears quite stable in the region.
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This Book
Much like our topic of study, Pentecostal studies in general reaches, cov-
ers, and investigates Pentecostal-Charismatic interconnections in vast
parts of the globe. Although Nordic international missions have received
universal attention (Anderson 2014; Bundy 2009), the region is some-
thing of a terra incognita in the global field of research. Language barriers
need to take their share of the blame; most studies are written in Nordic
languages, proficiency in which is not particularly widespread.2 Another
reason is probably that the Nordic countries have considerably lower
numbers of Charismatics than the American, African, and Asian countries,
especially in the “global South” where this form of Christianity is bloom-
ing, along with Catholicism (Allen 2009, 144–145).
Against this backdrop, we deem it necessary to call for more overarch-
ing studies of Charismatic Christianity in non-Anglophone countries of
the “global North.” We are glad to see new interest in this matter, visible

in a special issue of Approaching Religion (2015) dedicated to the Baltic

Sea area. Until now, no efforts have been made to gather and publish
Nordic case studies in a collective work, nor to discuss them in relation to
processes particular to the region. As is visible from the historical over-
view, Charismatic Christianity has had a strong and interwoven presence
in Norway, Sweden, and Finland.
The overall aim of this anthology is to shed light on diverse trajectories
of Charismatic Christianity in the Nordic countries. Generally, the term
“Nordic countries” also includes Denmark and Iceland, but this anthol-
ogy focuses on the three countries where Charismatic Christianity has had
the strongest presence: Sweden, Norway, and Finland (Anderson 2014,
92; cf. Bloch-Hoell 1964, 91). Evidently, we not only wish to fill in some
of the uncharted territories on the global map, but to contribute to inter-
national research more broadly by providing case studies that further dis-
cussion on how this form of Christianity globalizes and spreads. In the
Nordic countries, Charismatic Christianity has a long history, but has
remained the religion of a small minority, making the region intriguing
from a global perspective. In order to understand and theorize about such
a complex phenomenon, it is necessary not only to study areas of massive
growth, but also to include settings that have proven to be less responsive
to Charismatic revivalism. In this way, the Nordic case challenges the
“master narrative” of global success, contradicting the common claim that
Charismatic Christianity is a form of religion that “travels easily” and
adapts to various cultural circumstances (see Anderson 2010, 1). By focus-
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ing on some of the “smaller narratives” in countries that are usually

neglected in studies, we gain a more complex and nuanced picture, and
invite future discussion about similar groups and individuals elsewhere.

The Contributions to This Volume

The volume engages with the region’s historical and contemporary land-
scape from different scholarly perspectives. The contributors’ backgrounds
involve various branches of the study of religion and cultural and social
anthropology.
The anthology is divided into three thematic parts. In this way, we wish
to alert readers to parallels between the three countries and their great
potential for comparison. The first part addresses the early Pentecostal
Movement(s) from historical perspectives; the second concerns internal
dynamics in Charismatic organizations; and the closing part deals with

twenty-first-century innovations. The historical chapters are based on two

case studies from Norway, which illustrate the organizations’ linkage to
older revivalist movements, as well as contemporaneous interconnections
between the Nordic countries. Scholar of religion Lisbeth Mikaelsson ana-
lyzes the early Pentecostal Movement’s international missions, highlight-
ing the role of women. Historian of religion Anne Stensvold discusses
Pentecostalism’s introduction to Norway in the light of pre-existing
American-influenced movements that had been fueled by returning
Nordic migrants. These movements paved the way for Pentecostalism,
while simultaneously narrowing the scope of target groups.
Opening the second part, social anthropologist Teemu T. Mantsinen
analyzes contemporary tensions within the Finnish Pentecostal Movement.
Applying perspectives from Pierre Bourdieu, Mantsinen proposes that an
obvious organizational dispute is only the tip of the iceberg, concealing an
underlying differentiation of the Pentecostal habitus. In the following
chapter, scholar of religion Jane Skjoldli sheds light upon the reconstruc-
tion of a former Faith Movement church, the Living Word Bible Center
(Levende Ord Bibelsenter) as the Credo Church (Credokirken), and the
accompanying transformations of charismatic authority and practices,
looking at these from a Weberian perspective. Next, scholar of religion
Liselotte Frisk discusses the controversial congregation Knutby Filadelfia,
which hit newspaper headlines across Scandinavia in 2004 when a young
female member shot and killed another member, and injured yet another.
The chapter addresses the group’s exclusion from the Pentecostal
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Movement, from a new religious movements perspective.

The third part begins with a chapter authored by scholar of religion
Tuija Hovi, who examines the recent modernization of Charismatic prac-
tice and outreach implemented in and by the Healing Rooms. Hovi inves-
tigates how this originally American concept has been adapted to the
Finnish milieu, pointing out how open proselytization has been abolished
in the organization, and how its practices tap into therapeutic processes in
Finland. Scholar of religion Jessica Moberg follows up with a study from
Sweden, where Charismatic organizations are increasingly intimized,
reflecting therapeutization trends in Sweden. Moberg focuses on how
informalization is materialized and embodied, where hugs are standard-
ized ritual acts, and church interiors resemble cafeterias. Cultural anthro-
pologist Jan-Åke Alvarsson closes this part, and the volume, with a study
on a recently founded Charismatic TV station, Channel 10. He illustrates
how old-fashioned sermons and songs have more or less vanished from

Pentecostal churches in general, as a result of the adoption of contempo-

rary worship music. Alvarsson analyzes the channel’s success as a response
to nostalgia among older Pentecostal members, who feel increasingly
estranged from their own communities.

Notes
1. According to Nikolaj Christensen, the most influential early Pentecostal
preachers in Denmark took the view that “every human being would in the
end be reconciled to God and saved” (Christensen 2016). This presents a
possible explanation for the low number of Pentecostals in Denmark, as it
would render the imperative for evangelization considerably less urgent.
2. A few exceptions are Simon Colman’s (2000) work on the Swedish Faith
Movement, David Bundy’s (2009) studies of Scandinavian Pentecostal mis-
sions, and David Thurfjell’s (2013) study of the revival among the Kaale
Roma in Sweden and Finland.

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Historical Perspectives on the Early

Pentecostal Movement
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Paving the Way for Pentecostalism:

A Historical Exploration of Post-Reformation
Revivals in Norway

Anne Stensvold

The first European country that was introduced to Pentecostalism was

Norway. In 1906, a Methodist minister returned from a trip to the United
States where he had by chance, so the story goes, become caught up in this
intense new form of Christianity, a form which gave him hopes of a gigantic
new revival to be shared among all Christians. The Pentecostals attracted
attention through their strong millenarian expectations, but their most dis-
tinctive trait was the practice of speaking in tongues (Lie 2007; Ski 1981).
On his return, the minister immediately started spreading the word, and
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within a few years, several thousand Norwegians had been struck by his
message; Pentecostal congregations were established in almost every town
in the country (Bloch-Hoell 1956; Lie 2007; Ski 1981). In this emic and
biographical narrative, the triumph of Pentecostalism is accredited to the
heroic efforts of one man, the former-Methodist-turned-Pentecostal pastor
Thomas Ball Barratt (1862–1940). From a historical perspective, however,
the arrival of Pentecostalism in Norway cannot be reduced to the story of
one man’s achievements. In order to make sense of the narrative, we need
to understand the religious landscape in which Pentecostalism arrived.

A. Stensvold (*)
IKOS, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway

© The Author(s) 2018 25

As already mentioned, the first Pentecostal preacher in Norway was

riginally a Methodist minister. This is significant. The fact that he traveled
o
to the United States in 1906 in order to ask for financial support from
American Methodist congregations is also important, because it points to the
strong relationships of economic dependence between congregations in the
two countries. It also shows the results of earlier Norwegian–American con-
tact, whereby American-influenced migrants had introduced Methodism five
decades earlier. The financial aim of Barratt’s mission was unsuccessful, as he
returned without a penny; what he brought with him from America was
inspiration—literally speaking—from the Pentecostal revival he had encoun-
tered “over there.” In this sense, the story is emblematic because it shows
how new and larger processes can be set in motion almost by chance, but it
also demonstrates that the introduction of new revivals greatly depends on
the history of previous movements and on social structures. Here was a
Methodist pastor who unwittingly encountered Pentecostalism’s different
but also familiar message. We may say that Methodism provided the back-
ground that prepared Barratt for his encounter with Pentecostalism. In a
similar manner, his own ministry provided a bridge to Pentecostalism for
many others. When he went back to Norway to spread the “good news,” he
preached to Methodist congregations in which he was already known. In
other words, Methodism offered an organizational network of congrega-
tions which allowed him to preach and secured him an audience across the
country. More importantly, Methodism provided the theological concepts
(e.g., sanctification through the Holy Spirit), looser liturgical structures, and
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enthusiastic preachers needed in order to make sense of the new message.

Religious change and innovation are complex processes, partly because
religions often rely on exclusive notions. In a study of medieval Catholicism,
Jean-Pierre Albert analyzes the process of making new saints. In order for
a would-be saint to be recognized as holy, he argues, the new saint needs
to tap into existing traditions and provide answers to present-day relevant
questions, needs, and expectations. If a would-be saint fails to do so, he or
she is regarded as either crazy or possessed (Albert 1997, 47–48). Inspired
by Max Weber’s ideal type of “the prophet,” Albert points out that would-
be saints pop up all the time, but only a few of them are taken seriously
and become foci of devotion. For this to happen, the saint’s new message
must be better adapted to the existing social and emotional conditions of
believers. The aspect of Albert’s study that pertains to religious change is
useful to the analysis in this chapter, because it helps clarify the significance
of Pentecostalism in the Norwegian context, and it will thus be applied in
the present analysis.

I approach the establishment of Pentecostalism in Norway as an example

of religious change, paying particular attention to national revivalist history.
I begin by framing Norwegian Christianity historically. Starting with a brief
account of the Lutheran state church after the Reformation (1536), I take a
closer look at the late nineteenth century, when the first steps towards lifting
the state’s religious monopoly were taken (1845), up to the first decade of
the twentieth century when Pentecostalism arrived (1906). It should be
noted that these developments are not unique to the Norwegian case.
Although each of the Nordic countries has its own history, the sequence of
main events followed similar patterns—from Lutheran state churches to the
start of the dismantling of religious monopolies in the 1800s, and the arrival
of Pentecostalism in the first decades of the twentieth century. In this chap-
ter, Norway serves as an example of these developments.

The Monarch’s Religious Power: The Protestant

Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was introduced by the Danish-Norwegian
King Christian III in 1536. Regarding himself as the protector of the true
faith, the king severed ties with Rome, appropriated church property and
placed the church under his own rule. This is an important reason for the
radical difference between the religious context in the Nordic countries and
in American society, where Pentecostalism emerged. Whereas religion in the
United States was established as a domain principally independent of state
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interference, religion in the Nordic countries was integrated in the state.

The Lutheran state churches created during the Protestant Reformation
were headed by their monarchs; priests were state employees, and the popu-
lation had no choice but to loyally accept the king’s rule. In the Nordic
countries, Protestantism was introduced top-down, and the population was
quite unprepared for the transformation from Catholicism to Protestantism
(Schumacher 2005). In Denmark-Norway, the transition seems to have
happened smoothly in the Norwegian part of the territory, as far as the writ-
ten sources can tell. Apart from an account of an iconoclastic purge under
Bishop Schjelderup in Bergen in the 1550s, there are no accounts of violent
iconoclasm. This is not to imply that the population accepted the new form
of Christianity with enthusiasm. The existence of the many pieces of Catholic
art (e.g., crucifixes and statues of Mary) that have survived down to our
times suggests that Protestant iconoclasm was neither systematic nor com-
plete. Although devotional images were banned and church buildings

t horoughly stripped of decoration, much Catholic art remained unharmed,

hidden away by the local population (Rasmussen and Thomassen 2002). As
far as the priests (and their wives) were concerned, they seem to have been
readily accepted—not just as the heirs to Catholic clergy, but also as rightful
local representatives of the crown.
The power of European kings to decide the religious affiliation of their
subjects was legitimised by the Augsburg Agreement (1555), which con-
tained the principle that the king should have the authority to decide which
religion his people should belong to. This royal prerogative is known as cuius
regio, eius religio, “whose realm, his religion.” It was a pragmatic arrange-
ment that monarchs could invoke to quell religious rebellion. As a conse-
quence of the Augsburg Principle, people of different faiths were usually
allowed to leave their country. This religio-political reality endured well until
the mid-nineteenth century, when democracy was introduced, and people
were gradually given greater ability to choose their own religious affiliations.
Put bluntly, we may say that faith was democratized as it became a matter of
individual choice and responsibility. The roots of this development can be
traced back to the early stages of eighteenth-century Pietism, a theological
and devotional innovation associated with the German Lutheran theologians
Philip Jacob Spener and August Hermann Francke (Shantz 2013). Building
on the mystical tradition from Johann Arnt and Jacob Böhme, the Pietists
valued personal faith over religious convention, and religious experience over
liturgical participation. Eighteenth-century Pietism changed the face of
European Protestantism, so much so that it has been described as the final
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realization of Protestantism, and a logical conclusion of its critique of Catholic

ritualism and outward moralism (Amundsen 2005). Pietism has also been
described as an important early part of the “individual turn” in Western cul-
ture (Tylor 2007). At first, Pietism, with its emphasis on personal piety, was
a movement among the clergy and the bourgeoisie, who were attracted to its
Bible study, popular mysticism, and focus on prayer. By the end of the cen-
tury, Pietistic devotion had spread to broader segments of the population,
and was turning into a mass movement.

Popular Pietism: Hauge and Norwegian

Mainstream Religion
In the nineteenth century, Pietism spread to the lower strata of society
and gave rise to new, emotional forms of Christian devotion. This form of
Pietism emphasized the idea of a universal priesthood of all believers, and put
it into practice by arranging religious meetings at home (i.e., in locations

other than church buildings), where lay people assembled for Bible study
and prayer groups. As a consequence, the state church clergy started to lose
control of religion, and the authorities regarded Pietism as a threat to the
existing religious order. In order to put a stop to this development, a new
law was introduced in 1741, which banned unauthorized preaching—the
Conventicle Act (Konventikkelplakaten). In the kingdom of Denmark-
Norway, all such meetings without the presence of a state church priest were
illegal, but the religious ideas associated with Pietism did not disappear; they
re-emerged and gave rise to popular forms of devotion at the turn of the
nineteenth century.
Popular Pietism had a distinctively collective aspect, with its closely knit
study and prayer groups that would meet clandestinely in peoples’ homes,
now in defiance of national law. No doubt, the fear of repercussions helped
turn these groups into particularly close communities. To the authorities,
their activities undermined the state church, and several lay preachers were
punished with prison sentences. The most important among them, lay
preacher Hans Nilsen Hauge (1771–1842), was imprisoned for years, but
kept in touch with his associates via letters, and secretly published books
(Christoffersen 1996; Gilje 1995). For eight years (1796–1804), Hauge
traveled widely across the country and preached the need for repentance,
criticized state church priests for their lack of true and heartfelt faith, and
elaborated on the concept of faith as total trust in the Almighty. He
became a national figure through his books and letters, which were copied
and secretly circulated among his followers, called “friends” (venner).
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Hauge’s “friends” comprised both women and men, and formed an

informal network that spanned the country and which, until 1842, remained
illegal (Amundsen 2005). Formally, they acknowledged the state church,
followed its precepts, and attended church on Sundays, but their personal
faith was defined by Hauge’s brand of popular piety. These followers were
also known as “readers” (lesere) for their frequent use of the Bible, and were
mostly recruited from the poorer strata of the farming population. Through
their participation in the movement, they received training in literacy, the
importance of which should not be underestimated. In fact, some of
Hauge’s “friends” were industrial entrepreneurs; some of the first printing
presses and weaver mills in the country were initiated by Hauge and his
“friends” (Greve 2011). However, this enterprise was also one of the main
reasons for the state church priests’ irritation with Hauge (Gilje 1995), since
it provided him and his “friends” with economic autonomy to pursue their
mission and spread the Word, and challenge the religious monopoly of the

state church. Hauge was imprisoned for 10 years (1804–1814) in an i neffective

attempt to curb his influence. To some extent, this harsh treatment may have
influenced him to speak less critically of the state church. In the last years of
his mission, Hauge encouraged his followers to attend church services regu-
larly and remain loyal to the state church. This would eventually diminish
tensions between the church and the Haugian movement, which later
resulted in the establishment of the Inner Mission (Indremisjonen), a gigan-
tic attempt to “convert” the Norwegian population (99 percent of whom
were members of the state church) to Hauge’s brand of Protestant
Christianity, an effort to which we will return later in this chapter.
The religiosity promoted by Hauge can be summed up, although some-
what crudely, as a combination of three main components: First among
these are emotionally oriented elements, exemplified by Hauge’s reported
visions of Christ. Second is an acute sense of one’s inherent sinfulness.
Third is an emphasis on individual submission to God, commonly referred
to as “receiving Christ.” The need for repentance found expression in a
severe moral code that emphasized honesty and hard labor, and banned all
forms of entertainment, including dancing, card games, and alcohol con-
sumption. Hauge’s books were not only read by his followers, but were
also studied by church authorities, and discussed by university theologians.
Eventually, they gave rise to heated theological debates and two parallel
cultures in the national church: one focusing on tradition, authority, and
rituals, and the other inspired by Hauge. Socially, ritually, and intellectually,
Haugian piety redefined mainstream Norwegian Christianity.
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The Dismantling of Religious Monopoly

and the Rise of the Inner Mission

State officials’ attempts at stopping Haugian Pietism proved ineffective.

After several decades of unlawful religious activities outside the state
church, the law against lay preaching was abolished in 1842 (Oftestad
1998). In the same liberal vein, the Catholic Church was allowed to
re-establish itself in Norway in 1843, through a special provision to cater
to Catholic foreigners. This was a delicate affair in which the apostolic
vicariate, Monsignor Laurentius Studach, who was closely associated with
the royal family, played an active part in getting the king’s support for
establishing a Catholic congregation in Norway (Gran et al. 1993). It was
intended exclusively as a service for foreigners, and according to the
Norwegian Constitution (1814), Catholics were not allowed to conduct

missionary work in Norway. This was rooted in deeply seated prejudice

against Catholicism, an attitude that is amply illustrated by the fact that
Jesuits were not allowed entry to the country until 1956.
Two years later, in 1845, the Dissension Act (Dissenterloven) was
passed, which allowed “free” (i.e., nonstate) churches to establish them-
selves in Norway. The law, which made religious individualism a legal prin-
ciple, allowed persons above the age of 25 (age of majority) to abandon
the state church and take up membership in free Christian congregations.
This was an important step towards dismantling the state monopoly on
religion. It was also a decisive legal invention, which detached member-
ship of the Norwegian state church from Norwegian citizenship (Oftestad
1998). An immediate consequence was that a number of Free Churches
were founded in the following decades. Most of them were small local
groups, and were comprised of between a couple of hundred to 1000
members. Most of these groups were critical of the state church, especially
the subordination of religion to the power of king and state. Some criti-
cized infant baptism, such as The Free Evangelical Congregations (De
Frie Evangeliske Forsamlinger; Froholt 1993), and the centrality of the
Eucharist, for example “the Lammers Movement” (Lammersbevegelsen;
Øverland 1981).
However, despite this relaxation of the legislation, religious freedom
was not yet realized, since only Christian and Jewish groups were allowed
to establish themselves (Stensvold 2005c: 370–373). The state invested
considerable resources in maintaining control. Partly inspired by Hauge
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and relying on his network of “friends,” the Inner Mission (Indremisjonen)

was established by state church priests in 1855. From the 1850s and ’60s
onwards, this initiative would grow into a folk movement (Gundersen
1996). The aim was to reach the entire population and create a fundamen-
tal change in folk piety; the movement involved a novel message clad in
recognizable religious language. The Inner Mission’s ideology and activi-
ties are significant, as they can be seen as a state response to independent
revivals by the creation of local movements, by means of which it could
thus exerting its own influence in shaping the state church from below.
The first generation of the Inner Mission’s traveling preachers (emissærer)
was recruited from among the “friends” (Amundsen 1995). In this way, we
may say that Hauge’s heritage became the basis for a form of popular piety
that eventually gained state sanction and united Norwegian clergy and
large segments of the population in a shared vision of Christianity. It was an
emotionally charged faith, motivated by an acute awareness of inescapable

sinfulness. It was solemn, meek, and morally severe, with a complete ban on
“unchristian” entertainment. In short: immoral behavior was interpreted as
signs of damnation, and the Inner Mission offered the route to salvation.
Teetotalism and charitable work became popular in local communities as
well as in towns. By the end of the century, an estimated 20 percent of the
population was part of the Inner Mission. During the first decades of the
twentieth century, the popularity of the movement reached a peak, marked
by a massive increase in the number of local Inner Mission groups, accom-
panied by a significant rise in the number of “prayer houses” (bedehus).
Although an integral part of the state church, the Inner Mission represented
an alternative, austere type of religiosity, and stressed equality among its
members instead of subordination to church authorities. The prayer houses
were owned by the local groups, which gave the members an important
sense of participation (Aagedal 1986). Here, the Inner Mission would hold
meetings, also on Sundays, at which communal prayer, singing, and coffee-
drinking offered popular alternatives to the state church rituals.

Migrants and Missionaries

The gradual deterioration of the religious monopoly coincided with other
major changes in Norwegian society, notably industrialization, urbaniza-
tion, and the migration of impoverished farmers to North America. In only
three decades, from 1860 to 1890, almost one fourth of the Norwegian
population emigrated. Whereas many of the first migrants were religiously
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motivated to seek refuge “over there”—among them Quakers and Hauge’s

“friends”—poverty and new opportunities for obtaining material wealth
were motivational factors for the mass emigration. In the United States, the
Homestead Act (1862) enabled immigrant farmers to obtain ownership by
cultivating new soil, and when the Civil War (1861–1865) came to a close,
mass migration from Norway began (Østrem 2006). For the “old coun-
try,” the exodus was not entirely a story of a lost generation, but also had a
positive effect, since it decreased the effects of overpopulation and opened
up Norwegian culture to foreign influences. Books and letters provided “a
wealth of practical information along with their advocacy of American con-
ditions,” which added to the interest called America-fever (Mauk 2013,
135). But most of all, letters to family and friends increased general knowl-
edge of life “over there” and familiarized Norwegians with the religious
ideas and practices that migrants encountered. As a result, North America
seemed closer and thus more familiar to those left behind.

The religious landscape encountered by the migrants differed s ubstantially

from that of the Nordic countries. The United States was considerably more
pluralistic; among the declarations enshrined in the First Amendment to the
Constitution were freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and separation
between church and state. This enabled competition between a wide variety
of different churches and groups. Significantly, religious freedom was based
upon an understanding of faith as an individual’s relationship to God, and
construed as a private privilege. Charles Taylor (2007) calls this a change in
“the conditions of belief,” whereby the authority of the individual reigns in
religious matters.
At the time Norwegian and other Nordic immigrants arrived, the United
States was ripe with fervent activity in the aftermath of the Second Great
Awakening’s gigantic revival meetings (ca. 1790–1830), religious ardor,
and millenarian belief. Many immigrants’ letters described these events.
Even more important were migrants who returned to the “old country,”
bringing their impressions with them. Some of these migrants returned as
missionaries. Focusing their activities on new industrial towns, they had
easy access to the working-class population, who were more receptive to
their mission; the countryside was virtually closed to them unless they knew
the addresses of friends and families who could vouch for them to the local
priest. Although the Dissension Act (1842) legalized lay preachers, legal
and practical obstacles still limited their sphere of activity. Outdoor gather-
ings were not allowed, which meant that preachers of various kinds had to
find other venues for meetings, usually in private homes. This placed seri-
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ous practical impediments on traveling preachers, who were totally reliant

on well-established personal contacts. These restrictions did not apply to
the same extent in the growing cities, where strangers were not as con-
spicuous, and where one open door could suffice as a platform for starting
missionary activities.
The history of Methodist missionary Ole Peter Petersen well illustrates
the strong dependence on personal networks for missionary activities.
Petersen started his ministry in his birthplace, Fredrikstad, a small industrial
town in the southeastern part of the country, where he first contacted local
people who he knew would be open to new religious ideas. Petersen focused
his preaching on younger members of the working class, who were receptive
to his message of personal faith, as well as his emotional style of peaching
(Hassing 1981, 72). Yet the American-influenced missionaries like Petersen
did not have an easy task; they were met with skepticism, and sometimes
even open hostility, by official authorities. For example, in Halden, another

small town in southeastern Norway, one local priest managed to stop

Methodist meetings on the grounds that they collided with Sunday church
services (Hassing 1981, 81). Many state church priests also reacted strongly
against what they saw as the missionaries’ distorted image of Christianity. In
1876, a state church priest in Bergen, whose daughter had joined the local
Baptist community, initiated a smear campaign in the newspapers, targeting
Baptists and charging them of attracting naïve adherents by promising salva-
tion (Eidberg 1981, 67). The history of Mormonism, or the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, adds to the same story of local hostility.
The Mormon Church was actually the first religious organization of United
States origin established in Norway (1852), with branches in the coastal
towns of Risør, Brevik, and Fredrikstad. Only a year later, these were closed
on the grounds that they were not Christian because, in addition to the
Bible, members recognized the Book of Mormon as a revealed and authori-
tative sacred scripture (Stensvold 2005b, 347).

Missionaries to Norway and a Discussion of Labels

Missionaries coming to Norway, a significant number of whom were
returning Norwegian migrants, emphasized faith in Jesus and his ability to
change the inner person and deliver believers from sin, thereby making
them holy and restoring them to an original state of grace through the
agency of the Holy Spirit. Theologically, this understanding of grace was
introduced with Methodism, but with the American revival movements
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(the Great Awakenings) in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, it

became an integrated characteristic of what came to be known as the
Holiness Movement. The Second Great Awakening (1790–1830) also
introduced a powerful new mode of assembly that came to dominate the
emerging movements; mass meetings or camp meetings attracted large
crowds and many formerly passive believers. These meetings centered on
an enthusiastic and emotional form of preaching, designed to cater to what
the preachers considered to be the needs of their largely uneducated and
socially uprooted audiences (Lambert 1999).
The returning migrant missionaries were inspired by the Wesleyan idea
of holiness or “Christian perfection,” preaching that it was possible for
people to live a life permeated by holiness: the combined result of faith,
grace, and regeneration. Unlike the Inner Mission’s brand of Protestant
revivalism, the American-influenced preachers believed that the end of the
world was imminent, giving their message a sense of urgency and this,

being new and strange to some, was new and refreshing to others. Their
preaching had an acute sense of haste and fear of being “left behind” when
the Savior returned to save his own at the Second Coming (Harding 1993).
These ideas were revolutionary to Norwegians, who had been raised in the
state church tradition and taught by the local priest to respect authority,
and hope for God’s mercy at the Final Judgment. They were now told that
the only way to salvation was to repent of their sins, contemplate the con-
sequences of those sins, and ask God’s forgiveness. There were also great
differences in sermon delivery and style: whereas American and American-
influenced preachers were optimistic and self-assured, Norwegian Inner
Mission preachers embodied an inward-gazing kind of religiosity. They also
had a different sermon style. Traveling preachers from the Inner Mission
and preachers from the domestic Norwegian Free Churches (e.g., The
Lamb’s Revival [Lammets Vekkelse] and The Free Apostolic Christian
Community [Den Frie Apostoliske Christelige Menighet]) emphasized
repentance, and would typically ask their listeners to start the day by exam-
ining their conscience, cautioning them to be aware of their sinful charac-
ter. Naturally, there were several other differences between the American
and American-influenced preachers, but these particular features set them
apart from the existing religious context in Norway.
The fact that the new missionaries belonged to churches with roots in
the revivalist movements of the Great Awakenings gave United States-
based Protestant Christianity a distinct character: a culture of devotion
and a special brand of preaching. In scholarly literature, various terms are
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used to emphasize these characteristics: folk religion or lay Christianity,

popular Pietism, born-again Christianity, and Evangelicalism (Hackett and
Lindsay 2008). The latter term most frequently refers to theologically
conservative Protestants. Mostly, “Evangelical” does not include
Pentecostals, while at other times it largely overlaps with what used to be
referred to as Fundamentalism (Casanova 1994). However, it is problem-
atic to directly apply the term “Evangelical” to the Norwegian context
without pointing out important differences; the term’s connotations in
the American context differs from those it has in the Norwegian one. The
meaning of the term “Evangelical,” which in Norwegian is evangelisk,
derives from the Latin word for “gospel,” evangelium. Rather confusingly,
the Norwegian constitution contains a reference to the state church as
“the Evangelical-Lutheran religion” (Evangelisk-Luthersk religion). In the
constitution, the word signifies the Norwegian state church’s Protestant
identity, or more specifically its foundation on the gospel (evangelium).

This usage differs from evangelikal, a term that refers to a particular kind of
revivalist church or congregation. Whereas the Norwegian distinction
between evangelisk and evangelikal has no parallel in English, it is worth
noting that evangelisk is construed in opposition to Catholic, whereas evan-
gelikal refers (in Norwegian usage) to those congregations that emerged
from the Great Awakenings. In this chapter, the term “American-influenced
revivalism” is used to accentuate the special nature of these movements in a
different cultural and regional setting. This equips us with categories that
are useful for discussing similarities and differences in relation to Norwegian–
United States contacts and earlier revivalist movements in the Norwegian
context and, most importantly, enable us to see Pentecostalism as a part of
a larger history of American-Norwegian revivals.

The First Wave: Methodists and Baptists

The relaxation of legislation in the 1840s enabled competition between
state-employed priests and various independent traveling preachers. Soon
thereafter, American and Norwegian returning migrants started to arrive.
Over a period of 50 years, these missionaries arrived in three waves. The
first—Methodists, Baptists, and Mormons—came to Norway in the 1850s
and ’60s. From the state church officials’ point of view, they posed a seri-
ous threat, and the priests did what they could to maintain their own sta-
tus as custodians of the “true religion.” Yet, in spite of ridicule and practical
difficulties, these missionaries were able to develop viable and lasting insti-
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tutions by presenting their forms of Protestantism as attractive alternatives

to that of the state church.
Methodism was first introduced in 1853, by returning migrant and for-
mer seaman Ole Peter Petersen, who had been sent on an official mission
by his church in the United States—the Methodist Church of America—to
establish a congregation in his hometown Fredrikstad. Petersen brought
with him an optimistic and apparently appealing message: In order to
achieve salvation it was enough to want it, to desire to believe in Christ. In
1884, 4418 Methodists were registered in Norway, more than twice the
number of Baptists (2132), and Methodism formed the largest Christian
body outside the state church. In his presentation of Methodism in Norway,
scholar of religion Arne Hassing includes a list of members at the end of the
nineteenth century, which shows a pattern shared with other American-
influenced churches and denominations: In the beginning, a large majority
of the recruits were young manual laborers, factory workers, day laborers,

and servants (Hassing 1981, 85). Moreover, a significant part of the

membership consisted of widows and unmarried young women employed
in domestic work.
The Methodists placed great emphasis on diaconal efforts and they
offered members the security of a tight-knit community (Hassing 1981).
The social aspect was important in a cultural context rife with prejudice.
In addition to hostility and mockery, people outside the state church were
subjected to systematic discrimination. For example, dissidents from the
state church were banned from work as state employees. The ban was
lifted gradually: In 1878 dissenters could be accepted as army officers, in
1891 they could take up positions as state functionaries, and finally, in
1917, they were allowed to take up positions as teachers.
In 1857, Baptist Fredrick Ludvig Rymker (1819–1883), another former
seafarer and returning migrant who had already preached in his native
Denmark for seven years, decided to continue his work in Norway. Rymker
converted in the First Baptist Mariners’ Church in New York in 1845. When
he first started his missionary work in Denmark, which he engaged in from
1850 to 1857, he received financial support from the Bethel Union in
New York. He also worked as a shoemaker to support his family. In 1857
Rymker arrived in Skien, a small industrial town on the east side of the Oslo
Fjord, where he conducted his first baptism, on Christmas Day 1858. The
first convert was a young man, only 18 years old, and below the age required
for discontinuing state church membership (the age of majority was 25 years
until 1858, when it was reduced to 21 years of age). Rymker feared that it
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would be judged a criminal offence, but the baptism, which took place on
an ice-covered river and created quite a stir, was ignored by the authorities.
In 1860, Rymker established the first Baptist congregation in Skien. The
majority of the converts came from a local Norwegian revivalist group,
which shared the Baptist criticism of infant baptism, but otherwise was
closer to the Inner Mission and Hauge’s heritage.
After 10 years of missionary work, 15 Baptist congregations had been
established in towns all over the country, even as far north as Tromsø.
Swedish Baptists helped out with missionary work, but contacts with the
United States nevertheless remained vital. The strength of connections
between Baptists in Norway and the United States is clearly illustrated by
the fact that a school offering formal training for Scandinavian Baptist pas-
tors was established in Morgan Park near Chicago in 1884. This arrange-
ment lasted until 1910, when a similar institution was opened in Oslo.
Membership numbers in Baptist congregations in Norway reached a peak

in the years following World War II, with 7500 members at the end of the
1940s (Eidberg 1981; Mikalsen 1993).
In the 1870s, the average age in Baptist congregations was 35 years,
with a large majority of women (Eidberg 1981). Similarly to its Methodist
counterpart, the female majority was mainly made up of single women
working as servants, but there were also widows, and some married women
whose husbands were away at sea. The rest were married men, mostly man-
ual laborers. Economic deprivation was not the primary motive for joining
the new movements; rather, it was social isolation and a need for a com-
munity of like-minded individuals. Viewed like this, this brand of American-
influenced Protestantism, with its emphasis on emotional preaching and its
social engagement, had much to offer. With its focus on holiness, grace,
and the promise of salvation, Baptism presented an attractive alternative to
the Inner Mission’s call for self-criticism and seriousness.

The Second Wave: Adventists

and Jehovah’s Witnesses

The message of Methodists and Baptists was sometimes hard to distin-

guish from that of the Inner Mission, as they all stressed conversion and
warned against the consequences of alcohol and extramarital sexual rela-
tionships. On the other hand, the dramatic eschatologies of Adventists
and Jehovah’s Witnesses were something new. The first Adventist preacher
arrived in Kristiania (now Oslo) in 1879 and was of Danish origin. The
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eschatological aspect was not as central to Norwegian Adventists as it had

been when Adventism first emerged in the United States in 1833. William
Miller, a Baptist preacher in upstate New York, declared that the Second
Coming and the end of the world would occur in 1844. When this predic-
tion failed, the dominant interpretation was that Christ had indeed
returned as predicted, but instead of introducing an imminent end of the
world, he had initiated the process that would eventually lead to the end
of our times. In the 1870s, the prediction was that the end would come
on October 22, 1914. Nevertheless, Adventists in Norway were soon
associated with other Adventist features such as focusing on the body as
“the temple of the Holy Spirit,” and with various health practices such as
bathing and vegetarianism (Kvinge and Næsheim 1993).
In 1892, Norway’s first missionary from the Jehovah’s Witnesses,
Rasmus P. Hammer, settled in Bergen. Hammer was a returning Norwegian
migrant and had been a Baptist minister in North Dakota (Ringnes and

Sødal 2009). The beliefs of Jehovah’s Witnesses differ from Christian

mainstream theology in that they do not accept the Trinity, and argue that
this dogma lacks biblical foundation. To them, Jesus Christ is the son of
God and separate from, and subordinate, to the Father. On a similar note,
they hold that the number of those who will be saved is a mere 144,000,
the number given in the Book of Revelation (7: 3–8). Thus, they have
shared the fate of the Mormons and have often not been recognized as a
Christian church, even though they regard themselves as Christians and
read the Bible in a particular, yet strictly literal way. Their teachings differ
significantly from mainstream Lutheranism as well as from Methodism
and Baptism, which are Trinitarian, and in which redemption is much less
exclusive and is obtainable by everyone who has faith. The belief in pre-
destination made the Jehovah’s Witnesses appear especially severe, and in
Norway they received criticism and faced outright hostility, particularly
from many state church priests. Despite differing theological orientations,
Adventist and Jehovah’s Witnesses missionaries managed to establish con-
gregations in Norway, and like the Methodists and Baptists, the members
were mainly recruited from among the working classes in industrial towns.
Although we lack official numbers for Adventists and Jehovah’s Witnesses,
a reasonable estimate would place their members as numbering between
1000 and 1500 at the turn of the century.

The Third Wave: Pentecostals

In 1906, the Pentecostal revival was still spreading in the United States.
The very same year, this movement was introduced to Norway. Within two
decades, Pentecostalism had become the largest of the American-influenced
revivalist groups in the country. What made it so comparably successful?
Looking at their teachings and religious practices, Pentecostals resembled
the first wave of American-influenced Protestants, and shared the Adventists’
eschatological expectations for Christ’s second coming. However, the most
distinctive trait of Pentecostalism—manifestations of the Holy Spirit in
mystical and loud signs: speaking in tongues (glossolalia)—was an unknown
religious practice in Norway and appeared to many as both fascinating and
appalling. Although there are references to similar practices in the Bible,
where it is described as a charisma, a “spiritual gift,” speaking in tongues
was promoted by Norwegian Pentecostals not just as a sign of divine pres-
ence, but as evidence of baptism in the Holy Spirit. When compared to
the Inner Mission’s stress on repentance and intense self-reflection, the

Pentecostal message could provide a tangible answer to religious needs for

the assurance of salvation, at least for those who realized the practice.
Viewed from this perspective, the attraction of the Pentecostal message
comes to the fore. The emotional impact of such an experience—receiving
the Holy Spirit—was central to the spread of Pentecostalism. These experi-
ences often occurred at mass meetings, and dramatic manifestations of faith
became emblematic of the Pentecostal brand of American revivalism. Such
gatherings became increasingly important in all sections of civil society
from the 1880s onwards, as Norway developed into a democratic country
in the modern sense of the word. Political mass meetings for voting rights,
teetotaler rallies, and extensive and heated debates about everything from
language and dialects to the legal status of children born out of wedlock,
eroded the ban on mass gatherings and preaching in public. These factors
may to some extent account for the relative success of Pentecostalism in
Norway, but historical circumstances also need to be considered.
Pentecostalism arrived in a country where other forms of American-
influenced Protestantism had prepared the way by establishing hopes of a
revival soon to be realized. Pentecostalism was interpreted as that revival,
which made its arrival a welcome event.
In the first decades of the twentieth century, emigration waned and
the majority of emigrants were now city dwellers. Moreover, instead of
entire emigrant families leaving, these emigrants were largely single men
(Østrem 2006). This was a reflection of social changes that were taking
place in Norway, particularly a new economic optimism, political libera-
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tion, and a significant increase in civil freedoms: Voting rights for all men
regardless of economic status (1891), general suffrage for women
(1913), and national independence from Swedish rule (1905) created a
fervent cultural climate characterized by optimism (Sørensen 1998).
Meanwhile, the state church, which still accounted for 98–99 percent of
the population, struggled with passive members. These were the main
features of the Norwegian historical context and religious landscape into
which Pentecostalism was introduced. This was also a time of intense
struggle among university theologians over the introduction of historical
criticism in Bible interpretations. The struggle went far beyond academic
milieus, and split the state church down the middle. However, no
attempts were made to strengthen church attendance by modernizing
church services or liturgical language. Instead, church representatives
tried to appeal to people’s sense of decency and duty as parents and
responsible citizens (Klaveness 1901). At this point in time, American

and American-influenced missionaries were well-known figures in

Norwegian religious life, and Pentecostalism placed itself squarely within
the existent contextual pattern of alternative Christianities.

Thomas Ball Barratt

The single most important agent behind the new movement was the
already mentioned Methodist pastor Thomas Ball Barratt (1862–1940),
who had traveled to the United States in 1906. Visiting New York, he
heard rumors about a new revival that had started on Azusa Street, Los
Angeles. Captivated by the vivid descriptions of speaking in tongues and
encounters with the Holy Spirit, he sought these experiences for himself.
On October 7, 1906, Barratt experienced a breakthrough, which he
describes in the following way: “Hallelujah! It happened yesterday between
5 and 6 PM […] My soul is burning. I believe I am the happiest man in the
world. Everything is made new to me” (Barratt 1941, 101, author’s trans-
lation). Barratt, however, did not interpret this experience as the baptism in
the Spirit, but as a preparatory experience that opened him to the real
baptism in the Spirit, which took place a month later, after days of intense
prayer and theological discussions with friends and acquaintances. On
November 15, he received the gift of tongues, alone in his room in the
middle of the night (1941, 120). He describes it as a peaceful and deeply
meaningful experience of being filled with light and speaking in unknown
languages all through that night. These events were relayed to Norwegian
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Methodists in the autumn of 1906 through the Methodist monthly publi-

cation “The City Mail” (Byposten), which was edited by Barratt (The Azusa
revival is described in no. 22, 1906). When he returned to Norway at the
end of the year, his audience was already prepared for something excep-
tional. That Christmas, 10 people “received baptism in the Spirit, and five
of us are singing in tongues” (1941, 134). Barratt himself described these
first meetings as exciting events directed entirely by the Holy Spirit, at
which singing, prayer, and witnessing occurred spontaneously, intermedi-
ated by long periods of silence. When referring to the gift of “speaking in
tongues” he writes “singing in tongues” (1941, 136). The next years,
Barratt preached in Methodist and Baptist congregations and traveled
widely across Norway and other Nordic countries. However, the exact time
of birth of organized Norwegian Pentecostalism is disputed (Bloch-Hoell
1956). The first congregation—“the Tabernacle” (Tabernaklet)—was
established in Skien in 1908, but it was not until 1916 that Barratt became
minister of a Pentecostal congregation: Filadelfia in Oslo.

Although Barratt certainly played a key role in spreading Pentecostalism,

it is difficult to identify causal factors for why it would catch on and in less
than a decade have grown larger than the Methodist Church. Undoubtedly,
however, it was largely due to timing. Except for its revivalist heritage,
Norway in the first decade of the twentieth century was a young nation
characterized by economic and social change, particularly industrialization
and urbanization, as well as political optimism.

Recruits, Community, and American Dreams

Within 50 years of Barratt’s return, Pentecostal congregations counted
more members than the other American-influenced congregations alto-
gether. Yet, no matter how one looks at it, Christian groups outside the
state church were a relatively marginal phenomenon. The first convert to
Baptist Christianity was baptized on Christmas Day in 1858, in a river
filled with ice and snow. It must have been a strange sight to the freezing
bystanders. The ritual was unknown to them; the place was usually associ-
ated with timber floating, and the convert, dressed in a white linen cloth,
must have made a dramatic impression. But the strange ritual was emblem-
atic of the drama that the first converts experienced. While the large
majority of active Christians who sought personal transformation and reli-
gious experiences did so in the state church’s Inner Mission, conversion to
the American-influenced movements meant something else. Whereas a
Baptist or Pentecostal conversion involved adult baptism (albeit not always
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on a river in midwinter), the Inner Mission’s idea of conversion was a

quiet, inner experience, thought to manifest itself after the spiritual event,
in a moral way of life. For those who joined the new movements, conver-
sion also involved dramatic social and organizational change. Becoming a
member of one of the American-influenced congregations implied leaving
the state church, making the process difficult and complicated. Until 1891,
this was a humiliating experience, whereby the convert was obliged to
undergo an oral examination at the office of the parish priest and account
for his or her theological reasons for leaving the state church. If the priest
remained unconvinced of the seriousness of the request, he would deny
permission to leave (Stensvold 2005b, 348).
Why, then, did people convert? Although social stigma waned as the
new congregations grew and the dominance of the state church dimin-
ished, it was still there. What attracted new members is a complex question
which merits its own study, but some preliminary conclusions may be

drawn. The negative impact of social contempt was largely negated by the
supportive social structures offered to the converts in revivalist congrega-
tions. They promoted common moral values like temperance, strict work
ethics, and education, and they would also monitor practitioners’ behav-
ior. In addition, they provided solidarity, as well as protection from the
conspicuous gaze of skeptical outsiders. Like other Protestant churches,
they encouraged high moral standards that, in time, contributed to social
mobility and shifted the majority of its members from the working class to
the functionary and petite bourgeoisie. Over time, this aspect may have
attracted members in its own right.
American revivalist movements, Pentecostalism in particular, are often
discussed in relation to social change, and as discussed in the introductory
chapter, it has been argued that they have integrated and disciplined the
masses of people who have moved into new industrial settings in pursuit of
work. The Norwegian case fits well into this pattern. However, it is likely
that the “American touch” may have been part of these movements’ appeal,
including Pentecostalism. In the United States, specific theologies about
the role of that country had been developed. Mormonism has a uniquely
explicit American angle to its eschatology, with its members’ belief that the
second coming of Christ will occur in America, and the New Jerusalem will
be erected there. In this particular vision, the United States replaces Israel
as the point of reference and is effectively established as the land of the
chosen. A similar tendency, to regard the United States as an exemplary
country and endow it with a certain aura of holiness, can also be found. It
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is questionable whether such ideas would have attracted Norwegian con-

verts. Still, it may well be the case that accounts of religious freedom, new
revivals, and pluralism that the Norwegian immigrants and visitors to the
United States sent back to Norway had an appeal, and that becoming a
Pentecostal (or a Baptist) meant acquiring a piece of the American dream—
“the promised land,” the land of plenty, a symbol of hope and a better
future.

Concluding Remarks and Later Developments

In Norway today, congregations and churches rooted in American-
influenced revivals count approximately 80,000–100,000 members; that is,
slightly under the reported number of Catholics in Norway, and almost
double the number of members of congregations that came out of domes-
tic initiatives. Comparing their historical development, they have followed

similar trajectories of success—or the lack thereof. In 1884, 10 years after

it was founded, The Evangelical-Lutheran Free Church (Den Evangelisk-
Lutherske Frikirke) counted 1000 members. Twenty years later, that num-
ber had grown to 3200. Today it has 20,000 members and is the largest of
the churches with domestic origins (Kristiansen and Lund 1993). The
Pentecostal Movement (Pinsebevegelsen) is bigger, and is the denomina-
tion that descends directly from the movement of the early twentieth cen-
tury. Regardless of how one looks at it, however, the impact of nonstate
Christian initiatives in Norway has been limited. There are several reasons
that may account for this, but secularization and the dominant position of
the state church and its Inner Mission are important factors.
Historically, the state church played a crucial role in constructing a
shared world and moral universe for the Norwegian population. Through
obligatory confirmation (introduced in 1736), children were taught to
respect authorities—God, king, parents, priest—and literacy spread to all
social strata. The introduction of obligatory elementary school—for boys
as well as girls—in both cities and the countryside (where it was introduced
in 1860) was an important means of creating cultural consensus. With a
syllabus of reading, writing, history, and Christian ethics, the schools’ main
focus was on the latter, which was taught through fables and children’s
tales as well as psalms and rhymes. Together, the state church and the
school system made the country as a whole more homogenous than would
otherwise have been possible outside of small communities (Anderson
1991). The demise of the state’s religious monopoly (1842 and 1845)
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opened Norway to new religious innovation and foreign influences.

Nevertheless, the state church managed to maintain its hold on the popula-
tion. When Pentecostalism arrived in 1906, 99 percent of the population
were state church members. The remaining 1 percent was divided among a
number of churches and congregations of local or American origins.
The Inner Mission may have smoothed the path for American revivalist
traditions, but its success at a time when significant number of new mis-
sions arrived in the country may also explain those organizations’ rela-
tively meager results. In other words, the Inner Mission may be seen as a
formidable competitor, which combined experience-oriented religious
individualism with traditional state church membership, tapping into the
changing religious climate with a less radical and more familiar kind of
Christianity than the American-influenced missionaries advocated.
Ironically, it seems that the Inner Mission—originally an attempt to
reform and keep people in the state church—may have contributed to

further processes that later served to undermine it. In the second half of
the nineteenth century—a period of religious change, and of emissaries
and traveling preachers from various groups—there was also a marked
tendency toward cultural secularization. A prominent sign of this change
was a radical decline in participation in state church rituals. The Bishop of
Trondheim reports that: “In the Trondheim diocese there were 173,200
participants in the Eucharist in 1870 […] In 1887 there were 104,000”
(Sandvik 1998, 27, author’s translation). The number of converts to other
churches and congregations was too small to explain the decline. Instead,
the explanation seems to be a combination of secularization on the one
hand and the growing influence of the Inner Mission on the other. In this
particular case, the two tendencies conflated and resulted in what can be
described as an identity crisis for Norwegian Christianity: On the one
hand, rising individualism fed into secularization and undermined tradi-
tions such as attending church on Sundays. On the other hand, the Inner
Mission’s narrow definition of “true faith” implied suspicion of religious
rituals, and unwittingly fueled secularizing tendencies (Sandvik 1998).
This trend was also strengthened by the Inner Mission’s rhetoric, which
referred to regular churchgoers as “Christians by habit” (vanekristne) or
“Christians in name only” (navnekristne). This way of thinking about reli-
gion in terms of conversion and strong personal faith spread to larger seg-
ments of the population, entailing te individualization of formerly
collective Christian identities. To the Inner Mission, attending church
rituals out of habit, or a sense of duty, was a mockery of true faith. Religious
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rituals were null and void unless motivated by deeply felt belief. As a result,
many state church members chose to remain at home, leaving the shaping
of the Norwegian religious landscape to Pentecostals and other American-
influenced churches.

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Taylor, Charles. 2007. A Secular Age. Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of
Harvard University Press.

The Norwegian Pentecostal Foreign Mission:

A Survey of Mission History
with an Emphasis on Organization,
Expansion, and Gender

Lisbeth Mikaelsson

Win the World1

In December 1906, the American strand of the Pentecostal revival was
brought to Norway by Methodist pastor Thomas Ball Barratt (1862–1940).
He returned from New York as a burning witness of rebirth in the Holy
Spirit as it was preached and experienced in the Azusa Street milieu in Los
Angeles, a milieu that had guided his own intense longing for the life-shaking
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event. Back in Kristiania (now Oslo), his evangelist fire immediately insti-
gated a Pentecostal revival in the city. He soon caught the attention of
Christian leaders from a variety of denominations in Scandinavia and other
parts of Europe. Accepting invitations to preach at meetings abroad in 1907,
Barratt toured countries in Europe, the Middle East, and India over the next
few months. Thus the activities of Barratt himself, the progenitor of European
Pentecostalism (Alvarsson 2011, 22; Bundy 2009, 174), demonstrated a

L. Mikaelsson (*)
University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway

© The Author(s) 2018 49

missionary zeal combined with a world-oriented perspective—characteristics

that have marked Pentecostalism through its history in Norway and
elsewhere.
This chapter sketches Norwegian Pentecostal mission history from
the beginning until the present. Within the format of a single chapter, that
means a strict economy of topics will be needed. Since institutionalized
arrangements in the home milieu are generally essential for the social and
economic support most foreign missionaries need, a main issue here is the
organization of Pentecostal foreign mission in Norway. In general,
Protestant mission societies constitute common frameworks for the mis-
sionaries and their supporters at home. These frameworks influence
options, strategies, and activities in the field as well as securing continuity
of work. Thus, to a large extent, the adoption of the Christian faith in the
Third World has been both directly and indirectly influenced by the mis-
sions’ organizational structures. Among the many fellow-believers at
home, an interest in mission and responsibility vis-à-vis the missionaries’
circumstances has been promoted by the regular streams of information
coming from periodicals and other literary productions issued by the orga-
nizations. Given Norwegian Pentecostals’ emphasis on individual spiritual
gifts and belief in the guidance of God, a key question here is to what
extent they adopted the kind of multifunctional system typical of the
Protestant missionary organizations. I am conscious that this approach
means that central aspects of Pentecostal foreign mission are given less
attention than deserved, and I try to make amends for it by presenting a
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few central cases in more detail. As in other branches of Protestant mis-

sion, women have numerically dominated Norwegian Pentecostal mis-
sion, and one of the aims of this chapter has been to shed some light on
gender issues and the agency of women missionaries.
Constructing a “national” account of Pentecostal foreign mission is com-
plicated by the decentralized character of this mission in Norway. Since the
1930s, mission has mainly been based in local congregations, or in some
cases, independent foundations and even individual enterprises. This means
that mission history largely consists of a bunch of locally anchored accounts
yet to be investigated. Nevertheless, I try to impart a bird’s-eye view to mis-
sion history, which remains greatly dependent on the following Pentecostal
historical works: Oddvar Johansen et al.’s “Pentecostal Mission over
100 Years” (Pinsemisjon i 100 år, 2010), Oddvar Nilsen’s “Out into All the
World: The Pentecostals’ Foreign Mission in 75 Years” (Ut i all verden:
Pinsevennenes ytre misjon i 75 år, 1984), and Martin Ski’s “The Pentecostals’
Foreign Mission” (Pinsevennenes Ytre Misjon, 1967). Additionally, the

importance of the academic works of Nils Bloch-Hoell and David Bundy

should be emphasized: Bloch-Hoell’s The Pentecostal Movement: Its Origin,
Development and Distinctive Character (1964) is a pioneering national and
international contribution to research on Pentecostalism, which was gen-
erally ignored by scholars until the 1960s.2 Bundy’s momentous Visions of
Apostolic Mission: Scandinavian Pentecostal Mission to 1935 (2009) is a
scholarly milestone in terms of the Scandinavian contribution to Pentecostal
mission.

The Initial Phase

In 1909, Barratt emphasized the necessity of mission for “Pentecost
friends” (pinsevenner) in his paper “The City Post” (Byposten)3—the
Norwegian name for Pentecostals here being used for the first time (Nilsen
1984, 25–26). Yet, Barratt himself represented the group of traveling
evangelists, who in 1912 were criticized by E.N. Bell, editor of Word and
Witness,4 for not staying with non-Christian peoples on a more permanent
basis (McGee 2010, 120). However, Barratt was soon followed by
Norwegian Pentecostals to the far ends of the earth, and several of them
spent decades abroad. From early on in its history, foreign mission went
hand in hand with the growing Pentecostal revival in Norway. In 1910
nine missionaries, five women and four men, set out to their chosen coun-
tries: India, China, Swaziland, and Argentina. By 1914, the number of
missionaries had doubled (Gulbrandsen 1937, 135–136). The geographi-
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cal dispersion demonstrates the aforementioned global horizon, as well as

an individualist determination in the mental makeup of these pioneers.
Their efforts were part of the wider Scandinavian Pentecostal missionary
enterprise taking place in the first decades of the twentieth century. As
argued by Bundy, Scandinavian activity has been vital for the development
of global Pentecostalism, yet has been generally overlooked in scholarly
studies outside Scandinavia (Bundy 2009, 1–3).
At the time, no coordinating institution in Norway existed that could
influence candidates’ decisions to become missionaries or where to go.
Mission strategies and guidelines for the work were lacking in the new
movement. Also, no arrangement securing a regular income for the mis-
sionaries had been established. In line with their own and their fellow-
believers’ conviction, the pioneers trusted in the providence of God and the
guidance of the Holy Spirit. They belonged to different groups and assem-
blies, and are considered Pentecostal because they had joined the revival and
preached the gospel of rebirth and baptism in the Holy Spirit—not because

they represented any established congregation (Nilsen 1984, 31). Many

were “Free Friends” (Frie venner), an independent group associated with
the Holiness movement. In its first years, the center of the Pentecostal
revival in Kristiania was the Free Friends’ assembly at Torvgaten 7, whose
leader was Erik Andersen Nordquelle. He had welcomed Barratt and the
Pentecostal revival, in contrast to the Methodist Church, which had turned
against him (Bloch-Hoell 1964, 67–68; Bundy 2009, 177). The initial mis-
sion period of the Pentecostals and the Free Friends coincided, but subse-
quent developments would later create a schism between them, which will
be discussed later.

The Norwegian Mission Context

Inspired by the Pietist movement, the Danish-Norwegian monarchy sup-
ported Lutheran mission in India, Greenland, and among the Sami peo-
ples in the north of Norway during the eighteenth century (Danbolt
1947). A fundamental change took place in the nineteenth century, when
foreign mission became a major interest for the rising lay movement and
was no longer an elite activity controlled by state authorities. At the time
when the Pentecostals appeared, the bulk of mission activities were
directed by large lay organizations related to the Church of Norway and
to some extent by alliance missions and the interdenominational China
Inland Mission (CIM). A decisive move had been taken in 1842, when the
Norwegian Missionary Society (NMS) was founded by a triune c onfederacy
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consisting of Moravians,5 clergy in the Lutheran state church, and lay peo-
ple belonging to the revival instigated by evangelist Hans Nielsen Hauge
(1771–1824). The Hauge movement had stayed within the state church,
and the movement’s vital role in religious, economic, and political devel-
opments in Norway is universally recognized (Aarflot 1969; Kullerud
1996; Molland 1979; Sjursen 1993 and 1997, II, III, IV). The founda-
tion of NMS shaped the subsequent mission history of the country. This
is due to the great impact of the Missionary Society itself; in addition, it
functioned as a model for succeeding organizations affiliated with the
Church of Norway.6 When the Pentecostal movement arose, there was
already a nationwide mission culture rooted in the running of mission
organizations. Madagascar, China, and India were well-known mission
fields to domestic mission supporters. All the major organizations directed
their efforts to selected mission fields that were agreed to by democratic
decisions in boards and conferences. Money was collected in local mission

associations through gifts and bazaars. Missionaries had salaries and could
ask the central administration for extra grants for special needs or projects
(Jørgensen 1992; Mikaelsson 2003; Seland 2001; Slettan 1992).
This kind of orderly mission system had demonstrated its viability for
decades, but the Pentecostals questioned its spiritual character: Was the
system too worldly, too powerful, too little guided by the Holy Spirit
through spiritually equipped messengers? Yet, personal piety was not
absent in contemporary mission, deeply rooted as it was in the lay move-
ment and its pietistic religiosity. A subjective motivation, generally under-
stood as a personal missionary calling, was inevitable. This represented the
“inner call,” while an organization’s acceptance of a candidate was thought
of as an “outer call.” Together, they constituted a fulfillment of God’s
commission in Matthew 28: 18–20. The organizational apparatus invited
every participant to understand herself as part of the god-willed project.
Thus the mission call became a “democratic” idea and a vital ingredient in
the common identity nourished by the organizations: this was the ideo-
logical basis of the social and economic alliance between missionaries
abroad, administrative staff at home, and the large number of common
supporters meeting regularly in thousands of local auxiliary associations.
The missionaries filled the role of figures of identification throughout the
entire system. Their first-hand stories from the field, about charity, educa-
tion, and triumphant victories over “heathenism,” were told in letters,
reports, magazines, travelogues, and autobiographical accounts. These
were generally published by the organizations or affiliated publishers for a
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domestic audience intent on learning how the work was going. It was sup-
posed that the audience would appreciate stories confirming the positive
effects of mission as well as its fulfillment of divine will. Descriptions of
exotic scenery and strange customs often seasoned the accounts and made
for good entertainment. No wonder mission supporters at the coming of
Pentecostalism belonged to the most internationally oriented part of the
Norwegian public (cf. Mikaelsson 2003).
Norwegian Pentecostals were not unaffected by contemporary mission
culture and its legacy from the Hauge revival. Barratt and his followers
admired Hauge and looked upon him as a spiritual model; Barratt even
thought that Hauge had experienced a baptism in the Holy Spirit (Bundy
2009, 34). Thus in Norway, Pentecostal self-understanding and theory of
mission were not only inspired by Methodist and Holiness influences, but
also by the Pietist legacy, as Bundy has argued (2009, 32–38). The convic-
tion that other religions were “heathen” idolatry—widespread in Protestant
mission—found continuity among the Pentecostals (cf. Anderson 2009).

Parallel to the situation in other Norwegian missions, literary production

and emphasis on literacy became part of Pentecostal foreign mission. The
periodical “The Victory of the Cross” (Korsets Seier) was an arena for mis-
sion-related subjects from the outset. Besides, letters were welcomed in
other periodicals and local papers, and missionaries published book-length
accounts of their lives and experiences.7 If evangelism is the heart of
Pentecostal mission, its biblical focus necessitates literacy. Thus alphabeti-
zation has been a major missionary task. The distribution of tracts, news-
letters, and excerpts from the Bible has been a common working method.8
Written language and translations of the Bible in vernacular languages,
however, have generally been present in places where Norwegian
Pentecostals have worked (Nilsen 1984, 91). The corporate leadership
model developed by the main Lutheran organizations was not embraced
by the Pentecostals, and history demonstrates that finding pragmatic, insti-
tutional solutions to practical problems proved to be challenging. Nor did
the Pentecostals establish obligatory education for prospective missionar-
ies. Their educational background therefore varied. Bible courses, lan-
guage courses, and missionary courses abroad prepared them for the task.

Tension Between Spiritual Idealism and Practical

Circumstances
A premillennialist belief in the return of Christ affected the Pentecostal
understanding of the mission call and fueled the urge to bring the gospel to
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the “heathen world” (cf. Anderson 2009; McGee 2010). Matthew 24: 14:
“This gospel shall be preached to all nations and then the end shall come,”
guided the Pentecostals’ understanding of mission (Dyer 2011, 11). Spirit
baptism accompanied by glossolalia, as well as healing and prophecy, were
classical Pentecostal elements that were passed on to Third World converts.
The belief that xenolalia is a means to convey the gospel’s message in the
listeners’ native languages has been cherished in Pentecostal circles; Barratt
himself expressed such notions (Bloch-Hoell 1964, 87). Dagmar Engstrøm,
a Norwegian pioneer credited for bringing Pentecostalism to Germany,
declares that she was appointed by Barratt to take on this task because she
had spoken German in tongues without knowing the language (Engstrøm
1980, 23). The extreme idea that this gift is sufficient missionary e quipment
(cf. Anderson 2009, 121), making it unnecessary to learn foreign languages,

does not seem to have had any significant support among Norwegian
Pentecostals, however.
In any case, emphasis on the missionaries’ individual calling and spiritu-
ality characterized Pentecostal foreign mission in Norway from the start.
Initially, mission was primarily conceived as a relationship between the
missionary and God. The individual was the immediate divine instrument,
and did not need any social arrangements that could interfere with this
relationship. These ideas were not unfamiliar among Free Church groups
who were impacted by the Holiness movement or to supporters of inter-
denominational alliance missions. The Methodist missionary William
Taylor’s ideal of self-supporting missions was well known (Bundy 2009,
71–73), as was the “faith principle” of the China Inland Mission. The
“faith principle of support” holds that the missionary should not ask for
any support except in prayers to God, trusting Hudson Taylor’s famous
declaration: “God’s work done in God’s way will not lack God’s supply”
(Fiedler 1994, 28). Yet, fellow-believers at home were expected to sustain
the missionaries with their voluntary gifts. Thus they might function as
God’s instruments and partakers in the mission. Sometimes their assis-
tance was interpreted as divine intervention in acute situations of need or
distress, as my research in Norwegian mission literature has documented
(Mikaelsson 2003). Generally, accounts of this kind support the convic-
tion, not restricted to Pentecostals, that economy is a sphere where divine
providence is realized in a way that makes miracles happen, creating a nar-
rative blend of excitement and edification.
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Nevertheless, lack of stable means soon led to tangible problems for the
missionaries abroad. The common link between missionaries and the
Pentecostals at home was the periodical “The Victory of the Cross” (Korsets
Seir).9 It printed accounts of gifts to the missionaries as well as letters and
reports from them. Other papers publishing letters from the missionaries
were “The Good News” (Det gode budskap), published by Nordquelle, and
“The Missionary” (Missionæren), with Carl Magnus Seehuus as editor from
1914 (Bundy 2009, 316; Nilsen 1984, 32). Without a central institution
to distribute resources, the missionaries’ writing skills influenced the read-
ers’ willingness to supply their ministries with money. Yet, sporadic gifts
from family, friends, and assemblies were often insufficient for catering to
the missionaries’ needs. Besides, the somewhat unpredictable character of
the mission work itself sometimes created difficulties. This engendered
tension between spiritual and practical considerations, which modified
the individualized spiritual understanding of foreign mission.

When the Pentecostal Missionary Union was established in England,

Barratt was invited to its first general assembly in 1909. He returned full
of enthusiasm, and proposed that a similar organization in Norway should
be ventured. The reception among many followers was chilly, however,
bespeaking a critical approach to mission agencies that was not infrequent
in early Pentecostalism. The Assemblies of God, founded in 1914 in the
United States, had to tackle similar sentiments (cf. McGee 2010, 120–121,
140). Barratt’s followers supported foreign mission, but insisted that the
Holy Spirit should lead the work, not a human device (Ski 1967, 452).
Eventually, a Pentecostal mission organization, “Norway’s Free
Evangelical Heathen Mission” (Norges Frie Evangeliske Hedningemisjon),
was founded during the next few years. The opposition to it did not disap-
pear, however, and its existence was over when Barratt himself joined the
opponents. The idea that foreign mission should be anchored in local con-
gregations has since been dominant among Norwegian Pentecostals.

The Pioneers
Pentecostal historiographer Oddvar Nilsen names five men and 10 women
who became foreign missionaries during the period 1910–1913 (Nilsen
1984, 30–31). Four of these young women married foreign missionaries
and disappeared out of sight, and one of the young men died in China in
1912. Among the rest were Henrik Engstrøm and his wife Dagmar, who
founded the Banda mission in India; Parley Gulbrandsen and his wife
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Chrissie, who established mission in China, Gulbrandsen originally repre-

senting the Tsjili Mission run by “The Norwegian Missionary Alliance”
(Den Norske Misjonsallianse);10 Laura Strand and Anna Østreng in
Swaziland, where Strand founded the New Haven mission station; and in
Argentina, Berger N. Johnsen, who started the Embarcación mission in
the Salta Province there and took up a ministry among Indian tribes.
Several of the pioneers were sustained economically by the Free Friends.
Dagmar Engstrøm (1882–1984), born Gregersen, occupies a special
place in Norwegian Pentecostal history. She is recognized as the first
foreign missionary along with Agnes Thelle (1876–1968), having been
called to service in a way that has become part of Pentecostal lore. During
a private prayer meeting in Kristiania, a woman is said to have prophetically
proclaimed: “Dagmar, Dagmar, look, I will send you to the dark place of
Banda,”11 a name the young Dagmar had never heard of, but accepted as
the place she was destined by God to go to. It proved to be a district in

Northern India with a population of about 1 million people (Engstrøm

1980, 16). In the centenary publication “Pentecostal Mission over 100 years”
(Pinsemisjon i 100 år), the first article, illustrated with a large photo, is
devoted to Engstrøm’s missionary calling and lifelong service of the
movement (Johansen et al. 2010, 4–7). Her calling and her response
to it provided the mission with what might be called a mythical
beginning.12
Engstrøm was not just a pioneer in India. With her companion Agnes
Thelle, she brought the Pentecostal movement to Germany and
Switzerland during the summer of 1907. Representatives of the German
Gemeinschaftbewegung, a counterpart to the Lutheran Inner Mission in
Norway, were interested in the revival set in motion by Barratt, and the
two women were invited to Germany by Emil Meyer, leader of Hamburg
Strandmission, who had visited Kristiania and been impressed by what he
had witnessed. Engstrøm and Thelle first went to Hamburg, and then to
Kassel. In Kassel, their public meetings in the period July 7– August 2
resulted in commotion and negative reporting in the press. The reason for
this was the ecstatic experiences and extraordinary bodily phenomena that
had gradually turned the meetings into apparently chaotic occurrences.
The revival, called Die Kasseler Bewegung, was strongly opposed by reli-
gious and secular authorities in the region; even the German empress
denounced it (Bloch-Hoell 1964, 80; Bundy 2009, 204–206; Simpson
2011, 62–63). Evangelist Heinrich Dallmeyer, who had experienced bap-
tism in the Spirit himself when participating in the Hamburg meetings,
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had invited Engstrøm and Thelle to Kassel. He conducted the meetings in

the city, but did not succeed in maintaining control when the ecstatic
manifestations were at their strongest. Later, he joined other men in the
Gemeinschaftbewegung who repudiated the Pentecostal revival and
warned against the Spirit mediated by the women. The series of meetings
held by Engstrøm and Thelle at this time is nevertheless acknowledged as
the start of Pentecostalism in Germany (Meyer 2015, 97–101).13 In her
autobiography, Engstrøm presents her own version of these events. She
applauds the fire that inflamed the meetings in Kassel, and regards the
opposition as the work of Satan. Dallmeyer is dismissed as a traitor.
According to Engstrøm, he had confided to her and Thelle that he aban-
doned the revival for fear of losing his wages if he left the Lutheran church
(Engstrøm 1980, 25–34).
In 1908 the two women went to A.B. Simpson’s Missionary Training
Institute in New York. After finishing their education they traveled to

India together in March 1910. Some months later, Dagmar married mis-
sionary Carl Henrik Engstrøm. Faithful to the geographical specification
in her calling, the couple arrived in the city of Banda in 1911 with their
newborn son.14 After her husband’s early death in 1921, Dagmar contin-
ued in Banda on her own, with three children to provide for, until she
finally left India and returned to Norway in 1943, during the Nazi occu-
pation (Engstrøm 1980, 129).
Engstrøm’s autobiography “Have Faith in God. All is Possible for the
One Who Believes” (Ha tro til Gud. Alt er mulig for den som tror, 1980)
was published when the author was nearly 100 years old, but the book is
replete with lively memories.15 It portrays a character with never-wavering
faith, and a life abounding with spiritual experiences. At the beginning of
the twentieth century, deviations from central doctrines in the Lutheran
state church involved social costs; thus the author had to leave her position
as a schoolteacher after being rebaptized in 1907 (1980, 19). In her
description, “the dark place Banda” turns out to suffer from social want
and Hindu idolatry, true to the cliché of “heathen darkness.” More sur-
prisingly, the epithet is also used to characterize the colonial racism that
forbade Indians to enter the local English church in Banda (1980, 70–71).
In spite of the premillennialist insistence on the priority of evangelization
before the coming of Christ, the need and suffering that Pentecostal mis-
sionaries encountered in the Third World resulted in the founding of
schools, orphanages, clinics, and hospitals, as they did in other missions.
Engstrøm specifies that one aspect of the darkness of Banda was the karma
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doctrine that induced parents to abandon those children supposedly born

under an unlucky star. The misery of these little ones begging in the streets
soon moved the Engstrøm couple to establish an orphanage in Banda.
Here, banished widows were also allowed to settle. The children were
taken care of by Indian Bible women and sent to schools when they grew
older (Engstrøm 1980, 91–92).16
The international networking among Pentecostals in the first decades
of the twentieth century is illustrated in Engstrøm’s work. Like Barratt
before them (Barratt 2011, 180), Dagmar Engstrøm and Agnes Thelle
visited Pandita Ramabai’s Mukti Mission for young widows and orphans
near Pune. Ramabai (1858–1922) was an exceptional Indian woman: fem-
inist, scholar, author, educator, and social reformer. The honorific title
pandita (“learned”) was given her in Calcutta in 1873 as an acknowledge-
ment of her Sanskrit learning (Sugirtharajah 2005, 7610). In 1905, a
Pentecostal-type revival burst forth at the Mukti Mission, and hundreds of

young women brought the revival to villages in the district. This female-
led revival made the Mukti Mission a renowned Pentecostal center of
international importance (Anderson 2015, 2).17 Engstrøm and Thelle
spent about six months at the Mukti Mission, and Engstrøm paints an
enthusiastic portrait of Ramabai, representing her as a woman who believed
strongly in Christ, the Bible, and God’s guidance, and distanced herself
from the Hindu religion. Allegedly Ramabai was deeply impressed by the
mission call to Banda that had induced Engstrøm to go to India (Engstrøm
1980, 51–54). There is no trace in Engstrøm’s recital of the complex figure
described in other’s accounts of Ramabai, and whose religious commitment,
according to Sharada Sugirtharajah (2005), is not easily categorized. Neither
does Engstrøm report any feminist discussions taking place during their stay
at Mukti. In fact, feminist considerations have hardly any place in Engstrøm’s
book, except for a brief passage about veiled women wearing the purdah
(1980, 100–101), an example of a common stereotype of women’s misery
in “heathen” countries (cf. Mikaelsson 2005). The import of Engstrøm’s
silence should not be overestimated; rather, the account of her actions and
career indicates a person identifying with ideals of gender equality.

A Controversial Issue: How to Organize the Mission

Voluntary gifts were an unstable means of support. Besides, the practice
entailed unequal distribution of resources among colleagues in the same
field. Since there was no external control of how the means were allocated,
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nor of the activities individuals chose to undertake, problems of various

kinds often arose. The ideal of self-supporting mission turned out to be hard
to put into practice. When the Engstrøm couple was home on furlough,
steps were taken to procure an administrative institution in Norway to over-
see and regulate the mission work in Banda. A committee called “The Banda
Mission” (Bandamisjonen) was then officially established on January 1,
1914. Barratt accepted the office of chair, his wife Laura Barratt was secre-
tary, and Edvard Gasman treasurer (Bundy 2009, 321). From then on, gifts
to the Banda Mission would be sent to the treasurer, as opposed to directly
to the missionaries. Candidates for missionary work were required to pro-
duce letters of recommendation from their congregations, so that possible
“adventurers” could be eliminated. A medical certificate was required, as
was proficiency in the English language. No expansion in the mission work
in Banda should be undertaken without the committee’s permission (Bundy
2009, 321; Nilsen 1984, 33). Thus the Banda mission was organized with

a set of directives that sorted out the candidates, regulated activities in the
mission field, controlled its economy, and handed over the power of making
vital decisions to a home administration.
Barratt and missionaries in other fields realized that the existence of
some organizational structures could facilitate the work of their ministries.
At a large meeting in 1914 hosted by “The Tabernacle” (Tabernaklet) in
Skien, Telemark, Barratt suggested that the Pentecostals should develop
“a more joint form of mission activity in Norway” (Nilsen 1984, 34). He
was supported by the pastor of The Tabernacle, Carl Magnus Seehuus18
and others, and on January 30, 1915, the organization “Norway’s Free
Evangelical Heathen Mission” (Norges Frie Evangeliske Hedningemisjon;
NFEH)19 was founded. The statutes laid down that NFEH was open to
every Pentecostal congregation or assembly that wanted to join it, whether
in Norway or in the mission fields. Every such unit had the right to be
represented at the annual meeting of NFEH by its pastor or another
appointed person. To take care of the associated work, a mission council
with a chairman, treasurer, and secretary would be elected/re-elected at
the annual meeting. The council was NFEH’s executive body and had the
power to make vital decisions concerning the mission work and the estab-
lishment or expansion of mission stations, as well as the acceptance and
dispatch of missionaries. Several statutes give instructions to control the
use of economic resources, which was seen by some as an encroachment
on the spiritual freedom many valued so highly. Receipts of money were to
be published in “The Victory of the Cross” or “The Missionary”; both
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publications had reader networks that supported the mission economi-

cally. Yet, donors could still decide which mission would receive their gifts.
Barratt was elected chairman of the council, and his wife became secretary.
She was one of two women in the first council. A corresponding adminis-
trative unit, that is, a missionary council with chairman, treasurer, and
secretary, was to be established in every country in which NFEH mission-
aries worked. One of the council’s tasks was to draw up a budget plan for
the following year, but to be valid the budget had to be accepted by the
NFEH council in Norway (Nilsen 1984, 40–42).
More cooperation, and more control of personnel and resources within
a formalized leadership structure based on a democratic foundation made
the NFEH more bureaucratic and less “spiritual,” in other words more like
other mission agencies at the time. Not unexpectedly, the establishment of
what was understood as a haunting by the “ghost of organization” (Nilsen
1984, 45) was met with mixed feelings in the Pentecostal milieu. Berger

Johnsen in Argentina was one of those missionaries who worked all his life
without any congregation backing or substantial economic support
(Iversen 1946, 12). He seems to have had closer c onnections with the Free
Friends than with the Pentecostals associated with Barratt and the “Victory
of the Cross” network (Bundy 2009, 348). The Banda Mission had served
as a model for NFEH, but to the disappointment of Barratt and others the
Engstrøms chose not to join the new organization; thus the Banda Mission
committee continued as before. Dagmar Engstrøm just hints at the found-
ing of NFEH in her autobiography. At the time, she had decided that her
faith in God should be her only support, she says, confirming her stance
with a miracle story of the Lord supplying the mission station with money
at a critical moment (Engstrøm 1980, 102–105). Bundy indicates that the
Banda Mission and the Bilaspur Mission of Agnes Thelle Beckdahl refused
to join NFEH because they had lucrative contacts with congregations in
the United States that they did not want to be published in “The Victory
of the Cross” or “The Missionary.” However, the respected missionaries
Gunnerius Tollefsen (Congo) and Parley Gulbrandsen (China) gave the
new organization credibility by instantly joining it (Bundy 2009, 327–328).
Nonetheless, many Free Friends, including Nordquelle, were hostile
towards NFEH (Froholt 1997, 3). Barratt’s subsequent congregation policy
further estranged him from this group, which denounced denominations
and formalized congregations as ‘unbiblical’ and an origin of divisions
between believers. In 1910, while still a member of the Methodist church,
Barratt had founded an alliance assembly at Møllergaten 38 in Kristiania. In
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1916 he instituted a congregational order at “Møllergaten 38,” as the assem-

bly was popularly called until it was named Filadelfia in 1921. In accordance
with his vision of New Testament congregations, the Kristiania congregation
should be independent and self-governed, have a pastor and a board of
elders, thus realizing his understanding of the “biblical” model. Further,
members should be accepted and registered, an unacceptable measure in the
eyes of many Free Friends (Froholt 1997, 1). The same independent and
formalized congregation structure was to be implemented in the mission
fields. As a consequence of his founding this establishment, Barratt left the
Methodist Church in 1916.20 Subsequent history shows that the Filadelfia
model was copied around the country and inaugurated “the era of local con-
gregations” in Norwegian Pentecostalism. In the period 1917–1933, 130
local Pentecostal congregations were registered (Ski 1967, 457–460).21
Many of these were originally Free Friends assemblies, and the organizing
process often entailed bitterness and division between the followers of

Barratt’s line and the others, who remained Free Friends. As time went by,
the last-mentioned group established their own organization, “The Free
Evangelical Congregations” (De Frie Evangeliske Forsamlinger).
The congregation model was fundamental to the future organization of
foreign mission, and it contributed to the closing down of NFEH. It
turned out that the emphasis on the independent status of each congrega-
tion was difficult to reconcile with the superior authority of the NFEH
council, in spite of the organization’s relative success, having as it did, 30
missionaries in the mission fields in 1929 (Barratt 2011, 216; Nilsen 1984,
60).22 By this time Barratt had started to question the legitimacy of the
organization. He decided that a mission board with the power to control
the congregations’ activities and resources, be it home mission or foreign
mission, was unbiblical (Barratt 2011, 233). Consequently, he and his wife
withdrew from the NFEH in 1930. His actions did not gain universal sup-
port at the time, and a critical period for Norwegian Pentecostalism fol-
lowed (cf. Bundy 2009, 437–445). Yet, Barratt’s authority was such that
NFEH’s fate was sealed. In 1931 the organization was closed down except
for its work with the Congo mission, which was retained because the
Belgian authorities in Congo demanded there be a legal entity behind the
mission (Nilsen 1984, 60–64; Ski 1967a, 462).
Henceforth, local congregations took responsibility for the support of
one or more missionaries. “The Victory of the Cross,” which was pub-
lished by the Filadelfia congregation in Oslo, became the mission’s com-
munications organ, and here mission reports and receipts for money
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transactions would be published. The development in Norway paralleled

events taking place in Sweden, where Lewi Pethrus was instrumental in
the closing down of the “Swedish Free Mission” (Svenska fria missionen)
in 1929, which had been established five years earlier (Alvarsson 2011,
28). Barratt and Pethrus were close, and Barratt was probably influenced
by the events in Sweden (Ski 1967, 460). Initially the rearrangement
caused a variety of problems, but gradually the mission work stabilized in
accordance with the new circumstances.

Development of a Lasting Organizational Structure

The 1930s were marked by a rapid Pentecostal growth both domestically
and in the mission fields. When the Second World War broke out in 1939,
the number of Norwegian missionaries had grown from 30 to 75.
The number shrank to 60 missionaries during the war, but in 1945 more

than 100 people were ready to depart for the mission fields (Johansen et
al. 2010, 20; Nilsen 1984, 79). The expansion was welcomed, but difficult
to handle for the congregations. No one had a general overview of the
situation, and a need for administrative assistance and cooperation was
felt. Thus the fear of a central organization that would affect the indepen-
dence of the congregations, a fear that was still existent in many quarters,
was surmounted by acute need.
The first step was to establish the position of mission secretary in the
Filadelfia congregation in Oslo in 1946. The reputable Congo missionary
Gunnerius Tollefsen (1888–1966) was appointed to the job.23 He was to
serve all Pentecostal congregations and groups in Norway who needed his
assistance; the secretary therefore had a key role on a national level. The
next stage was the emergence of conferences related to the different mis-
sion fields, such as the South America conference and the East Africa con-
ference. They functioned as meeting places for missionaries and
representatives of the cooperating congregations supporting them. The
field conferences and their respective working committees were officially
accepted at a national Pentecostal conference in Oslo in 1949. Common
funds were allotted to each field, and missionary salaries, travel regula-
tions, and other practical affairs were handled within this framework
(Nilsen 1984, 81–82; Ski 1967a, 467–470).
The organizational structure comprising mission secretary, field confer-
ences, and working committees was thought to combine congregational
and administrative interests. With adjustments and personnel growth this
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model has survived to the present. The field committees were closed down
in 2008 and replaced with mission country committees (Johansen et al.
2010, 104). The secretary has been promoted to general secretary, and is
now assisted by a staff of eight employees, plus volunteers. Presently, the
mission fields are apportioned to four main regions, Africa, America, Asia,
and Europe, each with a regional secretary subordinated to the general sec-
retary. The acronym PYM, short for De norske pinsemenigheters ytremisjon
(“The Norwegian Pentecostal Congregations’ Outer Mission”),24 is gener-
ally used to refer to the organization. It is defined as a “nonprofit associa-
tion” in the statutes, and functions as a coordinating office for the mission
work run by affiliated congregations.25 Well-informed readers will be famil-
iar with the sometimes confusing use of “PYM” in Pentecostal texts: On the
one hand, PYM, or its full name, may refer to the missionary activities that
have been going on since 1910; in other words it is not a formal name but
a denotation. On the other, PYM may be used as the name of the organiza-
tional structure that has developed since 1946. Even more confusingly,

PYM may be used to refer to both, perhaps signifying the lasting influence
of anti-organizationism. The congregations still function as employers and
take responsibility for sending out missionaries, thus preserving the inde-
pendent, decentralized structure that has been so strongly emphasized in
the above history. For now, PYM does not have a complete overview of
Pentecostal mission activities. There are independent missionaries and mis-
sion foundations, some of which are private, while others are attached to
local congregations (PYM 2015).26 Thus Pentecostal foreign mission in
Norway takes the form of a rather fragmented and complex conglomerate.

Summary of the Missionary Expansion

Looking at the number of missionaries, mission countries, stations, and
activities from 1910 onwards, the word “expansion” can be said to sum up
missionary development during this period. This growth has made PYM
the third largest mission agency in Norway, with the widest geographical
range. Today, PYM missionaries work in 30 different countries. In addi-
tion, PYM has partnerships with 19 more countries, and missionary activi-
ties in a number of countries details of which are kept secret for security
reasons. Yet, the decrease in missionary activities that has taken place in
Norway more generally has also befallen the classical Pentecostalism repre-
sented by PYM and its 293 affiliated congregations. As of 2015, the num-
ber of active missionaries who were sent from Norway is 94, including 24
retired missionaries who still work abroad or commute. This is a marked
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decline compared with earlier periods. It is necessary to take into account

the broader picture, however. Partnerships with national Pentecostal
churches have become a common mode for work, and Norwegian mis-
sionaries have to a great extent been substituted by local evangelists. The
global diffusion of Pentecostalism makes financial support of homegrown
projects and collaborators in many cases a preferable use of Norwegian
resources. Today, the PYM leadership estimates that 300 million NOK
(Norwegian crowns) are spent on mission purposes abroad.27
Until the Second World War, growth was concentrated in the original
mission countries, India, China, Swaziland, and Argentina, supplemented
with Congo, Iceland,28 and Brazil. In Brazil, Ragna and Leonard Pettersen
began their work as representatives of the Arvika congregation in Sweden,
but they had additional support from various Norwegian congregations. In
1936, Paraguay received its first Norwegian missionary (Nilsen 1984,
75–76). In 1946, it was settled that Israel would become a mission country,

and in the same year Thailand and the Faeroe Islands received their first
Pentecostal missionaries from Norway. In 1947, Chile, Tibet, and Kenya
were added. Also, three missionaries went to South Africa that year
(Nilsen 1984, 88–89). The expansion continued into the 1950s, when mis-
sions were opened in Japan, Morocco, Bolivia, Basutoland, Taiwan, Nepal,
and the West Indies. Further expansion took place in the 1960s, adding
Tanzania, Mozambique, Peru, Pakistan, Myanmar, and Greenland to the
list. From the 1970s onwards, activities were started in Honduras, Madeira,
Somalia, Niger, the Philippines, and Rwanda. In addition, the 1970s saw a
greater focus on Europe (Nilsen 1984, 132–133). The year 1980 seems to
represent the heyday of the Norwegian Pentecostal mission; on its seventi-
eth anniversary celebration this year, it was reported that 350 missionaries
were working in 30 different countries (Johansen et al. 2010, 76). Statistics
published in 2010 demonstrates that 40,4 percent of a total of about 1000
missionaries has worked in Africa, 24,6 percent in Latin America, 22,2 percent
in Asia, and 12,8 percent in Europe (Johansen et al. 2010, 108). Both efforts
and results vary when comparing the countries. This variation can be partly
explained by the Pentecostal respect for the individual missionary vocation and
its specific geographical assignment. Moreover, the large variety of countries
would hardly have been probable given a more corporate and less spiritual
apparatus to handle the choice of mission fields.
Before the Communist Revolution, the greatest progress had taken
place in China. Parley and Chrissie Gulbrandsen had attended the inaugu-
ral meeting of NFEH in May 1915, and afterwards prepared to return to
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China under its aegis. Back in China in 1916, they settled in Sin-Pao-an in
Chih-li Province and made it the center of their activities. The Gulbrandsens
established a partnership with the capable Chinese Pentecostal David Li,
and their successful ministry resulted in new congregations in nearby cities
and towns under the leadership of Chinese pastors (Bundy 2009, 339). At
the turn of the year 1936/37, there were eight main mission stations with
many affiliated minor stations and Sunday schools. When the Communist
revolution prohibited all Christian missions in 1949, it has been estimated
that a total of more than 40 missionaries operated in the country and
more than 1000 members of the congregations were left behind (Rudolf
and Jones 1967, 483–484, see also Bundy 2009, 3). After the revolution
a number of the missionaries went to Japan. Here, seven mission stations
were operational in 1952.29 In contrast to troubled China, with its
crowds of refugees and robber gangs, civilized Japan proved to be a stub-
born mission field. The scarce number of converts here has invited the

metaphor of fishing with a fishing rod (Nilsen 1984, 98–99), as opposed to

the “fishing net” success in Congo, where multitudes were “captured.”
The Congo mission is considered the most successful of the Norwegian
Pentecostals’ missions. It goes back to 1915, when Gunnerius Tollefsen
went to Congo, not under the aegis of NFEH, but of the Congo Inland
Mission. This mission was founded in 1911 by the Pentecostalist Alma
Doering from Ohio, backed by American Holiness Mennonites.
Scandinavian Pentecostals viewed Doering’s as a partner mission; however,
cooperation with the Americans turned out to be frustrating for the
European missionaries (Bundy 2009, 329–330). When Tollefsen returned
to Norway in 1919, he advocated greater commitment among Norwegian
Pentecostals for mission in Congo, and was supported by Barratt. Lewi
Pethrus and other Swedish Pentecostals were also interested in opening a
mission in the country. Thus an expedition led by Tollefsen on behalf of
Norwegian and Swedish Pentecostals departed for eastern Congo in
1921 in order to find a suitable field. In 1922 the expedition settled in Nya
Kaziba in the Kivu Province in Belgian Congo (Zaire). Here they started a
ministry in cooperation with tribal leaders (Bundy 2009, 334–335). Nya
Kaziba, with neighboring kingdoms Nya Luindja and Muganga, became
the Norwegian field (Ski 1967a, 496–499). As early as 1923, the mission-
aries reported a revival comprising several hundred converts (Nilsen 1984,
50–51). In 1925, Tollefsen published “In the Interior of Africa. Experiences
and Impressions from an Expedition Journey” (I Afrikas indre. Oplevelser
og inntrykk fra en ekspedisjonsreise), a book describing the expedition and
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the first years of the work in Congo, also demonstrating the disastrous
effects of European colonial exploitation in this part of Africa. The book
has been characterized as “the first Pentecostal book-length missiological
analysis of a particular mission field” (Bundy 2009, 336).
After 25 years of work, there had been significant growth in all respects:
the mission staff now numbered 26 missionaries and between 70 and 80
Congolese assistants, five major mission stations and 40 affiliated minor
stations were in use, between 3000 and 4000 children attended the schools,
and 1000 people had been baptized (Nilsen 1984, 83). Ten years later, the
number of baptized Congolese had increased to 6205. A hospital in Nya
Kaziba was finished in 1958, and a Bible school started in 1956 at the mis-
sion station Muganga. Furthermore, it was reported in 1952 that 17,000
copies of Barratt’s booklet “Clues in the Word of God” (Ledetråd i Guds
ord, 1936) translated into Swahili, had been sold (Nilsen 1984, 95). The
Republic of the Congo gained its independence in 1960, and the changing

times were reflected in a decision by the field conference that year: hence-
forth the mission work would be directed by a council consisting of mis-
sionaries alongside Congolese pastors and elders. The placing of Congolese
people in new leadership positions on equal terms with the missionaries
was historic (Nilsen 1984, 93–96). However, political turbulence follow-
ing in the wake of national independence worsened working conditions for
the missionaries. As a result, in 1967 all of them had returned to Norway.
The interruption proved to be short, and progress continued in spite of
political unrest. In 1979, the “Norwegian” field encompassed 47 congre-
gations, with a total of 37,559 members, while 9586 candidates were pre-
paring for baptism (Nilsen 1984, 126).
In 1995, the national church Communauté des Eglises Libres de
Pentecôte en Afrique (CELPA) was established. The Congo mission then
transferred its work to that church. With the financial assistance of Norwegian
authorities, specifically the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation
(NORAD), CELPA has been able to develop an extensive network of
schools and health institutions in parts of Congo. Presently, CELPA consists
of 650 congregations with 300,000 members. It is a mission church with
ministries in several African countries (Johansen et al. 2010, 95).
It has been maintained that the success of the long-lasting revival in
Congo surpasses that of every other revival occasioned by Norwegian
Pentecostal missionaries. A possible competitor might be the notable
revival that took place at Gran Chaco in the 1930s, after Berger Johnsen
(1888–1945) had invested 20 years of strenuous work with little result in
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Argentina. When he came to the Salta Province in 1914, the Indians were
so hostile towards white people that it was dangerous to approach the
places where they lived. Johnsen never gave up on gaining their confi-
dence, however, and little by little he succeeded. According to his descrip-
tion, the revival suddenly started when he was speaking at a large meeting
at which the crowd ecstatically experienced the presence of the Holy Spirit.
From then on “the fire” spread among the Indians (Iversen 1946, 6–7;
Johansen et al. 2010, 12–13; Nilsen 1984, 75).

The Evidence of Faith World Evangelism

A remarkable mission agency in Norwegian Pentecostalism is the indepen-
dent foundation The Evidence of Faith World Evangelism (Troens Bevis
Verdens Evangelisering). Its center, the “Valley of Saron” (Sarons Dal), was
established in 1965. It is situated in the valley of Kvinesdal, in Vest-Agder

county, southern Norway. The founder, Aril Edvardsen (1938–2008), was

a renowned evangelist and one of the most innovative Christian leaders in
Norway in his lifetime. Edvardsen’s financial success, ecumenical profile,
and openness towards the Charismatic Movement resulted in a long-lasting
conflict between the Valley of Saron and central Pentecostal leaders
(Alvarsson 2015, 49).30 His mission strategy was to support local Evangelists
in their native countries instead of sending missionaries from Norway; thus
Edvardsen was a forerunner to a development that was common in the mis-
sion in later years, exemplified here by the Congo mission described above.
Nor did he create a mission organization; summer rallies and money collec-
tions through his magazine “Evidence of Faith” (Troens Bevis) secured
moral and financial support for Edvardsen’s projects. Hundreds of
Evangelists connected to local churches were funded in this way.
Since 1970, the summer rallies in the Valley of Saron have annually
attracted thousands of participants. Since the 1960s, many countries,
notably in Eastern Europe, have been visited by Edvardsen’s meeting cam-
paigns. From the 1990s onwards, the campaigns focused on the Muslim
world, where Edvardsen established contacts with political authorities—a
strategy that was criticized by fellow Christians in Norway. In addition,
Edvardsen was a pioneer in mass media mission, with his radio and televi-
sion programs being broadcast in many countries. Since 1997, these have
been distributed by a satellite broadcaster covering the Middle East, parts
of Africa, and Asia. Today, Edvardsen’s son Rune Edvardsen is the leader
of the Valley of Saron (Rimehaug 2010).
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A Woman-Dominated Mission?
The foregrounding of Dagmar Engstrøm in the Norwegian Pentecostal
Movement’s centenary publication may well be interpreted as a tribute to
all the “sisters” that have served the mission. “Pentecostal Mission over
100 Years” demonstrates the preponderance of women. A list included in
the publication, containing the names of about 1000 people who have
been engaged in foreign mission for longer or shorter periods, documents
this fact (Johansen et al. 2010, 108–112). The gender distribution is nei-
ther specified nor commented on in the document, but my counting
shows that about 620 of the people enlisted are or were women.31 Aside
from this numerical preponderance, it would be extravagant to consider
the mission as woman-dominated. For one thing, all the mission secretar-
ies so far have been male. Most of the well-known missionaries are men.

Yet, without these women’s engagement the mission would not have
developed into the important force it has proven to be. Since gender rela-
tions in the movement have not been studied in depth, a few cases will be
mentioned here that indicate the multifaceted nature of the gender issue;
these examples are on a global scale and occurred within a 100-year period,
and vary according to time, place, the individuals involved as well as the
local conditions.
Barratt’s attitude was probably a decisive factor in the first decades.
Dagmar Engstrøm and Agnes Thelle belonged to Barratt’s following in
Kristiania; their pioneering missionizing in Europe had his sympathy and
support. The fact that Laura Barratt and another woman were members of
the NFEH Mission Council bespeaks an open attitude to women’s roles
on his part. In fact, Barratt was an outspoken critic of religious and worldly
patriarchy. In “The Victory of the Cross” he supported women’s minis-
tries and their right to preach (Bundy 2009, 417–418). His views are
expressed in the booklet “Woman’s Position in the Congregation”
(Kvinnens stilling i menigheten, 1933). Using the New Testament, espe-
cially the Pauline letters, as an authoritative guide, Barratt argues that the
apostle was the founder of women’s emancipation (Barratt 1933, 7). He
ascertains that women’s qualifications enable them to perform all kinds of
tasks in society and, called by the Holy Spirit, women are ready to fill every
congregational role (Barratt 1933, 31–33).
Judging from later debates on these issues (cf. Hoaas and Tegnander
1984), Barratt’s standpoint was much more radical than his successors’.
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

This is argued in a recent study, which documents that attitudes are chang-
ing (Gunnestad 2015). According to the general secretary of PYM, today
there are no formal rules preventing women’s taking leadership p ositions.32
Still, a recent debate in the Christian daily “Our Country” (Vårt Land)
indicates that a number of Pentecostal women experience a male culture
that impedes their seeking leadership positions and taking up preaching
(cf. Aalborg 2014; Arntsen 2015; Myklebust 2014).
In the mission field, however, women have been able to preach and exer-
cise leadership. Perhaps the most illustrious example of this tendency is Liv
Haug (born 1943), a highly decorated Pentecostal missionary in the Peruvian
Perené district in the Amazon jungle. Combining mission with entrepre-
neurial skills, Haug was elected chairman in Villa Perené (1982–1983), and
Province Governor in the Perené region (1996–2002); both commissions
reveal the high regard in which she is held by the local population. She
arrived in Peru in 1971, and in 1973 she founded the congregation Iglesia
Evangélica Filadelfia in Villa Perené, the province capital. The congregation,
with 350 active members in 2010, is the basis for a large number of activities

and projects. Sunday schools, Bible lessons, leader training, and radio
broadcasting are all activities anchored in the congregation. More than 3000
women have been helped through the project “Women in Progress” (Kvinner
i fremgang), and a sponsor system takes care of the poorest children. Starting
with a bridge over Rio Perené, Haug has initiated a great number of build-
ing projects to improve the living conditions of the local population
(Johansen et al. 2010, 38; Tveit 2011).
However, mission literature indicates a complex picture as to gender.
Haug and a large number of devoted women remained single, thus
enabling them to devote all their energy to the ministry. Berly Aarre
Solvoll’s “In the Hand of the Master” (I mesterens hånd, 1983) testifies
that Pentecostal women trying to combine ministry and married life may
face problems. The author claims that she was called and guided by God
to become a missionary, but after marrying the well-known missionary
Arnulf Solvoll, he seems to have controlled her life. Seven children (three
of whom died in the mission field) made it necessary for her to concen-
trate on household tasks. The couple seemingly disagreed about priorities;
he uncompromisingly gave preference to his own missionary concerns,
while she emphasized the children’s needs. After having twice submitted
to his demands that the family should go on furlough, she refused to
return to Japan with him after the furlough had ended because of the dis-
ruption this would cause to the children’s schooling. Interestingly, the
decision is described in terms of a divine intervention. In despair over how
to manage on her own in Norway with the children, she was comforted by
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God with the declaration “Your creator is your husband”33 (Solvoll 1983,
148). Solvoll became convinced that, in addition to supporting her revolt
in this way, God had called her to take on children’s work at home (1983,
146). When her husband returned, she was not prepared to accept him as
head of the family any longer (1983, 153).
Presumably, Solvoll’s submission is representative of many couples in
the past, but her frank account of revolt and its spiritual legitimation is
unusual in Norwegian mission literature. The social context at the time of
publication gives a key to its frankness: The 1970s was a decade of feminist-
inspired gender transformation in Norway, and by the 1980s the lives of
missionary children had surfaced as a contested issue in the public sphere
(Mikaelsson 2003, 184–185, see also Drønen and Skjortnes 2010).
Solvoll’s spiritual view of the situation indicates how empowering a sub-
jective experience of divine support may be for a woman defying conven-
tional gender norms.

A general comment on the above exposition is that Norwegian Pentecostal

mission exhibits Protestant women’s thrust towards equality and authority
when they are confident that their ministries represent the will of God—all
the more convincingly if God has communicated it directly to them. A sec-
ond condition is a social and religious framework that accepts, or at least does
not undermine, women’s aspirations (cf. Fiedler 1994; Okkenhaug 2003).

Final Comments
Today, Pentecostalism is a dynamic religious current operating on a global
scale, and since its earliest days Norwegians have contributed to its growth.
Thomas Ball Barratt was an important harbinger of the Pentecostal mes-
sage to Europe; his enthusiasm moved a number of young Norwegians to
go abroad with the same message. The Norwegian Pentecostal mission
grew into a significant agency that has affected religion and living condi-
tions in a great number of countries, and still does. The question of how
to organize a foreign mission has proven to be a contested spiritual issue
and has not been solved once and for all. The mission as a whole is char-
acterized by decentralization, which distinguishes it from most other
mission agencies in Norway. Women have dominated numerically, but
men have generally taken the leadership positions. Yet, women have been
able to do “men’s work” in the mission fields, holding positions of author-
ity and leadership there that have not been open to them in Norway.
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Acknowledgment I would like to thank the general secretary of PYM, Bjørn

Bjørnø, for his obligingness in answering my questions and providing me with
information.

Notes
1. The heading refers to a Pentecostal traveling mission exhibition “Win
the World” (Vinn Verden) in 1965. On board the ship, M/S Sailing Fair,
the exhibition visited large parts of the Norwegian coast (Nilsen 1984, 121).
2. The book is a translated and revised edition of Bloch-Hoell’s doctorate the
sis: Pinsebevegelsen: En undersøkelse av. pinsebevegelsens tilblivelse, utvikling og
særpreg med særlig henblikk på bevegelsens utforming i Norge (1956).
3. The paper was established in 1904, after Barratt had founded the interde-
nominational society “Kristiania City Mission” (Kristiania Bymisjon) in
1902. “The City Mail” (Byposten), renamed “The Victory of the Cross”
(Korsets Seir) in 1909 was the first European Pentecostal periodical (Bundy
2009, 17). Later, the spelling changed to Korsets Seier.

4. Word and Witness was originally an American periodical of the Church of

God in Christ related to Charles Parham’s Apostolic Faith Movement. In
1914, it became an official periodical of the Assemblies of God.
5. “Moravians” is the English name of a branch of the Pietist movement. It
originated in Sachsen, Germany, where Count Zinzendorf established a
place of refuge, Herrnhut, for Protestant dissidents in 1722. The Moravian
revival (Brødremenigheten) reached Norway in the 1730s. By the year
1800 Moravian groups existed in a number of Norwegian cities, but the
movement was practically extinguished by the 1880s, according to church
historian Einar Molland. The Moravians were keen supporters of foreign
mission (Molland 1979, 98–105; Øverland 1987).
6. Cf. “the Santal Mission” (Santalmisjonen), founded in 1867, and “the
Norwegian Lutheran Mission” (Norsk Luthersk Misjonssamband), founded
in 1891.
7. The most prolific Pentecostal writer was Robert Bergsaker (1914–2009),
who had a notable missionary career in India and Nepal. An obituary states
that Bergsaker published 23 books besides newspaper and magazine arti-
cles (Bjøro 2009).
8. As a response to the lack of suitable reading matter in the local languages,
“The Pentecostals’s Literature Mission” (Pinsevennenes Litteraturmisjon)
was established in 1950. The Pentecostal publishing company Filadelfiaforlaget
undertook the task of providing books and papers (Nilsen 1984, 90).
9. The periodical was published in Swedish, Finnish, Spanish, and Russian
editions (Bundy 2009, 18). As mentioned earlier, the spelling later became
Korsets Seier.
10. The first Norwegian Pentecostal missionaries in China seem to have been
Magna and Bernt Berntsen. According to Allan Anderson, the couple had
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

experienced Spirit baptism on Azusa Street in 1907, and went to China in

1908 with a team of 13 missionaries to settle in Zhengding, 200 miles
southeast of Beijing. In 1914 the Berntsens founded the Chinese periodi-
cal Popular Gospel Truth, connected with a church called Faith Union
(Anderson 2009, 122–123).
11. In Norwegian: “Dagmar, Dagmar, se jeg sender deg. til det mørke sted
Banda.” Banda is situated 600 kilometres southeast of New Delhi in the
Uttar Pradesh region.
12. The story is also told in Oddvar Nilsen’s history (Nilsen 1984, 28–29).
13. In recognition of her status as the first person to proclaim the Pentecostal
gospel in Germany, Engstrøm was invited as an honorable guest and
speaker to a large Pentecostal anniversary congress in Hamburg in 1977
(Engstrøm 1980, 143).
14. Agnes Thelle established her own mission in Bilaspur near the Nepalese
border. In 1915 she married Danish missionary Christian Beckdahl (Bundy
2009, 323; Nilsen 1984, 30).

15. Readers of the book are not informed whether Engstrøm had written
diaries, letters, or published articles about her work which might have
helped her memory.
16. “Biblewomen” is a term for a native female mission worker and collabora-
tor. Biblewomen would contribute to evangelization and offer various
kinds of assistance.
17. Anderson mentions the Mukti Mission’s impact on Latin American
Pentecostalism, particularly in Chile. This was due to the intervention of
Minnie Abrams, Ramabai’s right-hand assistant. Abrams wrote a booklet,
The Baptism of the Holy Ghost and Fire (1906), which inspired Methodist
churches in Valparaiso and Santiago to pray for a similar revival. This revival
actually took place in 1909, and became the starting point of a movement
resulting in the Chilean Pentecostal churches (Anderson 2015, 3).
18. The congregation led by Carl Magnus Seehuus (1864–1951) was origi-
nally Baptist. When news of the Welsh revival reached it, a revival including
speaking in tongues arose in 1905. Seehuus and his congregation then
became Pentecostal in 1908 (Bundy 2009, 317). It is counted as the first
Pentecostal congregation in Norway. David Bundy describes the relation-
ship between Barratt and Seehuus as competitive.
19. Originally the organization was named Norges Frie Evangeliske
Missionsforbund, but the name was changed when an organization with a
similar name, Det Norske Misjonsforbund, complained (Nilsen 1984, 39).
20. In 1919 “believers’ baptism” (troendedåp) was introduced as a criterion for
membership (Selbekk 2006, 157).
21. Barratt characterizes “Møllergaten 38” as the “mother congregation” of
all the other Pentecostal assemblies in Norway (Barratt 2011, 213).
22. Oddvar Nilsen mentions that the total number of Pentecostal missionaries
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

at this time was about 50—in other words 20 missionaries were not associ-
ated with NFEH (Nilsen 1984, 67).
23. Aside from his pioneering work in the Congo and office as the first mission
secretary (1946–1964), Gunnerius Tollefsen was a scholar and a prolific
author. During his Congo period he published ethnographic studies and
wrote the first Norwegian grammar of two local languages: Kiswaheli and
Chinyabongo (Ski 1967b, 953–954). Gunnerius and his wife Oddbjørg
Tollefsen adopted the Greek-Egyptian boy Emanuel Minos (1925–2014),
who became a legendary preacher in Swedish and Norwegian Pentecostalism.
24. The English name is The Pentecostal Foreign Mission of Norway. Formerly,
Pinsevennenes Ytre Misjon seems to have been the name in common use.
25. There are at present 293 congregations according to general secretary
Bjørn Bjørnø (personal communication, January 10, 2015).
26. This was also communicated to me by general secretary Bjørn Bjørnø
(February 10, 2015).

27. Letter signed by general secretary Bjørn Bjørnø, February 12, 2015.
28. According to Oddvar Nilsen, Pentecostalism was brought to Iceland in
1920 by the Norwegian evangelist Erik Aasbø, who had also been present
at the founding of the Pentecostal congregations in Göteborg and Örebro
(Nilsen 1984, 55). David Bundy, however, referring to Petúr Petúrsson’s
Från väckelse til samfund (1990), imparts a more complex account of the
early history of Pentecostalism in Iceland (Bundy 2009, 224).
29. In Kobe, Kyoto, Nagoya, Seto, Fukui-Mikuni, Katsuyama, and Takefu
(Nilsen 1984, 98).
30. A discourse analysis of the condemnation of Edvardsen by these leaders in
the period 1965–1978 was undertaken by Terje Hegertun in Norsk
tidsskrift for misjonsvitenskap (2009).
31. For several reasons more accurate figures are not given here. First, because
there are a few names on the list for which I was unable to be certain of the
gender. Second, a reservation (cf. Johansen et al. 2010, 108) indicates that
probably there have been non-registered missionaries. Third, sheer numbers
are no reliable indication of the scope and significance of the missionary work
carried out by the two genders. Married men have had better opportunities
to spend their time on work outside the household than married women.
Also, the list says nothing about how long the individual has been in the field.
32. General secretary Bjørn Bjørnø (personal communication, February 10,
2015).
33. In Norwegian: “Din skaper er din ektemann.” The sentence is a citation
from Isaiah 54: 5. In mission literature the deity often speaks in biblical
phrasing (Mikaelsson 2010).
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Internal Dynamics
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In the Wake of God’s Fire:

Transforming Charisma and Charismata
in the Reconstruction of a Local Church

Jane Skjoldli

“We’re pretty fresh out of a crisis a few years back,” began Matthew.
“People think we are Living Word. We are not. That church is dead. It
doesn’t exist anymore. We have the same address and the same building,
but a lot has changed. The name is just one of those things. We still believe
in the same God, but the leadership has been replaced completely. Only
one of those who used to be involved in leadership still is.”
Matthew is one of the respondents in an ethnographic study on a local
Charismatic church in Bergen, Norway, carried out in the summer of
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

2013. The church was formerly known as “Living Word” (Levende Ord),
and to some extent still is, despite being renamed “The Credo Church”
(Credokirken) in 2009. In the quote above, Matthew points out similari-
ties and differences between the two. To the extent that Living Word still
exists, it is in the form of the Credo Church: Both churches believe in the
same God and reside in the same building, he says. Nevertheless, much
has changed. Among the changes he chose to draw attention to were
those made to the leadership.

J. Skjoldli (*)
University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway

© The Author(s) 2018 81

Through participant observation at Sunday services and other events;

formal interviews and informal conversations over coffee; post-service
Sunday dinners; small group meetings; and by reading news material, pro-
motional material, and master theses on the church (Bryne 2007;
Steinhovden 2006), I learned that the Credo Church’s leadership involves
new practices as well as new personnel, differences in structure as well as
ideals. At Living Word, authority was primarily ascribed to the founder and
senior pastor. Leadership at the Credo Church is also headed by a senior
pastor, but it also involves a management team and a board with whom he
collaborates. Moreover, leaders are accountable to a set of statutes and the
church’s general assembly, which includes all registered members, was
established and is empowered to change church practice and policy. In
Weberian terms, authority has shifted from a deeply charismatic form to a
more rationalized form—a process commonly referred to as the routiniza-
tion of charisma (Weber 1947, 363), which informs the analysis below. As
terminological irony would have it, Weberian charismatic authority among
Charismatics is often tied to the very practices they associate with the term
Weber recruited for his conceptualization of the term, namely the charis-
mata—the gifts and manifestations of the Holy Spirit. Living Word was no
exception. Typically, routinization of charisma is regarded as a necessity
following the loss of a charismatic leader. Sometimes, however, a leader’s
loss of charismatic authority precedes the loss of the leader himself (see e.g.
Weber 1947, 359–60; Yukl 1999, 297). This appears to have been the case
at Living Word. When members discontinued attributing charismatic
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authority to the leader, a group within the congregation created the previ-
ously nonexistent means for deposing the leader. The process began due to
disagreement over leadership style, which was perceived as too authoritar-
ian, even to the point of autocracy (Hellesund 2006). Furthermore, alloca-
tion of church funds had come under scrutiny from local authorities
(Wiederstrøm 2006). As the discussion will show, however, gifts and mani-
festations were themselves important pieces of the puzzle regarding how
charismatic authority diminished, but also how it was reconstructed.
What can the members interviewed for this study teach us about
gifts and manifestations on the one hand, and the construction of
charismatic authority on the other? This chapter examines that ques-
tion mainly on the basis of semi-structured interviews with members
of the Credo Church, who were also members of Living Word. The
exploration is divided into three main sections: The first discusses the
two concepts of charisma relevant to this study. Applying a Weberian

perspective, the second section examines authority transformations as

part of the congregation’s reconstruction process. The third section
analyzes respondents’ approaches to gifts and manifestations in light
of the discussion on authority transformations.

Making Sense of Charisma

For the purposes of the following analysis, two main concepts of charisma
need to be addressed. The first is the Weberian concept of charisma—a
sociological concept that constitutes an essential component of Weber’s
theory of the three sources of legitimate authority. Charisma in this respect
underpins charismatic forms of authority, which are considered “inher-
ently unstable and temporary” (Weber 1947, 71), as opposed to tradi-
tional and rational forms.
The second concept is perhaps best described as a cluster of Christian
notions connected to the emic term charisma. According to Barclay
M. Newman, Jr.’s Greek-English dictionary of the New Testament, cha-
risma (plural: charismata) denotes a “gift as an expression of divine grace,”
or “a special manifestation of the divine presence, activity, power or glory”
(1993, 197, italics added). Both are reflected in Norwegian Charismatic
terms, where the word commonly used for charismata is “gifts of grace”
(nådegaver) and “manifestations of the Spirit” (Åndsmanifestasjoner). The
interviews were all conducted in Norwegian, and the transcript translations
into English are my own. In order for the text to stay as close as possible to
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the original Norwegian responses, I have chosen to apply “gifts of grace”

rather than the English idiomatic term spiritual gifts, which is more closely
related to the Greek term anyway (see also Poloma 1997, 259).
What experiences and practices constitute the emic categories corre-
sponding to the terms “gifts of grace” and “manifestations of the Spirit”?
The question is rarely asked in Pentecostal studies, despite acknowledg-
ment that the answers are subject to variation among practitioners (Skjoldli
2014, 95). Furthermore, the terms are sometimes used interchangeably,
but may also refer to separate categories. An illustrative example is how ele-
ments ascribed to the “gifts” category tend to be referred to simply as “the
gifts,” often followed by just a few examples, implying that their boundar-
ies are self-evident (e.g., Anderson 2015, 7–8; Coleman 2000, 21; Inbody
2015, 1; Poloma 1997, 259; Robbins 2004, 117; Singleton 2011, 384).
The neglect of nuance has been acknowledged (Anderson 2010, 20) but,
given the continued centrality of gifts and manifestations to defining

Pentecostal and Charismatic forms of Christianity (Anderson 2010, 2014,

6; di Giacomo 2009, 15; Robbins 2004, 117), the absence of problemati-
zation presents a paradox. When treated as separate categories, “gifts” are
often catalogued by referring to 1 Corinthians: 12 as an index that includes
glossolalia, interpretation of glossolalia, prophecy, healing, miracles, Words
of Knowledge, Words of Wisdom, a special form of faith, and discernment
of spirits (see also Anderson 2014, 19). By contrast, no Bible passage is
treated similarly as an index for “manifestations.” Instead, the limits of the
latter category have often been contested. Examples habitually associated
with the category count the widespread phenomenon of “falling in the
Spirit” (“being slain in the Spirit” is not used in Norwegian); uncontrol-
lable laughter, crying, and trembling; some kinds of exorcism; and animal
imitation (Skjoldli 2014, 81; Poloma and Hoelter 1998, 261). While not
central here, it should be noted that the respondents featuring in this study
treat the categories in more complicated ways.
“Gifts” and “manifestations” also have important features in common:
first, their origin and distribution is generally attributed to God. Second,
when elaborated upon, gifts and manifestations are usually legitimized by
recourse to biblical texts. Charismatics and non-Charismatics tend to differ
on whether authentic gifts of grace are currently operational or even of
interest (e.g., Anderson 2014, 20–39), thus contributing to disagreements
between them. Among Charismatics themselves, disputes over manifesta-
tions have displayed the potential to create controversy, whilst providing
paths to innovation as well as division. Such disputes have led to the estab-
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lishment of new congregations, some of which have grown into new move-
ments (Skjoldli 2014, 94). In short, understandings of gifts and manifestations
are subject to dynamics of negotiation through the enacted theology of how
they are and are not practiced. With these nuances in mind, we turn to
authority transformations as part of the reconstruction of the Credo Church’s
congregation, paying particular attention to the gift of prophecy.

Prophecy: A Double-edged Sword

Living Word was originally founded as “Word of Life Bergen” (Livets Ord
Bergen) by the married couple Enevald and Olga Flåten in 1992; its name
bears testimony to the spread of “Word of Life” congregations and other
Faith communities in Nordic countries during the 1980s and 1990s. The
church was renamed “Living Word Bible Centre” (Levende Ord
Bibelsenter) in 1994 in order to avoid confusion with Ulf Ekman’s church

at Uppsala, Sweden (Credokirken 2014), where Enevald Flåten attended

Bible college twice. The second time, he was already the founder and senior
pastor of the “Jæren Christian Center” (Jæren Kristne Senter) in the county
of Rogaland, in southwestern Norway. At the Bible college, Flåten received
a new vision from God. It is helpful to consider Flåten’s own account:

One day, I lay between the rows of seats at the Bible college. Then God’s
Spirit came. He touched my heart and he spoke to me, saying: “Write [this]
down.” And I wrote down the entire vision for the whole [process of] start-
ing a church in Bergen. I wrote: It will be a base for mission, evangelizing,
and church planting. […] It will be a place for teaching, where you will
teach the people in all of God’s counsel. It will be a place where God’s love
will be poured out. It will be a place of deliverance, healing, and restoration,
and a prophetic voice to the nation. (Kanal 10 Norge 2014)

Flåten’s story takes the form of a testimony that involves a revelation from
God. Reference to prophecy is made both implicitly and explicitly—
implicitly by way of reporting direct communication with God, explicitly
regarding the mission and future of the church. Narratives that involve
direct speech from God and appoint someone for a mission, giving them
a vision for the future, and the conviction required to fulfill them, are all
native to Charismatic discourse. George D. Chryssides and Margaret
Z. Wilkins have identified such narratives as foundation myths. When
applied to this case, the narrative can be seen to define the nature of
Flåten’s leadership as sanctioned by God and revealed through prophecy
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(Chryssides and Wilkins 2006, 35–36). The narrative had the potential to
imbue Flåten with Weberian charisma. These very elements can be detected
in one congregant’s account of the service at Jæren Christian Center,
where Flåten shared his message:

There was one service during a conference where Enevald said he had some-
thing to share with us. He told [us] that he had received [a message] from
God that he should start a church in Bergen. He had received a word, that
“Bergen is an important city to God.” There were many who approved of
that idea. At the service, there were many who said they were going to move
to Bergen and start the church. Many left [for Bergen] at that time.

Having proclaimed his new vision to the congregation, Flåten and a group
of families from Jæren relocated to Bergen to establish the new church. We
may note the openness with which congregants reportedly responded to the

newly revealed vision. In the years to come, the proclamation that “Bergen is
an important city to God” turned into a founding vision for the congrega-
tion, but also remained an individual vocation for Flåten (Opheim 2012).
My respondents disagreed on how prevalent prophecies had been at
Living Word. While another respondent, Paula, reported that prophecies
had been far more common at Living Word than in the present church,
Matthew stated that “there were few prophecies, really.” He was con-
cerned with the function of prophecy in relation to conversion, explaining
how, “in the Bible, it says that, if somebody brings prophetic words, they
[non-Christians] would be busted!” Matthew was referring to 1
Corinthians: 14, 24–25, where Paul the apostle instructs his readers that
“[i]f everybody speaks prophetically, and an unbeliever or an uninformed
[person] comes in, he will be convinced by everybody, he will be convicted
by everybody. And so, everything concealed in his heart is revealed. And
then he will fall down on his face, and he will worship God and testify that
God is truly among you” (Bibelen: Guds Ord 1997, author’s translation).1
In this interview, Matthew connected prophecy primarily to conversion,
which challenges a conceptualization of prophecy as simply “prediction
and revelation” (Anderson 2014, 20).
Paula had considered herself a Christian all her life, but recounted one
specific experience she described as prophetic, motivating her to commit
to her faith and remain in the congregation:

Paula: I know that something specific happened at the first service

I attended here [at Living Word]. Something new happened

then, where I was [allowed] to know Jesus. The pastor [Flåten]
was walking around in the hall and said, “I feel so strongly that
there is a [young person] here.” [And then] he was able to give
an account of my life prophetically. He had very concrete [mes-
sages] from God. But I did not dare to make myself known.
I was terrified, because I had never experienced that kind [of
thing] before—that you prophesy in that way. But I felt inside
that something really loosened [up]. I knew it was [for] me.
Jane: That must have been an incredible experience.
Paula: It was. It was [a] very powerful [experience] for me. There were
a lot of people around as well. You felt special, like, “Wow, God
cares about me.” There were lots of things he [the pastor] said,
too, “God sees you and has seen you—what you have been
through.”

From Paula’s story, we understand that, as the pastor spoke, she identified
with the “you” addressed in the message given; to her, it was a prophetic
account of her life. Through Paula’s description of the experience as an
encounter with Jesus, and of the message as prophetic, we learn how the
pastor could function as the human mediator of that message. This made
her feel acknowledged and singled out from the larger group of attendees,
and ultimately influenced her to commit to her faith. She felt that she was
important to God, important enough that God chose to convey a message
to her rather than another. In this story, God emerges as a nurturer, a
caretaker who acknowledges her personal struggles, and fulfills her need to
feel recognized, and to have her pain acknowledged.
By 2004, Living Word had risen to national prominence and become
Norway’s largest independent church (Selbekk 2012, 2). That year, Living
Word had 2549 registered members and formed a nucleus in a loose net-
work of smaller churches (Gjestad 2012, 17). Living Word produced its
own monthly magazine called “Flaming Fire” (Flammende Ild), published
books at Levende Ord Forlag, and broadcast weekly services on the state
television channel NRK2’s frequency.2 The church also ran a kindergarten,
a primary school, a secondary school, a Bible college, various social activi-
ties, an international missionary network, and weekly and bi-weekly Bible
study groups. Living Word was a congregation with megachurch ambi-
tions that, hypothetically, could encapsulate one’s entire life.
Meanwhile, Flåten’s statements on God, gender, Islam, and homosexu-
ality gained him attention in the public eye, which probably also served to
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increase public awareness of the church (Lie 2011, 516). In 2003, a docu-
mentary criticizing church members for organizing events that featured
glossolalia at the primary school aired on national television (NRK 2003).
The following year, controversial politician and former leader of the right-
wing Progress Party Carl I. Hagen visited the church, trying to gain voters
by making statements expressing support for the state of Israel and oppo-
sition to Islam (Aftenposten 2004; Honningsøy 2011). In 2005, politi-
cians from other parties also visited (Hamre 2005). The years 2004–2005
were likely Living Word’s peak period in terms of political influence, as
well as member numbers and international outreach (Algrøy 2012b;
Credokirken 2014). Living Word had grown into a bright feather of the
Faith Movement’s Nordic wing.
Discontent was growing within, however. Former members reported
that channels by means of which members could express criticism and dis-
satisfaction, or ask questions, were lacking. As one former member put it,
“if anyone chose to leave the congregation, they would risk being libeled

from the pulpit. No one could leave retaining their honor, and many chose
to stay because of that—for fear of ‘falling outside the blessing’” (Almelid
2012b, 18). Toward the end of 2005, a breaking point was reached when
two youth ministers left their posts (Algrøy 2012a, 27; b, 17; Gilje 2012,
24; Hamre 2006). Towards the end of one of the interviews, one respon-
dent shared a brief description of prophecies connected to the crisis in
2006, when “horrible prophecies” were given to people who had been
singled out as traitors to the former senior pastor. “That stuff was
immensely harsh,” the respondent said.
As Living Word was a high profile church, internal conflict within it was
sure to catch the media’s attention. Christian and non-Christian newspa-
pers and channels covered the unfolding events. A group of members, led
by the church’s head of missions, Olav Rønhovde, rallied with the ambi-
tion to change the course of events. A crisis of authority and leadership
ensued, but no internal mechanism or apparatus existed for replacing the
senior pastor. Pastors from other churches were later called upon to help,
but to no avail. A schism unfolded. Flåten went on sick leave and a new
team of leaders gained control of the church, working to alter the organi-
zation’s structure, implementing a set of statutes, and establishing a gen-
eral assembly. Recounting the schism, one of my respondents emphasized
the importance of new leaders who, guided by mentors from other
churches, “[said] straight that the way in which things had been done was
wrong.” The mentors were founder and former senior pastor Åge Åleskjær
of the Oslo Christian Center and Robert Ekh, former pastor of Word of
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Life at Uppsala. They found the church’s forms of prophecy to be disturb-

ing, in addition to other issues that were made public around the time
Flåten left his post (Åleskjær and Ekh 2006).
Rønhovde was elected temporary pastor at first, and made permanent
senior pastor in 2008, which was also the year when the church’s second-
ary school was closed as a result of a decrease in numbers of students
signing up. In 2009, “Living Word” was renamed “Credo Church.”
Since then, black italicized letters spelling “Credokirken” have made up
the church’s logo, which is displayed at the most conspicuous top corner
of the church’s large, brown building at Kråkenes, south of Bergen.3 By
2012, 55 percent—around 1400—of the church members had left, some
1000 of whom seem to have abandoned church activity altogether
(Selbekk 2012). When journalists from the Christian newspaper “The
Day” (Dagen) contacted former members, it was reported that many
declined requests for stories and testimonies, describing the events as still

too painful to discuss (Gjestad 2013, 6). Years passed and the controversy
died down, but was not entirely forgotten.
As illustrated, Flåten received and transmitted messages perceived to be
from God, a practice clothed in the language of prophecy—for better or
for worse. Understood as the gift of prophecy, the descriptions fit Weberian
charisma well, as attributed to a person thought to possess “a certain qual-
ity of an individual personality by virtue of which he is set apart from
ordinary men,” on the basis of which Flåten was “treated as a leader”
(Weber 1947, 358). Later, however, when authority met with opposition,
prophecy was transformed into a tool for maintaining control. Prophecy
acquired a dark side, a reminder of Weber’s point that charisma is socially
constructed and “what is alone important is how the individual is actually
regarded by those subject to charismatic authority, by his ‘followers’”
(Weber 1947, 359; cf. Bensman and Givant 1975, 571; Wallis 1982, 26).
Moving forward, processes of transforming charisma—and prophecy—
would become key to re-establishing interpersonal bonds and authority
structures within the congregation.

Transforming Foundations of Authority

Recent statistics reveal that the Credo Church has 1081 registered mem-
bers, a few dozen fewer than in 2012 (Department of Culture 2017).
Senior pastor Olav Rønhovde and the Credo Church rarely feature in the
media, and in an interview from 2012, Rønhovde described the church as
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having become more relaxed (Almelid 2012a). In the same article, a mar-
ried couple stated that one main difference between Living Word and the
Credo Church is the latter’s stronger emphasis on fellowship and relation-
ships, as opposed to members becoming tied to the pastor: “Today, people
can say what they feel and think. It’s a constant, ongoing process, and that
is essential” (Almelid 2012a, 37). In a more recent interview, Rønhovde
stated that the congregation’s drive has been rekindled (Gilje 2016). The
church runs a Christian primary school, and reportedly hosts on average
300 attendees on Sundays, 60–70 young people at Friday youth services,
a couple of hundred women at women’s meetings. In addition the
“Substance” Bible college (Substans) has 44 students and is run in col-
laboration with two local Pentecostal congregations (Gilje 2016).
In the beginning of this chapter, Matthew pointed out style of leader-
ship as one of the defining differences between the Credo Church and

Living Word. Asking Matthew how pastor Rønhovde had been elected,
Matthew explained that he was originally employed as a missionary and
teacher at the Bible college. Matthew was himself present at the meeting
where Rønhovde was elected senior pastor:

He heard from God that God wanted to use him as pastor. He told us at a
service when we were about to elect a new [pastor] […] He asked if we
accepted him as pastor and we would vote for or against. Almost everyone
[voted] in favor […] You wrote “yes” or “no” or “blank” on a note. “No”
and “blank” comprised maybe around ten percent of the total votes, not
much more. The “yes” was almost unison.

We learn three things from Matthew: first, that Rønhovde was already an
established leader figure in the congregation. Second, that Rønhovde had
“heard from God,”4 and had shared this experience at a service prior to
the election. While the initiative in this narrative is God’s own, it should
be noted that Rønhovde tells the story somewhat more cautiously, fram-
ing the task of becoming senior pastor as a vocation for which he had no
particular desire (Almelid 2012a, 37). Third, his experience of God calling
him to the post as senior pastor was not itself sufficient; the congregation’s
consent was sought in general assembly, which was given by means of a
ballot. Rønhovde’s election involved elements of charisma that are not
entirely divorced from prophecy, but also involved the new rational aspect
of a ballot in general assembly. Combined, these elements constitute the
routinization of charisma in the Credo Church, not by replacing charis-
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matic authority outright, but by introducing new elements to the mix.

Matthew continued to stress that “[the senior pastor] must be able to
hear from God. He must be able to bring messages he receives from God
to the church in such a way that you understand what he’s saying.” He
connected the ability to receive messages from God to a leadership model
that is often called the fivefold ministry, based on Ephesians 4: 11–12,
which includes evangelist, teacher, pastor, prophet, and apostle. I asked
Matthew whether he would call the pastor a prophet. He responded that
he may be used as one, but pointed out that “[it’s] not his primary func-
tion.” Rather, he explained, the senior pastor bears the main responsibility
for the church; he “carries the whole church on his shoulders—for better
or worse. It can [involve] spiritual battles too […] He has spiritual, but also
practical and financial advisors, [but] he has the heaviest load with regards
to decisions, both financially and spiritually.” Matthew was also careful to

point out that, while there are ups and downs to being a senior pastor, he
has no “fringe benefits like [he might] in a company”: the responsibility
will gain him a greater reward from God, but also a stricter judgment.
Whereas the position of senior pastor used to have numerous benefits,
it is now framed in terms of responsibility, involving heavy demands and
difficult decisions. Paula was also sensitive to the burden that comes with
leadership. She explained that when somebody is doing God’s work, they
should not be in that position for too long. She saw change as something
healthy, not only to the church, but also to the person in the position of
responsibility: “You shouldn’t build something strongly around your own
person, but be allowed to grow into new things,” she said, indicating that
the vocation needs not be permanent.
Per Ove Berg, who is pastor at the Credo Church along with Rønhovde,
and who consented to being referred to by name, elaborated on the pos-
sibility of the senior pastor terminating his ministry. Quoting and elabo-
rating on the statutes, he provided a normative perspective on the issue.
The senior pastor can step down if he so wishes, in agreement with the
management team and the board, who also suggest his successor to the
church. Reading from the statutes, and commenting upon them as he
went, Berg explained that a senior pastor may be removed if he engages in
“inappropriate conduct incompatible with the ethic and moral norms of
God’s Word: such as immorality, financial default, heresy […] or if the
senior pastor in other ways neglects or abuses his ministry, the other
[members of the] management team and the board together will consider
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termination of the position.” In other words, a legal-rational aspect has

been added to the legitimacy of the senior pastor’s authority, namely a set
of statutes to which he is accountable. The senior pastor’s position then,
depends on a collection of elements: a vocation from God, his personal
capability, the congregation’s confidence, and conformity with the
church’s statutes. The introduction of these aspects is also reflected in the
procedures established for electing a new pastor, in which case, the stat-
utes demand that the board makes a suggestion for a new senior pastor to
the congregation in general assembly. A two-thirds majority is required
from the members present. Berg explained that all adult church members
have the right to vote at general assemblies and that the gatherings, ordi-
narily held once a year, decide the contents of the statutes, to which
“everyone, including the senior pastor, every organ is subordinate […] No
one can go and change that.”

Berg also explained how a vocation is discovered and how to proceed

if, for example, several individuals were to perceive themselves as called by
God to be the new senior pastor:

There is a dynamic between the first [criterion], that God is calling [the
person], which is recognized through the second [criterion]: the people,
who give trust, who experience the person in question as worthy of our
trust; that the person has a gift […] and a personal demeanor that qualifies
him for the job. Thus viewed, human beings elect [the pastor]. You can only
be a leader based on trust. Everything is built on trust. Everything is built
on free will […] The dynamic is such that the person in question, naturally,
must have faith and be convinced that this is right, that this is what he is
supposed to do. There may also be formal qualifications, but that is not
always so.

It appears that the election process contains elements of democratic pro-

cess mixed with personal conviction. One could argue that there is a cer-
tain tension in this dynamic: on the one hand, there are the congregants,
who may have a favorite candidate. On the other, there is always the ques-
tion of whether one has interpreted God’s will correctly—especially, one
might imagine, on the part of the newly elected leader. However, Berg’s
explanation brings the two into line.
To Matthew, it was important not to forget that “a pastor, whether
he leads one hundred or ten thousand, should ideally be chosen by
God: [I]f Rønhovde were to quit as pastor [or] died […we] must ask
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God: ‘Who do you want as a new pastor?’ It comes down to asking him:
‘What do you want?’” I asked Matthew how one would find out what
God wanted: “You’d have to seek God and let God answer. You need
some time, really, because God is sometimes slow on the trigger. He
likes to test us, [to see] if we’re serious. If you seek God, you have to
wait until he responds.”
In the Credo Church, leadership is also shared. There is a senior pastor,
who “hears from God,” as well as people with different areas of responsi-
bility, including the board and management team, spiritual and economic
advisors, cell group coordinators, missionaries, and youth ministers. The
respondents seemed to appreciate these more formalized leadership struc-
tures. At the same time, in reference to leadership more generally, another
respondent, Mark, emphasized the initiative of up-and-coming leaders.
“It happens naturally,” he explained, and continued:

You see people who branch out, who have the interest needed and who
work at it. I guess a lot of it [happens in the way that] people who take
responsibility receive responsibility. It’s voluntary and people rarely do it for
the sake of their own gain. It’s because they have the heart for it and take
initiative.

I asked him to elaborate. Responding, he immediately connected the

question to Living Word’s leadership structure: “With regards to the pas-
tor being fired by the church without the involvement of an elder coun-
cil—no such thing existed at the time.” The question, then, was who had
the authority to ask the pastor to leave. He stated that the authority to
depose a leader “rests with the church.”
Along with the transformation of leadership structures came new
understandings and practices, particularly involving gifts and manifesta-
tions. For example, prophecy is still an important gift of grace. Respondents
varied in their perceptions of these changes. While Paula’s view was largely
positive, she was not altogether dismissive of the old ways: “In the begin-
ning, a lot of people experienced that the pastor or other leaders received
prophecies that changed people’s lives,” she stated, expressing a sense of
nostalgia for the way prophecy had been practiced at Living Word. “There
was a lot of prophecy, which I experienced,” she said reminiscing, “where
the pastor walks around and receives messages from God. There was a lot
that was not from God, but also a lot that was from God.” There is a sense
of ambivalence to Paula’s words: she distinguishes between true and false
prophecies, emphasizing the helpfulness of the former, while also express-
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ing reservations.
When prophecy at Living Word turned into a means for public rejec-
tion of and creating a social stigma for dissenters, what followed can be
viewed through the lens of Weber’s description of how a leader’s charisma
is likely to disappear if “he is for long unsuccessful.” We have learned that
prophecy was important to constructing and maintaining charismatic
authority at Living Word. However, the particular way in which prophecy
was applied seems to have changed over time, as it went from providing
reassurance to carrying exclusion and social stigma. It seems that the shift
in how prophecy was enacted robbed it of its capacity for generating cha-
risma for the senior pastor; what had previously been a source of trust was
tainted through its employment to discourage dissent. From a Weberian
perspective, such a reaction to delinquency is to be expected from a char-
ismatic leader (Weber 1947, 359). It is more noteworthy that a gift of

grace that had initially been so important for establishing charismatic

authority itself seems to have become corrupted, causing not only the
charismatic authority it had served to support to consequently crumble,
but also the very status of prophecy itself. This is coherent with the pre-
vailing interpretation of Weberian charisma being solely in the eye of the
beholder(s), as quoted earlier. In the words of David Setley and Douglas
Gautsch, charisma is “based solely on the evaluation of the follower on a
leader’s traits, not on any absolutes or skills the leader actually has” (Setley
and Gautsch 2015, 23–24). While this study’s findings are consistent with
that interpretation, they also show how abuse of a charisma-generating
practice can turn against itself. Such an interpretation of transformations
and the respondents’ views on prophecy is also helpful for an understand-
ing of how the congregation acquired a cautionary approach to prophecy.
From this angle, it follows that transforming the foundations of authority
was a necessary step in order to rebuild trust in the emerging leadership,
as well as in wider fellowship within the church.
So far, we have seen that these transformations entailed a process of
rationalization in favor of which “the purely personal character of leader-
ship is eliminated” (Weber 1947, 364, italics added). The keyword here is
purely; it is significant that the charismatic element of authority has not
been replaced. Rather, it seems to have been toned down, while legal-
rational elements have been added as mechanisms for guarding against the
abuse that may come with a purely charismatic leadership. The language
of prophecy is conspicuously absent in illustrating the reconstructed char-
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ismatic element of authority, which could mean that charisma itself has
been transformed. Its previous conditions for authenticity have been
replaced by new ones. Such a revamp of conditions for authority also bears
on questions of authenticity, detectable in relation to other gifts and mani-
festations, among them “falling in the Spirit.”

Falling in the Spirit and the Problem

of Authenticity

Falling in the Spirit is often considered a hallmark of Charismatic Christianity

(Inbody 2015, 7), and was widespread within the Faith Movement. Living
Word was no exception. Berg was careful to point out that falling in the
Spirit is not something that it is possible to “practice” as such, and con-
nected a description of falling in the Spirit to a question of authenticity:

At certain times and under certain circumstances, God’s power has mani-
fested in such a way that, upon encountering it, there is a physical reaction:
you fall easily, because it is a real encounter with the power of God. But the
point is not falling in the Spirit. The point is that human beings have needs
and God wants to meet those needs, whether it be healing or other things.
And that is not something that you could construct, though there may be
some who have tried, [maintaining] that “this is proof that God is doing
something”—that people fall in the Spirit. It’s not any kind of proof at all;
it is a physical reaction—a phenomenon, but it isn’t something that you
could construct.

Berg’s response contains a rationalistic explanation of the purpose of, and

reason for occurrences of “falling in the Spirit”: It is a physical reaction, a
natural consequence of encounters between human beings and the power
of God. Berg finds objectionable, however, the implication of human
agency and involvement that, in his view, is neither wanted nor warranted.
He is concerned that this is detrimental to an authentic experience as
opposed to one that is “constructed.” Berg connects falling in the Spirit to
an understanding of God as nurturer, expressed in the normative state-
ment that falling in the Spirit is not supposed to be an end unto itself.
Rather, it is a way in which God gets involved in people’s emotional lives.
He further objects to the perceived notion that physical reactions to God’s
presence are proof of God’s activity, yet remain a way in which God meets
human needs. Berg’s response, then, serves as an entry point to unraveling
the rich complexity concealed in the phenomena of gifts of grace and
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manifestations of the Spirit.

Considering the contexts in which falling in the Spirit is commonly
observed, I was also curious as to whether Berg considered any specific
social or ritual conditions to be associated with the phenomenon. Asking
whether it might be possible to facilitate such events, he responded: “Yes,
perhaps you could. You can tell that maybe it happens more often at some
types of services than at others, but to us: if it happens, it happens.” He
further explained that falling in the Spirit also occurs outside the practices
of laying on of hands or intercession, “but it is often connected to it—for
some reason or other.” In cases where falling in the Spirit occurs frequently
over a period of time, however, “it is very easy to start imitating, that you
are going to ‘pull this off,’ and then you give a little push.” Berg expressed
that encouraging people to fall in this manner amounts to a human factor
entering the picture in a way that is “not good.” He particularly expresses

reservations that, when falling in the Spirit happens frequently, people

become socially conditioned to expect its occurrence. This, in turn, cre-
ates social pressures that can lead to interference whereby the phenome-
non is, quite literally, pushed to occur. On the one hand, we may note an
acknowledgment of a frequent connection to tactile human mediation, a
practice whereby a pastor or intercessor lays hands on a person, often con-
nected to falling in the Spirit. On the other hand, Berg rejects the idea that
the two are linked by necessity; human mediation is not necessary, and
falling in the Spirit may take place without it. Given Berg’s reservations, it
appears that a concern for authenticity is central to the new official posi-
tion of the church.
Interestingly, Berg also connected authenticity to geographical location
and culturally conditioned interpretation of the phenomenon. Having
worked in Brazil as a missionary for several years, he recounts how falling
in the Spirit was associated with “evil spiritual powers manifesting in
encounters with God’s power and the name of Jesus.” People did not fall
in the Spirit outside these particular situations, he pointed out. Despite
these reservations, there are some ways in which the congregation may
facilitate falling in the Spirit by being prepared just in case someone does
fall. However, it is neither expected nor explicitly encouraged; this prepa-
ration is meant to create a “safe place” so as to prevent people from incur-
ring injuries (see also Poloma 1997, 264).
Berg attributes the authenticity of falling in the Spirit to God’s agency,
and its dependence upon the human subject’s passivity. From this perspec-
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

tive, any human involvement would undermine the authenticity of the

experience, and consequently, the expression itself. However, as illustrated
by the example from Brazil, the interpretation of falling in the Spirit is
subject to cultural conditions quite apart from the question of authentic-
ity. These nuances and reservations are important to keep in mind with
regard to the reflections of respondents from among the ordinary
members.
During an interview with Matthew, an insider discussion of authen-
ticity intertwined with the topics of apologetics and personal reflections
on differences between Living Word and the Credo Church. This was
illustrated in a story he shared of a conversation with a presumably non-
Charismatic Lutheran in which Matthew objected to the postulation of
human interference—particularly physical touch:

I met a Lutheran on the street and he was on his way out to evangelize. We
started talking and when I started telling [him] about physical stuff, he was
so negative. I told him that I had been prayed for by some Americans. They
gathered around me in a circle. Nobody touched me. They breathed on me.
I fell straight down, as if the floor vanished. I noticed that this stopped one
of [the Lutheran’s] main arguments. He thought I was talking about push-
ing, but they didn’t touch me. I just fell straight down. I also had […] other
experiences. Once, [when] somebody was talking to me, or laid hands on
me, I knew that there was a guy behind me. I fell backwards, but didn’t hit
him. […] When people breathe on me and I fall because they breathe on
me, there must be a reason for it—that there is a power. That must be it. So
you could ask, what power was it: God or something else?

Matthew’s response involves legitimizing authenticity by rejecting the

involvement of human touch. Well aware of the Lutheran’s skepticism, and
his suspicion that Matthew had been pushed to fall by his intercessors, we
note the same objection to the necessity of human touch as expressed by
Berg. The absence of touch in this case was used as an argument for authen-
ticity. Nevertheless, Matthew situates his experience in a social context.
As Matthew elaborates on the event, he increasingly conveys his convic-
tion that the experience of falling may indeed have been an effect of encoun-
tering God. He is rather cautious in doing so, however, and reveals doubt
intermingled with his conviction. Interested in when these events had taken
place, I asked whether they had occurred at Living Word or the Credo
Church. He stated that, “falling backwards without hitting [the man behind
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

me] was at Living Word, and that [episode] where people breathed on me
was either at the Credo Church or at Living Word. So I’ve had a couple of
powerful experiences, but none of them took place recently.” At the Credo
Church, Matthew reported, “it happens that people come forward and are
prayed for, but not many fall to the ground. Whether that was mostly [peo-
ple’s] imagination, I don’t know. It hasn’t happened lately, except in a cou-
ple of cases […] Some just sway. Others collapse before anyone touches
them, and some fall when somebody touches them lightly.” It is interesting
to note that falling may be less frequent at the Credo Church than at Living
Word, but Matthew’s openness is also striking in that he includes a critical
perspective with regards to the authenticity of falling. Despite having had
several such experiences, and defending them in a conversation with a non-
Charismatic, Matthew remains open to the possibility that such events are
merely imagined or constructed.

Mark also expressed a critical perspective, this time linked to what he

perceived to be a lack of correlation between gifts and manifestations on
the one hand, and a Christian lifestyle on the other. Part of this perspective
was linked to how manifestations were enacted at Living Word.

Mark: There has been some criticism. People who only come to Sunday
services and fall to the ground, and then they live completely
uncritically towards their own life and well-being during the
week, not paying consideration to themselves or others in every-
day life—that’s not very fruitful. At the same time, I think a lot
of people are strengthened by that experience.
Jane: Manifestation experiences didn’t always lead people to …
Mark: No, not always. Some [people] liked the experience, but they
didn’t always bother to work on themselves sufficiently to change
[their] lifestyle. Hopefully, that’s the exception and most people
let an experience like that strengthen them in everyday life [so
that] they make changes to do what they feel is right and what
they feel they are created [for] and motivated [to do].

Mark considers falling as a way to receive strength, but whether falling is

sought for its own sake, or whether that strength is mobilized to trans-
forms one’s life, is up to the practitioner. Whatever he or she decides seems
to have no bearing on the question of authenticity; what is at stake is how
the authentic experience is used. To Mark, manifestations of the Spirit are
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

supposed to have consequences for one’s lifestyle, which he sees as having

become more central to the Credo Church’s teaching: “Reason may have
gained a bigger place. We consciously build our lives for good values in
society, development and not least family—how we want to live our lives.”
This suggests that the focus of manifestations has shifted from seeking
manifestations to seeking life transformation by means of them.

Gifts of Grace and Words of Knowledge

In addition to shifting the focus from seeking gifts and manifestations, the
reconstruction of the congregation has also brought about adjustments to
how they are enacted. One gift that has gained prominence is Words of
Knowledge, as illustrated by Paula’s description:

I also think it has become more like you can share words at the services—
Words of Knowledge. We have one [person] who experiences that a lot, for
example when somebody has a painful knee. Then he is allowed to pray for
them. He gets a chance to [do so].

Paula’s impression was that of an increased openness for people to share

Words of Knowledge, which she reports as especially frequent with one
congregant. Previously, the senior pastor was in charge of the service, and
acted as mediator of the messages given. Today, Words of Knowledge are
enacted by ordinary congregants, who are allowed to proclaim them at the
discretion of the pastors. We may appreciate that Paula does not refer to
current pastors as being involved in giving Words of Knowledge, although
they maintain control of their enactment. This was also congruent with
my observations at Sunday services, where one congregant came forward
during a post-service intercession meeting and shared a Word of Knowledge
through the microphone. I asked Paula whether practicing gifts of grace is
now more evenly spread throughout the congregation. “Yes,” she
responded, “[but] during the services, not a lot of people are given the
chance [to practice] gifts of grace at the moment.” Paula also expressed
regret that gifts of grace were not used more frequently at the church, but
also added that they are practiced in small groups, which constitute “places
for training and trying out the gifts of grace in safe environments. It’s not
easy,” she said, explaining that the gifts are related to each individual’s
walk with God and the processes of maturing one’s personal faith. Walking
up to stand in front of several hundred people, proclaiming to have a mes-
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

sage from God, can be a terrifying affair. “It is something that requires
trust. You need to have the nerve for it and have a yearning for it,” Paula
elaborated. From her description, we understand that enacting gifts of
grace puts a person in a vulnerable position. The need for training becomes
clearer if we understand the element of self-doubt involved, an example
for which we will find in one of Matthew’s experiences.
Matthew was reminded of Words of Knowledge when discussing proph-
ecy. The former is a gift thought to bring mental and bodily challenges to
light, “that somebody is struggling with [certain] thoughts,” and physical
ills, such as “somebody having a painful shoulder.” Matthew stated that God
can provide comfort through Words of Knowledge which, he said, “happens
sometimes” at the Credo Church. Words of Knowledge can be enacted in
two ways, he explained: Either the message is given straight to the receiving
person, or they can come forward for intercession. However, he also included

the caveat that Words of Knowledge “can be too revealing,” suggesting that
this gift needs to be practiced with caution and consideration for the vulner-
ability of the receiving person. Matthew reported an experience that would
fit the description of either prophecy or Word of Knowledge, although he
refrained from using either of those terms:

God said to me once, “Go over to [that guy] and tell him that he will
become a Christian tonight.” I went back and forth a little [but] eventually
did it. Never before had I imagined that I would say something like that to
someone. He wasn’t a Christian, but he did become a Christian that eve-
ning. On the other hand, you could call it manipulation; I thought that I
wanted to know whether the power is God or something else.

Matthew related this story in the context of having experienced an all-

knowing power. Yet, doubt resulting from the inclusion of a critical per-
spective is part of Matthew’s description, both of what happened during
and after the event. First, he went “back and forth,” before finally making
the decision to carry out the perceived command, and second, he stated
the possibility that the experience was a form of manipulation. Either way,
the question of authenticity is at the very heart of Matthew’s quest for
confirmation of God’s existence. In the end, it appears as if Matthew’s
curiosity over whether the message had really been from God or not led
him to act. That the man actually became a Christian that evening gave
Matthew reassurance that his interpretation was correct, but he hesitates
to rule out his doubts completely.
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A theme of vulnerability seems to permeate the respondents’ reflections

on practicing gifts of grace, as well as references to ritual restrictions placed
upon their enactment, but also upon the language enveloping their enact-
ment. Interestingly, experiences at Living Word, where the senior pastor
transmitted messages from God, were labeled prophecy with apparent
ease. By contrast, such practices now appear to be referred to as Words of
Knowledge or not labeled “gifts of grace” at all. Reportedly, they are now
more evenly distributed among the congregants rather than centered on
the senior pastor, and invite critical perspectives rather than command
obedience. It appears as if Weberian charisma has been redistributed and
democratized, but this charisma also seems to inspire consciousness of
one’s own and others’ vulnerability, as well as questions regarding authen-
ticity. As indicated by Paula, another change can be seen in the decreased
frequency of enacting gifts related to transmitting messages from God;
this appears to reflect a wider trend, to which we now turn.

Frequency of Gifts and Manifestations

Mark notes that, compared to Living Word, “there is probably some dif-
ference” in how gifts and manifestations are practiced at the Credo
Church. According to him, manifestations of the Spirit have “almost dis-
appeared” there. Still, he emphasizes that members are not intimidated by
manifestations when they do occur. Outsiders, however, may find manifes-
tations of the Spirit to be a frightening experience. Mark adds that “ser-
vices are much shorter now than they used to be”:

Jane: Right, because they used to last for three hours?

Mark: Yes, it’s only because of grace that people can sit [there] for that
long—it’s got to be something special [laughs]. Maybe it’s [some-
thing that] comes in waves. It may well come back. I don’t know.

Jokingly referring to the patience needed to endure three-hour services as

a bit of a miracle, Mark also suggests the possibility of a cyclical waxing
and waning of gifts and manifestations according to “waves.” He also
seems comfortable with the contemporary lower frequency of such events.
“Do you miss anything from the old way of doing things?” I asked him:

I don’t know it all that well, but not really, because, especially regarding
employment of gifts of grace and speaking in tongues during services—there is
little culture for that here [in Norway] and it is seen as very strange […] to
people who are not used to going to church. So it can almost work against its
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purpose. When Paul teaches on [the subject], he says that [speaking in tongues]
is for one’s own composition, and not so much for use during services, or when
[people] gather. That can be [a] positive [thing], making it easier to bring
people along. So they don’t just think, “Dear me, this right here … If this is
how you become when you become a Christian, that’s freaky.”

Mark gives several reasons why he considers a lower frequency to be a

good thing: he considers it more in line with Pauline teaching, to attract
less stigma, and to be less alienating to Norwegians and, consequently,
more beneficial to mission activity. Matthew shared Mark’s view on glos-
solalia at services: “If a non-Christian enters a church and everybody just
jabbers on in tongues,” explained Matthew, “the non-Christian would
think: ‘They’ve gone completely crazy!’” He elaborated a little further,
stating that when glossolalia takes place in the presence of non-Christians,
the point of practicing the gift must be the interpretation of the message:

It is written [in the Bible] that if nobody can interpret, you should remain
silent. There is supposed to be a maximum of three people [who speak in
tongues] and it should be done systematically, and in order, so people can
understand it. Apart from that, speaking in tongues is for private use. It says
in different [Bible] passages that speaking in tongues is [to be kept] within;
nobody [else] would understand what’s going on. If the Spirit isn’t in on it,
you may ask if you could just laugh at the whole thing.

Like Mark, Matthew believed that glossolalia might alienate people who
are unaccustomed to the phenomenon. Both frame their responses in a way
that includes humor and self-deprecating humor, not just on their own
behalf, but that of Charismatics in general. Obviously, they are quite aware
that non-Christians and non-Charismatics may find glossolalia intimidat-
ing, and that this might possibly prevent new visitors from returning.
Not all congregants share this outlook. Asking Paula whether she misses
anything from the Living Word era, she responded:

You see with all congregations that they go through various phases. There
may be times when there’s a lot of speaking in tongues, you intercede for the
sick at every service, invite [people] to come forward for salvation at every
service, and when people receive intercession, they’ll often lay strewn about
because they fell in the Holy Spirit. After that came the laughter movement.
There have been different trends.

Paula explained that she had experienced holy laughter herself, and
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described it as something that brought freedom to people. It is clear, how-

ever, that she considers various forms and frequencies of manifestations to
be temporary: trends come and go. Paula described their enactment as
more restricted at the Credo Church than at Living Word. “I [sometimes]
miss that here now—that freedom at the services and that the Holy Spirit
is allowed to work,” she said, before adding that,

I suppose it has also been important to build on the Word of God and that
the preaching gets a healthy balance. […] You get the foundation on the
Word of God. Churches that only build on manifestations, glossolalia, and
prophecies won’t have that foundation on the Word of God. It just becomes
vague/airy [svevende] and may ultimately fall apart, which is what we’ve
seen [happen] here.

Despite her missing the freedom at Living Word, Paula’s opinion on the
current practice is somewhat mixed. Restricting the use of gifts has coin-

cided with a stronger emphasis on the Bible, which she considers to be

healthy and necessary. She interprets the collapse of Living Word as
being attributable to several factors, one of them being its exclusive
focus on gifts and manifestations without a foundation rooted in Bible-
centered teaching. While valuing gifts and manifestations, the respon-
dents also consider them to be potentially harmful, although in different
ways. We may note the emergence of a view whereby such practices are
a mixed blessing; there are benefits, but potential harm must also be
taken into account.
At Living Word, gifts and manifestations used to be centered in the
senior pastor, contributing to the generation of the charisma needed to
support his authority. As the flow of these processes collapsed, charismatic
authority crumbled, while also affecting views of and ways in which gifts
and manifestations were practiced. As part of the reconstruction process,
the new leaders ceased to regard them as ways of legitimizing leadership
authority. This has entailed two transformations: On the one hand, the
present view of gifts and manifestations has become tainted, which rein-
forces an ambivalence that has parallels to late modern radical doubt as
discussed in Jessica Moberg’s dissertation (2013, 111). On the other
hand, thinking with Weber, this is part of the institutionalization of leader-
ship legitimacy in terms of democratization. In addition to a decreased
frequency, the enactment of gifts and manifestations has partially been
relocated from front and center stage at Sunday services to more secluded
settings such as cell groups and individual practice.
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The Credo Church, it appears, has introduced elements of rationaliza-

tion. However, concerns that fuel routinization in this congregation go
beyond issues of institutionalization; they heed questions of authenticity
as well as hedge personal vulnerability, thus partially relocating the enact-
ment of gifts and manifestations from Sunday services to small groups.

Conclusion
This chapter has investigated two transformations in the Credo Church,
the institutionalization of Weberian charisma on the one hand, and of
enacting charismata—gifts and manifestations of the Spirit—on the other.
Particular attention has been paid to prophecy, falling in the Spirit, and
similar practices. From a Weberian perspective, charismatic authority can be
said to have routinized by way of adding elements associated with rational
authority. The transformation goes deeper than that, however; the very

mechanisms by which Weberian charisma is generated have been altered

because the enaction of prophecy, a primary source of charisma at Living
Word, was corrupted. As such, the enaction of prophecy has itself lost some
of its capacity for generating the charisma needed for upholding an exclu-
sively charismatic form of authority. It does not, however, appear to be the
case that receiving and transmitting messages from God has gone out of
fashion. Rather, it has been transformed in terms of designation and distri-
bution; the language of prophecy seems to have been replaced by a lan-
guage predominated by Words of Knowledge. Communicating Words of
Knowledge at the Credo Church is more widely distributed among con-
gregants than prophecy has been, but is also subject to restrictions by the
leadership. Those restrictions are not limited to the ways in which messages
from God can be communicated, however, but apply to the enaction of
gifts and manifestations more generally. The respondents rationalize these
differences in terms of phases that “all congregations” go through; gifts
and manifestations are more prevalent in some phases than others.
Respondents signal caution towards gifts and manifestations by express-
ing second thoughts concerning whether and to what extent God is
involved in producing them, as well as their helpfulness in converting new
Christians. Personal experiences, however, seem to have retained their sig-
nificance in the respondents’ religious lives. Furthermore, there is a strong
emphasis on protecting the vulnerability of those involved.

Notes
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1. Bibelen: Guds Ord was first published by Bibelforlaget in 1997 and has
become a favorite among Norwegian Charismatics (Walstad 2010).
2. Living Word’s broadcast was terminated along with “The Family Channel”
(Familiekanalen) in April 2004, reportedly due to its poor transmission
quality. The decision met with some protest from Christian communities
(Aalberg 2004). The church was offered a deal with the recently launched
2003 national Christian channel “Vision Norway” (Visjon Norge). Living
Word’s television broadcasts were eventually discontinued in 2007 (Algrøy
2012b, 16).
3. The logo it replaced was comprised of a stylized globe, a sword, an open
Bible with a flame, and big black letters spelling “Living Word Bible Centre”
(Levende Ord Bibelsenter), which strongly resembles Word of Life at
Uppsala’s logo.
4. The phrase “hear from God” is not prevalent in Anglophone Charismatic
discourse, but is nevertheless familiar (Wallis 1982, 33).

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The Finnish Pentecostal Movement:

An Analysis of Internal Struggle as a Process
of Habitual Division

Teemu T. Mantsinen

The Finnish Pentecostal Movement (Helluntaiherätys, or HH) is a

century-old religious movement with nearly 50,000 baptized members.
The HH is the major Pentecostal group in Finland; other groups are sub-
stantially smaller. It is also the largest Christian body outside the two for-
mer national churches: the Finnish Evangelical-Lutheran Church (Suomen
evankelis-luterilainen kirkko) and the Finnish Orthodox Church (Suomen
ortodoksinen kirkko). Among the internal struggles the Pentecostal move-
ment in Finland has encountered in the past, the present one is the most
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severe. Traditionally favoring the independence of local congregations, the

movement risks being divided by a dispute, namely as to whether or not it
should develop from a loose network into a registered denomination.
Today, the HH faces pressure from two camps: On the one hand, there are
people who want to transform the movement, including its organizational
basis. On the other, there are those who defend the traditional culture.
Historically, the Finnish Freedom of Religion Act has allowed the HH
to remain unregistered without conflicts with the state, unlike in some
other neighboring countries, like Russia (e.g., Löfstedt 2009, 158–159).

T.T. Mantsinen (*)

University of Turku, Turku, Finland

© The Author(s) 2018 109

Instead, Pentecostal congregations have used the Association Act, for

nonprofit associations, to manage their resources (including property).
While many Pentecostals consider the rights granted by the legislation to
be sufficient, a growing number believe that remaining unregistered is not
enough. It not only restricts them from obtaining the rights granted to
other religious bodies, like the right to officiate marriages; many also
believe that remaining unregistered gives an unfavorable impression of the
movement. To the latter group, the question of registration is merely an
organizational technicality, whereas for the former, registration poses a
threat to the integrity of Pentecostal identity and to the assumed doctrinal
purity. The division is most evident in the creation of two opposing orga-
nizational structures: the state-registered Pentecostal Church of Finland
(Suomen helluntaikirkko, SHK) and an association of Pentecostal People
(Helluntaikansa, HK). These groups coexist within, or on the borders of,
the same movement (HH), but have opposing views on issues like cultural
practices, leadership, and organization, as well the movement’s future. In
this chapter, I address and analyze the current conflict and the factors
behind the disruption from sociological perspectives. The main argument
is that the organizational dispute is part of a deeper cultural division,
resulting in different forms of social transformation within the movement.
This process has brought about two different forms of Pentecostal habi-
tus. In order to pinpoint and scrutinize these developments, I draw upon
two different theoretical perspectives: Bourdieuan perspectives on iden-
tity, and transformational processes regarding religious movements.
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Movement Transformation
From a sociological perspective, the question at the organizational level
can be understood in terms of development from sect to denomination, or
moderation of a revivalist movement and its consequences. In order to
analyze the developments in the HH, I draw upon the work of several
sociologists who have discussed the matter. Max Weber saw “systematiza-
tion of external conduct of life,” “routinization of charisma,” and “insti-
tutionalization of mundane systems” as natural developments in
organizations that transformed in this way (Weber 1947, 358–373; 1956,
177–183). Weber also defines three types of authority involved: charismatic,
traditional, and legal. The same categorization corresponds to styles of
leadership: charismatic, patriarchal, and bureaucratic. With the idea of the
routinization of charisma, Weber describes how a social group changes

after the loss of a charismatic leader. In some cases, the search for a new
charismatic leader is successful, whereas in other cases the group dissolves
or undergoes institutionalization (1964, 328–386).
Thomas O’Dea describes the development from Charismatic-led move-
ments to institutionalized communities in a slightly different way. He
focuses on particular dilemmas that may emerge. Such dilemmas can be
connected to motivation, inclusion/exclusion, or administration, as well
as difficulties connected to how religious symbols and interpretations
should be limited. This also includes issues of power and authority, and
possible problems connected to different modes of conversion (O’Dea
1961). Richard H. Niebuhr took particular interest in the generational
aspects of transformation, claiming that a sect may survive for one genera-
tion, after which it is prone to change (1957, 181–182). Similarly, Rodney
Stark and William Sims Bainbridge have underlined differences between
converted and socialized members, arguing that socialized generations of
members are crucial to the transformation of a sect into a church. If the
new generations obtain higher socioeconomic status, are religiously more
moderate than their parents, and gain central positions in the hierarchy,
the sect is likely to transform into a mainline church (Stark and Bainbridge
1985, 149–167). In the following, these theories are used as points of
departure, but in order to nuance and conceptualize the transformations,
I also employ the work of scholars more interested in cultural aspects.

Pentecostal Identity as Habitus

Religion is a multifaceted phenomenon that cannot be reduced to one par-

ticular dimension. It does not include only institutions, doctrines or rituals,
but also lifestyles. According to Heinz Streib “religious styles are distinct
modi of practical-interactive (ritual), psychodynamic (symbolic), and cog-
nitive (narrative) reconstruction and appropriation of religion, that origi-
nate in relation to life history and life world,” and are subjected to social
change (Streib 2011, 149). The factors that shape such cultural preferences
and expressions are of particular interest to the present analysis. Several
scholars have noted how social class informs such expressions, and that class
preferences may cut across whole movements. One example is Lawrence
Mamiya’s study of Black American Muslims, where he notes how differ-
ences between middle-class, moderate styles of expression and the more
radical practices of the lower class divided the movement (1982). The rela-
tionships between class and preferences, or “taste,” have been systematically

elaborated on by Pierre Bourdieu (2010, see also Köhrsen 2008). Bourdieu

portrays a habitus as a durable disposition, a system produced by structural
conditions, and as a historical product (1990, 53–54). The habitus more or
less determines how a person or group presents itself, its taste, behavior,
and performance, in order to produce a coherent image and an acceptable
disposition of experience. Finnish sociologist J.P. Roos strongly relates hab-
itus with lifestyle; a habitus is a general approach to life, and a lifestyle is the
enactment of that approach with living practices (1988, 30–33).
For Bourdieu, a habitus is not the result of subjective intention but of
socialization. It is motivated by the intention to belong to something; in
order to be included in a group, one has to learn and present a habitus
compatible with the group (Bourdieu 1990, 62; 2000, 100; 2010,
166–167, 174). He furthermore makes a distinction between class habitus
and individual habitus. While the individual habitus may be informed by
multiple groups, a class habitus is shared by a socioeconomic segment of
people (Bourdieu 1990, 60). Class cultures are cultivated in structural
conditions, which means they are subject to change over time, and shaped
by the participants’ needs and resources, possibilities and identification
(Bourdieu 2010, 373–393; see also Mantsinen 2014, 42–47). In my view,
no group or class habitus fully determines a person’s individual habitus, as
individuals may draw upon different habituses in different situations. This
may result from conscious decisions or underlying rationales dependent
upon socializations. Relationships between individual agency and habitus
can be illustrated by looking at how individuals mobilize different habi-
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tuses in different contexts, in order to position themselves in webs of

power present in various groups (cf. Bourdieu 1990, 53–56; Mahmood
2005, 26–27; Vanberg 1993, 189–191).

Habitual Transformation
Some scholars have criticized Bourdieu for disregarding the dynamic
nature of habituses (Moberg 2013, 36). In any group, the habitus incor-
porates what aspects, practices, and styles can be included, performed, and
tolerated in the cultural milieu. Knowledge of a group habitus enables
members to employ this knowledge in the social network of roles and
tastes. This empowers them to justify and rationalize practices influenced
by their individual habituses and incorporate them into the group habitus
(Mantsinen 2014, 152–155; cf. Bourdieu 1977, 87–89). If the expres-
sions introduced are accepted, they may result in transformation of the
entire group habitus.

Such transformations may include changes in ritualized practices, even

the appropriation of new goals and preferences, as Jessica Moberg has
shown in her dissertation (Moberg 2013, 220). Rather than being passive
victims of history, both groups and individuals are constantly engaged in
negotiating and renegotiating elements of their habitus. Such processes
are permeated with constant competition over the power to control and
define practices, preferences, and styles included in the habitus, and thus
its normative aspects. In this competition, certain classified and classifying
tastes and lifestyles become dominant in the group’s culture (Bourdieu
2010, 167).
Relating these theoretical perspectives to the field of Pentecostal stud-
ies, various attempts have been made to distinguish between different
forms of Pentecostal-Charismatic habitus. One common approach has
been to construct categories of Pentecostals according to their practices,
for example the famous distinction between “Classic Pentecostals” and
“Neo-Pentecostals” (Anderson 2014, 1–7). In this chapter, I do not apply
this distinction, as I consider it more useful as an insider category than an
analytical concept. The division of Pentecostalism into different “waves” is
strongly influenced by theological understandings of history (see Barnett
1973; Hollenweger 1972). The concept of Neo-Pentecostalism is, in my
view, also an Americentric and selective understanding of Pentecostal reli-
giosity and its development (see Freston 1999; Hunt 2002, 1–2).
Moreover, it does not correspond well with the history of the Finnish
Pentecostal movement. This is despite the fact that some new Pentecostal
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groups that might be described as Neo-Pentecostal have adopted or devel-

oped new practices and rejected old Pentecostal traditions. Many of those
that might be named Classical Pentecostal groups have done the same—
making the concept context-specific.
Instead, I prefer to discuss transformation in the HH by relating it to
developments in Finnish society at large. Analyzing two habituses, tradi-
tionalist and postmodernist Pentecostalism, I apply concepts of tradition-
alism, modernism, and postmodernism that describe general ways of
thinking and approaches to life and to the surrounding world. Zygmunt
Bauman sees postmodernity as “fully developed modernity,” with
“institutionalized pluralism, variety, contingency and ambivalence,” in

which individual identity is guarded in an uncertain world. This stands in
contrast to modernity, with its struggle for “universality, homogeneity,
monotony and clarity” and failed mission to capture the world (Bauman
1992, 187–188; 1998, 57, 66–69). Martin describes postmodernity in

terms of a fluid “vision of culture, [where] all the walls and boundaries are
collapsed,” with the fragmentation of information resulting in free-floating
signifiers (Martin 1998, 103; cf. Bauman 2000; Lyotard 1984, 40–41). In
a sense, postmodernism differs from both traditionalism and modernism.
Modernism and postmodernism can be seen as rivals to religious tradi-
tionalism. I will use the term traditionalism to describe a tradition-based
habitus in the HH. Traditional is a concept used by one wing of HH
practitioners who draw on it in order to legitimize their practices as old
and authentic, sometimes expressed in the labeling of practices as “bibli-
cal.” Despite this, I find the concept useful to describe a habitus shared by
those who oppose modernist and postmodernist tendencies. In addition,
a rival habitus that manifests the tendencies described by Bauman is
referred to by the term postmodern Pentecostal habitus. As illustrated by
Raymond L.M. Lee, these two trajectories need not be mutually exclusive,
but may coexist in the same group (2005, 75–76).

The Finnish Pentecostal Movement Up to the 1970s

The Finnish Pentecostal Movement dates back to a revival in the 1910s.
Rather than a denomination, it can be described as a loose network of con-
gregations. To some extent, Lutheran revival movements dating back to
Pietism in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, as well as Baptism,
Methodism, and Adventism in the nineteenth century, paved the way for
Pentecostalism. All these movements favored the idea of exclusive commu-
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nities of committed believers, free from state control and influence from
the perceived secular world. This stood in sharp contrast to the traditional
inclusive view of the Lutheran Church, where membership was obtained by
infant baptism. Particularly important for creating precedence was the
Laestadian movement, famous for its combination of strict moral teachings
like abstinence from alcohol with ecstatic expressions such as speaking in
tongues (Mantsinen 2014; Ruohomäki 2009). A further incentive for the
revival was provided by expectations of a new era of Christian flourishing,
interpreted as having been heralded by the preceding movements.
A group of middle-class Lutherans were the key figures who enabled
the movement to catch on. In 1911, Hanna Castrén, founder and head-
mistress of a middle school (oppikoulu), Sörnäisten yhteiskoulu, and Pietari
Brofeldt, former editor of Lutheran journal Kotimaa and soon-to-be
Pentecostal journal “The Star of Hope” (Toivon tähti) teamed up with a
few other middle-class Christians. They organized a Pentecostal revival

tour together with the Norwegian Methodist-turned-Pentecostal preacher

Thomas B. Barratt. The tour, and the groups sprouting from it, resulted
in a nationwide network of communities with a common involvement in
Pentecostal religiosity (Mantsinen 2014; Ruohomäki 2009, 2014).
Pentecostals were officially rejected by the Lutheran Church, especially
when they advocated a Baptist view of baptism. The Pentecostals, in turn,
rejected the Lutheran Church. The schism created a focal point of Pentecostal
identity: the clear distinction between “the Church” on the one hand, and
perceived “authentic Christianity,” on the other, which they claimed to rep-
resent. However, in comparison with other Nordic countries, the Finnish
Pentecostals had greater legal opportunities. In 1923, six years after Finland
gained independence from Russia, a law of religious freedom was ratified.
The law permitted the official registration of all religious movements, giving
them legal status within the country, as well as the right for people to freely
choose their religion. However, since the Pentecostals were critical of
“church-like” organizations, the movement was not registered at the time
(Ahonen 1994, 89–105, 169–173). Some Pentecostals went as far as to
reject any kind of organization, including local congregations. These
people—commonly called “Pentecostal Friends” (Helluntaiystävät)—did
not become members of the newly founded Pentecostal congregations,
although they could still participate in the same activities. The Pentecostal
Friends remained a loose network until the 1980s, and traces of their tradi-
tion can still be detected in one or two places in Finland, like Pentecostal
meetings in Multia (Ahonen 1994, 127–132; Mantsinen 2014).
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In their first decades, HH groups attracted members mainly from the

lower classes. Pentecostal culture and identity saw increased polarization
internally as well, and featured a distinct class structure, although it was
still shaped by earlier, mainly Lutheran revivals. Pentecostal culture was
characterized by a popular and folkish preaching style; it was emotionally
expressive and members upheld strict mental and social boundaries
between them and the outside world. The first decades can be described
as having been characterized by Weberian charismatic leadership. When
the movement grew and traditions were shaped, the leadership moved in
a patriarchal direction, with male elders leading the congregations
(Mantsinen 2014).
Since its establishment, the HH has witnessed both internal conflicts and
schisms. The most serious historical conflict, which resulted in a division of
the HH, developed between 1960 and the early 1980s. In 1960, Vilho
Soininen, one of the leading Charismatic figures in the movement—was

ousted due to accusations of immoral conduct. As a consequence, he and

his Siion congregation in Helsinki formed a new Pentecostal network: “The
Free Pentecostal Movement of Finland” (Suomen vapaa Helluntaiherätys).
This alternative Pentecostal network was able to unite a few congregations
involved in local disputes and numbered a total of 3000 members at most.
Over the next 20 years, however, many of them returned to the HH,
including the Siion congregation, and the new movement was dissolved.
Although this was a dramatic incident, it only had temporary and local
implications (Ahonen 1994, 316–317; Ristin Voitto 1985; Seila 1970), and
with Soininen as one of the leading figures of the HH, it is possible to imag-
ine a scenario where the division would have been more permanent.
Post-World War II developments also posed challenges for the HH:
Finland was increasingly bureaucratized, institutionalized, and had been
transformed into a welfare state, where educational reforms enabled social
upward mobility. The traditional affective sermon styles were no longer
intellectually appealing to new generations of educated Finns. Moreover,
the formerly widespread Lutheran-influenced understanding of Christian
culture and morality has, since the 1960s, slowly been undermined by
increased pluralization (Haastettu Kirkko 2012, 24–28). In the HH,
adoption of new practices, musical expressions, and forms of outreach also
created tension within the movement. By the 1960s, acoustic guitar,
accordion, and brass instruments, widely employed in outreach missions
and services, had become an integral part of HH culture. The emergence
of rock music and culture challenged the HH both from outside and from
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within. Some regarded them as “worldly” while others accepted and

included them (Mantsinen 2014, 149–155).
A short-lived (1977–1981) Charismatic revival led by Pentecostal
preacher Niilo Yli-Vainio was also important for introducing change into
the HH. This revival generated enthusiasm and visibility for Pentecostal
religiosity. Even after the sudden death of Yli-Vainio, his legacy continued
to inspire a range of religious practices. Additionally, new practices
emerged, such as casting out demons of sickness. On the one hand, the
new revival energized the HH, while on the other it resulted in doctrinal
disputes and local schisms. The casting out of demons in particular
divided the Pentecostals. As new Charismatic leaders tried to imitate Yli-
Vainio, they were sometimes expelled from the HH, and founded new,
independent, congregations. The ministry of Yli-Vainio also strengthened
the Lutheran Charismatic movement, extending Pentecostal practice out-
side the HH. Prior to the 1970s, relations between the Evangelical

Lutheran Church of Finland and the Pentecostal Movement were mainly

antagonistic. The Charismatic Movement within the church, as well as
the ministry of Yli-Vainio, contributed to bring the Lutheran Church and
the HH closer together and diminish tensions. In the 1980s, a dialogue
was initiated, and the parties reached several agreements concerning basic
rules and conduct. For example, the issue of burial ceremonies for people
who were both members of the Lutheran Church and Pentecostal con-
gregations was finally settled (Päätösasiakirja 1989).
At the same time, though, the improved relations undermined one of
the cornerstones of Pentecostal identity: the dichotomy between the “dead
religion” represented by the Lutheran Church, and the “true faith” repre-
sented by the Pentecostal Movement. Even though this way of thinking
had already started fading, there was even less ground for nurturing divi-
sion after the dialogue had commenced. Yet, not all were happy with these
developments; some saw them as yielding the “true calling”, and as a dan-
gerous dalliance with liberal theologians and “ungodly priests.” Nevertheless,
for many it was a necessary step towards more balanced relations with other
Finnish Christians (Ahonen 1994; Mantsinen 2016).
Looking outside the HH, new Pentecostal groups have continued to
form since the 1980s. Still, the Pentecostal Movement has remained
strong, partly because its traditions had already been established, and
partly because controversial phenomena, like casting out demons, were
avoided. Today, Pentecostal groups outside the HH remain small; cur-
rently, the largest non-HH Pentecostal group has ca. 500 members, and
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the largest non-HH Pentecostal movement encompasses about 1300

members (Ahonen 1994, 341–364; Seurakuntien 2015).

Diversification of the Pentecostal Movement:

The 1980s Onward
Since the 1970s, the HH has continued to transform: The movement has
become multigenerational and Pentecostal culture has changed and diver-
sified. In the late 1980s, tent meetings with hymns, and rock concerts with
popular bands like Heureka, presented two very different expressions of
HH Pentecostalism. The movement had also grown substantially, making
it difficult to manage its many missions and organizational bodies. Some
of these developments brought questions of Pentecostal identity to the
fore, leading to intense debate.

Growth has resulted in calls for a united voice along with increased
institutionalization, and support for an overarching denominational struc-
ture. The question has been a heated topic in the HH’s most authoritative
forum for discussion and cooperation: “Winter Days” (Talvipäivät)—
currently “Autumn Days” (Syyspäivät), as at the forum is held at different
times of the year. It resembles a synod, but is less rigid, and its authority is
limited. At the Winter Days gathering in 1980, Valtter Luoto, the editor
of Pentecostal journal Ristin Voitto, wrote an editorial about the impor-
tance of increased organizational cooperation. He deemed it remarkable
that the HH as a loose network could work properly as a united move-
ment, anticipating a need for an organization such as the Assemblies of
God in the United States. At this point, the movement encompassed
around 40,000 members, spread among 200 congregations. Its many
projects and operations on national and international levels were impossi-
ble to realize without coordinated efforts. By then, the HH had estab-
lished a publishing company, a missionary association, a Bible school, and
multiple outreach organizations, including media (radio, and later also
TV) ministries. These organizations demanded structure, leadership, and
trained professionals. As the editorial illustrates, many Pentecostals wished
for a national organization that would gather the movement around a
common vision and give it a unified voice (Luoto 1980). The debate on
organizational developments underlined the fact that the HH culture was
not homogenous, contrary to what many thought.
Overall, the 1980s involved several turning points in the movement.
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New places to meet and assemble emerged in concert with new practices
and evangelizing methods. For instance, worship music began to take
root, with both domestic and international influences, exemplified by
both the involvement of choirs at revival meetings (like in Yli-Vainio’s
ministry), and the use of translated, imported Anglo-American songs. The
decade also witnessed a huge demographical shift. The number of con-
verts declined, but the new generations of children—raised by Pentecostal
parents—stabilized the number of baptized members at 45,000–50,000.
Unlike their convert parents, the Pentecostal identity of the socialized
members has been one of cultural continuity rather than disruption. They
have never had to distance themselves from either “past life” or a “secular
(Lutheran) church.” In many cases, the previously strong stories of divi-
sion between “the world” and the Pentecostal community have not neces-
sarily coincided with the experiences of this new generation, leading them
to question their social understanding of the boundary between sacred

and secular. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it has been easier for them to accept
and include expressions and practices from mainstream society, such as
contemporary music and fashion. They also employ mainstream language
rather than traditional “Pentecostal language” filled with biblical refer-
ences and symbols. Moreover, they have a tendency to develop and appre-
ciate theologies that focus on wellbeing in contemporary life rather than
in the future and for eternity. The socialized members also differ from the
older generations of Pentecostals in that they are mainly middle class.
Although the class structure of Finnish society as a whole has moved in a
middle-class direction, the shift in the HH is still significant. In contrast,
of those few who converted during the 1980s and later, the majority come
from lower strata in society (Mantsinen 2014, 2015b). As a consequence,
the contemporary HH is comprised by two different categories of people:
the older, converted Pentecostals of working-class origin, and the younger,
socialized middle-class members. The diversification of the Pentecostal
movement and its cultural modi have been vital to the emergence of the
two different Pentecostal habituses, as described below.
Diversification of the HH has continued, and is visible in practices,
services, media use, education systems, and leadership. Congregations
have been founded in new types of locations, such as inside shopping
malls. Some of them have been designed with specific groups in mind,
such as Finnish youth or disadvantaged people. As the Internet expanded
in the 1990s and the Finnish television channels were digitized in 2000s,
the HH started employing these new media. Services and ministries have
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also been transformed, drawing on pop-cultural forms such as stand-up

comedy, lifestyle sermons, and other entertaining types of service and out-
reach. At the same time, traditional Pentecostal practices and services have
seen a drastic decline. For example, tent meetings are rare, traditional
revival meetings scarce, and old forms of worship and prayer have been
replaced by or coexist with new styles. For example, kneeling during ser-
vices used to be commonplace, while now it is more common to stand up
with lifted hands. Furthermore, traditional gender roles are questioned,
and sometimes abandoned, which is visible in the gradual introduction of
female pastors and elders (Mantsinen 2014).
The HH’s education system has also changed in the last decades with the
development of the Bible school. For a long time, it had relied on a curricu-
lar structure based upon one four-month course that could be taken by
anyone, and, which also served as a basic training ground for preachers. The
common understanding used to be that the Holy Spirit would inform and

equip the preacher, and that reading the Bible was all that was required from
the preacher himself. This ideal remained strong until the 1990s, when the
level of education among younger members increased. As a result, social
calls for higher quality preaching and ministry led to an overhaul of the
education system. In the 1990s, the Bible school was transformed into a
three-year, seminar-like institution, which offered a wide variety of courses
and diplomas. Although formal education is still not required from a
Pentecostal preacher in Finland, the pressure is mounting for this to change.
As for leadership, the charismatic authority type can still be found,
although it no longer occupies the previous central position. In fact, all of
the Weberian leadership and authority types are visible in the contempo-
rary movement, but the emphasis has shifted over the years, somewhat as
Weber described, through the routinization of charisma. The authority
and popularity of charismatic leaders are still measured by their skills and
ability to prove their uniqueness in the HH. But within the congregations,
they have to submit to local patriarchal authority, and to cultural Finnish
norms and increased organizational structures.
Pluralization has changed the face of the HH. It is no longer possible to
speak of one common Pentecostal habitus. It makes more sense to speak of
different habituses, where the focal points of Pentecostal identity differ
between generations, and between converted and socialized members. Not
all of these developments have met with approval; some have sparked con-
troversies. New practices and styles of sermons have led to heated debates
over their legitimacy. In the past decades, Pentecostals created new practices
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with evangelization and expansion in mind, and in order to tackle routiniza-

tion, which was seen as an indication of stagnation and “dead religion.” The
emphasis on outreach made such introductions easier to legitimize in the
Pentecostal logic. Since many of today’s innovations are not directly focused
on outreach, but have been created to meet the preferences of the members,
they are harder to legitimize according to the old cultural system. In fact,
some Pentecostals, particularly the older generations, fear that the incorpo-
ration of contemporary mainstream culture will destroy the movement
from within, bringing in “the world” rather than leading to expansion.

Contemporary Disputes
At the turn of the millennium, all of the aforementioned changes and
conflicts coalesced and culminated in one dispute that challenged the HH
more than any other in the past decades had done. The dividing point was

the registration of the Pentecostal Church of Finland (SHK) as a religious

Finnish community. The decision was made on September 15, 2001, at a
special meeting at which leaders or delegates from 131 of the HH’s 230
congregations were present. The question, however, had older roots; the
debate about and inquiry into registration had lasted for a decade. Not all
congregations supported the registration and only 25 had made up their
minds beforehand. Therefore, it was decided that those willing to form
the registered church could do so. Others would not be forced to join. It
was decided that the unity of the HH should be preserved and that the
Winter Days would remain the collective forum for the whole of the HH,
regardless of the decisions in local congregations. Officially, the SHK was
founded in January 2002. By September 10, 2014, 41 congregations and
8011 members had joined the church (Ketoja 2001; Kuosmanen 2001;
SHK 2015; Sopanen 2002).
However, the registration processes were confusing and unsettling for
many. They were already spurring debate at the Winter Days forum in 2002.
Obscurities and differing views as to whether or not this type of organization
was “biblical” led some to suggest a suspension of the process. However, a
majority decided that 10 years of discussions and the previous year’s decision
had been enough. Comments from the opposing side were sometimes con-
tradictory; one could advocate a common organizational structure, only to
reject it if the word “church” was mentioned. Another concern that was
expressed was that the SHK organization and its leaders would speak on
behalf of the whole movement, without consulting all congregations (Kättö
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2002a, b). Yet, up to that point, the largest congregation (Helsinki Saalem)
and the publishing company’s weekly (Ristin Voitto) editor had in fact
already spoken on behalf of HH as a whole. Looking at the arguments,
those who supported the SHK thought that the result would be a better
organized movement, with one voice and an improved public image. Those
who rejected the development saw the SHK as a fertile ground for the rise
of religious dictatorship. In the most extreme cases, SHK was viewed as a
dangerous ecumenical road leading to the apocalyptical church of the Harlot
in the Book of Revelation. One female Pentecostal explained to me that she
did not want to belong to “the Harlot Church,” and therefore opposed the
SHK (Fieldnotes 2014; Mantsinen 2016).
After the SHK was founded, some of the older Pentecostal leaders felt
the need for another network for those who opposed the course the HH
had taken. Their plans were further fueled by their experiences of exclusion
and dismissal from the registration debate. In their opinion, opposition to

the SHK did not gain enough attention either in the HH, or in its journal
Ristin Voitto (Helluntaikansa 2014; Mantsinen 2014). This experience of
exclusion was the result of a number of other factors, foremost among
which were educational and generational divisions. At the beginning of the
millennium, younger and well-educated members had gained many posi-
tions of power, as pastors, organizational managers, and in Ristin Voitto. In
cases where the journal seemingly favored the SHK, opponents interpreted
editorial decisions to exclude their writings as pro-SHK action. From an
outsider’s perspective, however, editorial decisions seem to be based on
common editorial standards of language, and perhaps a wish to avoid con-
troversial topics and open condemnation. Differences in educational levels
manifested themselves in differing abilities in terms of articulation and elo-
quence. In other words, differences in education and writing skills influ-
enced the debate.
The opposition established “The Pentecostal People” association
(Helluntaikansa, HK) on June 28, 2003. They started publishing their
own journal, “People of the Cross” (Ristin Kansa, RK), in 2005. Later, a
conference facility, Mertiöranta and three independent congregations,
called “Traditional Pentecostal Churches” (Perinteinen helluntaiseur-
akunta, PHS), were founded. The creation of these PHS congregations
had resulted from local disputes. Usually, such congregations were estab-
lished in response to the founding of local SHK-congregations. Turning
to the contents of the two journals, Ristin Kansa (RK) issues consist of
devotional articles, traditional interpretations of the Bible, news from the
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missionary fields and from like-minded congregations, and biographies of

previous Pentecostal leaders. Compared to Ristin Voitto (RV), the edito-
rial guidelines are more oriented towards evangelization. The language
and biblical interpretations are more uniform than in the RV, which offers
a wider scope of news, and invites some discussion on doctrinal issues and
new interpretations of the Bible. Whereas the RK depicts “the world” as
hostile and “the end” as an imminent goal for the community of believers,
RV discourse is characterized by more individualistic goals and depicts
“the end” in the relative long term.
The current schism has also resulted in alternative forums of practice,
discourse, and power. The HH Bible school was founded in 1952, and has
trained the majority of HH’s preachers, missionaries, evangelists, and
active members (Ahonen 1994, 302–307). Since the 1980s, the Bible
school organization has also hosted the HH’s major summer events. The
remodeling of the Bible school as a new institution named Iso Kirja (“Big

Book”) in 1992 brought about strong reactions: some criticized, others

applauded the shift towards more systematic teaching and thinking. The
critique was intensified as some Pentecostals felt that the school was
strongly pro-SHK. This contributed to the HK’s decision to found another
conference facility, named Mertiöranta (on the shore of Lake Mertiö), in
2012 (Helluntaiherätys 2014; Helluntaikansa 2014).
Iso Kirja and Mertiöranta can be seen as competitors, but may also be
viewed as occupying different niches. They do not necessarily serve the
same functions; their events, practices, and styles are obviously distinct, yet
many Pentecostals visit both. Nevertheless, they are viewed as opposite
bodies within the HH. Both train Pentecostals, and host conferences.
Rather than competing by engaging in the same practices, however, they
distinguish themselves rhetorically, educationally, musically, organization-
ally, and ideologically, as well as ritually (Havupalo 2014; Kuokkanen
2014). For example, Iso Kirja employs contemporary didactic and techno-
logical gadgets, like videos, whereas Mertiöranta lectures are more sermon-
like and visual representation is minimal or absent. Their differences may
be described in terms of postmodern (Iso Kirja) and traditional
(Mertiöranta) habituses, manifested in their approaches to learning, think-
ing, and life in general. It is worth noting that the criticism of Iso Kirja is
not limited to the HK, but also voiced by traditional-oriented Pentecostals
in general, who have expressed concern about changes, particularly in
theological interpretations.
Another issue that divides the HH concerns leadership, not only how it
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should be defined and practiced, but also what titles should be used. For
example, the naming of ministry workers divides opinions. The traditional
titles “preacher” (saarnaaja) and “shepherd” (paimen) have lost some of
their appeal. Many younger Pentecostals consider them old-fashioned and
difficult to understand. Instead, “pastor” (pastori) and “leader” (johtaja)
have emerged as new titles. Many traditional Pentecostals find it difficult to
accept the title “pastor”, since it reminds them of the Lutheran title
“priest,” indicating institutionalization and loss of the “flame of the Spirit”
(Helluntaikansa 2014). The divide within the HH also runs along the lines
of leadership style and gender attitudes. On the HK side, leaders are regular
preachers in the community, with concentrated authority according to tra-
ditional Pentecostal models. On the SHK side, the leadership is delegated
to different individuals and specialists. In the HH, traditional patriarchal
leadership has included clear gender division, and the highest positions
have been reserved for men. A pastor in one of the PHS congregations

explained to me that they have “a traditional view” on leadership, meaning

that only men are eligible to be congregational elders, preachers, and teach-
ers. As mentioned briefly, some women have been elected as pastors in the
twenty-first century, and a few have gained positions as elders. Usually, HK
Pentecostals see this development as a sign of secularization of the move-
ment, and as a step away from the rightful biblical tradition (Kuokkanen
2014; Fieldnotes 2014).
Among the loudest critics are a small number of older Pentecostal
preachers, whose authority is based upon Weberian charisma and appeal
amongst the older generations. Even though they have now officially
retired, they have continued to play a crucial role in the creation of the HK
and its particular brand of Pentecostal culture. These elderly leaders tend
to interpret the trajectory of the HH in terms of decline. One of them
described the current situation the following way: “What the fathers built,
the sons dissolved (Lahti 2006).” In contrast, the younger generations do
not necessarily understand what the fuss is all about, since they lack the
experiences that formed Pentecostal identity among former generations.
For them, the HH is in need of change in order to appeal to future genera-
tions both inside and outside the movement (Helluntaikansa 2014).
The conflict is not only played out in the Pentecostal press and larger
organizational bodies, but on the local congregational level as well. In
local conflicts, both sides fiercely defend their views, practices, and terri-
tory. In one such setting, the transformation of a traditional Pentecostal
Association (the legal subject of the congregation) into a formal SHK
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congregation led to a lawsuit. The case concerned the ownership of the

group’s possessions, such as buildings and bank accounts. In the case
“Järvinen v Pori Pentecostal Mission Registered Association” (Järvinen v
Porin Helluntailähetys ry 2012), the civil court ruled the case in favor of
the plaintiff, and the establishment of the SHK congregation was post-
poned. Local disputes concerning PHS congregations further contribute
to the deepening of conflicts. Due to ongoing quarrels, PHS congrega-
tions are not currently recognized as a part of the HH. This has led to situ-
ations where people who wish to switch from an SHK to a PHS
congregation have not been granted the usual transfer documents, since
the founding of the PHS was not mutually agreed. Mostly a symbolic ges-
ture, this rejection still denies the PHS emotional ties to Pentecostal roots
and identity. Ongoing disputes divide the movement further, as the older
Pentecostal group can withhold HH status from newly established groups.

The authority of the old forums is also being questioned, such as the
Winter Days, and the SHK has not been able to gain recognition as the
unifying voice of the Pentecostal Movement.
This is important, because it means that there is no organizational body
or authority to unite the movement. Furthermore, the traditional schis-
matic public image of the HH has resulted in the founding of a couple of
new and independent Pentecostal churches in the 2010s. The founders of
these groups grew up in the HH, but do not want to be associated with it
(Fieldnotes 2014).
Within the HK, there is a fear that a church-like system of organization
would bring about an authoritarian leader. This fear has its origins in past
experiences in the HH, as power struggles used to be common. Even
though the SHK has limited the board member terms and distributed
power throughout the organization, the fear has persisted (Havupalo
2014; Kuokkanen 2014; Seila 1970).

Two Different Habituses

Many Pentecostals view these divisions and disputes as the result of orga-
nizational developments aimed at obtaining juridical church status and
different interpretations of that process. In my own research, I have found
that the tensions within the movement have to do with larger sociocultural
shifts in Finnish society and Pentecostal reactions to them, rather than
doctrinal issues. The transformations so far discussed have produced two
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different Pentecostal habituses. For each, claims of a “true doctrine” pri-

marily constitute a discursive strategy to legitimize one’s own particular
habitus as “biblical” and “truly Christian.” With this strategy, Pentecostals
also assert their opinion of the world outside the HH, and its changing
culture, as further illustrated below. In theoretical terms, they evaluate
modern and postmodern influences and embrace or reject them, thereby
drawing and redrawing boundaries between what, in scholarly terms, is
often understood as the sacred and the profane.
An illustrative example comes from a retired couple in one of the PHS
congregations. They explained to me that what they felt alienated them
from the local Pentecostal congregation was its style of worship. They
rejected not only the music, but also the entire culture that had developed
around it, including the use of lighting effects and dress codes, all of which
can be seen as pieces of the group’s habitus. Therefore, they sought another
group that better suited their preferences. As elucidated in this case,

Pentecostal congregations and new PHS congregations do not necessarily

compete for the same people, but fulfill the needs of people embodying
different habituses. For many Pentecostals, these matters revolve around
taste rather than doctrine. In this specific case, the couple brought up a
doctrinal division only later, when the topic was broached. Doctrinal dis-
course is here a way to legitimize taste and habitus (Field Notes 2014).
Also pointing in this direction is a Sunday service in an older Pentecostal
SHK church in the same locality as the PHS congregation I visited. The
service included contemporary music with jazz influences. There was an
orderly fashion to the structure and peoples’ conduct, and the sermon was
clear and systematic, dealing with people’s daily problems. In contrast, the
PHS service had a small choir that led the congregation through the tra-
ditional hymns. As the participants greeted one another, they employed
old-fashioned Pentecostal words and phrases, and the small talk was filled
with symbolic biblical language. In the same vein, the sermon consisted of
a traditional, excited proclamation of the “Word,” filled with emotion and
exhortations (Fieldnotes 2014). During a discussion with the male elders
of this PHS congregation, they briefly commented on secularization. For
them, this was the main influence at work in the development of the
HH. For instance, they identified the new features described above, par-
ticularly the music, lighting effects, and new sermon content as signs of
“worldliness.” Complaints about “worldliness” may be seen as a response
to disruption between traditional and familiar Pentecostal culture, and
contemporary developments. In scholarly terms, this is an example of
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what was mentioned earlier: that for these men, the boundaries between
the sacred and the profane had been breached. What further strengthens
the importance of this example is that their responses are representative of
wider segments of the contemporary HH (Fieldnotes 2014).
Although understandings of what constitutes “worldliness”—and the
fear thereof—have been a common concern for Christians throughout his-
tory, such concerns have been accentuated in specific situations. In light of
the current demographical and cultural changes on the one hand, as well as
accusations of transgressions by preachers, and minimal or absent growth in
the HH, it is not surprising that such concerns have been aired by many
Pentecostals, fueling concerns about worldliness. Also, Pentecostal adop-
tion of practices from mainstream Finnish culture has doubtless under-
mined some of the traditional features central to historical Pentecostal
culture. Since these developments have progressed rapidly, older genera-
tions in particular see them as threatening, and as undermining the perceived

uniqueness of the HH. Perhaps unsurprisingly, concerns with worldliness

are more widespread at the HK end of the HH spectrum than at the SHK
end. People on the SHK side also voice their opinion on their opposition,
but their critique revolves around other matters. From a researcher’s per-
spective, each group’s accusations of the other—of worldliness on the one
hand, and of old-fashioned stagnation on the other—may be understood
as a rejection of the preferences of the opposing camp. Using this rhetoric
and line of reasoning, both sides define themselves and their relation to
the other group, rather than describe that group; they create a distinction
between good and bad taste. Sociologist Stephanie Lawler analyzes how
people describe themselves by expressing disgust over styles and practices
they do not appreciate, and do not want to be associated with. She uses
the concept of disgusted subjects to refer to such identification processes
(Lawler 2005). Similarly, Pentecostals’ disgust over “worldliness” and
“stagnation” respectively may be seen as ways of establishing their own
habitus while distancing themselves from the alternative side (Mantsinen
2014; Fieldnotes 2014).

Key Characteristics of the Habituses

Presently, members leaning to either side represent two different forms of
Pentecostal habitus, each formed by the members’ background and gen-
erational experiences. In the following section, I describe a few key char-
acteristics that demonstrate their different foci. The central standing of
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these features does not mean that the other side lacks such attributes;
I merely want to illustrate the dominant directions in each of the camps.
Individual relationships to God are emphasized across the spectrum.
However, on the SHK side these relationships are expected to develop in
personalized ways, while on the HK side, they are expected to develop
according to shared doctrine. For SHK members, individual relationships
to God are open to discussion and new interpretations. Among HK mem-
bers, this is less the case; established interpretations in general are rarely
subject to serious discussion. The two sides also differ in terms of leader-
ship structure. The SHK has a stronger inclination towards bureaucratic
features, while the HK is mainly patriarchally led. Although charismatic
authority exists in both camps, this feature is more predominant in the HK.
Another divide can be seen in regard to rituals and service practices,
mainly between intellectual and affectional forms. The more educated
SHK Pentecostals prefer intellectual, well-structured rituals, and practices

like sermons, and favor calmer emotional expressions. A rising trend

among SHK Pentecostals is lifestyle sermons, familiar from international
figures such as Joyce Meyer and Joel Osteen. HK sermons, by contrast, are
typically more emotionally expressive; a standard HK sermon would uti-
lize personal and folk stories, and would include references to biblical sto-
ries to greater extent (Mantsinen 2015a). The approach to religious
experiences further divides the HH. An important part of the traditional
Pentecostal habitus was strong emotional experiences, which were not to
be disputed. Today, the discourse of “freedom of the Spirit” has a stronger
foothold in HK congregations than it has in the considerably more bureau-
cratic SHK organizations. A good example of the more orderly approach
in the latter is the management of speaking in tongues, which has devel-
oped from a public expression into a private devotional routine (Mantsinen
2014, 124; cf. Cartledge 1998). In the SHK, Charismatic gifts and
Charismatic preachers are usually subject to stricter control and critique
than in the HK groups.
The employment of different discourses of legitimization also perpetu-
ates division. I have found that HK Pentecostals are more prone to using
biblical stories and interpretations in order to legitimize their arguments.
This practice has declined radically amongst the new generations of social-
ized SHK members, whose debates are more intellectual and often lack
direct biblical references. This ties into how each side has a distinct way of
evangelizing. To SHK Pentecostals, reflective dialogue is key, whereas
HK Pentecostals see proclamation as the appropriate way to go. Thus,
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SHK Pentecostals would engage in discussion with an outsider, while HK

Pentecostals would proclaim the “correct” established message.
Attitudes to attendance and participation constitute another dividing
line. Since the 1980s, attendance has declined dramatically in the HH. The
most important reasons for this are lack of interest in general and in high
levels of social commitment, combined with increased acceptance of more
“fluid”, commitment-less, religious participation. Historically, participa-
tion has been the norm, and it still remains a strong sign of religiousness
for the “traditional” HK wing (Mantsinen 2014). In contrast, new atti-
tudes, widespread among younger generations, are more individualistic
and do not demand steady church visits; one may instead practice at home.
If the habitus is conditioned by structural factors (Bourdieu 1990,
53–54), what has changed? It is obvious that Finnish society has changed
dramatically since the 1950s, and that new generations of Pentecostals
have been affected. The combined factors of the movement’s internal

developments and the increase in numbers of socialized members have

produced a shift in habituses. Upward social mobility has created new
circumstances, leading to different lifestyles and preferences. Class divi-
sions are visible in both HK and SHK habituses. To say that the HK side
would be completely in line with working-class culture would be mislead-
ing; some working-class features, such as social and political radicalism,
are opposed by the vast majority of Finnish Pentecostals. Historically,
Pentecostal culture in the HH has been more appealing to working-class
taste, as is evident in its unrehearsed, folksy, immediate, and more direct
expressions. While such elements still exist in SHK congregations, they
have lost their appeal to middle-class Pentecostals, who prefer profes-
sional, carefully prepared, and intellectually stimulating elements. The
HK side of the HH might consider these practices tending to favor
expression at the expense of substance. The points of division between
HK and SHK, as sketched here, run parallel to divisions of social strata,
which means that social differences have placed their mark on Finnish
Pentecostal habituses.
As demonstrated earlier, SHK and HK approaches to modern societal
developments differ considerably. On the SHK side, we can see an attempt
to offer responses to modernization by means of integrating popular cul-
ture. Conversely, the HK distances itself from these developments, offer-
ing an alternative. Generally, the traditionally popular features distinguish
the HK side, whereas the SHK side is more elaborated and intellectual-
ized. Moreover, postmodern emphases on loose boundaries, combined
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with openness to negotiating identities and participation, characterize a

new Pentecostal habitus embodied by the SHK. The traditional Pentecostal
habitus, embodied by the HK, concentrates on community, established
interpretations, and strict boundaries between “us” and “the world.”

A Struggle for the Future of Finnish Pentecostalism

Change is inevitable in religious communities, since the members con-
stantly interpret and reproduce the elements of their tradition (cf. Bloch
2001; Sperber 1996, 70–74). If development is slow, people usually have
time to adjust to the changes taking place. Controversies are likely to arise
with fast-paced major and visible changes that transform the structure and
culture substantially. If the leaders of a Charismatic sect are still active
when a structured organization is built, the shift may feel like a home inva-
sion or an intrusion into their identity for them.

The dynamics of Pentecostal religiosity pose a challenge for analysis.

Donald E. Miller has used the concept postmodern primitivism to describe
Pentecostalism. By this, he means that this mode of Christianity contains
both primitive forms and postmodern tendencies. For example, it com-
bines sometimes erratic experiences, discourses of self-improvement,
speaking in tongues, and intellectually oriented sermons (Miller 1997,
22–24; Miller and Yamamori 2007, 142–44, 216–219). Historically, most
Pentecostal movements have balanced on the edge between traditional
and postmodern. This can explain some of the success of Pentecostalism
in many countries. While offering something familiar and traditional, it
also brings new and sometimes liberating ideas of individuality and social
improvement. Such ideas include individual relationships with God and
emancipation from poverty, as well as new forms of embodied practices
and experiences (Robbins 2009, 62–63; Vasquez 2009).
The ambiguity and complexity inherent to Pentecostalism points to
something important: The processes of division between traditional and
postmodern within Finnish Pentecostalism have led to their separation
and mutual opposition. The division of the HH into two opposite camps
or habituses can be seen as a struggle between traditional and postmodern
religion, whereby both sides have strong concerns about the future of
Finnish Pentecostalism.
The ways in which these concerns are expressed very much resemble
what O’Dea has listed as dilemmas of institutionalization. Especially rele-
vant is the dilemma of delimitation: How should a religion be described
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and legitimized (O’Dea 1961)? Central to the dilemma are generational

and socioeconomical differences between socialized and converted mem-
bers. Generational conflicts are not new to the HH; as early as the 1960s,
the different experiences of succeeding generations caused tensions in local
congregations. The cultural boundaries between Pentecostals and the rest
of society were guarded zealously at the time, and those who had called for
faster progress usually resigned (Lindell 1991, 67–68). What distinguishes
the present situation is that the movement has become relatively moderate
towards society, and the number of converts has declined while the num-
ber of socialized members has increased; in other words, the situation has
reversed. It is no longer common for “liberal” Pentecostals to leave the
movement, never mind be expelled. Consequently, the HH has faced a
dilemma of mixed motivation (O’Dea 1961), whereby the challenge has
been to meet the needs of different groups. The ways in which these
adjustments have been materialized has been problematic and a concern
for those who support conserving the traditional Pentecostal habitus.

This social development and differing experiences have led to both a

new habitus and identity. Moderate conversion experiences, middle-class
lifestyles, and postmodern tendencies have created a position where tradi-
tional Pentecostal culture is distant to many. When a new cultural position
is introduced by a new habitus with new cultural practices, it challenges
the social field and supporters of old positions. The traditional identity of
exclusion and authenticity was a strong part of a shared habitus, and still
is for the HK side of the HH. As this position is threatened, traditional
Pentecostals are feeling insecure and defend their identity and habitus
(Bourdieu 1977, 80–81; 1983, 313; Mantsinen 2015b; Poloma and
Green 2010, 61–83). Younger generations and well-educated Pentecostals
deem traditional practices and styles as outdated and ineffective in the cur-
rent social and societal context. By rejecting and labeling the opposite
side, they actively describe their own preferences and habituses. This dis-
tinction between “proper” and “outdated” is primarily a way to present
one’s own identity. The act of describing the other side actually portrays
more of their own sphere than the opposite side. Presenting the other
habitus as unwanted (cf. Lawler 2005) or “unbiblical” is a strategy of lim-
iting the acceptable cultural sphere, deeming one’s own preferences as
legitimate. Other discourses are used as well: While the HK side seeks
“authenticity” for the HH and Pentecostalism, the SHK side questions
this version of “authenticity.”
While speculating on the future of these trajectories, it is possible to
present some preliminary prognoses concerning the different camps. The
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division may become irrelevant if the other side shrinks in popularity and
size, as has happened before. It seems that the future of the HK will largely
depend on how many new members, and foremost younger members, it
will be able to attract in the future. The foremost threat against the future
of the HK is the old age of the leading Charismatic figures. The authority
of leading Charismatic figures has been a stabilizing force, and without
new Charismatic leaders of this variety, the HK may face its demise.
Finally, the wider dispute between SHK and HK eclipses other chal-
lenges for the HH, such as the disaffiliation of many socialized Pentecostal
members, manifested in the creation of independent Pentecostal congre-
gations. These new groups have resulted from their members’ desire to
differentiate their habitus from the established Pentecostal habituses
within HH. Usually founded by socialized Pentecostals, the new groups
originated from the HH. For them, the HH has not changed fast enough
to accommodate their needs and visions—in analytical terms, it fails to

accommodate the habitus they are seeking. The desired habitus includes a
more individualistic and dynamic approach, open to contemporary fash-
ion and music styles, as well as discussion of values and theologies.

Conclusions
The Finnish Pentecostal Movement has tried to foster an idea of a nation-
wide religious movement with a homogenous culture, and has failed. This
is visible in the split that took place as SHK became a registered denomi-
nation and the HK network emerged as a response. In this chapter, I have
argued that the split is the result of a larger differentiation within the HH,
embodied in two different Pentecostal habituses. The resulting main argu-
ment is that the Finnish Pentecostal Movement faces its greatest chal-
lenges from within, in terms of the said differentiation of traditional and
postmodern Pentecostal habituses. These are the results of a wide variety
of factors both internal and external to the movement. One of the key
developments has been a demographical shift in the HH, meaning that
experiences vary between generations. The traditional Pentecostal habitus
has been shaped by conversion, and strong distancing from mainstream
society and the Lutheran state church in particular. The preferences inher-
ent to this habitus also reflect the members’ working-class background.
With the relaxation of relations with mainstream Finnish society and
Lutheran religion, the state church no serves as a threatening “other” to
the same extent that it used to.
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The emergence of a new, socialized, generation of Pentecostals has

entailed a new habitus, lacking the old experiences of exclusion and sepa-
ration; it constitutes a middle-class group of postmodern worshipers with
more relaxed attitudes to mainstream society and practices. This group has
grown to become influential in the HH. Moreover, its preferences have
influenced the whole movement: its members appreciate intellectual ser-
mons that address individual needs, new embodied routines like worship
music, organizational order, and decentralized authority. The construc-
tion of the new habitus has resulted in reactions from traditionalists. The
latter camp sees innovations as “worldly,” while the postmodern Pentecostals
depict the traditionals as outdated and old-fashioned. Hence, the current
organizational split can be viewed as a manifestation of this deeper divide.
It remains to be seen how the HH will develop in the future. Currently,
Pentecostals from both camps find the contemporary culture of the HH

alienating. There are plenty of socialized members who want to change

the movement further, although the more traditional older generations
have been the most vocal. One option is that the HH might allow two
opposing groups to coexist in the same city or town, or even in the same
congregation. It is also possible that the HK and other factions opposing
the SHK might fail to attract long-term interest among younger
Pentecostals, in which case the HK would slowly vanish. Yet another pos-
sibility would be to dissolve the HH, but this seems unlikely in the near
future, as it is not currently a viable option. In the long run, the move-
ment’s survival depends on the realization that groups with different reli-
gious habituses need their own spaces in which to practice Pentecostalism,
and Pentecostal lifestyles that accommodate their own cultural tastes and
preferences.

References
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Ethnographic Material
Field Notes from an Ethnographic Study of the Pirkanmaa Traditional Pentecostal
Church in Tampere, Finland. February 23 February, 2014.
Interview with M. Kuokkanen from Pirkanmaa Traditional Pentecostal Church,
February 23, 2014.
Interview with P. Havupalo from the Finnish Pentecostal Church, March 26,
2014.
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Knutby Filadelfia: A Schismatic

New Religious Movement Within
the Pentecostal Context

Liselotte Frisk

Knutby Filadelfia, situated in Knutby just outside Uppsala, Sweden, is a

small religious community with roots in the Pentecostal Movement of the
early twentieth century.1 As of 2014, it had 96 members. The congregation
was structurally part of the national network the Pentecostal Movement
(Pingströrelsen) until 2004, when it was expelled on the grounds that its
beliefs were “unorthodox.”
In January 2004, a tragic crime put this small religious community in
the spotlight of media attention, which entailed the public exposure of its
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

unique beliefs and lifestyle, including its interpretation of the Christian

symbol of the Bride of Christ as a human being: Åsa Waldau. Alexandra
Fossmo, the young wife of one of its pastors, Helge Fossmo, was killed by
gunshot, and a young male member was seriously wounded. Pastor
Fossmo was found guilty of conspiracy to murder and sentenced to life in
prison.2 The investigation revealed that the man who had been shot was
the husband of one of the pastor’s mistresses. A young member, Sara
Svensson, was convicted as the perpetrator of the shootings. She, too, had
been having a romantic relationship with the pastor. The court, however,

L. Frisk (*)
Dalarna University, Falun, Sweden

© The Author(s) 2018 137

ruled that Svensson had performed the crimes while heavily under the
influence of the pastor, who had been sending anonymous text messages
to her cell phone, urging her to perform the deed—messages she believed
came directly from God. Svensson was committed to a psychiatric ward.
This study initially portrays the history, religious beliefs, and lifestyle of
Knutby Filadelfia. The community is described and analyzed from a socio-
logical perspective on new religious movements, and the theological and
organizational boundaries of the Pentecostal Movement and the phenom-
enon of schism and expulsion will be discussed. At the end of the chapter,
a lifeworld approach will be explored as an analytical perspective on the
crimes in 2004.
Knutby Filadelfia has received very little scholarly attention, despite the
high levels of media publicity and speculation. Sociologist Eva Lundgren
wrote a book in 2008, mainly mirroring the former pastor Helge Fossmo’s
perspective on the events in Knutby Filadelfia. There is also a short sum-
mary of the events written by historian of religion Jonathan Peste, based
mainly on journalistic accounts. Finally, Frisk and Palmer have written a
paper (2015) using narrative analysis on the story of Helge Fossmo, based
on an interview with the former pastor. Thus, this chapter may be said to
be the first fieldwork-based portrayal of this religious group from an
academic perspective. The material consists of interviews and informal
conversations with members, pastors, representatives, and ex-members of
Knutby Filadelfia, as well as material gathered from participant observa-
tion at Sunday services and social events, such as dinners and the Friday
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

night coffee meeting—all conducted between the years 2011 and 2015.
The first part of the chapter describes Waldau’s own story of her journey
to Knutby Filadelfia, based mainly on an interview with her and a book
she authored.

History and Development

Knutby Filadelfia was founded in the village of Knutby outside Uppsala in
1921 as a Pentecostal congregation (Peste 2011, 218). It remained a fairly
orthodox Pentecostal organization for the first few decades. In 1985, Kim
Wincent, who had attended the Bible school at Word of Life (Livets ord),
became the head pastor (Lundgren 2008, 54–56). Like in many other
Pentecostal congregations at the time, several of the members of Knutby
Filadelfia had been in contact with the Word of Life to various degrees—a
development that continued during the 1990s. There was never, however,
any formal collaboration between the two groups.

In 1992, Åsa Waldau moved to the village from Uppsala, and from that
time on put her unique mark on the community. Waldau was born in
1965. She was born into a secular home, but her grandfather, Willis Säwe,
with whom she had close and positive contact during her childhood, was
an important figure of leadership in the early Swedish Pentecostal
Movement. Waldau recalls that she had a salvation experience at the age of
16, when she accompanied a friend to a teenage camp in the Sanctification
Union (Helgelseförbundet), one of the Swedish free churches.3 A little
later, in the Pentecostal Movement, she discovered what she now consid-
ers to be most important to her: an emphasis on the individual’s personal
experience of and relationship to God, as well as closeness to Jesus. Waldau
also found the Pentecostal teachings to be consistent with what was writ-
ten in the Bible. Another aspect she found important was their emphasis
on love and fellowship between followers. Waldau says that she had always
been more attracted to the teaching to do good to one another, to create
the community Jesus preached, than to the charismatic aspects of looking
for “signs and miracles.” Additionally, these egalitarian values were impor-
tant for Waldau, the putting into practice of the idea that God’s will is
sought by the community as a whole, as well as the idea that everyone
could find his or her own way to serve God (Interview 1).
Waldau was baptized in 1983, and after that worked with different
projects within Pentecostal congregations in, for example, Laxå and
Uppsala. She worked a lot with children and teenagers, but also with
music, and after some time she started to teach and evangelize. Her musi-
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

cal style could be described as prayers to God set to music, with some simi-
larities to the devotional songs expressed in Neo-Pentecostal contexts.
Waldau says that she met some resistance in the Pentecostal Movement.
According to her, it was a problem for some that too many people came
to listen to her, and that too many people asked her to come and talk.
Some considered her popularity a threat, and also thought her way of
speaking was too direct, meaning—according to herself—her habit of
being very clear about what she considered to be right and wrong, based
on the Bible. When she moved to Uppsala in 1990, she started working as
a children’s pastor. This ended in 1992, when Waldau’s husband left her
for one of her best friends, resulting in a divorce. According to Waldau,
the divorce prevented her from continuing as a pastor in the Pentecostal
Movement in Uppsala. Additionally, she says she could not cooperate with
a younger male coworker, who wanted to decide what she should do, just
because she was a woman. Waldau also expresses that she was disappointed

by the hypocrisy and power struggles she saw in the Pentecostal Movement
(Interview 1). The problems between Waldau and the Pentecostal
Movement are confirmed by other sources; however, these often blame
Waldau for the problems (Lundgren 2008, 67).
At this point, Waldau was invited to stay in Knutby for a while, as some
of her friends, who were members of Knutby Filadelfia (and were the par-
ents of her future husband), thought that this was what God wanted her
to do. After some time, she was asked to stay and work there on a con-
tinual basis. This request was to some extent influenced by a prophetic
message that Knutby Filadelfia should open its doors to a female servant
of the Lord who had experienced a great crisis (Interview 1). This message
was allegedly received by a priest in the Church of Sweden who was visit-
ing Knutby for a meeting (Interview 4). Hearing this, Waldau also thought
it was God’s will that she should stay in Knutby (Interview 1).
The congregation had 40 members in 1991 (Lundgren 2008, 55).
Waldau largely had the freedom to work in the ways she thought best, and
immediately started working with children and music. This was, according
to Waldau, a great success. In 1994 she married Patrik Waldau who, like
his parents, had belonged to the community for a long time.4 He was also
one of the young people she had met at Uppsala. They had two children
together (Interview 1).
During the 1990s, Åsa Waldau served as a traveling evangelist within the
Pentecostal Movement, venturing all over Sweden. Many of the people she
met moved to Knutby after some time and developed close relationships
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

with her. Among these new members were Helge Fossmo and Sara Svensson.
In 1997, Knutby Filadelfia started a Bible school, which still exists but now
has fewer participants. At that time, the Bible school consisted of one course
that lasted for three months and was held annually. Participants stayed in
private homes, which led some people to take such a liking to the way of life
in Knutby Filadelfia that they decided to stay. Within a few years, the mem-
bership had doubled to about 100 members (Interview 1). Some of the
older members did not like Åsa Waldau’s new spiritual authority and left the
congregation (Lundgren 2008, 68). The new community consisted mainly
of young and enthusiastic people, many of whose family backgrounds were
in the Pentecostal Movement (Lundgren 2008, 59).
Around the year 2000 there was a strong expectation shared by the
Knutby pastors and members that Jesus would return to usher in the mil-
lennium very soon. A belief developed concerning Knutby Filadelfia’s
important role in the coming global events: God had a special purpose for

this particular congregation, and a specific role for Åsa Waldau. The group
waited for the return of Jesus (Informal Conversations 2). The members
of Knutby Filadelfia prayed for this to happen, and they talked in this con-
text about “coming home” and “be[ing] taken home.” The concept of
“coming home,” used by the community in this manner, has been criti-
cized as possibly referring to death, contributing to the notion of death as
something positive, and thereby providing a context of rationalization for
the later murder and murder attempts (Peste 2011, 217).
Informal conversations with members point to the death of Helge
Fossmo’s first wife, Heléne Fossmo, in 1999, as an event which, at least
retrospectively, changed many aspects of the community’s thinking
(Informal Conversations 1). Heléne Fossmo was found dead in the bath-
tub in her own house. At the time, her death was concluded to be a tragic
accident,5 but it would become important for the development of the
congregation’s teachings on death. The members were all relatively young,
and many have since expressed that they had not thought much about
death before. Now, it seemed so much closer as it had happened unexpect-
edly to a young person in their midst. Some thought that God’s kingdom
would soon come and that they would meet Heléne again, and many
people in the congregation had a strong longing for this to happen.
Additionally, Fossmo expressed that he had received a vision that God
would take Åsa Waldau home soon, which she took seriously for some
time (Interview 1).
Prophecies, visions, and demons have at times played a major role in
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

the community’s theology, as they sometimes have in Pentecostal congre-

gations (Lundgren 2008, 61–63; Peste 2011, 219). Åsa Waldau says,
however, that she resisted the excesses of searching for signs and miracles,
and that the love and fellowship in the community, as well as the search for
Jesus were much more central to her (Interview 1). Pastor Peter Gembäck
remarks that these phenomena were especially significant at the time of
Helge Fossmo’s pastorship (Informal Conversations 2).
The Knutby case received a tremendous amount of media attention
(Norman 2007). The congregation was criticized by all corners of society,
religious as well as secular. The Pentecostal Movement was quick to
denounce Knutby Filadelfia. The congregation was expelled in 2004 and is
not part of any network today. Åsa Waldau has expressed disappointment,
because she feels that no one from the Pentecostal Movement stood up for
her and Knutby Filadelfia when the media storms ensued (Interview 1). On
the contrary, the spokesman for the Pentecostal Movement, Sten-Gunnar

Hedin, was very clear that Knutby Filadelfia deviated from the Pentecostal
Movement, and had nothing to do with it (Norman 2007, 28).
Åsa Waldau is no longer a pastor, but she remains a member of Knutby
Filadelfia. Since 2008, she has withdrawn from leadership and lives in
seclusion from the community. Waldau appeared frequently in the head-
lines and also live on various radio and television channels during the first
few years after the event. The pressure from the events of and media
storms after 2004 finally became too much, and Waldau says today that
she needed to create distance between herself and people who needed her
help. She also expresses disappointment in certain ex-members who have
been very critical of her in the media and whom, she says, she has been
prepared to give her life for. Today, she works as an artist, musician, and
designer, and she says that also in these actions she aims at surrendering to
God and being able to do his work (Interview 1). Although Waldau is no
longer present in the everyday life of the community, her charisma is still
evident in many ways. Her paintings are everywhere, as is her music, and
she remains an inspiration and spiritual guide for many members.
The community has undergone significant demographic changes
recently, as the number of children has increased markedly since 2004. Most
children are younger than 10 years old. About 10 members have left over
the last few years, some of them previously having belonged to the “inner
core,” such as the parents of Patrik Waldau (Informal Conversations 2).

Leadership and Authority

Knutby Filadelfia is organized as a nonprofit organization with a board

chosen by the members. The board consists of 10 elders. In 2015, all the
elders were men, but a few women have also held board positions, Åsa
Waldau among them. As of 2015, there are three pastors, all of whom are
members of the board. The organization is democratic in the formal sense
(Interview 4). However, some leaders, especially Åsa Waldau, have had
informal authority, which has led some to criticize the community as
undemocratic.
To an observer of the community, the influence of Waldau on Knutby
Filadelfia is very clear historically but also in the present. Many of the cur-
rent members have moved to Knutby because they encountered her and
what they describe as her spiritual power (Informal Conversations 1).
Although Waldau has a unique position in the community, there are also
other strong charismatic leaders. For the teenagers, important role models

include some of the older men, for instance Waldau’s husband Patrik and
the current leader Pastor Peter Gembäck (Interviews 3).
Waldau’s power and authority, as well as the presumed lack of democ-
racy, have been criticized by ex-members (Lundgren 2008, 68), and by
representatives of the Pentecostal Movement (Salomonsson 2005) among
others. Some of the critics have suggested that Waldau was the real destruc-
tive force in Knutby Filadelfia, and that there is a kind of “systematic
error” in the structure of the group that made the crimes possible (see for
example Robèrt 2005a). Regarding Waldau, it has been claimed that she
has even controlled who should marry whom in the community (Lundgren
2008, 67). Waldau confirms that many people, both historically but also
today, have asked her for advice regarding many different kinds of ques-
tions in life, and have also been given advice (Interview 1).
Waldau has also been criticized for statements that have been perceived
as judgmental and insulting (see for instance Lundgren 2008, 88, 125).
She says today that there have been things she wishes she had never said,
but that she did what she felt was right at the time. She says that, like all
teachers, she has had the experience of sometimes saying the wrong thing,
but that this experience is part of the development on the road to becom-
ing more mature. According to Waldau, as a teacher one needs to be brave
and clearly communicate what is right and wrong. Waldau says that, dur-
ing her time in the Pentecostal Movement, she sometimes had to make
decisions that were not popular with everyone, as some people were more
interested in their own opinions than in God. Waldau sees her own life as
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

an attempt to live “in spirit and truth,”6 and to the degree that she suc-
ceeds in surrendering to God, she thinks that he is able to act through her
and her words; God works through the human conscience and the inner
urge to act and talk. The human interpretation, however, can be wrong
sometimes, which is later shown “by the fruit” (Interview 1). It is clear
that Waldau perceives herself, as do her followers, as an instrument of God
and, although today there are no formal structures for her authority, her
advice seems to be often sought, albeit in informal ways.

Beliefs
The main part of Knutby Filadelfia’s theology conforms to classic
Pentecostal and Charismatic currents in the latter part of the twentieth
century. During this time, a fertile Christian milieu was significant, with
influences from several orientations. In his book The Globalisation of

Charismatic Christianity, Simon Coleman (2000) describes this as a glo-

balized scene with Neo-Pentecostal as well as fundamentalist currents.
Significant orientations were the Faith Movement and the Toronto
Blessing (Coleman 2000, 23–28). In Sweden, as elsewhere, the 1960s and
1970s were times of Charismatic revival within older churches. The
Swedish Faith Movement could be seen as part of the wider Pentecostal-
Charismatic landscape, with elements from Neo-Pentecostal groups in the
United States, but also built on earlier revivals. The Word of Life, the most
important Faith Movement church in Sweden, was established in 1983 by
the former state church priest Ulf Ekman. There were also other
Charismatic groups and currents at play in Sweden, which had emerged in
the 1960s and 1970s. Two examples are the Maranata Movement
(Maranatarörelsen), which came out of a minor Pentecostal revival, and
the Jesus Movement (Coleman 2000, 89–90). In the broader Pentecostal-
Charismatic context, neither the imminent return of Christ, nor God giv-
ing humans very concrete signs, were alien ideas.
However, Knutby Filadelfia also has some unique traits. A distinct char-
acteristic is its continuous re-evaluation of previous theological positions
where the members bring up subjects for discussion, study the scriptures
in search for what the Bible “says,” and formulate new theologies. In this
way, their doctrine is dynamic and sometimes changes.
Knutby Filadelfia’s most original, heterodox teaching is the idea of Åsa
Waldau as the Bride of Christ.7 This belief originated in an issue brought
up for discussion during the late 1990s, namely of whether the Bride of
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Christ really should be interpreted as the Church—the Body of Christ—as

most Christians see it, or if it might be a human woman, an otherwise very
unusual interpretation. Pastor Helge Fossmo’s statement to Waldau is
now quite famous: “If the bride of Christ is a woman, then it must be
you.” Today, Waldau says she considered it her duty to look within her if
there could be any truth to this suggestion and that she did reflect upon
this matter for a while. She points out, however, that the whole idea came
from Helge Fossmo and not from her (Waldau 2007, 237–244). The fact
that she tried this belief for a while also had the effect that she withdrew
from the daily tasks of the community for some time. It seems that the
notion of Waldau as the Bride of Christ was unknown to the main body of
the congregation, and known only to the closest group, comprised of less
than a dozen people (Informal Conversations 2). Others may have heard
rumors and hints, and drawn their own conclusions. Considering the neg-
ative attention this idea has received in Swedish media, it is unsurprising
that the community now seeks to downplay the importance of this belief.

Between 2008 and 2009, another theological question came up for

discussion and reassessment: the Trinity. Pastor Peter Gembäck explains
that Knutby Filadelfia has opened up regarding the question of the human-
ity of Jesus. He thinks Jesus may make more sense as a human being, as a
role model and example, than as a distant God. In the Christian context,
this question is explosive, and Knutby Filadelfia has not taken any formal
stand. The pastors and members continue to reflect on the true signifi-
cance of the Trinity (Interview 4). It may be noted that humanization of
Jesus goes well together with the process of reflecting on whether or not
the Bride of Christ might be a human individual.
Knutby Filadelfia has also taken another stand that distinguishes it from
the traditional Pentecostal churches and denominations regarding a life-
style issue: wine drinking. In accordance with most other Christian orien-
tations, the practitioners believe that it is not a sin to have one or two
glasses of wine now and then, which most of them also do. In their view,
there is nothing in the Bible indicating that wine consumption should be
forbidden (Informal Conversations 2).

Lifestyle
Knutby Filadelfia is a very tight-knit community. Its foundation according
to Åsa Waldau is, she says, the love and fellowship between Christian
brothers and sisters, and worshiping God (Interview 1). Although families
mostly live in their own houses, they often have meals together, spend
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time at each other’s houses, and help each other with various tasks.
Children sometimes sleep over in other houses than that of their parents,
and single members sometimes share house with a family. These relatively
close relationships between members has been criticized by psychiatrist
Rigmor Robèrt, who interprets this semi-communalism as artificial inti-
macy and an insidious strategy for social control (Robèrt 2004). These
close relations also create a tight community with boundaries dividing it
from mainstream society, some of which are geographic, and others social.
The gender roles in the community generally conform to conservative,
traditional Christian norms: The man should have the ultimate responsi-
bility for and authority in the family, the woman should be cared for and
provided for by the man. In the words of Åsa Waldau: the man should be
“male” and the woman “female” (Waldau 2007, 187–191). This, how-
ever, has not affected the members’ professional lives. Women in the com-
munity work outside the household to about the same extent as their

counterparts in mainstream society. Regarding sexuality, the group has a

positive approach to sexuality within marriage, but prohibits all forms of
pre- and extramarital relations. There have, however, been examples of
extramarital relations in the group, as seen in the case of Helge Fossmo.
Fossmo himself motivated this by divine revelation and considered his
relationship to Svensson to have spiritual meaning; their sexual relations
were part of a form of “spiritual warfare” they were engaged in together
(Lundgren 2008, 150–152).
As mentioned, there are many small children in the congregation today,
and the children are often encouraged to develop close bonds to several
adults beside their parents. Critics have highlighted possible negative con-
sequences for the children, saying for example that this is part of a broader
pattern of cultivation of artificial closeness among the members, and that
physical and psychological abuse is common. Robèrt writes that a kind of
exorcism is carried out, during which leaders discipline the children (Robèrt
undated-a, b; 2005b).8 Following the events of 2004, there have also been
social investigations involving families in the community. In one case, dur-
ing a custody conflict, a husband who was still a member of the group was
reported to the police by his ex-wife, who had left the group, who had left
the group, for physical abuse of their child. However, he was found not
guilty. Three families have furthermore been reported to the local authori-
ties for mistreating their children—among them Åsa Waldau’s own family.
The families were investigated and no evidence of abuse was found.9
In another case, two members who worked as teacher and assistant at the
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public school in Knutby were convicted on charges of physical violence

towards their pupils. One was for pinning a child to the ground, the other
for throwing snow at a child. According to an interview with the teacher
involved in one of the cases, the boy held down had severe problems and
was aggressively violent, and there was no other way to handle him (Interview
2). At the time of the crime, there were eight people from Knutby Filadelfia
working at the school in different roles. All of them lost their jobs at the
time, but were later exonerated, and some returned to jobs under the same
municipal employer, albeit in other schools (Interview 2; Interview 4).

The Boundaries of the Pentecostal Movement

Before May 2004, the Pentecostal Movement in Sweden consisted of a
network of independent but cooperating congregations. In that year, how-
ever, the movement transformed into a judicially religious denomination
(trossamfund): Pingst—Fria församlingar i samverkan (PFFS) (Wahlström

2007, 316), in English, The Pentecostal Alliance of Independent Churches

(PAIC). This development from network to denomination may have been
partly influenced by the violent events in Knutby Filadelfia earlier the same
year, although the development towards a national organization started
earlier, and has parallels in the other Nordic countries, as discussed by
Teemu T. Mantsinen in this volume. Two of the arguments in favor of a
defined denomination were that the Pentecostal Movement would be in a
stronger position to communicate with mainstream society, and that it
would be clear who and which congregations represented the community.
Moreover, it would be possible to ostracize “deviating” congregations
(Wahlström 2007, 314). Before this, there was no formal procedure for
accepting or ostracizing congregations in the network; it was more of an
informal process. Lewi Pethrus himself, one of the most prominent leaders
in the early Pentecostal Movement, had been disinclined to organize a
denomination (Carlsson 2008, 71). The ideal of the Pentecostal Movement
from the very beginning was that there should be no central organization
and that the local congregations should be free and independent, but
united through collaboration (Carlsson 2008, 71; Lindberg 1991, 263).
On PAIC’s website (2014), it says that it is necessary to encourage and
give space to the life, integrity, uniqueness, and development of each local
congregation, thus allowing room for certain differences between the
congregations.
The Pentecostal Movement’s “Marriage Committee” (Vigselnämnden)
is an institution that has played a critical role in determining which local
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bodies should be perceived as Pentecostal congregations. This special com-

mittee determines whether local pastors should be given the right to per-
form juridically valid wedding ceremonies (Interview 5; Lindberg 1991,
274–276).10 Besides, the list of congregations published each year in the
Pentecostal Movement’s yearbook was the go-to reference work for find-
ing out congregations were seen as parts of the Movement. It is evident
that Knutby Filadelfia, prior to 2004, was one of many Pentecostal congre-
gations included in the yearbook’s list, and the Marriage Committee had
granted Pastor Helge Fossmo the right to perform wedding ceremonies.
An article published in the Pentecostal Movement’s 2005 yearbook,
written by the Pentecostal director in Uppsala, Dan Salomonsson, points
out that there had been tensions and questions around the congregation
in Knutby for a few years. He refers to its isolation, mentioning that the
pastors from Knutby did not participate in collective events, and that a
group of concerned relatives had contacted the Pentecostal Movement
about the difficulties of keeping in contact with the members in Knutby

Filadelfia. Representatives of the Pentecostal Movement had also noticed

that some of the older members of Knutby Filadelfia had left the group,
due to the changed leadership style introduced with Åsa Waldau. Thus,
even before the murder, representatives of the Pentecostal Movement had
expressed and voiced concerns for Knutby Filadelfia (Salomonsson 2005).
A contributing component was probably that Waldau had left the congre-
gation in Uppsala under turbulent circumstances. Later in the article,
Salomonsson states that in 2004, other evidence surfaced, showing that
Knutby Filadelfia deviated from the “natural orientation” of a Christian
(i.e., Pentecostal) congregation. Salomonsson cites amongst these the
belief that the Bride of Christ could be a human being, materialized as
Åsa Waldau; promiscuity in the community; alcohol consumption; the
members’ way of bringing up children;11 the congregation’s lack of open-
ness towards the wider community; and the absence of a democratic
structure (2005).
As part of the exclusion process, the Pentecostal Movement withdrew
the right to perform marriages from Fossmo in June 2004 (Salomonsson
2005). Since then, Knutby Filadelfia has no longer been mentioned in the
Pentecostal yearbook—an act of exclusion that could be interpreted as
approximate to expulsion, since the Pentecostal Movement at that time
lacked a formal mechanism of either affiliation or expulsion. This was not
the first time the Pentecostal Movement had distanced itself from local
religious bodies, and the exclusion of Knutby Filadelfia follows historical
patterns. Alf Lindberg mentions a few examples from the 1950s, and the
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case of Södermalm’s Free Congregation (Södermalms Fria Församling) in

1988.12 Lindberg gives no specific reasons for the conflicts, except that in
1958 the pastor in Trollhättan had collaborated with pastors with whom
there were “doctrinal disagreements.” The Marriage Committee stated
that Södermalm’s Free Congregation and its pastors had shown in word
and deed that they did not wish to be part of the Pentecostal Movement
(Lindberg 1991, 276–283). The words and deeds corresponded to con-
formity with Word of Life ideals, and Ulf Ekman had also been invited to
preach there (Coleman 2000, 91, 220). According to an article in the
1989 yearbook, the congregation also arranged competing conferences
that were scheduled to take place at the same time as the significant
Pentecostal conferences (Pingströrelsens årsbok 1989, 6). As with Knutby
Filadelfia, the Marriage Committee played a central role in withdrawing
the grant to perform marriages from certain pastors, and these local con-
gregations were wiped out of the yearbook (Lindberg 1991, 276–283).

Tradition Versus Novelty, Schisms, and “Sects”

Religion tends to be expressed in traditional, as well as new and creative
ways. An often emphasized component in religious innovation is the char-
ismatic leader or charismatic authority (Barker 2004). The leading thinker
on charismatic authority, Max Weber, also introduced the sociologist
church/sect typology (1978, 1164), later developed by other sociologists,
as discussed below. Weber considered charismatic leaders to be potential
carriers of creativity, and as key to cultural and social change—religiously,
politically, and economically. Charismatic authority is therefore a chal-
lenge to existing institutions, as it tends to change, undermine, and destroy
them. It may thus also lead to derangement and deviance (Weber 1968,
xix–xx). Concerning the case of Knutby Filadelfia, it is clear that Åsa
Waldau holds charismatic authority in the Weberian sense. In Weber’s
terms, she is considered by the followers to possess “a certain quality of an
individual personality by virtue of which [s]he is set apart from ordinary
men and treated as endowed with supernatural, superhuman, or at least
specifically exceptional qualities” (Weber 1964, 358). Waldau is also the
initiator of the creative theological elements that developed in Knutby
Filadelfia. An important exception is the Bride of Christ doctrine, which
was reportedly initiated by Helge Fossmo, but revolves around the cha-
risma of Waldau. The institutionalized Pentecostal Movement considers
the doctrine unorthodox.
American sociologists Rodney Stark and William Sims Bainbridge, as
well as British sociologist Eileen Barker, have taken interest in innovation
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in religious organizations. Barker discusses tradition versus novelty in the

article “What Are We Studying? A Sociological Case for Keeping the
‘Nova’” (2004). While religious creativity mostly has roots in older tradi-
tions, what Barker calls “new religious movements”, or first-generation
movements,13 also exhibit characteristics that could in some sense be
viewed as “new.” Barker lists some of them as charismatic authority, exter-
nal antagonism, atypical membership (attracting members from one strata
of the population, for example, of a particular age or class), and rapid
change. Knutby Filadelfia may be said to conform to several of these.
Rarely has such a small religious group in Sweden been subjected to a level
of external antagonism close to that of Knutby Filadelfia, which featured
in media headlines daily or weekly for several years.
Living in a highly demanding religious community with a strong sense
of communal identity naturally generates identification of one’s group as

being special compared to mainstream society, and a certain degree of

separation between “us” and “them.” For many of the members, it seems
that the media attention has strengthened their identification with the
community. Also, the members moving to, and settling in, Knutby Filadelfia
were demographically in the same phase of life, mostly between 20 and
30 years of age. Several of them were second- or third-generation members
of well-known Pentecostal families in Sweden, which may also have con-
tributed to the antagonism demonstrated towards the group by some of
their parents. Atypical membership-related practices are also demonstrated
in the recent trend of having children in the community, as the next phase
in life. Lastly, the congregation has changed rapidly in the last few years,
changes rooted in its charismatic leadership structure, but also in the tragic
events of 2004. Additionally, Barker identifies several elements as typical of
new religious movements: enthusiasm, a strong sense of taking religion
seriously, a common expectancy of dramatic changes in the future, as well
as social or geographical boundaries created to keep the members separate
from the world outside. To a certain extent, all these characteristics seem to
apply to Knutby Filadelfia: The lifestyle of the community, which is geo-
graphically separated from the rest of society, requires deep religious com-
mitment and high levels of participation, the combination of which results
in a strong sense of community that generates social boundaries. Prior to
the turn of the millennium, there was considerable expectation that Jesus
would return very soon, although this characteristic is less prominent today.
Other aspects of Barker’s work are less obviously applicable. Barker uses
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the phrase “first-generation movements,” a concept that cannot be

unequivocally applied to Knutby Filadelfia: The members who moved to
Knutby after having met Waldau did not conceive of themselves as “con-
verting to a new religion.” At the time, Knutby Filadelfia was part of the
Pentecostal Movement. The members’ own understanding of their life-
style was, and generally remains, that it was an imitation of that of the first
Christians, which is not uncommon in Pentecostal groups. The case of
Knutby Filadelfia and the Pentecostal Movement could better be described
as a schism that happened gradually with the involvement of Åsa Waldau,
and came to a final break in 2004. Barker writes that charismatic leader-
ship is often especially important in those new religious movements that
are created as an effect of schism (Barker 2004), and this seems to corre-
spond to the developments in Knutby Filadelfia as well.
In several of their works, Stark and Bainbridge discuss religious novelty
from a different perspective than Barker’s, using the traditional sociological

terms “sect” and “cult.” Schismatic groups are key phenomena in their
conceptualization. According to Stark and Bainbridge, sects, like cults, are
in a state of relatively high tension with their surrounding sociocultural
environment, but have prior ties to another religious organization.
Furthermore, they are founded by persons who have left another religious
body for the purpose of establishing the sect. They apply the term sect,
therefore, only to schismatic movements (Stark and Bainbridge 1985, 25).
Waldau’s criticism of the Pentecostal Movement is typical of sectarian devi-
ation: corruption, hypocrisy, and deviance from “true” religion. According
to Stark and Bainbridge’s conceptualization, Knutby Filadelfia is a typical
case of sectarian religious revival.
The stance taken by the Pentecostal Movement regarding Knutby
Filadelfia helps it distinguish itself from the crimes happening in Knutby,
as well as affirming its law-abiding identity. Even before the crimes in
2004, however, there had been doubts and hesitations about some of
Knutby Filadelfia’s characteristics. The reaction to the crimes from the
Pentecostal Movement thus also served the purpose of reaffirming its
boundaries and of branding unacceptable theological traits and lifestyles as
non-Pentecostal.

The Crimes in Knutby Filadelfia According

to a Lifeworld Perspective

Globally, there have been several incidents connecting religion and vio-
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lence in recent years, in some unfortunate cases leading to both murder

and collective suicide (see Lewis 2011). In several cases, violence has been
conducted by one or a few individuals, not involving the whole group, and
in some of them the members have been involved to different degrees.
Like in Knutby Filadelfia, religious motives may also coincide with either
personal motives or, as elsewhere, with political motives.
One important question is to what extent the theology or the religious
group as a whole is to blame for violent events, the answer to which cer-
tainly varies between individual cases. In the case of Knutby Filadelfia,
there have been some attempts to hold the entire group responsible for
the crimes. In particular, the narrative created by Fossmo in collaboration
with his psychotherapist (Frisk and Palmer 2015), and recapitulated by
Eva Lundgren (2008), creates a picture of Åsa Waldau as the malicious
driving force, and of the theology and lifestyle of Knutby Filadelfia as a

blueprint for the crimes. This picture, which has been widely spread in
Swedish media, exhibits many similarities to common anticult representa-
tions of new religious movements, thus drawing on larger cultural narra-
tives.14 Helena Norman, investigating the media reports on the Knutby
case, has found that in the media, (especially tabloid papers) the crimes
were linked to the congregational milieu and the religion, rather than to
individuals (2007, 17). The individuals involved in the events were repre-
sented in accordance with stereotypic narrative roles or cultural arche-
types, whereby Waldau (“Bride of Christ”) occupies the role as the
mysterious “witch,” Fossmo (often referred to as “the Sex Pastor”) as the
“villain,” and Svensson (“the Babysitter”) as the innocent and manipu-
lated “victim”—all of whom are described with different attributes that
correspond to their respective archetypical roles (Norman 2007, 37–65).
Norman also writes about the “sect discourse,” a dominant and favored
discourse in the media reports about Knutby Filadelfia, and how it was
constructed by means of statements from “sect experts,” defectors, the
Pentecostal Movement, and the media’s own voices (Norman 2007, 68).
A more fruitful approach would take into account both individual per-
spectives and the broader religious context. Individuals construct, experi-
ence, and interpret their lives in different ways, as part of mutual
relationships with other people and the broader social group, as well as in
the wider societal context. An analytical concept that may be useful for this
approach is that of the “lifeworld.”15 Originating in Husserl’s phenome-
nological perspective, it was further developed in different directions by,
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for example, Alfred Schütz and Jürgen Habermas (Lotz 2001, 74–75).
The lifeworld is, in short, our socially constructed, lived world. Different
people may, however construct a variety of individual lifeworlds. Lifeworlds
then, are both shared and individual. Dahlberg et al. write that our behav-
ior, personal actions, and individual ways of being result from our own
personal space in the world, which can be described as one’s own entry to
a common and shared world (2008, 39). Didactics researcher Cecilia
Nielsen describes humans as active subjects in their lifeworld, experiencing
and interpreting objects, events, and relations in various ways and giving
them different kinds of meaning and significance. Each individual con-
structs, perceives, and experiences his or her own lifeworld, although this
is also based on corporeality, space, time, and intersubjectivity. In other
words, our comprehension is spatially and temporally bound. Human
beings are parts of contexts, natural as well as cultural, in which their expe-
riences and actions become meaningful. As the world is intersubjective, we

are continuously in relation with and dependent on other people who also
contribute to shaping those contexts (Nielsen 2013, 29–36).
In a small group like Knutby Filadelfia, different individuals construct
and perceive the world through slightly different lifeworlds; these
undoubtedly share many features but diverge on others. In all religious
groups, there are several layers and levels of participation. This opens up
spaces for the existence of different lifeworlds relating to each respective
subgroup, even within the same community. From this perspective, it is
only natural that the separate subgroups of Knutby Filadelfia embraced
realities that diverged from each other to some extent. The members clos-
est to Åsa Waldau, for example, may have taken part in the teaching of the
Bride of Christ doctrine, while members in the outer circle of the com-
munity remained unfamiliar with it. A promiscuous lifestyle, usually cate-
gorized as sinful in Pentecostal and many other Christian groups, was
legitimized as divinely sanctioned and may have been a natural component
of the lifeworlds of Helge Fossmo and some of the women close to him
before 2004. Meanwhile, other members may have been ignorant of this
feature. As for Sara Svensson, her closeness to, and shared lifeworld with
Helge Fossmo, were combined with the significance given to prophecies
and signs in the congregation at the time. This combination may have
made it seem natural to her that God would communicate with her via
text messages on her cell phone, asking her to sacrifice people, with the
Old Testament narratives as cultural models.
It seems probable that the crimes committed by Fossmo and Svensson
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could only have been committed in a very specific context, here provided by
the religious group that both of them belonged to. Supporting influences in
this context could, for example, have been the story from the Old Testament
of God asking Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac (Genesis 22).16 The con-
junction of this with several other beliefs may have reinforced this lifeworld:
for example, the belief that God communicates with human beings through
dreams or prophecies; and the belief in charismatic leaders, which provided
fuel for the destructive pattern of the relationship between Fossmo and
Svensson. In combination with the theological space in the community
given to death after the demise of Fossmo’s first wife, these factors are likely
to have paved the way for the destructive relationship between Fossmo and
Svensson. The notion of “coming home” may, for Svensson in co-construc-
tion with Fossmo, possibly have made sense when interpreted as death, thus
contributing to the tragedy. For other members however, the meaning of
those words would have been completely different.

Thus, the combination of the two individuals Fossmo and Svensson, as

well as the reality they constructed together, on the basis of cultural ele-
ments current in their religious community, were certainly necessary fac-
tors in the crimes. More research is needed on the history and theology of
Knutby, but based on what is currently known, it can be argued that the
tragic crimes emerged out of a folie à deux relationship that developed
between Helge Fossmo and Sara Svensson, and their idiosyncratic inter-
pretations of the social and religious reality constructions of Knutby
Filadelfia.

Conclusion
The Pentecostal Movement has distanced itself from local congregations
several times during its history. An early example was in the 1950s, when
a congregation in Trollhättan was excluded. In the 1980s, Södermalm’s
Free Congregation, with its connection to the Faith Movement, was the
target, and in 2004 it was Knutby Filadelfia—the focus of this study. There
has obviously been a continuous need to keep up boundaries as to what
should or should not be considered part of the Pentecostal Movement.
With its historical loose structure, however, there have been difficulties in
expelling local congregations that do not live up to the movement’s stan-
dards. The only means available to do this have been to withdraw the
rights of local pastors to conduct marriages, and exclude congregations
from the list of Pentecostal congregations provided in yearbooks. In the
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case of Knutby Filadelfia, both means were employed.

Even before the crimes of 2004, tensions were apparent in the
Pentecostal Movement. Standard components of religious novelty, such as
charismatic authority, external antagonism, atypical membership, rapid
change, strong enthusiasm, an expectation of dramatic changes in the
future, and boundaries to keep the members separate, all conform to the
practices of Knutby Filadelfia. As such, this case is not unique, but a text-
book example of a new religious movement or, in a sociological and non-
pejorative sense, a sect, and a manifestation of how religious innovation is
ordinarily constructed and expressed. As such, Knutby Filadelfia, with its
unique belief system and lifestyle, can be considered as originating from a
sectarian schism with the Pentecostal Movement, under the charismatic
leadership of Åsa Waldau.
As for the crimes, there are no indications that they should be attributed
to the religious group per se. Rather, the crimes seem connected to the

unique lifeworld created by the two persons involved in the crimes—a

lifeworld that also featured components from their wider religious context.
The tragic outcome then, can be considered as the result of two specific
individuals’ co-construction of a destructive reality in their particular
interpretations of specific, but not uncommon, religious components.

Notes
1. Since autumn 2016, Knutby Filadelfia has been rapidly changing. The
charismatic leader Åsa Waldau has left the group.
2. The Swedish term is anstiftan till mord, which means that someone per-
suades or forces another person to kill (incitement to murder). The closest
equivalent in the English legal vocabulary is “conspiracy to murder.”
3. The free churches in Sweden are a group of religious organizations outside
the (former) state church, which have roots in revivalist currents from the
nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The Pentecostal Movement is one of
the free churches, and until 1994 “The Sanctification Union”
(Helgelseförbundet) used to be another one—since 1997 this has been
part of Interact (Evangeliska Frikyrkan).
4. Patrik Waldau is ten years younger than his wife, and was 18 at the time of
the wedding. This fact has caused a lot of criticism and speculations (see for
example Lundgren 2008, 67). However, cultural gender expectations need
to be taken into consideration concerning this criticism. The opposite situ-
ation, a woman ten years younger than the man, would hardly cause any
reactions in Swedish culture. The couple are still married after 20 years.
5. In 2004, Helge Fossmo was also tried for the murder of his first wife, but
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was not convicted. The judge decided that there was not sufficient evi-
dence (Peste 2011, 218).
6. John 4: 24: this expression is often used in Pentecostal contexts.
7. See 2 Corinthians 11: 2 and Revelation 21: 9–27.
8. This is forcefully denied by representatives and members of Knutby
Filadelfia, and also by some ex-members.
9. This information was provided by Pastor Peter Gembäck and I have seen the
written record of formal decision taken by social authorities regarding one
of the families.
10. Concerning the other free churches, it is the denomination as such which is
granted such rights, and it thereafter grants this right to pastors in the con-
gregations. As the Pentecostal Movement was not organized as a denomi-
nation institutionally speaking, a special office, “the Marriage Committee”
(Vigselnämnden), was created within the Pentecostal Movement, with the
mission to grant individual pastors the right to perform marriages (Lindberg
1991, 274).

11. Salomonsson does not specify what he means by this, but it is probably the
lifestyle of closeness between the members which means that the children
are sometimes taken care of by other adults than the parents (to a greater
extent than in mainstream society), and the alleged physical and psycho-
logical abuse referred to earlier in the chapter.
12. This congregation has since been readmitted to PAIC.
13. Barker discusses first-generation movements in general, but most of her
research concerns new religious movements that became prominent in the
1960s and 1970s, such as the Unification Church (The Family Federation),
ISKCON, the Church of Scientology, and the Children of God (The
Family International).
14. A report from the National Board of Forensic Medicine suggests that
Fossmo needs to develop insights about his personality deficiencies and
nuance the picture he maintains of being a victim of “sect disease”
(Rättsmedicinalverket, June 17, 2014).
15. There are many elaborations and historical contextualizations of this con-
cept. See for instance Lotz (2001) for a brief summary.
16. This is a reflection Svensson herself seems to have made (Cristiansson
2004, 20–21).

References
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Coleman, Simon. 2000. The Globalisation of Charismatic Christianity: Spreading

the Gospel of Prosperity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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Bokförlaget DN.
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Research. 2nd ed. Stockholm: Studentlitteratur.
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Pastor of Knutby Filadelfia, as Told in Prison: A Narrative Analysis Approach.
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Lewis, James R., ed. 2011. Violence and New Religious Movements. Oxford/New
York: Oxford University Press.
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Pingströrelsen, Lewi Pethrus ideologiska roll och de kvinnliga förkunnarnas situ-
ation. Lund: Lund University Press.
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for Education in Europe, ed. Hans-Günther Heimbrock, Christoph Th. Scheilke,

and Peter Schreiner, 78–84. New Brunswick/London: Transaction Publishers.
Lundgren, Eva. 2008. Knutbykoden. Stockholm: Modernista.
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In Barn- och ungdomsforskning: Metoder och arbetssätt, ed. Soly Erlandsson and
Lena Sjöberg, 29–46. Lund: Studentlitteratur.
Norman, Helena. 2007. Religion som medieberättelse: Expressens rapportering om
Knutbyfallet. Uppsala: Uppsala Universitet, religionshistoriska avdelningen.
Peste, Jonathan. 2011. Murder in Knutby: Charisma, Eroticism, and Violence in a
Swedish Pentecostal Community. In Violence and New Religious Movements,
ed. James R. Lewis, 217–229. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Pingst - Fria församlingar i samverkan 2014. http://www.pingst.se/. Accessed 5
Sept 2014.
Rättsmedicinalverket. 2014. rapport 2014-06-17, dnr G 2014-Y0005.
Robèrt, Rigmor. 2004. Kristi brud bör träda fram. Expressen, April 8.
———. 2005a. Kristi bruds hemliga profetia ger förklaringar till mordet i Knutby.
Dagens medicin, November 23. http://www.dagensmedicin.se/artik-
lar/2005/11/23/kristi-bruds-hemliga-profetia-ger-forklaringar-till-mordet-i-
knutby-/. Accessed 28 Nov 2015.
———. 2005b. Barnmisshandel i Knutby församling. Expressen, October 18.
http://www.expressen.se/debatt/barnmisshandel-i-knutby-forsamling/.
Accessed 28 Nov 2015.
———. undated-a. Knutby del 7: Åsa Waldaus hemliga självprofetia. Magasinet
Paragraf. https://www.magasinetparagraf.se/nyheter/knutby-artikel/42918-
del-7-asa-waldaus-hemliga-sjalvprofetia/. Accessed 28 Nov 2015
———. undated-b. Barnen i Knutby. Magasinet Paragraf. https://www.magasinet-
paragraf.se/nyheter/kronikor/43420-barnen-i-knutby/. Accessed 28 Nov 2015.
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2005, 8–9. Stockholm: Pingströrelsens informationscentrum.
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Secularization, Revival, and Cult Formation. Berkeley/Los Angeles/London:
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Verksamheter och särdrag under 1900-talet, ed. Claes Waern and Jan-Åke
Alvarsson, vol. 2, 301–316. Örebro: Libris förlag.
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ABM.
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with an introduction by Talcott Parsons. New York: The Free Press.

———. 1968. Max Weber on Charisma and Institution Building: Selected Papers.
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Interviews and Informal Conversations

Informal Conversations 1: Different members of the community 2011–2014.
Notes were taken.
Informal Conversations 2: Pastor Peter Gembäck, 2011–2015. Notes were taken
and the content has been checked with the Pastor.
Interview 1. Interview with Åsa Waldau, May 28, 2014.
Interview 2. Anonymized interview with a member, May 29, 2014.
Interview 4. Telephone interview with Pastor Peter Gembäck, July 22, 2015.
Interview 5. Telephone interview with Magnus Wahlström, the Pentecostal
Movement, September 3, 2014.
Interviews 3. Several anonymized interviews with teenagers in Knutby Filadelfia,
May 28–30, 2014, for the project Children in Minority Religions, sponsored
by the Swedish Research Council.

author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and
indicate if changes were made.
The images or other third party material in this chapter are included in the chap-
ter’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the
material. If material is not included in the chapter’s Creative Commons license and
your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permit-
ted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder.

Novelties and Contemporary

Innovation
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Faith Healing Revisited: A Charismatic

Christian Intervention to the Therapy
Culture in Finland

Tuija Hovi

Healing with the help of the Holy Spirit has traditionally been a pivotal
theme in Pentecostal and Charismatic churches throughout the world. In
recent decades, Pentecostalism in its various forms has rapidly expanded
globally, raising interest and gaining more adherents, especially in Latin
America, Asia, and Africa, though it still has a firm foothold in the Western
world (see e.g., Anderson 2004). This expansion on every continent has
been largely interpreted as a result of the cultural adaptability of
Pentecostalism, especially of its doctrinal message, which focuses on heal-
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

ing. For instance, Candy Gunther Brown points out that the recognized
limits of scientific biomedicine fuel therapeutic experimentation with
divine healing, as they do with other alternative remedies, many of which
invoke aid from personal or impersonal spiritual sources (Brown 2011, 8).
Healing in diverse Pentecostal contexts is not understood only in medical
terms but also in a more holistic way including, if not even requiring, an
individual’s personal spiritual transformation. Especially among the Third
Wave Charismatics, the holistic understanding of healing also covers
“this-worldly” material well-being. For this reason, the branch in question

T. Hovi (*)
University of Turku, Turku, Finland

© The Author(s) 2018 161

has been branded the Health and Wealth Gospel or Prosperity Theology
by adherents of the established churches, as well as by Classic Pentecostals
(cf. Brown 2011, 10).1
In the study of Christianity, the term “faith healing” is sometimes seen
as ridiculing and pejorative. Brown, for her part, chooses “divine healing”
instead, accepting the definition of the practitioners themselves, who wish
to emphasize God’s love instead of merely human faith or an impersonal
spiritual force as a source of healing (Brown 2011, 4–5.) Nevertheless,
without deliberately giving any value-laden connotations to the terms, I
prefer to use “faith healing” as an umbrella term for the above-mentioned
healings; that is, for those that are practiced with the help of prayer or other
forms of ritual practices, including the notion of being in contact with a
superhuman power. With “divine healing” I refer to healing in Christianity
generally, whereas “charismatic healing” refers specifically to healing which
is understood as a result of the gifts of the Holy Spirit (i.e. “charisms”).
In this chapter, I focus on the relationships between well-being and
religion in the context of the Christian intercessory prayer service called
the Healing Rooms in present-day Finland.2 The Healing Rooms (HR)
concept was developed in its contemporary form in the 1990s in the
United States, and has thereafter grown into a worldwide lay-based net-
work. The underlying purpose of HR activity is evangelization and prepar-
ing people for the apocalyptic “end times,” and to “save” as many as
possible by awakening them to spiritual growth as Christian believers.
However, this mission is not implemented by preaching, as is usually done
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in congregations and at revival meetings. Instead, it is carried out only

implicitly by praying for people individually and privately, according to
their personal requests. Intercessory prayer, as both a communal and pri-
vate act, is an elementary part of Christian spirituality. The peculiarity of
this prayer movement is the way in which the idea of intercession is put
into practice: The HR operates at premises called “prayer clinics,” giving
the impression of spiritual health centers.
The central issue in this analysis concerns how traditional Christian
notions and practices of divine healing, especially charismatic healing, fit
modern Nordic society, with its highly developed and specialized health-
care system and psychologized therapy culture. I also explore how the
international, originally American, HR has been accommodated in the
traditionally Lutheran, but today rather secularized Finnish culture, and
discuss how this interdenominational, lay-based organization defines and
justifies its position in the country’s religious landscape.

I begin with a short overview of the Christian scene in Finland to pro-

vide a backdrop to the context in which the HR operates. Thereafter, I
move on to discuss the psychologization of culture and how it has been
adopted by the national Christian scene, which comprises the context for
my analysis. Next, I introduce the HR with a brief summary of its history
and the basic idea of the practice, as well as the empirical material of the
study. The description of the setting and procedure at the prayer clinics
precedes the discussion on faith healing as an intervention to therapy cul-
ture. By the term “therapy culture,” I mean the whole range of more or
less psychologized, semi-professional practices that aim at creating better
coping strategies for a more balanced, successful, and healthy life.

The Christian Scene in Contemporary Finland

In order to contextualize alternative and interdenominational or indepen-
dent Christian practices, such as the HR, it is useful to employ a postsecular
framework. This calls into perspective several factors that are helpful for
understanding the HR’s emergence: the resurgence of religion in the public
sphere; the fragmentation of the religious landscape; and individualization,
in terms of emphasis on personal needs. These processes have been recog-
nized by Jürgen Habermas and many other scholars studying contemporary
societies and the role of religion and spirituality in them (Habermas 2006;
see also Bahram 2013; Moberg et al. 2012). What further characterizes reli-
gious life in contemporary Finland is increasing competition between tradi-
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tional religious alternatives and other spiritual supply including westernized

meditation and yoga pracices as well as New Age oriented energy healing and
angel therapy, just to mention a few examples. This development intertwines
with questions such as the complex relations between individualism and col-
lectivism, and the various themes of believing, practicing, and belonging.
Moreover, the boundaries of several sectors of knowledge, previously treated
as juxtaposed—such as scientific, religious, esoteric, and knowledge of thera-
peutic discourses and practices—are blurring (cf. Utriainen et al. 2012).
The Christian scene in Finland is predominantly Protestant. The Catholic
Church (ca. 12,000 members) and the Orthodox Church (ca. 60,000
members) have recently increased their membership numbers, mainly
because of immigration, but their rates are still rather modest compared to
the mainline church. Most Finns are members of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church of Finland (ELC). At the end of 2016, the membership rate was
71.9 percent of a population of nearly 5.5 million inhabitants (ELC 2017).
Actual participation in church activities, however, is considerably lower.

According to the latest quadrennial report of the ELC, based on data col-
lected in 2012–2015, approximately 37 percent of church members partici-
pated in services at least once a year, Christmas Eve being the most popular
liturgical occasion (ELC 2017; cf. Palmu et al. 2015, 93). Over the present
decade, the membership rate of the ELC has gradually decreased.
Nevertheless, the ELC still dominates the religious landscape. Even though
it is not an institutional state church, it nevertheless plays a visible role in the
country (cf. Nynäs et al. 2015, 15–16).3 Contributing to society, it provides
social welfare in the form of diaconal work, maintenance of cemeteries, and
international humanitarian aid. The role of the ELC is also important in
public debates, where its opinions are, on the one hand, often sought, but
on the other, are also criticized. Today, the inclusive and multidimensional
character of the ELC is visible also in that it is home to five Pietist-inspired
revival-based movements: the Laestadians, the Awakened, the Evangelicals,
the Beseechers, and Evangelical Neo-Pietism, or the Fifth Movement, as
the last one is usually called in Finland. In addition, the more recent
Charismatic Renewal and the Taizé-inspired Friends of Silence are nowa-
days active within the ELC.
Despite the ELC’s dominant role and the solid tradition of old Pietist
revival movements, one also finds various Charismatic Christian communi-
ties in the country. Pentecostalism was introduced in Finland during the
first decade of the twentieth century, and is today the third largest reli-
gious group in the country. With approximately 46,000 members, the
classic, lay-based, Pentecostal Movement is the largest revival movement
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

outside the ELC, including 238 Finnish-speaking and 26 Swedish-speaking

congregations. At present, 48 of the Finnish-speaking congregations are
organized under the umbrella organization The Pentecostal Church of
Finland (PCF), founded in 2002. The rest are independent and locally
organized as registered associations. Despite such organizational division,
the classic Pentecostal Movement is quite homogenous (ELC 2017;
Ketola 2007, 34–35; PCF 2017; PingstFi 2017).
The Evangelical Free Church of Finland (EFCF), for its part, is a Finnish
revival movement, which combines elements of Evangelical theology and
Charismatic Christian practices. Historically, it was inspired by the American
Holiness Movement of the nineteenth century, which was introduced to
Finland through Sweden. The EFCF has been operating in Finland for
over 120 years. This denomination consists of 100 local congregations
around the country in Finland and one in Spain (EFCF 2017). Other
denominations originated in the nineteenth century or earlier, but remain
of minor significance to the Christian landscape; their growth leveled out

quite some time ago. By contrast, the rapid growth of new independent
congregations, from the 1980s onwards, has been notable. These com-
munities mostly represent Third Wave Charismatic Christianity. The num-
ber of these congregations is currently estimated to be over 100. However,
the instability and mobility in the Charismatic scene makes it very difficult
to give exact figures (Hovi 2009; Ketola 2007).
In sum, it is hardly appropriate to call Charismatic Christianity a single
“movement,” classified in terms of the sociological church/sect typology,
considering all its global diversity both inside and outside the older
churches (cf. Anderson 2010, 13; Beyer 2003, 373). Likewise, in Finland,
it is a Christian spiritual trend that exists both inside and outside the
ELC. There is, on the one hand, a vibrant congregational field inhabited
by numerous independent local communities and evangelizing organiza-
tions. On the other hand, the Charismatic Renewal and similar alternative
activities are found within the mainline church, albeit to varying degrees
of organization and autonomy (Hovi 2009; Hovi and Haapalainen 2015).

Psychologized Discourse and Therapy Culture

The psychologization of everyday life—including religious life—takes
place when ordinary people reflect upon themselves and their environ-
ment in accordance with psychological models, without primarily seeing
psychology as a scholarly discipline. Psychologization can thus be defined
as “psychological vocabulary and psychological explanatory schemes
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entering fields which are supposed not to belong to the traditional and
practical terrains of psychology” (De Vos 2012). The breakthrough of
psychologization and therapeutization in Finland is said to have happened
with the help of historian Juha Siltala’s studies on the anxiety disorder
growing out of the Finnish mentality and culture (Siltala 1992) and the
masculine conceptions of honor, which focused on the culturally inherited
need of the Finnish man to overcome shame through success and achieve-
ments (Siltala 1994). In addition to Siltala’s psychohistorical interpreta-
tions of Finnish mentality, a trilogy of studies on different aspects of
“psycho-culture” by sociologist Janne Kivivuori in the 1990s ignited criti-
cal discussion on the psychologization of everyday life. According to
Kivivuori, by the end of the 1980s, popular psychology had become
increasingly visible in many ways, above all in the media, societal debate,
commercial life, and everyday conversation in Finland (Kivivuori 1991;
Kivivuori 1996).

Psychological concepts and ideas of emotional and social coping have

also been adopted in religious discourses in various parts of the world,
particularly in North America. One example is therapeutically inclined
Christian counseling. The realms of medical care, psychological therapies,
and spiritual coaching overlap in many Christian communities, especially
those focusing on healing. Anthropologist Pamela E. Klassen has shown
how North American liberal Protestants renewed theologies and pastoral
care by combining psychological and Charismatic Christian approaches to
the self. According to Klassen, as “diagnosticians of the moral self,” such
groups combined ideas of faith healing, Charismatic Renewal, and psy-
chology (Klassen 2011, xxii). While she describes the beginning of the
Charismatic Renewal among Anglicans, Episcopalians, and Roman
Catholics in the United States and Canada in the 1960s, she also points
out analogies to what today may be called mindfulness. One example is
the “habitual fourfold process,” with its focus on holistic healing. This
process was employed in preparing Christians for God’s healing power.
The recommended process included (1) daily relaxation, (2) reminding
oneself of life outside oneself, (3) inviting that life to increase in one’s own
body, (4) visualizing one’s body, or for the more advanced, forgetting
one’s body and, instead, concentrating on the spiritual energies of God
(Klassen 2011, 146). Furthermore, instead of seeing the subconscious
merely as the site of demonic activity, as suggested earlier by the influential
Catholic theologian Paul Tillich, the subconscious came to be regarded as
a human resource to be trained and utilized as “a control center under
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orders of God” (Klassen 2011, 145–146).

Similar tendencies have been noted in studies of pastoral counseling
and Christian therapy groups in Finland. Kivivuori recognized the psy-
chologizing trend emerging also in the mainline Lutheran church
(Kivivuori 1999), tracing the origins of the psychologized pastoral coun-
seling to the idea of the “surgery of the soul” based upon the Oxford
Group Movement of the 1930s and the Moral Re-armament Movement’s
principles. According to those principles, the criteria for authenticity of an
individual’s faith are the authenticity and health of his or her personality
which can be restored in a close social interaction during pastoral counsel-
ing. Moreover, social and often emotional problems can be solved by
guiding individuals to convert to the Christian faith (Kivivuori 1999, 67).
In Finland, psychologization discourse has paved the way for contem-
porary therapy culture and has since become integrated in everyday speech
and thinking (Ihanus 2005). Psychological concepts like “searching inside

oneself,” “identity-work,” “personal development,” “spiritual growth,”

“self-realization,” “depression,” “trauma,” and “therapy,” have become
practically self-evident in contemporary public discourse and everyday life.
In the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the twentieth century, psychologi-
zation became visible, especially in pastoral care and diaconia (i.e. the
established charitable work of the ECL), as more elements from psycho-
therapy were adopted. Gradually, religious discourse in general has
absorbed more psychologically framed conceptualizations. For instance,
instead of provoking a sense of guilt, psychologically oriented churches
prefer to speak of health and authenticity, or of illness or pain instead of
sin. One way to update religious life is, indeed, to change one’s way of
talking about it (cf. Pietikäinen 2000).
In Charismatic Christianity, for its part, its idea of holistic healing—
covering physical, emotional, social, and spiritual well-being—makes it
obviously easier for its members to adapt to a psychologized culture. A
language of, for example, health and authenticity goes hand in hand with
the idea of a benevolent God as opposed to a punishing one. Healing
Rooms prayer clinics illustrate one way in which such discourse can be
operationalized and utilized for purposes of evangelization in contempo-
rary psychologized and postsecular Finnish society.

The Global and Local Healing Rooms

Third Wave Charismatic Christianity is difficult to categorize into colloquial
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categories such as “conservative” or “radical,” seeing as it combines com-

ponents traditionally associated with both, even though these labels refer to
categories usually perceived as opposites.4 In the first place, the acceptance
of fundamentalist principles, such as a firm belief in the authority and iner-
rancy of the Bible, is a component that may be labeled “conservative.” The
Neo-Charismatic worldview also includes God and Devil as good and evil
personified, as well as believing in the existance of evil spirits. At the same
time, however, all Charismatics are radical in their view of revelation as
continuous, and their expectations of new manifestations of God’s power
through the Spirit (Chryssides 1999, 123). The latter quality gives space for
modernization and new interpretations of sacred text. Furthermore, there
is a strong emphasis on individualism, personal growth, and healing, which
makes Charismatic Christian healing movements an integral part of the
cultural “subjective turn” (cf. Heelas and Woodhead 2005).
This ambivalence is also evident in the Healing Rooms, where biblical
fundamentalism is represented in the sense of retaining the “biblical truth,”

as in Pentecostal and Charismatic Christianity. Focusing on the idea of divine

healing and the opportunity for lay intercessors to use their personal gifts of
the Holy Spirit to help others by mediating divine healing power, the HR
promotes salient aspects of Neo-Charismatic thinking. Besides, their inter-
national networking, adaptable organization structures, and active use of
digital media for advocating their message, link the HR closely to the fluid
trend of Neo-Charismatic or Neo-Pentecostal Christianity (cf. Anderson
2010, 19–20). However, it is difficult to categorize the HR merely as a
Pentecostal organization, as it operates across denominational boundaries.
The International Association of the Healing Rooms was founded in
2001, but the origins of this particular prayer service date back to the first
decades of the last century. The idea was launched by John Lake, a
Pentecostal pastor in Spokane, Washington state. Lake’s healing meetings
were discontinued soon after his death in 1935 and remained so for several
decades. However, his ideas were revived in the 1990s by another
Pentecostal pastor, Cal Pierce, who started spreading Lake’s ideas by
founding local HR prayer clinics, which is the name he gave this type of
intercession service. Since then, the HR has spread rapidly to every conti-
nent, taking advantage of already existing and functioning local Christian
infrastructure, but the headquarters of the movement remain in Spokane.
Typically, the prayer clinics operate in churches and congregations.
In Finland, the HR is a newcomer in the religious landscape. It was
intentionally imported to Finland and systematically launched by a Neo-
Pentecostal married couple who got to know the prayer clinic service
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whilst on holiday in California, when they visited a local Vineyard congre-

gation in Santa Barbara. After having negotiated with several pastors and
Christian community leaders, they finally founded the first Finnish prayer
clinic a year later, following the model of Spokane. Since 2006, 34 prayer
clinics have been established around the country (Healing Rooms Finland
2017). In Finland, the HR prayer clinics are, for the most part, connected
to classic Pentecostal and EFCF congregations, or to the mainline
ELC. Still, a prayer clinic may also be located in nonreligious surroundings
like shopping malls, municipal facilities such as club apartments, or in
other public premises. Occasionally, prayer clinics are also arranged out-
doors, especially during cultural events. In any context, the idea is that a
prayer clinic should be accessible to everyone. According to this principle,
an HR prayer clinic is never located in an actual church building because
of the institutional framing, which may be alienating to many Finns, see-
ing as church attendance is generally low despite high membership rates.

The mission of the Finnish HR leaders has been to build cooperative rela-
tionships, above all with the ELC, to be able to launch the idea of prayer
clinics across the country. Surprisingly, prayer clinics are hardly ever con-
nected to any Neo-Charismatic congregation but only to more established
Christian organizations.
Recently, the mission of the Finnish leaders to systematically plant HR
further has resulted in a few prayer clinics opening in the neighboring
countries Estonia and Sweden. However, there seems to be a greater inter-
est in the HR in Estonia—where seven prayer clinics operate on regular
basis—than in Sweden, where only two prayer clinics provide services
(Healing Rooms Estonia 2017; Healing Rooms Sweden 2017). In addi-
tion, the HR Finnish leaders introduced the HR practice in Norway in
2014. They have also organized several meetings for European HR leaders
(Laitinen 2013, 4).

Material
The empirical material was compiled at the turn of 2010 and 2011 by
using ethnographic methods, such as interviews and participant observa-
tion. I interviewed 30 prayer team members representing five prayer clin-
ics in different districts, including the leading married couple in Espoo, in
the headquarters of the Finnish branch. The interviews were semi-
structured with open-ended questions. The questions revolved around
processes of becoming a practitioner and working at prayer clinics. I also
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asked the interviewees to tell me about their background, their personal

motivations, and intentions as intercessors. The discussion with each
interviewee took on average 1.5 hours. The oldest of the interviewees was
a man born in 1937, and the youngest a man born in 1977. Most were
middle-aged or recently retired, born in the 1940s and 1950s. Women
make up the majority of the intercessors at the prayer clinics, and of the
interviewees; 19 of them were women and 11 men. One third of the inter-
viewees were Pentecostals while the majority were Lutherans. One elderly
couple came from the Seventh-day Adventist Church and two from Neo-
Charismatic congregations, while one local team leader represented the
Free Church (EFCF). The age and gender groups as well as religious affili-
ations of the interviewees correspond quite well with the distribution of
prayer team members in general in the Finnish Healing Rooms.
Important contextual information was obtained through participant
observation. I visited clinical receptions as a client, naturally informing the

prayer team members about my research interests.5 I was warmly wel-

comed without any explicitly expressed hesitations concerning my aca-
demic intentions. I also visited homes where I interviewed prayer team
members, and I received an opportunity to attend a closed meeting of a
local prayer team. During my fieldwork, the first Nordic Healing Room
conference took place in Helsinki, where I attended the event.
A short questionnaire was also distributed to the visitors at every prayer
clinic in the country in May 2011, the number of which was 23 at that
time. The purpose of the survey was to provide information on the back-
ground and experiences of HR clients. Since the questionnaire was distrib-
uted via the prayer clinics, it excluded those clients who had visited a
prayer clinic only once and, for one reason or another, did not return.
However, the received responses (N = 124) gave an impression of the
prayer clinics having both regular and occasional visitors. Most of them—
74.19 percent—belonged to the mainline ELC, like the majority of Finns.
The rest identified as Pentecostals, Free Church members, or Charismatics.
It was no big surprise that 78 percent of the respondents participated
more or less regularly in Charismatic events, mostly in the context of the
ELC. Most of the respondents were women (71 percent). The largest age
group was people aged between 36 and 45 years (31.45 percent).
Interestingly, few were below 30 or above 60 years of age; both very
young and very old were absent. Thus, the HR clientele in the study rep-
resent people of working age (see also Hovi 2012).
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The Individualized Prayer Service: Setting

The prayer team members consider the intercession service they provide to
be very different than intercessiory prayers in congregational contexts. First
of all, HR intercession is completely lay-based. However, it is still highly
structured, thoroughly controlled, and carried out only by trained interces-
sors, unlike the intercessions by priests as a part of Sunday services in con-
gregations. The HR arranges a two-day training course on the principles of
the prayer service, which is a prerequisite for becoming a member of a prayer
team. The Finnish training package has been created upon the principles of
the headquarters in Spokane. The training course consists of learning the
“biblical basis” for the intercessory prayer as well as demonstrations and
exercises. All prayer team members are required to be committed believers
and are expected to be actively involved in their home churches, which has
to be proven by a pastor’s recommendation. They are also interviewed by

local team leaders to make sure that they understand and accept the HR
rules before they are allowed to start working at a prayer clinic.
Openness and intimacy at HR clinics were also underlined as significant
differences when compared to congregational contexts. The prayer team
members emphasized the importance of the low threshold; a client’s reli-
gious background is not enquired into, the personal intercession is carried
out in private, and there is no obligation for action on the part of the cli-
ent. A male prayer team member in his late thirties described the HR
principles and the unique setting at prayer clinics in this way:

Well, there are many [aspects] in it. First of all: this method. It is like the idea
that anyone, I mean any Christian believer can be a part of this work. This is
not only for pastors or … or for those who are in charge of certain activities
or somehow with a special status in a congregation […] Anyone can take the
training course and come with, anyone who has a vocation for it. And yes,
there is the good training for this work, clear ground rules. It guarantees
such safety, that even though there are very different persons involved, there
are always those rules to be followed, and there are leaders at the clinics [to
make sure that they are followed]. It provides safety for this work. And of
course, there is a difference also in the way people are provided a very
personal prayer service. This does not take place at an altar or in public, but
privately so that nobody else can hear what is prayed for. […] And I can also
add that you can come just to be prayed for, there is no need to participate
in anything else or listen to a sermon or anything like that. You can come
like you go to the doctor’s and receive this prayer service. […] And if I may
continue, it is also [the fact] that there is always a team that prays, it also
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provides a kind of safety, and I believe that it also provides God’s presence
when there are several people praying. It is actually based on God’s word,
like “where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” Jesus
put it like this and it’s also a good thing. (IF mgt 2011/016: 2)6

Before the actual clinical reception opens to clients, the prayer teams pre-
pare by praising and praying by themselves for an hour. This meditative
get-together helps them to concentrate on their task and to be present for
the clients. The members whom I interviewed regard this preparation
time as a necessary step to enable them to take on the role as mediator, to
be a “channel” between God and client, as they call themselves. After hav-
ing done their spiritual preparations, the team members form groups of
three intercessors. Serving as a prayer team practitioner does not require
any specific outfit. The appearance of intercessors is expected to be casual,
clean, and neutral, and they are advised not to use any perfumes because

of possible allergies. The only visible sign that someone is a team member
is a name tag with his or her first name on it.
The local HR clinics are arranged once a week or fortnightly, always at
the same time: 18.30–20.30. In the prayer clinic, there is a waiting room
where the clients wait for their turn to be prayed for in separate “prayer
rooms.” While clients wait for their turn, the receptionist gives them a
form to fill in. Having written down their prayer requests, they are indi-
vidually invited into a prayer room, where a team of three members spends
10–20 minutes praying for them, according to their request. The ideal
prayer group consists of both men and women. The purpose of this
arrangement is to ensure a safe and comfortable atmosphere for everyone.
It is said to be ideal that at least one of the prayer team members repre-
sents the sex of the person to be prayed for. In addition, it is not desirable
that clients either pick and choose certain persons to serve them, or that
prayer team members refuse clients on the basis of their sex.
In the course of one clinic session, there are usually on average 10 cli-
ents and two-to-four groups working for them, depending on the loca-
tion. The local prayer clinics are not encouraged to prolong the regular
reception time of two hours in cases where a large group of people awaits
intercession. Instead, the length of each prayer is adapted to the number
of clients; the higher the number, the shorter the personal prayer service.
Correspondingly, when they are only a few, the intercessions may last lon-
ger than 10 minutes. This arrangement is meant to keep the practice con-
trolled and save the energy of the volunteer team members. In case no
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client appears, team members spend the time praying for each other or
some general cause.

The Individualized Prayer Service:

Encountering a Client
At a prayer clinic, two groups of people encounter one another. On the
one hand, there is the inner-circle community of carefully selected and
trained prayer team members and, on the other, there are clients, people
who visit the prayer clinic in order to be prayed for. Even though it is of
utmost importance that the prayer team members are “born-again”
Christian believers, clients are not required to disclose their religious affili-
ations or to confess anything unless they wish to. The underlying purpose,
however, is to spiritually awaken clients, but only in a way that respects
their privacy. During one interview with a female respondent, I asked how

she would guide a person who checks the “I don’t know” box regarding
whether she or he is a believer or not. She responded:

Yeah, we may perhaps ask if he or she would like to know more. Nothing
like … we never try to push or impose […] It is easy to see very quickly if
the person is not receptive and then just pass it. But normally, people experi-
ence the prayer situation as a good thing, even if they are not at all aware of
the things concerning the faith because it is the Holy Spirit that works there.
We are, of course, just instruments, we only mediate God’s love and his
presence and it works in a client in a positive way, praying for another per-
son. (IF mgt 2011/014: 3)

Team members are often reminded by the leaders that the conversation
between intercessor and client is meant to be minimal, discreet, and highly
confidential. The clients’ prayer requests often deal with problems either
in their physical, social, or emotional life. Examples may be an illness, a
bodily disorder, or depression, but clients also bring up many other kinds
of everyday issues, such as domestic problems as well as difficulties in
working life, which they wish to be resolved through prayer. All these
individual needs and problems are regarded as equally important in rela-
tion to a person’s spiritual development, and each of them are prayed for
in the hope of divine healing (Hovi 2012, 137). It is also explicitly empha-
sized that the HR service is not intended to replace pastoral counseling,
which is regarded as a task that requires professional competence. Praying
for various problems is the only service provided at the HR clinics, and in
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case they have other needs, clients are advised to turn to their home con-
gregations, physicians, or other professionals.
Taking the postsecular culture into consideration, a certain neoliberal
and individualist flavor can be sensed in the way the practice is arranged
with an emphasized “customer orientation.” The prayer team members
themselves like to use that expression to highlight their discreet and gentle
approach. This approach means that they are allowed to pray only accord-
ing to the client’s request and nothing more. Nor are prayer team members
allowed to make a client feel guilty—an approach that differs radically from
that of the old Nordic Pietism, as well as from traditional Pentecostalism.
However, since spreading the Word and gaining new followers for Jesus is
the underlying purpose, conversion is often incorporated as an implicit
wish in a prayer for the Holy Spirit to “touch” clients also spiritually while
healing their bodily disorders. According to the prayer team members,
holistic well-being must include a Christian way of life; any transformation
promoting that is interpreted as healing (e.g. Hovi 2013, 201).

The leading couple of the Finnish HR accentuated the importance of

cultural sensitivity in launching the practice successfully. According to
them, the setting of the prayer clinic has intentionally been arranged to fit
the Finnish reserved mentality as well as the Lutheran culture. A client
must be treated in a calm and discreet manner, so for instance, praying in
tongues is not allowed in the presence of a client, because it may make him
or her feel uneasy. Needless to say, glossolalia is not included in the
Lutheran tradition, and it often provokes resistance in the active attendees
of the mainline church. The general cultural rules for proximity are also
consciously taken into account and respected, even though the same rules
are not as relevant in the Pentecostal tradition. For example, the laying on
of hands is a typical and widely used ritual gesture especially for blessing
and healing in Pentecostalism (e.g. Cox 1995, 109). However, at the HR
prayer clinics, clients are not physically touched without being asked for
permission. Even though a prayer clinic allows both men and women to
work together and on equal terms, a prayer team member is not supposed
to touch a client of the opposite sex at all. This privacy-respecting conduct
is explained as taking into account that clients may have personal reasons
for not wishing to be touched; these include the possibility that a client
may have traumatic memories of sexual abuse, or of other forms of vio-
lence that are too painful to be broached.
On the whole, the atmosphere at a prayer clinic is meant to be safe and
comfortable and not judgmental—clients may not come back if they are
treated aggressively. Approaching holistic healing as a gradual and time-
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consuming process, the clinics make clients welcome to visit as many times
as they like and feel the need to.

Faith Healing Revisited: Holistic Treatment

As the name of the HR practice suggests, it is focused on holistic well-
being. The method used for this purpose is praying for the clients. As the
prayer team members put it in order to explain the function of their work,
they are “channeling” the power of the Holy Spirit by actively using their
“gifts.” Strangely enough, the gift of healing was hardly ever mentioned
by the interviewees. Rather, they often described situations when they had
instead used the gifts of prophecy and words of knowledge while praying
for others. Without exception, all interviewees emphasized their role in
the healing process as instrumental; they did not want to be identified as
“healers.” This attitude obviously reflects the internalized HR instructions
emphasizing the intercessors’ status as mere mediators.

The meaning and function of the HR, as compared to those of the

numerous other Christian organizations which offer corresponding sup-
portive spiritual services, was very clear to the prayer team members whom
I met. Even though they were familiar with healing through prayer, they
saw intercession at the HR clinics as unique, and as such, a supplement to
what is offered to people in other churches and congregations, such as
pastoral care. Healing as a holistic process, covering physical as well as
psychological and spiritual aspects of the individual, was seen as a potential
starting point for the clients’ journey towards personal Christian faith. As
I asked one of my interviewees how she would define the meaning of the
HR prayer clinics in her own words, she responded:

Well, it’s like bringing healing and wholeness to people … anybody can
come to be prayed for, you don’t have to be a believer. Basically, it is that
you could find Jesus Christ as your savior that is the most important thing.
Anyway, but God wants to heal you, and it’s often so that when you have a
chance to experience healing, you also start to look for Jesus in your life,
because that’s where the help comes from. […] I take it as a holistic heal-
ing. A human being heals only after getting completely whole as the result
of becoming a believer, but he or she can feel improvement already here.
(IF mgt 2011/014: 2)

When I asked about the main concern of the HR, and whether it was the
body or the soul, I often received the answer: both equally. Since people
are perceived of as psychosocial beings, the interviewees did not want to
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separate these elements in their prayer, which is understood as a divine

assignment. They often took illness and pain as somatization of unsolved
emotional difficulties connected to a nonfunctional spiritual life, “being
away from God.” Bodily disorders as well as mental and spiritual troubles
were seen as being so tightly interwoven that the prayer team members
found it difficult to distinguish between them. The most analytical account
was given by an active prayer team member who was a neurologist by
profession:

Well, we hope, of course, soul. And I wouldn’t even like to care for the mind
there. I think mental care belongs to the psychiatrists. But naturally, we can
pray for it and for healing, but we do not care for the mind at the prayer
clinic. And the body … we don’t actually cure anything else either, we just
pray, we give prayer service. But perhaps … we don’t really treat the soul
either, it doesn’t belong to us. We give prayer service and we hope that
above all the soul would feel better afterwards. (IF mgt 2011/073: 15)

He also emphasized the idea of holism and drew a strict line between his
professional work at the hospital and what he does at a prayer clinic:

I distinguish between my work and what happens in the Healing Rooms,

completely. Here [at the hospital] I strictly represent medical science […]
and there [at the prayer clinic] I see it purely as a spiritual process. So, I
don’t see here any paradox with regards to my work, but there I practice my
faith as I have the legal right to do. And, well, I think that the healing that
happens there, it is purely a spiritual thing. (IF mgt 2011/073: 13)

An important theme in Charismatic Christian healing narratives are

“wounds of the soul.” The term refers to how a variety of unsolved, trau-
matic earlier experiences can be encapsulated in bodily pains, as well as in
mental disorders. “Inner healing” and “becoming whole” are prominent
issues in the HR prayer clinics, too, as they are in Charismatic healing in
general (cf. Matulevicius 2015). The members recognized, in many cases,
problems deriving from clients’ early childhood:

Interviewee: There are quite a lot of such troubles that people go

through, [like] troubles in their childhood and in their
relationship to their mother. There are a lot of such cases.
So, they understand now what they missed as a child,
because it was as it was. Then we, in a way, help them in
that situation […].
Tuija: That’s interesting, the relationship to mother and child-
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hood home, that it comes up like that, as you said. If you

think of the age distribution among the clients … they
are people whose parents experienced the war.
Interviewee: Yes, that’s right. Then, the culture of parenting was really
rough in Finland. I am a specialist in upbringing by pro-
fession and I know, considering the emotional develop-
ment of a child, what the results are, when there is not
attention and space for children’s emotions, and how the
self-esteem, self-confidence is built up. In a way, they have
to pick up the pieces, for instance, still at the age of 60.
(IF mgt 2011/051)

Unresolved traumatic experiences constitute an intentional focus in the

prayer service. The theme in the interview excerpt above corresponds to what
anthropologist Thomas Csordas has analyzed as “healing the memories” in

his study on Charismatic Catholic healing groups (cf. Csordas 1997, 109). In
these groups, the procedure was considerably different, being more verbally
interactive, and included pastoral care conversations and visualization of the
Virgin Mary as healer of the participants’ inner wounds. By contrast, in the
Protestant HR rhetoric, it is Jesus who is seen as the gentle supporter and
healer (Hovi 2013, 199).

Controversial Border-crossings
George Chryssides has pointed out that New Age and Charismatic
Christian “holistic health therapies” share certain similarities. Both camps
propagate the idea of “making people whole” in ways that cannot be
offered by biomedicine. Regarding the differences between the two, in
New Age healing, the methods of therapy are much more diverse. The
“suppliers” offer a wide range of choices to their clients, not necessarily
presupposing any particular belief system. In Christian traditions, “heal-
ers” (like the prayer team members in the HR) insist that their work is
grounded in the healing power of Jesus Christ, that they are continuing
the healing ministry in his name, and that praise and thanks must be
offered to him (Chryssides 2000, 66; Neitz 2012).
The HR has been criticized in Finland, above all in Christian circles.
Some confrontations take place locally among different Christian commu-
nities. As the HR crosses organizational boundaries and disregards conven-
tional modes of operation, the movement is at times perceived as a menace
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to established forms of Christianity. In many fundamentalist circles, espe-

cially in Neo-Charismatic communities, there is aggressive critique of
everything with a New Age flavor, even though, or perhaps because, many
New Age practitioners propagate the same ideals as those communities,
like well-being, a good life, and prosperity—ideals that nevertheless are
promoted and understood on different grounds, interpreted with different
rhetoric, and framed within another belief system. According to the
Charismatic Christian logic, New Age practices are simply viewed as being
based on an incorrect and spiritually dubious framework: they are “unbibli-
cal.” As an indication of this concern, the HR has even been criticized for
representing New Age ideas because it propagates “healing” in its English
name, rather than the vernacular terms commonly used in connection with
Christian healing practices in Finland.7 For the same reason, it has been
interpreted as being occult, heretical, and delusional, as well as “too
American.” Above all, this kind of critique can be found in Christian chat

forums and blogs on the Internet.8 The leaders of the HR in Finland have
responded to the criticism by saying that the concept of healing was stolen
by New Age thinkers, and that the HR, by contrast, actually wants to reha-
bilitate the concept by bringing it back to its original biblical meaning:

We think that real healing comes from Jesus, but the New Age movement
has stolen it. We want to bring it back to its original context. And another
sector where we probably are criticized is that we actually work within the
New Age sector. We go to these New Age fairs and happenings and open up
prayer clinics there, yeah, and there, more than anywhere, reach the people
who are searching! (IF mgt 2011/106: 20)

Meredith McGuire has indicated that the idea of healing, which is so char-
acteristic of New Age thinking, seems to have roots in the spiritual New
Thought (or Mind Cure) movement that emerged from transcendental-
ism and the thinking of Emmanuel Swedenborg, and has also been
adopted by several healing-centered Christian organizations like, for
instance, Christian Science (McGuire 2008, 133). Such historical links
mean very little if anything to Charismatics, but accusations by more
established Christian communities against a new Christian movement for
representing the New Age movement is typical in situations where new
kinds of rhetoric or new forms of action are being introduced, even when
the basic biblical message is the same. The present situation, in other
words, seems to support Stephen Hunt’s observation that there appears to
be a widespread need to protect a “symbolic universe of meaning” which
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underpins the attitude toward other religious groups in terms of boundary

maintenance. As suggested by Hunt, this is especially prevalent in
Charismatic Christian healing practices (Hunt 2000, 43).
To propagate their interpretation of biblical healing, following Jesus’
work as an example, the HR prayer teams introduce their work program-
matically at annual New Age events in Finland, the Fair of the Spirit and
the Knowledge, and the I Am Fair (Body-Mind-Spirit). These are events
at which various New Age practitioners present their services for a couple
of days each year. The Finnish leaders of the HR explained that these
events are an important forum for the HR, too. They take it as an oppor-
tunity to win new followers for Christianity by using the appealing theme
of healing, which is a playground for mutual interaction. This supports
what Harvey Cox has pointed out; among Charismatics, there is a certain
concern, at times even anxiety, about the emergence of non-Christian

spiritualities. Their answer to the challenge is healing—in its Christian

meaning, making a person “whole in Christ.” The message of holistic
healing is used as a gateway through which new recruits are expected to
enter the movement (Cox 2011, xviii). For the HR, one way of branching
out has been participation in annual New Age events, thereby offering a
Christian alternative to potential “seekers.”
Positioning itself as undertaking biblical missionary work fighting non-
Christian spirituality as well as secular ways of life, the HR crosses and
blurs the borders of traditional Pentecostal evangelization methods. As
another example of modernized outreach, in April 2014, the monthly
newsletter of the Finnish HR informed its members about the summer
activities that would take place while the prayer clinics were taking a break.
All regular prayer clinics in the country are closed for a couple of months
in summer. During this time, there is, for instance, an HR cruise on the
Baltic Sea, which had already become an annual tradition by 2014. During
the cruise, there is an HR program for the group, buffet meals, and some
free time for shopping or going to the spa, as is customary on Baltic Sea
cruises. However, the free time is not only for leisure. It is also an oppor-
tunity for “healing the sick on board,” which could mean praying silently
for passengers, as well as interacting with them (Healing Rooms kuulu-
miset 2014). This outreach is another example of how the HR has quite
radically brought Pentecostal faith healing out of its typical congregational
context and revival meetings, and attempted to redefine it as a contempo-
rary Christian well-being practice integrated into modern ways of life.
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An Intervention in Post-secular Therapy Culture

In their theory of the spiritual revolution, Paul Heelas and Linda Woodhead
(2005) argue that interest in so-called “subjective life spirituality” is grow-
ing faster than for traditional religions. Today, well-being practices that
combine Westernized Eastern traditions such as yoga, meditation, life
coaching, and mindfulness, are turning into alternatives or supplements to
the already established therapy culture, which draws upon more or less
scientific-psychological conceptualizations. Historian of religion Anne-
Christine Hornborg has recognized such holistic healing as a trend in the
present decade in Swedish society. According to Hornborg, finding and
developing one’s inner self with the help of life coaches and lay therapists
has become a means of improving one’s quality of life in holistic ways
(Hornborg 2012, 18). In Finland, the same trend is visible. Spiritually

inspired therapeutic and coaching practices are based on various traditions

from ancient religions and philosophies (such as meditation and yoga
based on Buddhist and Vedic traditions) as well as New Age therapies
(reiki, angel therapy etc.) or on ideas of modern psychology, for instance
neurolinguistic programming and cognitive psychology. The current trend
of mindfulness, however, draws on both sources, spiritual and psychologi-
cal ones.
Similarly, increasing interest in self-awareness and personal growth are
not exclusive to alternative, non-Christian, spiritual practices. Sociologist
Mary Jo Neitz has pointed out that the Charismatic Catholic Renewal and
the psychologically inspired self-awareness movement have a great deal in
common. In both movements, people are expected to grow and develop
their potential. This is achieved by getting in touch with one’s “real self,”
with God, with a higher consciousness, or with a different reality. In addi-
tion, personal growth is seen as a key to social progress (Neitz 2012, 20).
It can also be interpreted as seeking spiritual authenticity, which is regarded
as a prerequisite for holistic health.
The rise of fundamentalist and conservative forms of religiosity during
the last couple of decades has been viewed as a set of reactions to the often
confusing postsecular trends in religious life: First, conservative religious
attitudes have been interpreted as a reaction to globalization, which dis-
solves the autonomy of national institutions, traditional organizations,
and communication systems. Second, they have been viewed as a reaction
to cultural flexibility, which blurs the boundaries of membership and
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involvement in religious life. Finally, they have been considered to be a

reaction to the perceived crisis of the patriarchal family (Frisk and Nynäs
2012, 57). Despite the apparent paradox, the combination of conservative
Charismatic Christianity and postsecular complexity in Finland seems to
be functioning quite smoothly. Similar observations have been made in
other parts of the world. Many Neo-Charismatic Christian movements
and organizations move with ease between the twenty-first-century ideals
of globalization, individualism, and even neoliberalism. For example,
anthropologist Birgit Meyer has interpreted the global growth of the
Prosperity Gospel as an expression of neoliberalism, and its missionary
activities as an intentionally globalizing project (Meyer 2010, 114).
However, the HR does not represent the hardcore Prosperity Gospel,
with the latter’s strong emphasis on material wealth as a sign of God’s
blessing. Yet, in response to having been criticized as “Americanizing,”

the Finnish HR practice has been purposely rethought and polished so as

to be more culturally acceptable. According to the leaders of the Healing
Rooms Finland, the movement is “culturized,” as they put it, into the
secular Lutheran milieu. Ecstatic worship or aggressive proselytization
may invite negative reactions and thus be counterproductive. Instead of
open evangelization, a carefully considered management technique, stra-
tegic planning, customer orientation, and the interest in a new type of
interdenominational cooperation have been adopted in order to more eas-
ily adapt the HR to neoliberal postsecular Nordic culture. Being a global
network with a flexible organization structure that transcends social, orga-
nizational, and institutional boundaries between Christian denominations,
the HR offers a new kind of involvement that accommodates individual as
well as collective activity for lay people (cf. Martikainen et al. 2015,
80–83). For prayer team members, it offers an active role for spiritual self-
actualization, and a coherent and democratic community of believers. For
clients, a prayer clinic serves as a forum to be used without obligations or
commitments. It offers easily accessible, time-efficient, discreet, and indi-
vidual care. It is free of charge, and nothing is demanded in return. It is
simply a place to visit when spiritual care or treatment is needed to solve a
problem or to feel better.

secular and psychologized culture on the basis of the movement’s mode of

operation as a spiritual health center. It draws close to the forms and means
of contemporary Western customer-oriented therapy culture, which com-
bines the search for well-being and everyday problem-solving with per-
sonal spiritual transformations. Unlike counseling based on psychotherapy,
the prayer clinic service does not attempt to provide conversational coun-
seling, even though this is sometimes expected by clients. Instead, it is a
Christian spiritual practice based on the idea of “channeling” divine power
with the help of intercessors’ Charismatic gifts in order to heal a person
holistically. It is tailored to support people with their, often emotionally
difficult, everyday problems involving health and well-being. Even though
the ultimate function and purpose of this practice is strictly religious, its
actual implementation is carried out in a way that uses modern, popular
psychological approaches as well as Christian spirituality.

Notes
1. In this chapter, I use several overlapping labels referring to Pentecostal and
Charismatic Christianity. By “Pentecostalism” I mean the whole Pentecostal
culture in its all diversity, whereas “Classic” or “Traditional” Pentecostalism
is used for the movement with roots in the Azusa Street revival at the begin-
ning of the last century. In Finland, Classic Pentecostalism was planted
remarkably early, and has attained status as an established church.
“Charismatic Christianity” refers to the accentuated role and meaning of the
“Gifts of the Holy Spirit” in everyday religious life, as well as a current in
Christianity—among Protestants and Catholics—often represented by lay-
led activities within established churches. With “Neo-Charismatic” and
“Neo-Pentecostal,” I refer to the trend of independent congregations and
churches that emerged in the United States as a result of Third Wave
Pentecostalism during the 1980s and ’90s, often characterized by doctrinal
emphasis on health and material prosperity (cf. Anderson 2010, 19–20).
However, in Finland, Neo-Pentecostalism has a slightly different meaning,
pointing specifically to the renewal within the Pentecostal Movement in the
1970s, and its impact on activities within the Evangelical Lutheran Church
later on. “Neo-Charismatic Movement” refers to the field of independent
congregations that has appeared since the 1990s. In spite of these national
nuances, I use these labels as more or less synonymous in this chapter.
Moreover, “fundamentalism” is used to denote a meaning system that relies
exclusively upon a sacred text, in this case literalistic interpretation of the
Bible, whereas a movement labeled as “conservative” emphasizes reluctance
to accept reform and innovation.
2. The study of the Healing Rooms at hand was funded by the Academy of
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Finland (2011–2013) and was simultaneously one of the case studies of the
Center of Excellence project Post-secular Culture and Changing Religious
Landscape in Finland 2010–2014 at Åbo Akademi University in Turku.
3. As Finland was a part of Sweden until 1809, there was a state church tradi-
tion there as well, and the Lutheran Church held that position until 1870.
The close ties between church and state started to loosen up in the nine-
teenth century because of European ideological influences: the Pietist revival
movements and liberalism (Ketola 2008, 61). This means that the separation
between church and state had already taken place in Finland before it gained
national independence, during its period of autonomy within the Russian
regime (1809–1917). The corresponding separation of church and state in
Sweden was carried out only 130 years later, in the year 2000 (ELC 2017).
4. A recent attempt to classify the Third Wave-inspired communities not his-
torically but functionally is made by Jessica Moberg (2015).
5. The term “client” may sound misleading in this context because it is usually
understood to be connected with economic exchanges. Even though HR
services are based upon voluntary work and are free of charge, I refer to the

visitors as “clients” because most of the members of the prayer teams in

Finland do so. The Finnish word asiakas literally means “a client” in
English. The interviewed prayer team members did not have any problem
with the term, even though it has commercial connotations in other con-
texts. They also used the word “customer-oriented” while describing the
principles of their practice. Occasionally, HR clients are called by other
names, such as “attenders”/ “visitors” (kävijät) or “those who are prayed
for” (rukoiltavat).
6. The interview material compiled by author is archived at Åbo Akademi
University. The reference after quotations signifies the archived unit.
7. Apparently, HR is referred to by the same name all over the world and is not
translated into the vernacular.
8. Likewise, the American Neo-Pentecostal evangelist David Herzog, who
held a set of healing meetings at the Olympic Stadium of Helsinki in July
2014, raised the same kind of critique, even in the leading national newspaper
Helsingin Sanomat (Sippola 2014).

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Sharing and Holy Hugs: The Birth

and Development of Intimization
in Charismatic Stockholm

Jessica Moberg

Fifteen people have gathered for a “cell group meeting” in the basement of
the Neo-Charismatic New Life Church. After the introductory worship, it
is time for each of the participants to present an individual prayer request, or
“to share,” as some call it. The regulars quickly seize the opportunity, but a
female newcomer in her mid-twenties is evidently reluctant to air her trou-
bles in the new group. As the topics are prayed for at the end, a man of
about the same age comments upon her hesitation by asking the Holy Spirit
to “loosen the bonds of her tongue” so that she may “open up.” Returning
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

the subsequent week, the woman recounts a work-related conflict, asking

the others to pray for its solution. As a response, she receives hugs.1
Charismatic Christianity in Sweden is currently undergoing changes in
theology, organization, and practice—the episode above is illustrative of
the latter. Some of these changes are the result of inner dynamics in the
organizations, while others take place due to cultural and structural shifts
in the society where they are embedded. Studies conducted in the United
States and other parts of the Anglophone world have analyzed the impact
of late modern ideas concerning personal development, authenticity, and

J. Moberg (*)
University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden

intimacy on Neo-Charismatic and Neo-Evangelical organizations, as well

as in Charismatic Catholic communities (Csordas 1997; Griffith 1997;
Hunter 1987; Miller 1997). However, the issue has not received the
same attention in the study of Charismatic Christianity in the Nordic
region.2 The present chapter, which presents a case study of Stockholm
County, scrutinizes a development that began in the 1990s but has
boomed during the last five to ten years: the increased emphasis on the
creation of intimate relationships between practitioners (Moberg 2013b,
45–49). The study introduces the birth of intimization and locates the
tendency in the local Charismatic landscape, providing examples of how
it is organized, materialized, ritualized, and understood. It also discusses
how Charismatic norms and ideals inform and set limits to intimization.
The phenomenon is discussed and analyzed in light of theories on late
modern intimization, with particular emphasis on how this has unfolded
on the national level. Furthermore, attention is paid to both national/
regional processes, such as urbanization in Stockholm County, and influ-
ences from the international Charismatic milieu on the region in ques-
tion. The main argument is that intimization in Sweden has taken the
form of a strong current in the Charismatic churches, one that is charac-
terized by particular practices and aesthetics. Like the early Pentecostal
revival and the Jesus Movement of the late 1960s, the movement is car-
ried by young Charismatics and is transorganizational; thus far, it has not
spawned any distinct church structures.
The study draws upon ethnographic work in 16 congregations between
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

the years 2009 and 2013, both Pentecostal and Neo-Charismatic.3 The
material consists of field notes from observations and conversations with
approximately 300 practitioners, interviews with pastors and churchgoers,
and websites. The section on small group practice analyzes material col-
lected at New Life Church, although visits to and conversations with
members of other organizations indicate that the contents and orientation
of the small groups is similar in most of the local congregations.

Modernity, Intimacy, and Mobility

Relationships between modernity, community, and interpersonal bonds
have been addressed within various fields of research. In Pentecostal stud-
ies, scholars have attributed some of the success of Charismatic movements
to their ability to re-embed mobile, modern urbanities into new commu-
nities (see Miller and Yamamori 2007, 22–23; Robbins 2010, 162–163;

cf. Martin 2002, 24). Others have taken interest in what can be described
as an “intimate turn” in Neo-Charismatic churches like the Vineyard
Movement, Calvary Chapel, Hope Chapel, and Hillsong Church. In this
connection, Donald E. Miller and Tetsunao Yamamori have noted the rise
of intimate displays such as hugs and the will to communicate one’s pain,
flaws, and problems to others (Miller 1997, 13–18, 20–24; Miller and
Yamamori 2007, 28; cf. Tangen 2008, 194–195).4 In a similar vein, Marie
R. Griffith (1997, 137–138) and Kelly H. Chong (2011, 100) have
observed how sharing emotions has become firmly integrated into healing
practices in Charismatic-inclined organizations. Miller and Griffith, deal-
ing with the United States context, also emphasize similar driving forces
behind such developments. Miller (1997, 20–24; cf. Csordas 1997,
41–51) understands this as a response and adaptation to the therapeutic,
individualistic, and antiestablishment values of the counterculture of the
1960s, whereas Griffith (1997, 33–39) underlines i nfluence from the
broader American therapeutic milieu and the “recovery movement.”
These are doubtlessly important points. However, in order to conceptual-
ize and theorize intimization in Stockholm, the discussion needs to be
brought out of the North American context, and anchored both in broader
changes in modern relationships, and in the particular way intimization
has played out in late modern Sweden. The reasoning of Anthony Giddens,
Eva Illouz, and Frank Furedi is helpful in this respect.
According to Giddens (2003, 59–65; cf. Furedi 2004; Illouz 2008)
increased mobility is tightly interwoven with processes of detraditionaliza-
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

tion, which have fundamentally altered and rearranged modern relation-

ships and ideals surrounding them. In contrast to premodern cultures, in
which they were interwoven with economic and social transactions,
modernity has brought about “the pure relationship” (prevalent in friend-
ships and marriages), disconnected from such bonds. Alternatively, this
form of relationship is based on trust and disclosure of emotions, and
upheld for the emotional and/or sexual gratification that it affords the
involved parties. Giddens accounts for the connections between mobility
and intimacy by referring to the emotion-based character of modern rela-
tionships, thus providing one of the theoretical perspectives informing this
study. However, in order to analyze episodes like the one recounted above,
Illouz’s and Furedi’s theories on a therapeutic shift in late modern self-
understanding and communicative practice offer ways of finding cultural
impulses. Illouz and Furedi propose that the West is undergoing therapeu-
tization, whereby psychological models of self-understanding spread to

other spheres of society. This process commenced during the 1960s (nota-
bly at the same time as Neo-Charismatic groups based in the United States
emerged, featuring such elements) but has risen to prominence in recent
years. Consequently, contemporaries are prone to interpret both their per-
sonal problems and those of others as the result of traumas, which can be
solved by airing personal emotions and issues. In fact, revealing one’s
inner (“authentic”) emotions to others has become an imperative, while
keeping secrets is perceived to be potentially harmful (Furedi 2004,
17–19; Illouz 2008, 5). Discussing the advancement of therapeutization,
Furedi suggests that it has influenced and further spread via new media,
such as reality TV, in which people are expected to disclose the most pri-
vate aspects of their lives to the viewers (2004, 66–72).
Inspired by the work of these scholars, I understand “intimacy” firstly
as a phenomenon, real in the sense of being anchored in modernity’s
“pure relationship,” which includes the venting of emotions as well as
sexual and non-sexual embodied practices. Secondly, intimacy is under-
stood and approached as an ideal, or a project, which late modern people,
mainly in the West, aspire to in their own lives. Following Furedi and
Illouz, I believe that the longing for intimate relationships has been fur-
ther fueled by the late modern spread of therapy culture, which offers
both ideals and models for how intimacy should be accomplished.

It is hardly surprising that scholars have detected therapeutic tendencies in

Neo-Charismatic groups in the United States, where the “therapeutic
turn” surfaced as early as the 1960s and has since grown to be particularly
predominant. The work of Illouz and Furedi also accounts for therapeuti-
zation by drawing heavily on examples from the United States. In this
respect, it should be stressed that the cultural climate in the Nordic region
differs from that of the United States; concerning intimate communica-
tions, Swedes (like their Nordic neighbors) have traditionally been seen as
withdrawn and unwilling to express emotions (Frykman 1993, 224–232).
There is, however, evidence that Sweden—and Finland, as illustrated by
Hovi in her contribution to this volume—have undergone a major shift in
intimate direction since the 1990s. Not only have informal and intimate
gestures such as hugs replaced the formal handshake among younger
generations; therapeutic discourses have spread as well. It is likely that
popular culture has been a major factor in this regard, with American talk

shows such as Oprah and Doctor Phil having attracted large audiences
since then. Indigenous remakes of international reality programs like
Paradise Hotel and Big Brother, where participants’ private lives and emo-
tions are put on display, have also likely catalyzed the transformation.
In the new millennium, therapeutization has continued to influence
government/state institutions, as well as various religious and secular
milieus and organizations (Frisk and Åkerbäck 2015; Hornborg 2012). In
a study from 2015, Liselotte Frisk and Peter Åkerbäck note the emergence
and vitality of a large, alternative, holistic healing landscape. A few years
earlier, the Swedish government had allocated large sums to state employ-
ment centers in order for them to employ “work coaches” that would help
long-term unemployed Swedes to re-enter the work market. Many of
these coaches had New Age ties and offered their clients what can be seen
as religious-therapeutic solutions to their problems: teaching them to air
their emotions and personal problems, or finding and tapping into the
power of their inner potential and thereby finding a job (Hornborg 2012).
Yet another fresh example indicating Sweden’s intimization is the estab-
lishment of “hugging courses” in Stockholm and Gothenburg just a few
years ago. These courses, named “Intimacy and Integrity” (Intimitet och
integritet), offer the participants settings in which they learn to hug and
verbally set and discuss limits concerning what forms of intimacy they are
able to accept (Intimitet och integritet 2015).

An Overview of Stockholm County

Stockholm County, which constitutes the economic hub of Sweden, is one

of the fastest growing regions in Europe. The area is not only home to
hug-friendly Charismatics. Together, the central capital, its suburbs, and
neighboring cities count over 2 million inhabitants, making Stockholm
County the most populous area in the Nordic countries. Among its main
characteristics are high levels of technologization and vast mobility, as well
as ethnic, religious, and cultural pluralism. Collectively in 2012, inhabit-
ants born outside Sweden made up around 22 percent of the population
(Statistiska centralbyrån 2013). Thus, a visitor is likely to encounter not
only the Church of Sweden and various Free Church denominations
(some Charismatic), but also different strands of Islam, Orthodox
Christianity, as well as new religious movements and New Age spiritual-
ity. The influx of new people is not showing any signs of exhaustion.
Aside from international migration, the county is undergoing rapid

urbanization, with many young people moving in from smaller cities in

search of employment or education. Yet, despite increased overcrowding,
Stockholm city stands out nationally and internationally with its high
number of single households. As of 2014, 43 percent of Stockholm’s pop-
ulation lived in single households (Statistiska centralbyrån 2015).

Local Charismatic Organizations

Charismatic Christianity has a hundred-year-old presence in the region,
and the current scene offers a microcosmic view of its history of various
movements. Many of the denominations have roots in the Pentecostal
revival (pingstväckelsen) of the early twentieth century. The largest is the
Pentecostal Alliance of Independent Churches, PAIC (Pingst: Fria försam-
lingar i samverkan), which grew out of the 1913 exclusion of pentecostal-
ized congregations in the “Baptist Union of Sweden” (Svenska
baptistsamfundet). Having been expelled, they formed the network known
as the “Pentecostal Movement” (Pingströrelsen), which slowly trans-
formed into today’s denomination. PAIC encompasses the large and his-
torically important “Filadelfia Congregation” (Filadelfiaförsamlingen),
“City Church” (Citykyrkan), as well as organizations in neighboring cities
(Pingströrelsens årsbok 2013).5 Except for PAIC, there is the “pentecos-
talized” denomination Interact (Evangeliska frikyrkan), which is the result
of the fusion of three nineteenth-century denominations that embraced
the Pentecostal revival.6 Among its congregations are the “Söderhöjd
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Church” (Söderhöjdskyrkan), the “Elim Church” (Elimkyrkan) and the

“Cross Church” (Korskyrkan) (Moberg 2015, 32–33).
Later movements and initiatives have also made their mark on the scene.
The 1980s saw the establishment of the independent “Center Church”
(Centrumkyrkan; Centrumkyrkan 2013), although the decade was other-
wise dominated by the emerging Faith Movement, led by the Uppsala-based
“Word of Life” (Livets ord). The new movement resulted in a network made
up of, on the one hand, new organizations like Arken7 and, on the other,
transformed Pentecostal churches like “Södermalm’s Free Congregation”
(Södermalms fria församling) that disaffiliated itself from the Pentecostal
Movement (cf. Coleman 2000, 97–103).8 As pointed out by anthropologist
Simon Coleman (2000, 55–65), Neo-Charismatic culture is remarkably
global in many ways, and local churches often constitute nodes in interna-
tional church networks. In this regard, the Swedish Faith Movement
constitutes an early example of a trend that has since continued. In 1992,
Vineyard Stockholm, part of the international Vineyard Movement,9 was

created, and the year after, New Life Church saw the light of day—an
organization with connections to the Neo-Evangelical/Charismatic milieu
in the United States (Moberg 2015, 32–33).
Global migration, as well as the initiatives of local entrepreneurs, con-
tinue to pluralize the new millennium’s landscape. Neo-Charismatic
churches in particular are mushrooming, although many of them have
short lifespans. The influx of Charismatic migrants from Latin America
and from West and East Africa has been important in this respect
(Malmström 2013, 75–78). Also significant for the increase of Charismatic
bodies was the rise and fall of Karisma Center, a prosperity-inclined orga-
nization with megachurch ambitions that existed at the turn of the millen-
nium. As it was dissolved due to bankruptcy in 2005, several of its pastors
created their own churches. Two examples are Hillsong Church Stockholm
(originally Passion Church) and “Peter Church” (Petruskyrkan). The lat-
ter, however, soon fused with United Stockholm (Dagen 2011). Other
additions are SOS [Save Our Souls] Church, Yahwe’s Revival Center (pre-
viously “Power Source”, Kraftkällan) and Calvary Chapel Stockholm.

Patterns of Growth and Decline

We lack statistics on Charismatics in Stockholm County, since the majority
have been counted as part of the total membership of the largest Free
Church denominations. In 2010, Free Church members made up 1.3 per-
cent of the population—a relatively low figure in comparison with other
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

parts of Sweden (Skog 2010, 69–70). It should be kept in mind, though,

that this includes both Charismatic and non-Charismatic denominations,
but excludes independent Charismatic organizations, Lutheran and
Catholic Charismatics, and network-based churches. At first glance,
Charismatic Christianity appears to be growing after some decades of
decline; figures from both PAIC and Interact show such growth (Lilja
2015). At the end of 2012, PAIC counted 12,457 members in the region
(Pingströrelsens årsbok 2013, 46). The creation of new organizations also
seems to support the growth thesis. However, the latter tend to draw
members from existing organizations rather than attract new converts,
and many are relatively short-lived—as illustrated by the fate of the Karisma
Center and Peter Church. Also, the county per se is growing; between
1950 and 2012 the number of inhabitants doubled, and between 2000
and 2012 alone almost 300,000 people relocated to the county (Statistiska
centralbyrån 2014). In other words, the number of Charismatics does not
appear to be growing in terms of percentage of the whole population.

Although it is difficult to speculate in total numbers, it is possible to

detect trends of growth and decline. The only suprastructure that seems
to be losing affiliates as a whole is the Faith Movement network, otherwise
growth and decline patterns cut across denominational boundaries. More
important today are Charismatic groups’ location and orientation. Firstly,
it is possible to speak of a shift from organizations in the surrounding cities
to Stockholm. The Filadelfia Congregation, City Church, and Södermalm
Church exemplify this trend, and have all increased their membership in
the course of the last few years, with a substantial number of the newcom-
ers being immigrants.10 However, Neo-Charismatic organizations founded
over the last 20 years seem to attract the most people. New Life Church
presently counts around 400 members, and has also founded sister con-
gregations in the area, and in other Swedish cities (New Life Church
2015). At the end of 2012, Hillsong Church Stockholm counted 1520
members, and in 2015, SOS Church estimated that it had around 600
(Pingströrelsens årsbok 2013; SOS Church 2015). Recent “church plants”
United Stockholm and Calvary Chapel also appear to attract contempo-
raries. Even though they are still small, with around 30 members each, the
numbers of casual attendees seems considerably higher.

The Membership
Practitioners make up a mixed group in terms of class, age, and socioeco-
nomic status, although female practitioners are slightly overrepresented
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

across the Charismatic spectrum. The majority have also been raised in
Charismatic organizations or in the broader Free Church environment.
Even though people convert, converts still make up a minority; from what
I have observed, conversion is also more common among residents with
immigrant backgrounds than among ethnic Swedes. Regarding age, mem-
bers of old Pentecostal congregations are (unsurprisingly) older, while the
youngest are found in Neo-Charismatic churches. One influential cate-
gory of people on the contemporary scene is that of young Charismatics
who have moved in from smaller cities and the countryside; this group
constitutes the backbone of many new and popular Neo-Charismatic
organizations. On resettling, they tend to disregard their denominational
background and join youthful organizations they find appealing, such as
Hillsong Church, New Life Church, SOS Church or Calvary Chapel and
United Stockholm (Moberg 2013a, 211; 2015). In sociological terms, the

developments in Stockholm follow larger urbanization patterns in Sweden

as a whole, of which the “Charismatic urbanization” of Stockholm forms
a part. In an international comparison, Charismatic Christianity and
urbanization are hardly odd bedfellows. In Sweden, however, this form of
Christianity has been far from an exclusively urban phenomenon. The
Pentecostal Movement, for instance, has had a strong standing in smaller
cities and rural regions as well as in the larger cities (see Alvarsson 2007,
341–344). On the national level, Charismatic urbanization obviously has
the effect of draining small- and medium-sized cities of young Charismatics,
which in turn concerns rural Charismatics (Dagen 2014).
It is also worth noting the attitudes to organization among today’s
practitioners, particularly urbanized young Charismatics and immigrants.
These groups are highly mobile, tend to disregard denominational bound-
aries and labels, and have a consumer-oriented approach to religiosity and
affiliation; they visit, join, or drop out of churches depending on the
churches’ ability to cater to their preferences and needs for the moment
(Moberg 2013a, 187–188, 199–212).

Intimization: Origins and Distribution in the Field

The first signs of intimization appeared in the 1990s. While the early
intimizers were affiliated with international churches or milieus where
similar features have been observed, the majority of these features were
not instigated by foreign missionaries, but created on the initiative of
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locals and were later integrated into and adopted the names of those
churches. One example is Vineyard Stockholm (and later Hillsong Church
Stockholm), which was essential to intimization, particularly in terms of
introducing interaction-friendly furnishing (see below). Another congre-
gation that picked up and furthered the trend was the New Life Church,
whose orientation in several ways is similar to that of Vineyard. Also indi-
cating intimization in this decade was the choice of Evangeliska frikyrkan
(literally “The Evangelical Free Church”) to take the official English des-
ignation Interact in 1997—which bears strong relational connotations.
Yet, it would be anachronistic to speak of intimization as a current before
the new millennium, when a new generation of Neo-Charismatic congre-
gations—Hillsong Church, United Stockholm, SOS Church, and Calvary
Chapel—adopted such elements, and older organizations began to move
in that direction. It is worth noting that although intimization remains
strong in new-millennium organizations, they neither materialize nor

embody the trend to the same extent, nor in the same ways. As explored
later in this chapter, it is more prevalent at Calvary Chapel and Vineyard
Church than at Hillsong Church and United Stockholm; the former host
small-scale and interactive Sunday services, whereas the latter combine
intimate features with Sunday services influenced by the Faith Movement.
Gaining strength as a current, intimate practices and therapeutic lan-
guage have impregnated most Charismatic churches, and are visible in
sermons, theology, slogans, activities, and practices. A contemporary visi-
tor to a sermon in old Pentecostal Filadelfia may be informed that being
a Christian is not only about being close to God, but about developing
deep emotional relations to others. As I happened to pass by Södermalm
Church one evening in 2014, I also noted a new emblem and the slogan
“an open embrace for you” (en öppen famn för dig), covering one of its
large windows. Most congregations have also begun to offer relationship
courses and lectures, such as preparatory courses for engaged couples,
where spouses to-be are offered tools with which to improve their
communication skills. Such courses can currently be found in both new
and old organizations. In the same vein, the Filadelfia Congregation
recently launched a three-evening course in parenting teenagers
(Filadelfiakyrkan 2015). Other forms of intimate arena and activity are
also thriving across the field. The popular small-group meetings are the
most important of these (i.e., gatherings at which members congregate in
smaller numbers), and are vital to the cultivation of close relations.
Although the small-group concept has a prehistory in Protestant revival-
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ist settings, its present content is highly interaction-oriented and its pur-
pose framed in intimate language. On Filadelfia’s website (2013), the
small groups are described as venues where people share each other’s
lives, discuss “the big questions” while growing—both in faith and as
human beings—within the setting of a close community.

Furnishings as Facilitation of
Small-Scale Communication
Religious cultures are not only embedded in ideas and language but anchored
in the body and material culture. Taking an interest in early Pentecostal
church buildings, Nils G. Holm (1978, 82) and Ulrik Josefsson (2007, 54)
suggested an interpretation of the central placement of the pulpit as an
indicator of the sermon’s central standing. In agreement with this interpreta-
tion, it is possible to see how intimization has brought about change to

Charismatic material culture, evident in new approaches to furnishing and

decorating church venues. Such novelties not only signal the breakthrough
of a new ideal of peer-to-peer communication, but also invite and bring
about new patterns of interaction among visitors.
In the 1990s, Vineyard Stockholm introduced what can be referred to
as “the coffee-table model.” Although the congregation kept a low stage
at the front, the customary rows of seats were abandoned, and the floor
dotted with small coffee tables surrounded by four to six chairs. This café-
inspired setup divides the practitioners into smaller groups and situates
them face to face. Soon thereafter, New Life Church adopted the same
model. Visiting these two congregations today, it becomes apparent that
they not only furnish with socializing in mind, but also set time aside for
it. The service is usually divided into two parts intermediated by a coffee
break, during which churchgoers are encouraged to chat over sandwiches
or cinnamon rolls. To promote friendly chats, one of the leaders signals
the start of this break from the stage, inviting visitors to take the opportu-
nity to interact and get to know new people. On the one hand, such
requests serve to establish the norm of participant-to-participant interac-
tion while, on the other hand, they establish the temporal frame in which
it is to occur. Going by the rather loud murmur of voices, the occasion is
appreciated both by regulars and newcomers. As for the latter, the coffee-
table model also serves a pedagogical purpose, introducing them to the
peer-to-peer chats that occur in other contexts, such as the small groups.
Lately, communication-friendly furnishing has increased in popularity,
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and been adopted by older organizations like the Söderhöjd Church. As

I visited this congregation, a female member in her mid-twenties recounted
the congregation’s furnishing history: A few years back, the old pews had
been declared outdated, and were at first replaced by more spacious lines
of chairs. Shortly afterwards, the congregation rearranged the interior
once again, bringing in the coffee tables. The woman, proudly pointing
them out to me, explained that she found them more “contemporary and
easy-going” than the “traditional rows.”

Socializing in New and Cozy Locations

While small tables may add an informal, café-like atmosphere to any
church, some twenty-first-century organizations have taken further steps
in this direction. Calvary Chapel, United Stockholm, and Hillsong
Church Stockholm rent semi-public venues such as nightclubs, theaters,

or actual cafés, which are then redecorated and turned into cozy and
conversation-friendly sites. On visiting Calvary Chapel, I observed that
the group resided in a rented locale consisting of a combined café and
concert venue. Consequently, the furnishing—small tables surrounded by
stuffed chairs and sofas—was already optimal, allowing visitors to chat
and have coffee prior to and following the service. In order to further
“cozy up” (mysa till det) the place, as a young male visitor told me, the
organizers illuminated the otherwise rather dimly lit café with soft spot-
lights and candles.
Since its establishment, Hillsong Church Stockholm has rented music
venues, a choice that reflects its strong emphasis on worship music. In 2009,
it resided in Göta källare, a centrally located two-floor nightclub, with the
bar and dance floor situated in the basement. In contrast to Calvary Chapel,
where the whole service was held in the same interaction-friendly place,
Hillsong divided the service into three parts, taking place in different rooms
in the basement. In preparation, the innermost dance floor was sealed off
from the bar section and turned into a softly illuminated café with sofas,
where people drank coffee and mingled prior to the service. In this section,
they could purchase Hillsong CDs and DVDs. The “inner room,” or the
dance floor, was furnished like many Faith Movement churches: with lines
of chairs placed before an elevated stage. After service, churchgoers reas-
sembled in the outer, café-like space. A similar threefold spatial–temporal
division was applied by United Stockholm, which rented the theatre
Teaterstudio Lederman. Utilizing the existing interior—an outer, café-like
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foyer, consisting of several small rooms, and an inner room where the the-
atre stage was located—the foyer was used for mingling and interaction
before and after the service. The latter activities took place in the inner
room. Adding to the already cozy atmosphere—enhanced with red-painted
walls and soft lighting—the foyer was decorated with candles and flowers,
and the regulars offered and served visitors non-alcoholic drinks. Upon
being asked about their choice of venue, the organizers drew upon a rheto-
ric of evangelization, explaining that they wanted potential converts to see
that they were not “a bunch of stiff and boring Christians,” by offering
informal and intimate communication in a cozy “low-threshold” setting.

Hugging the Faithful

As pointed out by Daniel E. Albrecht (1999) and Martin Lindhardt
(2011), ritualized action is part and parcel of Charismatic identity, visible
in practices like prayer with the laying on of hands, glossolalia, or Neo-

Charismatic worship. Historically, one form of ritualized action has been

especially significant as an identity marker within the Swedish Pentecostal
Movement: “Peace greetings” are a form of greeting where a firm hand-
shake is combined with the phrase “peace” or “peace brother/sister,” and
was at one time central to signaling Pentecostal affiliation.11 Today, elderly
Pentecostals still use this greeting, although middle-aged practitioners
from various Charismatic orientations usually do not. As for intimization,
the movement has ritualized a new practice involving physical interaction,
one which would otherwise be considered informal and mundane: the
hug. Over the last 15–20 years, this gesture has gained a prominent posi-
tion in many congregations and churches during greetings, as well as in
connection with sharing and prayer. Being most common in the organiza-
tions founded in the 1990s and the new millennium, the hugging trend
has spread to Faith Movement and Pentecostal churches as well. To a large
extent, it follows generational lines, with younger Charismatics being
more frequent “huggers,” not unlike their secular counterparts.
Looking more closely at the practice, the Charismatic hug is obviously
similar to its mainstream sibling, but has, nevertheless, a few distinct traits.
Observing a “secular” hug involving two friends, their faces usually light
up with smiles, their eyes widen somewhat and they look into each other’s
eyes for a short moment. They proceed by embracing each other, using
either both arms or the less intimate “shoulder-to-shoulder” variety of
hug. In the Charismatic milieu, all of these features are enhanced, particu-
larly facial expressions. Upon spotting each other, practitioners look
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extraordinarily happy; smiles are broader and eye contact more extensive.
Regarding gender, there are also a few differences worth mentioning.
Women tend to smile, hug, and touch each other more frequently and
more extensively than men. Female embraces also tend to last longer and
include both arms, while men hug for shorter periods of time and tend to
settle for the “shoulder-to-shoulder” hug.12 To some extent hugging,
especially outside the greeting situation, follows gender lines, with men
hugging men and women hugging women, a topic to which I will return.

Mini-communities Within Congregations

During the last 20 years, small group gatherings led by lay persons have
become popular as complementary to Sunday services. The groups, which
go under different names (house groups, small groups, cell groups, city
groups, or connect-groups), can be found basically everywhere, and

participation is more or less mandatory; members are expected to be part of

one, and those who do not attend on a regular basis are reminded by their
peers. Usually, they contain 8–15 participants, who gather for an evening
during the working week to socialize and lean on each other for emotional
support. In terms of content, sharing a meal, praying, presenting testimo-
nies, and prayer requests are steady components, whereas Bible reading and
lay sermons occur less frequently, contrary to what one might assume.
Even though similar groups have been studied in international
Charismatic settings (Chong 2011; Griffith 1997; Hovi 2011; Tangen
2008) the phenomenon is not unique to this religious tradition; on the
contrary, it has been observed in various religious and semi-religious set-
tings in different parts of the Western world. Danièle Hervieu-Léger
(1993) and Robert Wuthnow (1996), discussing declining membership
rates in old churches and denominations, have called attention to this
thriving new form of community. Wuthnow (1996, 52) notes its presence
in New Age circles, and in Charismatic and Evangelical milieus. The impe-
tus for joining them is “the desire for intimacy, support, sharing and other
forms of community,” which participants find to be lacking in their lives.
The small groups in this study are doubtless part of this larger trend, and
as suggested by Hervieu-Léger and Wuthnow, they are vital fora for the
cultivation of close and intimate bonds.

Interacting in and Revealing the Private Sphere

Gatherings usually take place in members’ homes, sometimes in accor-

dance with a rotating schedule. Evidently, this setting, which is already
associated with close and informal relations, provides the meeting with a
casual and intimate frame. However, since people rarely design their
homes with this type of gathering in mind, adjustments are made to opti-
mize interaction. Before starting, the host and early arrivals often rear-
range a living room containing sofas and armchairs by bringing in
additional chairs and cushions from other parts of the home. These are
placed so as to form a circle, enabling eye contact in the same manner as
the coffee tables do. While this home-framing and redecoration invites the
cultivation of intimacy, hosting meetings may also be said to constitute
intimization by means of disclosure, although not in the “therapeutic”
sense. The very act of welcoming others into one’s home, offering them
food and soft drinks, implies putting one’s private life on display, revealing
preferences in aesthetics, music, food, literature, and so forth. In case the

host is married, the visitors also have the opportunity to meet, and prob-
ably interact with the spouse, and perhaps the children as well. Since all
members are expected to host meetings at some point, all participants are
committed to revealing themselves in this way.

Prayer Requests as Sharing

In a study of female Neo-Charismatics in the American organization Women’s
Aglow, Griffith (1997, 137–138) proposes that revealing oneself to others
through sharing secrets is central to cultivating closeness. The small groups
in Stockholm County serve a similar purpose, whereby the airing of emo-
tions, thoughts, and secrets allows participants to get to know each other’s
struggles rather early. In comparison with how the sharing secrets usually
takes place, requiring that the speaker knows the listeners and has established
trust in them, sharing in the small groups bypasses the often lengthy process
through which trust is established, and gets “right to the point.”
In Stockholm, the practice of sharing has been introduced into, and
fused with, the Charismatic speech genres of prayer requests and testimo-
nies; it also so happens that members use “sharing” as a term that includes
and refers to those practices. In the small groups, sharing often takes the
form of prayer requests, presented at the beginning and prayed over at the
end. The participants normally stand or sit in a circle facing each other,
encouraged by the leader to present a topic they want others to pray for.
The leaders’ actions are crucial to creating a comfortable and sharing-
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friendly environment. He or she often takes the initiative by calling upon

others to “put their problems and fears on the table,” assuring them that
they are among friends and that the topics brought up will stay in the
room. Occasionally, the leader adds that keeping secrets from one another,
and from God, is potentially harmful, underlining that sharing is part of
the process of surrendering to and getting closer to God: a central revival-
ist motif. Such statements not only frame the practice theologically, but
also put pressure on members to “speak out,” implying that reluctance to
do so presents an obstacle on the path of serving God.13 Themes are some-
times presented spontaneously, but usually, the members take turns pre-
senting a topic. Following the norm, they highlight a troublesome issue,
and express their concerns, then a wish that the others pray for God’s
intervention. Afterwards, the leader normally thanks each person, while
the others offer emotional support in the form of a tap on the shoulder, a
warm hug, a sympathetic word, or an assurance that they will continue to
pray over the topic.

Limits to Disclosure
My observations revealed that frequently broached topics concerned trou-
blesome relationships, work-related problems, and health issues. Many of
them also reflected the difficulties of young urban people, including prob-
lems in securing an apartment or a job, or passing a school examination.
In accordance with the rhetoric surrounding the gatherings, participation
allows the involved parties to air their most personal issues. During inter-
views, participants often expressed deep appreciation for the gatherings,
where they could “tell each other everything.” From the perspective of an
outsider, there were nevertheless rules regulating what could and could
not be shared, setting boundaries for intimization (cf. Griffith 1997,
125–126). As one might expect, rules were internalized by regulars, and
questions of what could or could not be said were never explicitly raised.
Some were no different from rules in any other social context. Others
appeared to be rooted in particular Charismatic notions and ideals. For
instance, dislike of other members in the congregation was never aired.
Also, it seemed more of a general rule not to bring up problems between
Charismatics. The unwillingness to touch these matters is likely the result
of the inherent belief that those who had submitted their lives to Jesus
were expected to have good relations, especially with fellow congregants.
Breaking this social taboo would not only result in worsening conflicts,
but to call that image into question. Moreover, the state of one’s relation-
ships was often described as an indicator of one’s spiritual state. Love,
affection, and patience were often portrayed as qualities given by the Holy
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Spirit, and to publicly highlight conflicts and anger risked reflecting badly
on the person who raised such matters.
Some issues were also considered too sensitive to bring up in the small
group context, limiting these groups’ function as venues for communicat-
ing the most intimate concerns. Among them were experiences of abuse,
including sexual abuse. Practitioners who had such problems normally
addressed them in even more confidential exchanges, either in pastoral
care (själavård) or with a close friend within the congregation—generally
a member of the same small group. The latter in fact indicates that the
“mini-communities” also serve as greenhouses for the cultivation of more
intimate friendships that enable members to discuss topics that are too
delicate for the small group setting.

Ritualized Intimacy and the Fear of Eroticization

Although cultivation of closeness is a central mission to many Charismatics
today, other motivations are occasionally at odds with it. It hardly comes
as a surprise that this form of Christianity involves various forms of self-
discipline. The people with whom I interacted carefully sought to manage
their sexual behavior and impulses, and to uphold norms concerning
proper relationships between men and women. Such norms regulated who
they could be closely involved with, drawing boundaries for and gender-
ing intimization. Even though some forms of physical and emotional
interaction were encouraged and understood as positive and “godly inti-
macy,” there were nevertheless worries that this could lead to the oppo-
site: the formation of improper sexual intimacy. Such worries were typically
articulated by young and unmarried Charismatics, who shared the stand-
point that sexual relationships prior to and outside of heterosexual mar-
riage were sinful, and who strived to stay chaste until having married a
Christian partner. Maintaining sexual purity involved different forms of
self-control. Many were concerned about their (unwanted) sexual desires
and spoke lengthily about the methods they employed to rid themselves of
them. For example, they would seek the company of supportive, like-
minded people, pray regularly, avoid visual sexual stimuli (ads featuring
semi-nudity, certain TV programs, etc.) and, importantly, restrain them-
selves from becoming emotionally involved with people they might feel
attracted to. Since the Charismatic scene is strongly heteronormative,
meaning that people are expected to be heterosexual, it was mainly
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interaction between men and women that was considered problematic in

this respect. I have already accounted for the gendered hugging patterns,
whereby most hugs were exchanged between Charismatics of the same
sex. In a similar vein, many restrained themselves from becoming close
friends with people of the opposite sex; a few women explained that they
avoided meeting male congregants alone outside of church, since
“troublesome” situations may arise. In some cases, even the setting of the
church did not suffice; I was informed, and warned about, “men who go
to church to flirt.” Yet, physical gender-crossing interaction that took
place in church was evidently perceived to be less problematic than infor-
mal “hanging out” outside of church activities.
One reason why certain activities were regarded as harmless whereas
others were seen as threatening can be detected in their ritualization.
Several scholars studying ritual have noted how the prestipulated character

of ritualized action permits people to interact in otherwise impossible

ways. Catherine Bell (1997, 81), who argues for a wide definition of ritual,
including all forms of “ritualized” action, suggests that such action is com-
prised of strategic ways of allowing the involved actors to achieve aims that
would be unthinkable in a nonritualized context. From Bell’s perspective,
both hugs and intercession include ritualized action, being prestipulated
and formalized; one knows what to anticipate and when. Moreover, they
are social acts everyone is expected to participate in. One cannot turn
down a hug or a friendly invitation to be prayed over. In the Charismatic
milieu, ritualization evidently plays a vital role in rendering potentially
threatening physical interaction harmless, turning it into the desired form
of “godly intimacy.” Another feature that should not be underestimated is
that hugs and prayers in a church setting are collective events at which
participants socially monitor each other.
If ritualization establishes the special nature of certain forms of physical
intimacy, the narrative portraying such action as an aspect of meeting and
serving God further underscores its uniqueness. Yet, it would be wrong to
consider these approaches airtight, since congregants nonetheless
expressed doubts about others’ motives for engaging physically, even dur-
ing “holy hugs” and prayer. The topic however, was highly sensitive, and
I never heard it openly discussed in a collective forum; it only came up
during interviews and informal conversations between members. One
male New Life Church member, while viewing physical contact as good
and natural, brought up the possibility that psychologically “damaged”
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people might take it as an opportunity to clandestinely obtain sexual grati-

fication. Adding that he has had such suspicions while being hugged for
“too long,” he assured me that none of the members in his present small
group seemed to have such “impure” intentions.

Meeting Jesus and Restoring Natural Community

Therapeutic discourses, underlining the need for emotional communica-
tion, have also become intertwined with older Charismatic narratives and
self-understanding. One theme that resurfaced in sermons and informal
conversations across the Charismatic field was that of fellowship
(gemenskap), often articulated in the trope: “being a Christian is all about
relationships, with God and with people.” In this rhetoric, the tight bonds
which were seen to exist between “brothers and sisters in Christ,” espe-
cially members of the same small groups, contrasted with the brokenness

and isolation believed to exist among secular people and those of other
faiths—both on a societal and an individual level. In several sermons, non-
Christians were described as alienated from an original and natural way of
life that would allow them to be in touch with their emotions, and be
integrated into a community where these could be communicated. In
such accounts, reference was often made to the regional context. In the
Filadelfia Congregation and New Life Church, Stockholm was depicted as
a city that was “broken” not only because of sin, but also because people
lived isolated lives and had no one to turn to for support, which was seen
as a major cause of contemporary depression. Loneliness was often con-
nected to secularization, in the course of which Stockholmers (and Swedes
in general) had become deeply lonely and removed “hyper-individualists”
without a sense of caring for and interacting with others. Several pastors
pointed out the central island Kungsholmen, labelling it “the loneliest
island in the world”—a reference to its exceptionally high percentage of
single households, a phenomenon seen here as a sign of loneliness. By the
same token, many Charismatics proposed that non-Christians attempted
to substitute meaningful human contact with drinking, overeating,
“empty” sexual affairs, and the like. Becoming a Charismatic Christian and
a members of a congregation was accordingly presented as a way of heal-
ing an unnatural separation from God by accepting Jesus, as well as break-
ing social isolation by returning to the close, emotional communities God
had intended.
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Disclosure, Healing, and Conversion

Late modern ideals such as the unfolding of the authentic inner self and
psychological models of interpretation have also merged with Charismatic
conversion, miracle, and healing narratives. Hence, submission to God,
combined with emotional communication, was presented as the method
for overcoming emotional problems and living authentic lives. Accepting
the idea that people are broken because of previous relationship traumas,
leaders and practitioners presented conversion and embedment in a close-
knit Christian community as the solution. Central to this rhetoric was that
secular Swedes deny their true feelings and pretend everything is fine since
they lack a place in which to air their problems, which only adds to their
distress. It was often pointed out that it was impossible to overcome
trauma via secular therapies, since they were incapable of addressing a
primary cause of human discontent: alienation from God. Drawing upon

the theme of conversion, pastors and members explained that the one way
to surmount such problems was submitting one’s life to God, who would
initiate a process that would heal emotional wounds and make people
whole. Hence, secular people, regardless of personal success, would never
know true happiness but always experience a sense of inner emptiness.
Apart from God’s ability to work miracles, sharing among Christians
was ascribed a central role in restoring and healing the individual.
Becoming, and living as, a Charismatic meant no longer pretending that
everything was fine, and openly admitting one’s brokenness—to God,
oneself, and fellow Charismatics. This was sometimes communicated in
connection with sharing in the small groups. In New Life Church, one
leader initiated meetings by telling the participants that it was time to
“take off their masks,” signaling both that people wore such masks in
everyday life, and that they had come to a place that offered them the
opportunity to take them off and reveal their “authentic” selves.
Additionally, bonds cultivated through sharing were often seen as the
work of the Holy Spirit, and stories about intimacy and disclosure were
given a Charismatic twist; because the parties involved had accepted Jesus
and therefore were “inhabited by the same Spirit,” they were able to
develop a deeper and closer form of intimacy than non-Christians.

A Movement born of a Mobile Doctor

Charismatic intimization in Stockholm is part of a broader Western cultural

turn. Influences from global Neo-Charismatic networks, where intimate
and informal features have been observed, have also been vital for fueling
the current in Sweden, as illustrated by early intimizer Vineyard Stockholm.
Yet, Charismatic intimization also mirrors the particular way in which
Sweden has been intimized. In contrast to the United States, where churches
like Vineyard and Calvary Chapel were created as early as the 1960s and
1970s, they did not appear in Stockholm until thirty years later. One impor-
tant reason for this comparatively late introduction is that intimization in
Sweden did not take root until the 1990s, meaning that there was no fertile
soil for Charismatic enterprises of this kind prior to that time.
It is significant that both Vineyard Stockholm and New Life Church
were founded in the very same decade in which Sweden saw the break-
through of international therapy TV like Doctor Phil, and docusoaps, mak-
ing these early features of Swedish intimization. The strengthening of the
intimization current in the new millennium also mirrors Sweden’s growing

intimization, visible in the trend’s spread to new societal spheres and insti-
tutions (see Hornborg 2012, 11–14). Looking at the membership of
organizations that have furthered it in the twenty-first century, they are
dominated by socialized Charismatics between 18 and 35; that is, they
belong to the first Swedish generations brought up in a society saturated
with therapeutic TV shows, ideals, and practices. This has evidently
informed their religious preferences and choices. It is also possible to see
how intimization has been fueled by mobility on the national level, with a
substantial number of the members having relocated from smaller cities to
Stockholm County as adults. Employing Giddens’ terminology (2003)
their “uprooting” in combination with the wider cultural turn seems to
have further fueled their longings for intimacy and their seeking of com-
munities of like-minded others, with whom they might develop new emo-
tional ties. As illustrated, practices like sharing allow participants to form
such bonds quickly. Uprooting also seems to have contributed to the cre-
ation of new Charismatic theology and norms. The dichotomization of
the warm “Christian communities” on the one hand, and “lonely
Stockholm” on the other, does appear to reflect the experiences of new-
comers with few contacts with the native population. In conclusion,
contemporary intimization is rooted in a wider therapeutic shift in Sweden,
as well as in Charismatic urbanization. It has its institutional base in young
Charismatic churches that offer solutions to the uprooting and contempo-
rary longings of a mobile “Doctor Phil generation.”
While intimization of older Charismatic organizations is part of the
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same trend, I believe it is fruitful to view it in light of the current mobility

within the local Charismatic landscape. It is well known among pastors
and churchgoers that younger Charismatics in particular visit, leave, and
affiliate with organizations depending on their current needs and prefer-
ences. For older churches, particularly those with aging memberships, this
has become a challenge; in order for them to thrive, or even survive, they
depend on the interest and commitment of new generations. Speaking
with middle-aged and elderly practitioners in some of the older churches,
many expressed fear that “the young” would find “their” organizations
boring and leave in pursuit of more youthful organizations. Against this
backdrop, the introduction of Neo-Charismatic novelties like worship
music and contemporary instruments in Pentecostal churches (often at the
expense of the older psalms), and the creation of specific youth services, as
well as therapeutic language and relation-building practices, are all means
for securing continued engagement. It is telling that none of the relation-
building courses are designed for the stable elderly membership (who are

probably not interested in them either), but for those who belong to and
have the opportunity to raise future generations; that is, congregants who
are about to marry, and the parents of teenagers. These novelties are not
always welcomed by elderly members. Visiting the Filadelfia Congregation
a few years back, I observed a neatly dressed lady between 70 and 80
demonstratively covering her ears during the loud electric guitar solo that
was part of the weekly worship. Interestingly, as social anthropologist Jan-
Åke Alvarsson continues to discuss in the next chapter, old Pentecostals’
disappointment with current developments in the churches may in turn
give rise to further innovation.

Conclusions
I have proposed that Charismatic Stockholm has seen the birth of
intimization, visible in the creation of communication-friendly environ-
ments, and the use of therapeutic language and new forms of ritualization
and practice. Intimization took off in the 1990s with the establishment of
Vineyard Stockholm and New Life Church, but did not gain significant
strength as a current until the new millennium, when it was furthered by
Hillsong Church, United Stockholm, and Calvary Chapel, and started
spreading to older Charismatic organizations. Charismatic intimization in
Sweden is part of a Western late modern cultural shift, and has developed
parallel to overall intimization, which began at the same time, and is pos-
sible to detect in the wider Swedish context. For the most part, Charismatic
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intimization is carried forward by younger socialized individuals who

have grown up in an intimized nation, many of whom have moved to the
Stockholm region from smaller cities as adults, and lack social networks
in the new setting. However, the current is also shaped by the tradition
where it has taken root, and the forms of intimacy enacted by the
Charismatics differ in some respects from intimate practices in other reli-
gious and secular settings, or those broadcast on TV. In particular, sexual
norms and chastity training undertaken by practitioners engender
intimization, informing them of who they may develop close relation-
ships with. Moreover, the possibility of attaining aims such as becoming
free of emotional trauma and finding one’s authentic self have fused with
Charismatic theology and been given a particular twist: this means that
they are obtainable only in Charismatic settings, since they depend upon
submission to God and intimate communication between practitioners
“inhabited by the same Spirit.”

Notes
1. I have borrowed the term “holy hug” from anthropologist Thomas
Csordas (1997, 69) who used it to describe ritual practice among charis-
matic Catholics in the United States.
2. Exceptions are Tuija Hovi’s (2010) studies of Neo-Charismatics in Finland
and the work of Karl Inge Tangen (2008).
3. This chapter draws upon the classifications and terminology laid out in the
introductory chapter. The congregations in question are: Arken, Calvary
Chapel Stockholm, Centrumkyrkan, Citykyrkan, Korskyrkan, Hillsong
Church Stockholm, Maranataförsamlingen i Stockholm (tent meeting), New
Life Church, Filadelfiakyrkan, SOS Church, Kraftkällan, Söderhöjdskyrkan,
Södermalmskyrkan, Tomaskyrkan, United Stockholm, and Vineyard
Stockholm.
4. Donald E. Miller does not use the term Neo-Charismatic, but refers to
Calvary Chapel, Vineyard Church, and Hope Chapel as “New Paradigm
Churches.”
5. Pingst: Fria församlingar i samverkan was instituted as a “national orga-
nization” (riksförening) in 2001, and decided to keep the name when it
became a registered denomination in 2004 (Pingströrelsens årsbok
2013, 40).
6. The new denomination initially took the name “The New Building”
(Nybygget), but soon changed it to Evangeliska frikyrkan.
7. The Swedish name Arken has an ambiguous meaning, and is possible to
translate either into “The Ark” or “The Arch,” both of which have biblical
connotations. For this reason, the church is referred to by its Swedish
name.
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8. A few years ago it returned to PAIC.

9. “Nordic Vineyard” (Vineyard Norden) is not only part of the international
Vineyard Movement, but also a registered denomination in Sweden.
10. This estimation is based on knowledge about known congregations–a
study of underground churches might point in another direction.
11. Conducting fieldwork, I encountered several Neo-Charismatics with
Pentecostal family backgrounds who reported that their Pentecostal grand-
parents had warned them that unless they used the “proper” peace greet-
ing rather than a “good day” or an informal “hi,” common in the majority
culture, they would go to Hell.
12. The latter, chaster hug has sometimes been referred to by Charismatics and
Evangelicals as “the Christian side hug.”
13. On a few rare occasions, new members did object to such an interpreta-
tion, or questioned the need for them to “open up” to strangers so quickly.
Such critique, however, was never uttered in the sharing context, but
broached afterwards.

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ter’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the
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Televangelism in Sweden—Now? Is Channel

10 in Älmhult in Fact a Telechurch?

Jan-Åke Alvarsson

Ever since televangelism1 started in the United States, Sweden has been
considered an impossible arena for that type of enterprise. At the time,
almost all Swedes were formal members of the Swedish Lutheran Church,
were heavily secularized, and were considered to be anti-Charismatic, and
fairly anti-American in some regards. Unlike secularized American popular
culture, which has generally been well received, Swedes have tended to be
averse to the United States’ international politics, or its expressions of
“public” religiosity, like televangelism. Furthermore, up until that time,
the state monopoly of Swedish radio and television had closely regulated
the transmission of church services, and thus had impeded any such evan-
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gelization initiatives via TV.

Nevertheless, in 2005, when televangelism’s heyday seemed to be over
in the United States, a new Charismatic TV channel was founded in
Älmhult in Småland, a place in the south that, prior to the channel’s estab-
lishment, was known for only one thing; it was the birthplace and home
to the head office of IKEA, the worldwide furniture company. The new
channel was called “Channel 10” (Kanal 10). “Kanal” was a neutral des-
ignation witout any religious connotations and the number “10” was not

J.-Å. Alvarsson (*)

Department of Cultural Anthropology, Uppsala University, Sweden

used by any television channel in Sweden at the time. Since then, another,
bigger channel, called TV10, has led to some confusion as to the identity
of these two different channels.
In 10 years, Channel 10 has grown into a successful business whose
principal product is Pentecostal or Charismatic preaching.2 The business
idea is based on experiences from televangelism’s heyday in the United
States, in the 1980s. The present article initially asks the question: How
can it be that televangelism attracts Swedes today, when it was considered
impossible for it to do so only 30 years ago?
In the text, the actors behind the channel, its contents, and the recep-
tion of the programs are presented in light of contemporary changes tak-
ing place in the Pentecostal landscape, especially where these concern
intergenerational conflicts of interest and ongoing mediatization. The
material presented is discussed from a theoretical perspective on identity,
inspired by Paul Ricoeur (2005), Erik Erikson (1964), and nostalgia as
advocated by Clay Routledge et al. (2006, 2014).
The source material for this study is based on participant observation in
Pentecostal churches, Pentecostal TV programs, interviews, websites, and
academic works on Pentecostalism. The discussion also benefits from
material gathered by the journalist Joakim Lundgren, who in 2013 carried
out thorough research on Channel 10, commissioned by the Christian
newspaper “The Day” (Dagen).3

Pentecostalism reached Sweden as early as November 1906, through Swedish-

American Andrew G. Johnson, who brought it over directly from 312 Azusa
Street, the birthplace of international Pentecostalism in Los Angeles. In the
beginning, it was an ecumenical movement, especially preponderant among
Methodists and Baptists. After the initial outpouring of the Spirit in Skövde,
Örebro was the center of activities for some time. In 1907, the focus gradu-
ally transferred to Gothenburg. Not until the 1910s did Stockholm start to
play a part, always with Gothenburg as a questioning sceptic.4
In the late 1910s, the situation had changed considerably and a particular
denomination, the Swedish “Pentecostal Movement” (Pingströrelsen;
SPM),5 was founded in 1919. Through the firm leadership of Lewi Pethrus,
the denomination united different pentecostalized groups and managed to
become a leading movement on the Swedish, as well as on the European
scene. In the 1980s, SPM’s membership numbers surpassed 100,000 and it
became the largest Free Church in Sweden. In 1937, the Baptist movement

was divided into two denominations, the Örebro and the Stockholm
Baptists, two branches that were well visible long before the split. The so-
called “Örebro Mission” (Örebromissionen) became the second Pentecostal
movement in Sweden, while the Stockholm Baptists turned more Evangelical
and conservative. However, the Örebro Mission never managed to equal
the Swedish Pentecostal Movement in its size or activities.
In 1962, a notable split occurred in the SPM when Maranata was
founded by Norwegian Arne Imsen. The movement had initial success
and lured back many old revivalists with its use of popular songs, “back to
basics” preaching, renewed radicalism, and nostalgia for the “good old
revival times.” This heyday was short, however, and after a couple of years
most of the enthusiasts had left the movement. In 1983, another notable
Charismatic movement was born, Word of Life (Livets Ord) in Uppsala,
led by Ulf Ekman, a former Lutheran priest who was heavily influenced by
Neo-Pentecostals like Kenneth Hagin and Kenneth Copeland in the
United States. The movement had great influence in Eastern Europe after
the fall of the Iron Curtain, but its success in Sweden peaked at the turn
of the century with some 3000 followers in the mother congregation in
Uppsala and slightly more in a few scattered congregations in the rest of
Sweden. In 1983 the Swedish Lutheran Church had its first Charismatic
Movement in the Oasis Movement (Oasrörelsen). In due course, several
other minor waves of Pentecostalism or Pentecostalized movements, like
the Australian Hillsong Church, reached Sweden. Simultaneously, divid-
ing lines between churches became blurred again, and people moved more
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freely between denominations (Moberg 2013, 187–188).

The arrival of these new waves of Pentecostalism also affected Classic
Pentecostal churches. They changed their music style, introduced “worship
music,” often in English, and drew inspiration from concert culture, visible
in their utilization of colorful lighting and, at times, smoke machines. Many
churches were rebuilt to resemble concert halls and, while the centrality of
the podium had previously reflected the importance of preaching in the
service, the focus on the stage now emphasized the music as the main
event, causing a generational divide and leaving a good number of the
Classic Pentecostals alienated (cf. Moberg 2013, 106–107).

The Situation of Swedish Radio and Television

The Swedish radio broadcasting service was founded as a monopoly on
March 21, 1924 under the name of “Radio Service Ltd” (AB Radiotjänst),
hereafter referred to as ‘Swedish Radio’ (which from 1956 also broadcast

television) and (after 1979 when television was separated and placed in a
special foundation) ‘Swedish Television’, the more commonly used desig-
nations.6 The first program was broadcast on January 1, 1925; incidentally
this consisted of a church service from the Sankt Jacob Lutheran church in
Stockholm. In 1956, the company started transmitting television pro-
grams six days a week, at first only for a few hours per night. The limited
time given was seen as an opportunity to reach the public, used by the
authorities to inform, educate, and enlighten the Swedes. The telecasting
from this single channel was therefore censored and without commercials.
It was considered to be “public service.” In 1969, a second television
channel was created: TV2. This addition was intended to give the illusion
of variety, while the channel tried to meet the growing challenges from
international media. Not until 1979, when the whole company was divided
into four subsidiaries and reorganized, did Sweden see the first legal alter-
natives to this monopoly, in the form of community radio. As we shall see,
Pentecostals felt immediately inspired to utilize that possibility. A major
threat to Swedish national television appeared in December 1987, when
the commercial channel TV3 started telecasting via satellite from London.
Swedish authorities tried to stop the enterprise with legislation, but failed; in
1991 they capitulated and allowed a new Swedish commercial TV channel:
TV4. Since then, commercial radio and TV channels have proliferated, but
lip service is paid to the idea of “public service” broadcasting in that the
fact that possession of a TV set is still subject to a quarterly fee.
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The Pentecostal Use of Media:

The Swedish Background
Classic Pentecostalism in Sweden reflects many of the traits found in inter-
national Pentecostalism: It started in 1906, it promotes a Charismatic spiri-
tuality, and it utilizes the latest media trends.7 In its earliest days in 1906,
and for quite some time afterwards, newspapers and journals were used to
inform and inspire its adherents. At Azusa Street in Los Angeles, the reviv-
al’s journal was called The Apostolic Faith. In Sweden, Pentecostalism was
welcomed and promoted by editor Richard Edelberg in his Örebro-based,
Evangelical journals “The Närke Paper” (Närkesbladet)8 and “The Swedish
Tribune” (Svenska Tribunen). But for the impatient Pentecostals, these
were not enough. Therefore, the first genuinely Pentecostal periodical,
“Embers from the Altar” (Glöd från altaret), was published in Gothenburg
in 1909. When this journal was discontinued, another one took its place
almost immediately in Stockholm in 1911: “The Voice of the Bridegroom”

(Brudgummens röst). The editor-in-chief was Carl Hedeen and his co-editor
was Olov Leonard Björk—both well-known figures in the early Pentecostal
Movement. A young, up-and-coming preacher, the new pastor of the small
Filadelfia Congregation in Stockholm, was invited to become an assistant
editor. His name was Levi Petrus, soon to be changed to Lewi Pethrus.
Among other contributions, he provided the journal with self-composed
hymns. However, in the mid-1910s, when Pethrus saw the growing num-
ber of independent and incipient Pentecostal congregations in Sweden, he
considered that “The Voice of the Bridegroom” was still insufficient to
inform and inspire the rising movement. Maybe there was also already a
slight crack in the collaboration between Pethrus and the other leaders—
such a split would become obvious at the end of the decade. Nevertheless,
in 1916, Pethrus launched a journal of his own: “The Gospel Herald”
(Evangelii Härold)—the main organ of the Pentecostal Movement until
1993. In 1921, the journal hired a new and brilliant editor, recently con-
verted poet and writer Sven Lidman. In 1922, the success of “The Gospel
Herald” drove “The Voice of the Bridegroom” out of the competition,
and the latter had to be closed down. In 1945, under the leadership of
Lidman, “The Gospel Herald” reached its peak with a circulation of 72,500
copies that, at the time, made it the largest journal of its kind in Sweden.
“The Gospel Herald” was aimed at a readership of Pentecostals
throughout Sweden. In the 1940s, however, Pethrus and others saw the
need for a means of reaching out to the greater Swedish society and influ-
encing political debate. Consequently, he started the newspaper “The
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Day” in 1945, supported financially by Pentecostal industrialist Karl

G. Ottosson—and opposed internally by Sven Lidman. The latter thought
that a pure Pentecostal movement should not be soiled by mundane busi-
ness. In spite of this, Pethrus and Ottosson were able to carry through
their endeavor at a time when many newspapers were going out of business,
and establish a Pentecostal mouthpiece in Swedish society.
In 1912, when Pethrus was still fairly unknown and the Filadelfia church
was still a member of the Baptist Union of Sweden,9 he was encouraged
by many of his members to publish a series of sermons as a book on Pente
costal eschatology called “Jesus Is Coming” (Jesus kommer). Interestingly,
the Swedish title could be interpreted both as meaning “Jesus is returning”
[now] and “Jesus is coming back soon.” However, when he approached the
Baptist publishing company, B-M.:s bokförlag, the editor asked, “Who would
want to read a book of sermons, and by an unknown preacher?” Pethrus’
manuscript was turned down—something that turned out to be a historical
mistake on the part of that publisher; the book is still in print and has gone

through 15 editions. Furthermore, Pethrus’ efforts to publish the book led

to the foundation of “The Filadelfia Publishing House” (Förlaget Filadelfia),
for many years the major publisher of Christian books in Sweden, producing
hundreds of titles, many of them in several editions. Publishing was discon-
tinued in 1997 due to waning sales returns (Stävare 2007, 322).
In the 1940s and 1950s, healing was again on the public agenda. This
aspect had been controversial even at the start of Pentecostalism in
Sweden, but now the secular press focused upon it again. Newspapers like
“The Daily News” (Dagens Nyheter) and “The Evening Paper”
(Aftonbladet)10 wrote story after story about the threat of Pentecostalism
to conventional medicine and to scientific progress. In 1946, agitation
against the Pentecostals led the state-owned “Sweden’s Radio” (Sveriges
Radio) to cancel a planned broadcast from the Stockholm Filadelfia
Church because it had been claimed in a previous service that a person had
been healed after intercession (Stävare 2007, 329). The experience of
being banned outraged Pentecostals; Pethrus, the informal denomina-
tional leader, decided to challenge the Swedish radio monopoly and start
an independent “pirate radio station.” In 1949, Swedish Pentecostals were
able to tune in to Radio Luxembourg to triumphantly listen to programs
produced by their own denomination. But the quality of reception was
poor and broadcasting was discontinued after a short time. In 1953, a
second attempt was made from a “pirate ship” placed on international
waters in the Baltic Sea. This attempt, however, was also short-lived.11
None of these efforts were explicitly illegal, because they could not be
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subjected to Swedish law, but they exasperated the Swedish authorities

and threatened the idea of a state monopoly in broadcasting.12
In 1955, the endeavors to create a Swedish Pentecostal radio station came
to fruition. With the foundation of the IBRA (the International Broadcasting
Radio Association) earlier that year, the Pentecostal movement was able to
secure a firm location13 for its broadcasts in Tangier, in today’s Morocco,
which at the time qualified as “international territory”, and was therefore
exempt from the strict broadcasting restrictions of Swedish law at the time.
On July 29, 1955, Lewi Pethrus and Karl G. Ottosson flew into Tangier to
inaugurate the new Swedish Pentecostal Radio Station. Thousands of expect-
ant Pentecostals tuned in to the station. The station’s aim of evangelizing
Sweden via radio was quickly expanded to include missionary work in other
countries. Thus, for a period of four and a half years, hundreds of programs,
not only in Swedish, but in 23 different languages, were broadcast and pro-
vided Swedish Pentecostalism with a new medium for evangelization and
supplementary missionary work (Stävare 2007, 329). When broadcasting

from Tangier ceased in 1959, IBRA Radio continued to broadcast from a

series of local radio stations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.14
As stated above, the Swedish Radio monopoly was partially dismantled
in April 1979, when the authorities allowed the creation of local radio sta-
tions, called “community radio” (närradio), which were in general run by
non-profit organizations. The first one to make use of this opportunity in
Sweden was the Pentecostal church of Jönköping, followed by their sister
church in Linköping (Stävare 2007, 331). Soon, other Pentecostal con-
gregations and many other different actors followed. This led IBRA to
discontinue its production of programs for the Swedish listeners.15 By
now, almost all Pentecostals had their own local radio station anyway. The
year after, in 1980, the Swedish authorities also allowed the establishment
of community television stations. The municipality of Huddinge, located
just south of Stockholm, was the first to attempt this. Their key to success
was cooperation with media students from the neighboring Pentecostal
community college, Kaggeholm. Thus, Pentecostals once again played a
part in a new media initiative in Sweden (Stävare 2007, 331).
In the 1980s, the Pentecostal Movement formed a partnership with the
Canadian TV program 100 Huntley Street. This led to new ideas about
television as a means for evangelizing in new regions, especially an increas-
ingly secular Europe. During the annual Pentecostal conference outside
Jönköping, Nyhemsveckan, in June 1983, this vision was presented at one
of the sessions. The response was overwhelming; the following collection
amounted to more than 1 million Swedish kronors (SEK, “Swedish
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crowns”), the largest offering to date in Swedish Pentecostal history. The

Pentecostals had once again demonstrated their confidence in the use of
modern mass media. A two-year television training course was launched at
Kaggeholm in 1984,16 and TV production was initiated the same year by
one of the Pentecostal companies called TV Inter. The sister churches in
Denmark, Finland, and Norway joined in the enterprise. Only three years
later, in 1986, the productions had reached such a professional level that
the Swedish state television company (Sveriges Television) agreed to
broadcast eight programs.17 The same year, TV Inter bought an old cin-
ema hall in Stockholm and transformed it into a TV studio. In 1989, a
series of 20 TV shows for children were produced. In 1992, the Stockholm
studio was considered too small and production was moved to more spa-
cious facilities in Linköping. During the 1990s, TV Inter continued its
struggles to establish itself as a significant player on the Swedish media
scene. During its first five years, TV Inter was able to broadcast at least one

program each weekend, in this period on the new commercial TV chan-

nels TV4 and Kanal 5. The programs transmitted included “Morning Air”
(Morgonluft), “A Friend for Life” (En vän för livet), and the children’s
show Lenas Peplon (Wahlström 2007, 337).
In the 1970s, a series of programs featuring traditional revivalist songs,
“The Whole Church Sings” (Hela kyrkan sjunger), led by Margit
Borgström from the Pentecostal church of Umeå, were shown on Swedish
television. The programs were widely discussed and Borgström became
something of a celebrity in Sweden. Twenty years later, in 1997, mindful
of the original program’s success, TV Inter attempted to create a sequel:
“Do You Remember the Song?” (Minns du sången). This time inspiration
was also taken from American singing duo Bill and Gloria Gaither’s
Homecoming programs in the United States. Under the direction of Anders
Jaktlund and Urban Ringbäck, around 100 Christian artists, mostly
Pentecostal, were brought to the studio in Linköping to participate in the
program series. The sequel became even more popular than the original,
and as a result Swedish television broadcast 25 episodes and a number of
reruns between 1998 and 2000 (Wahlström 2014a, 307; 2014b, 467).
After 1995, Pentecostal TV production faced increasing costs and
around the year 2000, TV Inter concluded that the production of conven-
tional TV programs for the Swedish market was no longer feasible. In
1999 the TV studio in Linköping was disposed of and its activities brought
back to Stockholm. A series of people were dismissed and costs consider-
ably reduced (Stävare 2007, 332). Today, attempts at televangelism seem
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to have vanished altogether. TV Inter now produces occasional Sunday

morning services for Swedish state television. Otherwise, they concentrate
on producing for—sometimes streaming on—the Internet. Programs on
the Internet constitute a new mass media area, and are far less costly than
conventional TV production. Apart from local initiatives by Pentecostal
congregations, some successful websites have been launched, e.g. “Good
News” (Goda Nyheter) with the subtitle: “The art of growing through the
difficult issues of life.”18 The website provides instruction and counseling
in areas like: “forgiveness,” “unemployment,” “recently divorced,” “pri-
vate economy,” “guilt,” “loneliness,” and the like.
What has been accounted for so far pertains to the initiatives of the Swedish
Pentecostal Movement. This denomination has been the leading actor, not
only because of its size, but also because of its continuous interest in evange-
lization. Other Pentecostal movements, like the Örebro Mission and
Maranata, have published books and journals but to a smaller extent. With
the foundation of Word of Life in Uppsala, however, another significant actor

appeared on the Christian media scene.19 From the start, books by Ulf Ekman
and cassette tapes with recorded sermons were distributed on a large scale. In
1989, Word of Life also started a journal, “The Magazine” (Magazinet),
which was continued until 2001 when it was replaced by “The World Today”
(Världen i dag). Starting in 1991, for a short time, television programs were
produced for a European audience. In 1993, Word of Life acquired a license
to broadcast radio programs in Uppsala, but the practice was soon discontin-
ued because of the high expense (Coleman 2000, 168; Gerdmar 2014). In
1996, Word of Life acquired its first website and as of today all services are
streamed and transmitted via the Internet.
In a brief recapitulation of Pentecostal media history, we may thus con-
clude that, within the Swedish Pentecostal movement, there has been an
ever-present desire and openness to make use of the most recent mass media
available. A desire to evangelize through these media has also been present
ever since Pentecostalism started. The results of these campaigns have var-
ied, but the desire to reach out has been palpable.20 In this more limited
sense, Swedish Pentecostalism has attempted to make use of the television
medium as “televangelism.” However, if we define televangelism in the way
many American researchers do, as connected to the creation of a “tele-
church,” televangelistic attempts by Swedish Pentecostals do not amount to
true televangelism. In this context, I define a telechurch as an electronic
church where the pastor acts from a studio with a few people who stand in
as “members” while the real constituency, who make up the electronic
church, are situated in front of their TV screens at home, communicating
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with their pastor only through donations and prayer requests (Hedges
2002, 1118). This type of endeavor is a very different genre, and it has never
been attempted on the Swedish scene because of the emphasis on congrega-
tionalism and collective leadership in Swedish congregations. A telechurch,
as such, is based on the fame, skill, and charisma of a single preacher who
creates a virtual church of his own. This kind of focus on one, central, char-
ismatic figure thends to be frowned upon in traditional Swedish society in
general, and in the congregationalist Pentecostal Movement in particular.21

Televangelism: A General Background

In the United States, televangelism began as early as the 1950s, in the
infancy of television. And Pentecostals were there from the beginning.
Oral Roberts’ televised camp meetings from 1954 are considered to be the
starting point.22 From 1960 onwards there was an “Oral Roberts special”
every Sunday morning. This, in fact, became the basis for a new telechurch

pastored by Roberts. As of 1969, Oral Roberts’ ambitions were higher and

the program was moved to “prime time.” With the help of invited
Hollywood stars, the number of viewers increased notably. Reverend
Roberts made use of this opportunity to ask for money. He had recently
founded Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma and needed more
funds for its existence. When Roberts solicited money via this medium, the
response was overwhelming. Roberts received more money that he could
have dreamed of (Hedges 2002).
A colleague of Roberts, Southern Baptist Minister Pat Robertson, had
started a similar enterprise in 1959, but he did it in a different way. He
bought a TV station threatened by bankruptcy, and started broadcasting
daily programs, transforming it into a Charismatic Christian TV channel.
Robertson attracted more and more adherents, and at the height of his
career, he seems to have had around 30 million “subscribers” that paid a
“membership fee” and furthermore donated large sums of money.23 The
result was a vast variety of programs including news, entertainment and, for
a short time, also a soap opera. The surplus receipts covered the construction
of the flamboyant Crystal Cathedral in California and, among other things,
the unsuccessful Pat Robertson presidential campaign in 1988. Robertson
reached many Americans, but not enough to reach the White House.24
The success of Oral Roberts and Pat Robertson attracted other preach-
ers to televangelism, but the lure of money and massive followings also
entailed temptations. From a present-day standpoint, it appears that tel-
evangelism in the United States declined notably during the 1990s. The
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flamboyant lifestyles and outright scandals connected to two of the big

televangelists, Jim Bakker and Jimmy Swaggart, brought the whole busi-
ness into disgrace. Both Pat Robertson’s CBN (Christian Broadcasting
Network) and Jim Bakker’s PTL (Praise the Lord) network have now
closed down. Today, there is only one major Charismatic TV station left in
the United States, Trinity Broadcasting Network, or TBN. Daniel
J. Hedges, Assistant Professor at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, sum-
marizes televangelism in the United States in the following way, emphasiz-
ing that Pentecostals and Charismatics have been the main protagonists of
the business from the beginning, along with Oral Roberts:

No other segment of Christianity has employed television for evangelism

and religious influence as successfully as charismatics and pentecostals […]
The overall result has been that television has taken both the best and the
worst of charismatic and pentecostal Christianity into the home of virtually
every family in America (Burgess and van der Mass 2002, 1118).

Harvey Cox elaborates on mediatization in the following way, from a per-

spective especially important to the comprehension of televangelism:

[T]he power of the television medium transforms and magnifies the ordi-
nary […] Television is a modern technology that has a curious similarity to
the magic of shamanism. The shrinking of distance, the larger-than-life pres-
ence, the compression of time, the sense of belonging suggested by the
congregation’s response, the appeal to emotion rather than logic—all inte-
gral to the topography of television. (Cox 1996, 278)

There are also other countries where televangelism has played a prominent
role. Brazil might be the best example. One of the major Neo-Pentecostal
denominations in the country, “The Universal Church of the Kingdom of
God” (Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus) televised programs as one of its
distinguishing characteristics from the beginning (Ruuth 1995, 195). In
1990, the leader of this denomination, Bishop Edir Macedo,25 bought two
of the major TV channels in Brazil: TV Record in São Paulo and TV Rio
in Rio de Janeiro. The cost was estimated at $ 45 million (Burgess and van
der Mass 2002; Ruuth 1995, 201).
In summarizing what he believes to have been the purpose of this bold
venture, ecclesiologist Anders Ruuth states that the intention was:

[t]o reach as many people as possible with the message of the church. Radio and
television are seen as the best instruments for reaching out. As we have seen, the
message can be summarized as: Pare de sofrer. Existe uma solucao! (“Stop suffer-
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ing! There is a solution!”). (Ruuth 1995, 207, author’s translation)

It is interesting to note, however, that Bishop Macedo, who is all in favor

of televangelism, seems to be against a particular form of telechurch. He
states that:

I am against an electronic church of the type that we find in the United

States, where the pastor is on the television screen and people are at home
and attend the doorbell, if someone comes by, or the cat, if it is meowing.
In my church we prefer direct contact with the people. (Ruuth 1995, 207,
author’s translation)

In this quotation, Macedo opposes the idea of a telechurch, referring to

his vision of “direct contact” with the audience. One hypothesis to explain
the success of American telechurches is the predominance of individualism

in the United States. Maybe Macedo reckons that this is not as true of
Brazil, even though the medium of TV is just as strong there. In Sweden,
individualism has increased notably during the last decades.26 Has this
opened up opportunities for a telechurch?

The Purpose of Channel 10

As was stated in the introduction, there is one particular case that seems to
thwart the view of Sweden as a country that is infertile ground for tele-
churches: Channel 10 in Älmhult in southern Sweden. According to its
founder, Börje Claesson, Channel 10 wants to practice televangelism, and
has been doing so for a number of years. The first question that will be
discussed here is whether, on the one hand, this endeavor reinforces the
local churches leading to “a direct contact with the people” in accordance
with Macedo’s idea or if it, on the other hand, should be considered a new
“telechurch” based on my definition of such a phenomenon stated above.
The birth of Channel 10 is intricately entwined with the aforemen-
tioned Claesson, a Pentecostal businessman from a traditional Pentecostal
family. Claesson has several close relatives who are leading Pentecostal pas-
tors within the SPM, a fact which has contributed to his securing a central
position in the movement. He retired early from his business activities and
initiated a local church in Älmhult. When he sold his company, a corpora-
tion that provided an electronic phonebook on the Internet, he made a
gross profit and decided to invest the money in a Charismatic TV channel,
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something possible in Sweden in 2005 because of the restructuring of the

media landscape described above.
In an interview in 2013 in “The Day,”27 Claesson was referred to as a
“Smålandish Media Magnate” (småländsk mediamogul; Lundgren 2013,
11, author’s translation). His statement in the same interview does nothing
to diminish that estimation: “I was a total failure, and nobody thought that
I would start a TV channel. That goes against everything [that people think
of me]. Nevertheless, I know that I will soon start a TV channel in Syria. I
just know it” (Lundgren 2013, 11, author’s translation). On Channel 10’s
website (2015) the ambition of the TV station is stated in the following way:

Channel 10 is Sweden’s Christian TV channel. Here you will find a wide

variety of programs, all with a clear Christian focus. Our telecasts include
feature films, news, children’s shows, education, debates, worship and inter-
cession programs. One week each month we also broadcast our esteemed Café
and Campaign Evenings. We offer a mix of music performances, interviews,

and conversations directly from our studio in Älmhult. Channel 10 is a

Christian channel, which is clearly evident in the programs we broadcast. We
profess the Apostles’ Creed, with Jesus clearly in focus. Channel 10 is not
tied to any denomination but seeks as much breadth as possible. We telecast
programs from the Oasis Movement within the Swedish church, to various
free churches in Sweden. A few of our programs are broadcast in English,
but most of them are either in Swedish or subtitled. Our goal is to broadcast
as many of our programs as possible in Swedish. We broadcast Christian
television around the clock, divided into three eight-hour blocks—one
eight-hour block between 4 p.m. and midnight, and then a rerun of the
programs until 4 o’clock p.m. the next day.28

The manifesto of Channel 10 demonstrates that it is an ecumenical, or at

least a transdenominational collaborative, initiative that includes most of
the Charismatic sector of Swedish Christianity, from the Oasis Movement
within the Swedish Lutheran Church to, as we shall see below, Neo-
Pentecostal enterprises like The Arch (Arken) and Word of Life. Studying
the program schedule, we can also include the Swedish Pentecostal
Movement, and Pentecostal preachers with their own ministry. Channel
10’s own summary of its history reads:

Channel 10 began broadcasting in 2005. It has developed and has been

growing steadily ever since. Since the inception, we have made major changes
to the content of the programs, and we continually increase our viewer num-
bers. Today, apart from using the satellite disc (the Sirius Satellite), you can
also order Channel 10 as an optional channel from the Freeserve and Telia
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selections. You can also follow Channel 10 via our Web TV.29

In the interview in “The Day,” Claesson professes that he has been inspired
by the business strategy of the neighboring company IKEA:

The channel should be considered as a spiritual IKEA, which has a popular

appeal. It started on a small scale, on the soil of Småland, but with time it
became one of the most well-known trademarks in the world. From IKEA,
I bring with me the idea of working as a team and that anyone can contrib-
ute with his or her gift. The company is a success today, but it was not like
that in the beginning. (Lundgren 2013, 12, author’s translation)

In this quotation it is hard to separate what Claesson alludes to as being

IKEA’s strategy from his own vision. But it becomes increasingly clear that his
ambitions are not limited to a small church or a weekly television program.
Claesson wants to reach out worldwide, just like IKEA. And just like IKEA’s

wide assortment, he claims, Channel 10 offers a great variety of p rograms.

According to the Channel 10 website, these include: “TV shows from differ-
ent parts of the world, from different communities and for different audi-
ences: from the current talk shows and church services, news, children’s shows
and music programs.” (Author’s translation. Information found online at
‘kanal10.se’ April 12 2014.)
The program schedule of Channel 10 may be divided into six different
kinds of programs: (a) news programs, (b) conventional church services,
(c) teaching and counseling, (d) missionary activities, (e) testimonies, and
(f) programs for children and youth. Each section is represented by at least
two different programs: ambitions are high. Some of the programs, for
example one of the news broadcasts, are produced in cooperation with a
sister channel in Norway, “Channel 10 Norway” (Kanal 10 Norge).
The schedule referred to reflects the intention of Channel 10 to represent
the breadth of Charismatic Christianity in Scandinavia. The news anchor is
Tomas Ander, a Charismatic preacher of SPM origin. The leader of the pro-
gram “Life with Jesus” is Linda Bergling, pastor of the Arch, a free Charismatic
ministry in Stockholm, with historical ties to the Faith Movement. One of the
missionary programs is led by Morgan Carlsson, who is the administrative
secretary of Media Mission International (MMI), an organization that claims
to be “the largest missionary organization in Europe, using mass media as a
tool.” One of the programs based on personal testimonies is called “From
Darkness to Light,” led by Hans and Eva Marklund, the pastor couple of the
Faith Movement congregation in Alingsås. One of the children’s programs,
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“Youngsters,” is hosted by Lennart Henricsson from the Oasis Movement.

Channel 10 has a standing element that is not accounted for in the program
schedule: Börje Claesson asking for money. In between programs, and in the
style of a commercial, Börje Claesson explains the vision of Channel 10 and
asks the viewer to support his cause.
The enterprise is not limited to television, however. Channel 10 also
provides encounters between viewers/sponsors and Charismatic celebri-
ties, probably to encourage giving. In September 2014, for example,
Christian business owners were invited to meet Sverre Larsson, the former
director of “The Day Group” (Dagen-gruppen) of the Swedish Pentecostal
Movement (see above). Another strategy for attracting attention is to let
Charismatic profiles and celebrities write blogs on the Channel 10 web-
site. In late 2014, former Word of Life leader Ruben Agnarsson asked the
rhetorical question: “Do the missiles from the Palestinians really exist?” in
one of the fairly frequent pro-Israel blogs featured on the site.

Seen as a whole, the selection of programs and other activities seem to

provide an extended version of what was once the contents of a traditional
Pentecostal revival meeting. This contained Bible teaching, hymns, testi-
monies, and intercession—and youth activities as well as a Sunday school
for children. During one of the hymns after the sermon, participants were
regularly asked for an offering. Missionary reports were also often a part
of the service. Seemingly, Channel 10 provides all the details that used to
constitute this type of Pentecostal service: hymns, Bible teaching, testimo-
nies, missionary reports, and pleas for support.

Financing Channel 10
In 2012, Channel 10 had 30 employees, around 100 volunteers (including
Börje Claesson’s staff), and, according to its own estimates, reached
between 50,000 and 100,000 Swedish viewers per week. Potentially, how-
ever, 2 million Swedes could also watch its programs via their cable net-
works. These are impressive figures. But how does Claesson finance these
extensive activities? According to Claesson himself, Channel 10 is partially
financed by commercials, “but above all from the 9000 private donors and
the 172 congregations that provide funds regularly” (Lundgren 2013, 12,
author’s translation). In 2012, Channel 10 actually collected some 20 mil-
lion kronors and accounted for a profit of half a million kronors. When it
comes to the identity of the supporters, Claesson is secretive. According to
Lundgren:
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Who they are, [Pastor Claesson] does not want to disclose, but for those
who have watched Channel 10’s programs, it soon becomes obvious that
money is not an insignificant issue in this context. Blessings are promised to
those who contribute—an attitude that the channel has been much criti-
cized for. (Lundgren 2013, 12, author’s translation)

The Channel 10 website (Kanal 10.se, 2014) provides us with a hint as to

how the donations are acquired and administered. It echoes the petition
by Börje Claesson in his frequent “commercials”:

Channel 10 carries out great work to spread the gospel of Jesus. For the most
part, the work is financed by voluntary donations. You can donate to Channel
10 in several different ways. Not only can you call or text a one-time gift using
the numbers above. You can also make a donation through your account or
credit card below. The most valuable [choice] for Channel 10 is of course if

you want to become a monthly partner. You can also become one by clicking
the button below “Become a partner.” 1. Choose; 2. My gift; 3. My Details;
4. Check and complete. I want to: give a gift, become a partner.

Today, these partners obviously amount to more than 9000; on average,

they provide more than 2000 kronors each per year (Lundgren 2013,
author’s translation). This is a considerable sum when it comes to dona-
tions from the general public.30

Audiences of Channel 10
Personally, I first came into contact with Channel 10 through my father, an
old Pentecostal pastor, who was connected to the Comhem cable network
and could watch the programs through that. He appreciated what he called
“a tone of revival” (en väckelseton) that he recognized from his early years
in the Pentecostal Movement. When I watched the programs together
with my father, they often brought back memories from my childhood of
revival campaigns and tent meetings. Some of the participants were even
the same, for example Målle Lindberg, who calls himself “a gypsy preacher”
and who made the front page of several evening papers with his spectacular
performances in the 1960s. At that time, he was related to the short-lived,
“wild” Pentecostal movement of Maranata (Dahlgren 1982, 139–42).
It is obvious that not only my father, but many elderly Pentecostals
appreciate the Channel 10 programs. According to an article in “The
Day,” 75 percent of all incoming telephone calls come from elderly peo-
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ple. Journalist Lundgren states that: “There is no doubt about the fact
that the channel means a lot to many in this age group. A collection of
incoming letters leaves no doubt and [they] express pure gratitude”
(2013, 13, author’s translation). In one of my interviews, a female mem-
ber of the Pentecostal Movement stated the following about Channel 10:

I watched a Bible study on marriage that was one of the best I ever heard.
I saw a fine report about poverty in South America that illuminated the prob-
lems but also the efforts that have been made, in a very informative way. I have
seen touching interviews that expressed needs for intercession, but also peo-
ples’ testimonies about how they have been helped through Channel 10.31

This testimony, as well as many others, accounts for the appreciation for
Channel 10 that is shown by viewers of a Pentecostal/Charismatic
background.

The Effects of Televangelism

The bold vision of Börje Claesson, however, is televangelism. He claims
that through his TV channel, “God’s fire will spread all over Scandinavia,
with hundreds of thousands saved as a goal.” Furthermore, he states that:
“This is revival. It is our calling to transmit the message to the Swedes, to
be a tool for revival in Sweden and confer hope to the congregations”
(Lundgren 2013, author’s translation). This quotation clearly demonstrates
Claesson’s own vision: Channel 10’s televangelism will reach out to secu-
larized Scandinavians, bring them to salvation, and thus transform the
whole region. Scandinavia will be ignited by and burn with Pentecostal
fire. In the process, the local Pentecostal or Charismatic congregations will
be filled with hope.
The results from earlier studies of televangelism in the United States do
not point in that direction, however. Daniel J. Hedges concludes that “the
impact on society at large appears to be relatively small; fundraising
rhetoric notwithstanding, religious television appears to reach mostly the
converted and have little evangelistic impact” (2002, 1120). Experience
from other televised attempts in Sweden would suggest the same. Above,
we have described initiatives like “Do You Remember the Song?” pro-
duced by the Pentecostal missionary organization TV Inter, but broadcast
on Swedish state television. These programs were viewed by a great many
people and were much talked about. But the effect can probably be labeled
“nostalgia,” rather than “conversion.” Innumerable church services all
over Sweden were later called “Do You Remember the Song?” but there
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were extremely few new converts to Pentecostalism as a result, if any.32

The intention may have been televangelism, but the effect was most prob-
ably nostalgia and the nostalgia produced did not result in conversion.
As stated above, SPM’s TV Inter has concluded that producing this
type of program is too expensive considering the meager results. Thus,
they have almost abandoned televangelism in Sweden. Börje Claesson and
Channel 10, however, think otherwise. The format and the vision of this
channel differ considerably from any other endeavor so far in Swedish his-
tory. With the “tone of revival” from bygone days, music accompanied by
accordions and guitars, and emotional sermons, Claesson and his revivalist
friends intend to “save” not only Sweden, but all of Scandinavia. And in
one respect, they have succeeded where others, like SPM and Word of Life
have failed. They have been able to finance a Pentecostal Charismatic TV
channel for years.

As noted above, Claesson claims that: “This is revival!” There are a

number of issues that pull that claim into question, however. The people
that travel to Claesson’s “City Church” in Älmhult are already believers
seeking healing, consolation, or maybe just nostalgia. As we have seen, the
majority of those making phone calls and donating money are elderly peo-
ple, most of whom are obviously believers. When it comes to the programs
broadcast by Channel 10, we may also call into question the character of
these programs. The style is often old-fashioned compared to today’s
Pentecostal and Neo-Pentecostal church services. The songs are old and
popular Pietist hymns. But what is most surprising is the type of speech
employed on these programs. The language used is full of Bible references
and Pietist expressions, fully comprehensible to an old believer, but prob-
ably incomprehensible to the nonbeliever that Claesson wants to reach.
Lundgren states that: “The question is—Does the channel reach the peo-
ple it opts for? Is the classical revivalist language understood by secularized
Swedes that, in a fragmented existence, never find enough time as it is?”
(2013, 13, author’s translation).33

Is Nostalgia the Key to Channel 10’s Success?

According to the arguments presented above, Channel 10 is not likely to
become the ideal of televangelism that Claesson wants it to be. It does not
reach out to “Scandinavia,” not even to secularized Sweden. But why has
it become a success, at least if we consider it from the perspective of “sur-
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vival” in a tough media business? Channel 10 has obviously stayed alive for
a long time—longer than could have been expected, considering the size
of Claesson’s initial investment of funds. To explain this, we must instead
look at the situation of Pentecostal believers in Sweden today to find the
answer. As hinted at above, classical Pentecostal churches have undergone
a dramatic transformation in just one or two decades. The spirituality of
the 1940s and 1950s, the time when today’s elderly people were young, is
all gone. There are no more prophetic messages, speaking in tongues,
prayer nights, revivalist hymns, no more string instrument orchestras or
church organs, not even any hymn books. All these classical expressions of
revivalism are more or less gone (cf. Moberg 2013, 106–107). Many old-
time believers have a hard time recognizing their old churches, even more
so in taking a liking to them. They are faithful and do not leave the church
officially, but they do not feel at home and they are more and more often
becoming absent friends.

The rapid alteration of religious expressions such as classical Pentecostal

church services can be attributed to several factors. First, individualism has
spread rapidly in Sweden during the last few decades. People do not bother
as much about what others think. The predominantly rural and collectivist
culture of Sweden has been replaced by an urban and individualist one.
Furthermore, people increasingly vote with their feet. Whereas old-time
Pentecostals were most faithful to their congregations, Jessica Moberg
(2013) has shown that today’s members are mobile and choose a congre-
gation according to what they consider the best for that moment. This has
led to a nervous adaptation to new circumstances in many churches. This
whole rapid transformation of churches and church culture opens up a
new field to actors like Claesson, and media enterprises like Channel 10.
Alienated Pentecostals are looking for a new home—but wish to do so
without having to do what was once considered almost a sin, that is, to
abandon their congregation. This is where Claesson’s TV channel comes
in. In the programs from Channel 10, they recognize “a tone of revival”
and more. They feel at home again.
At the same time, another process is going on in Swedish society: medi-
atization, i.e., the influence of mass media on Swedish culture in a broad
sense: “In all fields of culture, the presence of the media changes the rules
of aesthetic creation, dissemination and the use of sound, images, and
texts. To a high degree, mediatization affects reading and listening, educa-
tion and the book industry, theater and the music, film and visual culture
in both fine arts and popular culture” (Fornäs 2011, 5). It goes without
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

saying that the author also should have included church services. In line
with the transformation of Swedish TV media from sober information
services to “commercial populism” in the 1980s (Furhammar 2006), or
the more recent trend of “digital storytelling,” Channel 10 has produced
a popular form of revival, maybe not of the heart, but definitely of the
culture of bygone days in Pentecostalism. And, just like in the old days,
people are happy to open their wallets and donate money to something
that is to their liking—and especially to a TV channel that claims that it is
going to bring old time revival to Scandinavia!
Through his work on identity, Paul Ricoeur (1992) has taught us that
we are dependent on narratives to create and maintain a personal identity.
By telling and retelling stories of our lives, we integrate a reconstructed
past and an imagined future, and we mediate discrepancies to produce a
more coherent version of continuity. In the same way, we opt to provide
life with some type of purpose. Stuart Hall speaks of the “production of

identity” and claims that this process is “not an identity grounded in

[Foucaultian] archaeology, but in the re-telling of the past” (1990, 224).
Dan McAdams and Kate McLean further suggest that “a narrative identity
builds slowly over time as people tell stories about their experiences to and
with others. Over developmental time, selves create stories, which in turn
create selves” (2013, 233). Erik Erikson emphasized the importance of
continuity in the notion of personal identity: “The key problem of iden-
tity, then, is (as the term connotes) the capacity of the ego to sustain same-
ness and continuity in the face of changing fate […] Identity connotes the
resiliency of maintaining essential patterns in the process of change”
(Erikson 1964, 95–96). In a situation where a positive interpretation of
the present is difficult to attain or create, an individual often turns to the
past, something we call “nostalgia.” Up until recently, nostalgia was con-
sidered a deficient character trait. Recent research, however, has shown
that nostalgia is a common and transcultural phenomenon that “bolsters
social bonds, increases positive self-regard, and generates positive affect”
(Routledge et al. 2006, 975).
In the case of elderly people in the classical Pentecostal Movement, the
construction of an identity and purpose in life becomes increasingly diffi-
cult in the radically transformed environment of the local Pentecostal
church. The perception of continuity is suddenly disrupted. Thus they
revert to nostalgia, returning to the past. This explains the success of pro-
grams like “Do You Remember the Song?” that feature old-time revival
songs as well as mediatized versions of old-school Pentecostal services. In
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these programs, viewers are helped to return to the past. The programs
from Channel 10 are not just passive nostalgia, however. Through the
repeated pleas for donations from Börje Claesson, followed by nostalgic
satisfaction in return, as well as the chance to submit prayer requests, etc.,
the interchange results in a mutual interdependence. The talk around cof-
fee tables around Sweden—or visits to the City Church in Älmhult—also
provide individuals with chances to retell the stories of their lives, thus
renewing their perceptions of their personal identities and creating new
meanings and new purposes in life for them.
Indulging in nostalgia is a convenient way to feel better and open up to
others. It opens the heart and boosts generosity, which accounts for the
fact that it has been possible for Claesson to generate the large sums that
he needs. This has made it possible for him and his collaborators to create
what I consider to be Sweden’s first telechurch. Around Sweden, what is
broadcast from Ängelholm is now the talk of the coffee tables of elderly
Pentecostals and other Charismatic believers. And day after day, former

churchgoers now sit in front of the screen, awaiting new inspiration,

reinforced by nostalgia. While still remaining members of a local church,
elderly and disappointed members of Pentecostal and Charismatic origin
can increasingly identify with a media version of a church—a telechurch.
What Bishop Macedo did not want, is exactly what Pastor Claesson has
achieved—in a time that no one thought was “right” for religious televi-
sion. According to this interpretation, Channel 10 is most certainly the
answer—but, in the eyes of Börje Claesson, and many of his sponsors,
probably to the wrong question. The channel may not have met the sup-
posed needs of nonbelievers, but it has definitely brought new meaning to
the lives of the older believers who feel alienated in their own churches.

Notes
1. The term televangelism is usually considered to be an (American) abbrevia-
tion of “evangelization via television.” However, the term also indicates a
translocative capacity of broadcasting activities that take place elsewhere,
thus making them available for “take-away”—for remote consumption or
participation.
2. I use “Pentecostal” as an encompassing term for the type of spirituality that
originated among African Americans in the United States in the early
twentieth century, regardless of its current location. To single out this type
of Pentecostalism, I sometimes use the term “Classic Pentecostalism.” This
stands in contrast to the type of Pentecostalism that surged towards the
end of the twentieth century, which is more related to “health and wealth”
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theology. I use the term “Neo-Pentecostal” for the latter. To define

Pentecostalized movements within other types of churches, like the
Swedish Lutheran Church, I use the term “Charismatic.” The latter may
also be used as an encompassing term to define spirituality common to
Classic Pentecostalism, Neo-Pentecostalism, and the Charismatic
Movement (for a more detailed discussion, see Alvarsson 2007b).
3. The material, consisting of several interviews, a visit to the location of TV
production in Älmhult, and an analysis of viewer statistics, was presented as
a spread in “The Day” (Dagen) Sept. 6, 2013.
4. For an overview of the different Pentecostal movements in Scandinavia, see
Alvarsson (2011) and for the Swedish Pentecostal Movement in particular,
see Alvarsson (2007a).
5. In this article I use “The Swedish Pentecostal Movement” and the abbre-
viation SPM for the main Pentecostal movement in Sweden. From 2001
this movement was more officially organized and called Riksföreningen
Pingst Fria församlingar i samverkan; in English “The Pentecostal Alliance
of Independent Churches” or “PAIC.” As most of the historical events in

this article took place before 2001, however, I will keep the abbreviation
“SPM” throughout the text.
6. Initially, the company was organized as a foundation, founded by the
Swedish government as a Public Service company, but corporately owned
by interested parties, like the press, the news agency “TT,” and radio com-
panies. It was supposed to be independent of the government or any eco-
nomic interests, but it was still closely identified with the Swedish state.
After 1979, when Sveriges Television (Swedish Television) was founded as
a separate foundation, the board has been constituted by representatives of
all the political parties in the Swedish Parliament, with a president who is
politically independent.
7. For more detailed information, see Alvarsson (2014a).
8. Närke is the name of the province of the city of Örebro.
9. Most Pentecostal congregations were founded as independent entities
resulting from the revival. However, some of them, like the Filadelfia
Church in Stockholm, were originally Baptist congregations, even though
there was also an influx from Methodists and later the Swedish Covenant
Church. The Filadelfia Church in Stockholm was explicitly expelled from
the Baptist Union in 1913, only one year after the publication of “Jesus is
Coming,” while other congregations left the Union in protest or because
of differences in spirituality.
10. See e.g. Dagens Nyheter, Feb. 1, 1950, Aftonbladet, Feb. 2, 1950, and
Expressen, Feb. 17, 1950. cf. the conditions in the 1920s in Stävare (2010,
70–74).
11. This attempt was followed by the founding of Denmark’s most successful
pirate radio station, the commercial and secular Radio Mercur in 1958,
and its Swedish imitators, Radio Syd outside southern Sweden the same
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

year, and Radio Nord, outside Stockholm in 1961. All of these attempts
naturally increased the pressure on Swedish authorities to open up the
country to more commercial media.
12. Lewi Pethrus also tried to realize his vision through legal methods by
negotiating with the Minister of Communication on several occasions, but
without result (Stävare 2007, 329).
13. With the foundation of IBRA, the Pentecostal Movement was able to
escape the limiting currency regulations in force in Sweden at the time,
because no Swedish citizen could be prevented from being a member of a
foreign association or send his or her membership fee to that association
(Djurfeldt 2007, 203).
14. In 1971, Radio Trans Europa in Lisbon became a new center for IBRA
activities. In 1985, IBRA broadcast in 53 languages and reached 150 peo-
ples in more than 100 countries. Seventeen million Swedish kronors per
year were invested in IBRA at the time (Stävare 2007, 330).

15. IBRA Radio discontinued broadcasting in Swedish in March 1980 (Björk

2007, 291).
16. The Kaggeholm community college already had a mass media education
program which was responsible for the community television project in
Huddinge. On the basis of that experience, and inspired by the Canadian
100 Huntley Street (and with two presenters from that TV station), formal
television education began in 1984 (Björk 2007, 292). This channel has
produced many of the present technicians, anchormen, sound technicians,
and cameramen working for Swedish Television (Kanal 1 and TV2) as well
as TV4.
17. At this stage, to cut costs, Swedish Television started buying programs
from freelance companies who were also based in Sweden. However, the
quality requirements were high, and it was a surprise to some skeptics that
the SPM passed the audition. Four of the programs mentioned in the text
were broadcast during 1986 and the rest during 1987 (Björk 2007, 292).
18. In Swedish: “Konsten att växa genom livets svåra frågor.” (Author’s trans-
lation). The address is http://www.godanyheter.nu/.
19. In his study of Word of Life, Simon Coleman has highlighted the interest-
ing fact that mass media were also “incorporated into members’ spiritual
lives and practices,” i.e. they were used as complements to regular church
services (Coleman 2000, 168).
20. One evangelization campaign, launched by German-born international
evangelist Reinhard Bonnke in the 1980s, attempted to reach all Swedish
households with Bonnke’s pamphlet “From Minus to Plus” (Från minus
till plus) which was generally a magnificent failure. No new converts were
seen. In the aftermath, many Pentecostals ironically reversed the title of the
campaign.
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21. For the Swedish mentality, see Daun (1989). For Pentecostal views on
congregations, see Josefsson (2005, 97–108).
22. Pentecostal evangelist Kathryn Kuhlman also contributed to a number of
TV programs with features from her healing campaigns in the 1950s and
the 1960s, broadcast on CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System), at the time
one of the major TV companies in the United States.
23. In the United States, religious groups’ collections are exempt from
taxation.
24. Scandals and conflicts have since struck the Robertson family. The TV
channel decreased in importance and no one was ready to take over from
the aging Robertson. The Crystal Cathedral had to be disposed of. Today,
it is owned by the Catholic Church.
25. In many Pentecostal denominations, especially in African American ones,
the first pastor takes the title “Bishop” in accordance with 1 Tim. 3:1: “the
office of a bishop” (i.e. not as part of an idea of succession). This is also the
case in IURD and some other Latin American churches.

26. See the World Values Survey (2015), according to which Sweden is now
considered the most individualistic country in the world.
27. As stated above, Dagen was founded in 1945 by Lewi Pethrus and was for
a long time associated with the SPM. Today, however, a consortium of
Christian actors, ranging from SPM to a Norwegian Lutheran organiza-
tion, jointly finance and supervise the production of Dagen.
28. Author’s translation of the statement found online at ‘kanal10.se’ April
12, 2014.
29. Author’s translation of the information found online at ‘kanal10.se’ April
12, 2014.
30. According to Dagens Nyheter of Aug. 12, 2014, official Swedish statistics
state that the average Swede donates 600 kronors per year to nonprofit
organizations in general. Donors to Channel 10 probably also give money
to other causes, e.g., their own local churches, which indicates that this
number is indeed exceptional.
31. Interview with Pentecostal woman, 65–70 years of age, April 14, 2015.
32. The response to the show, in particular the proliferation of church services
called “Minns du sången”, actually caused Swedish Television to discon-
tinue the broadcast of the series (Dagen, Nov. 6, 2001).
33. Lundgren’s observations coincide exactly with my own, gathered from
watching many programs produced by Channel 10.

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Ethnographic Material
Interview with Pentecostal woman, 65–70 years of age, April 14, 2015.

tion in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original
author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and
indicate if changes were made.
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your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permit-
ted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder.

Postscript: Embers from a Global Fire

Jessica Moberg and Jane Skjoldli

Historically, the symbolic vocabulary of Charismatic Christianity is littered

with fire metaphors and analogies, especially connected to the agency of
the Holy Spirit. Fire can be unpredictable, like wildfire; it can be con-
trolled, as when lighting a torch; or, it can simply go out. Drawing on
such a rich symbolic tradition allows us to paint a dynamic and lively pic-
ture of Nordic Charismatic history and the contemporary scene, in which
a global blaze finds its expression in more humbly burning embers. In line
with these analogies, this anthology opened with the emergence of
Pentecostal religiosity in the Nordic countries, tracing paths among ashes
from fires that have burned brightly in the scattered sites and cities of
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Nordic landscapes.
Among these fires, the scholars contributing to this volume have shown
how individuals and groups have tapped into, and contributed to, local,
national, and global developments; torches have been passed from
American revivalist movements, through religious exchanges organized
by, with the help of, or as collaborations between local sites, feeding into
the global blaze. As torchbearers migrated and returned, they let the

J. Moberg (*)
University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
J. Skjoldli
University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway

flames they brought with them coalesce in Nordic countries, laying the
foundation for the diverse Charismatic expressions we see manifest today.
There is no one contemporary Nordic Charismatic Christianity, but
many linger around the bonfires at the time of writing. Some groups have
gone in a therapeutic direction, with popular music and sermon styles, and
enjoy growth; their bonfires attract present lingerers. Others gather
around the embers of old-fashioned Pentecostal psalms and sermons.
These variations result from transformations native to the Nordic coun-
tries and internal dynamics in Charismatic bodies, as well as influences
from the international, mainly Americanized Charismatic cultures.

Nordic Particularities
The chapters written by Mikaelsson and Stensvold have illustrated the
strong significance of contact through transatlantic networks in the early
establishment phase, in terms of national and international infrastructures
of communication. Such webs of contact, including migrant networks,
enabled traveling preachers to spread their message within, without, and
between the Nordic countries. As shown by Mikaelsson, the role of women
missionaries, previously poorly attended to in research literature, was
essential to Pentecostal establishment processes.
Even though member numbers remain relatively small, this religious
minority has taken up, and continues to take up space in the public spheres,
including the media realm. Moreover, Charismatics have wielded media
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

channels themselves, producing daily papers, newsletters, periodicals, TV

shows, and YouTube sermons. However, despite adopting and adapting to
contemporaneous mainstream trends, it seems as though the spell of pecu-
liarity associated with this brand of Christianity has not been lifted—at
least not yet.
Existing research has tended to emphasize tensions between Charismatic
Christianity and national churches. Yet, as the contributions to this volume
elucidate, the predominant picture of Nordic state churches as hegemonic
structures is in need of nuance and problematization. While it is important
to recognize their occasionally oppressive side, national churches have also
benefitted Charismatic Christianity. As demonstrated by Stensvold, revival-
ist movements within Lutheran churches served to bridge mainstream and
Charismatic Christianity. More recently, Charismatic movements within
Lutheran churches have contributed to creating a new organizational base
for the former.

This book has also shed light on contemporaneous and contemporary

trends in all Nordic countries, many of which have found expression in
Norway, Finland, and Sweden. One of these trends regards how member
recruitment has primarily taken place through socialization rather than by
conversion. Another trend concerns the growth of new collaborative forms
across Charismatic and non-Charismatic boundaries, pointing towards a
general, but not ubiquitous pull towards ecumenism, where Charismatic
discourse used to be more exclusivist. This is connected to the overall dis-
integration of denomination-based identities and increased mobility within
the Charismatic field, in which socio-religious anchors are moved from
conventional labels to the self on the one hand, and the broader revivalist
scene on the other. Whereas old boundaries are deconstructed, new ones
are formed around age and generation, class, and ethnic groups. As exam-
ined by Mantsinen and Alvarsson, preferential differences between genera-
tions present challenges, particularly to Pentecostal communities.
Yet another growing trend is pointed out by Hovi, Moberg, and Skjoldli,
who demonstrate that Faith Movement-influenced rhetoric, strategies,
practices, and theologies have given way to therapeutization, intimization,
and self-censorship regarding Charismatic practices. One conspicuous
aspect of this is the declining use of the previously prominent fire-laden
metaphors. One might describe this new Charismatic profile as more low-
key than the earlier public profile of the Faith Movement.

Nordic Issues in a Global Light

The category of Charismatic Christianity has proven valuable for capturing

historical and contemporary developments in different parts of the world.
However, as the anthology clarifies, what used to be easily identifiable as
“Charismatic” or “Pentecostal” in Nordic contexts has become increas-
ingly vague and blurred by the developments sketched herein. This bears
implications on how Pentecostal studies researchers construct, define, and
approach their objects of study from a wider, global perspective.
Elements that were previously central to the definition of these objects
seem to be losing some of their relevance, demanding the construction of
categories that better capture contemporary identities, practices, alliances,
and priorities. If speaking in tongues, prophecy, and healing have become
marginal in several groups, how can we justify defining Charismatic Christianity
based on these particular components? Still, the fact that Charismatic prac-
tices are toned down in wider collaborative situations displays consciousness

of the social boundaries that might result from them. We believe this reflects
ongoing negotiations of boundaries regarding Christian fellowship, identity,
and consciousness over Charismatic primacy and uniqueness. Such develop-
ments have also been noted in the wider global Charismatic field, in which
ecumenical imperatives, which used to garner suspicion, show signs of inte-
gration among Charismatics.

Future Research Prospects

Much work remains to be done in the study of Nordic Charismatic
Christianity. We find three themes particularly worthy of inquiry. The first
pertains to geographic coverage. Our greatest regret as editors is the lack of
case studies from Denmark and Iceland. The fact that Charismatic
Christianity has been relatively unsuccessful in these countries begs the
question of what beneficial conditions were in place in Norway, Sweden,
and Finland, that were absent in Denmark and Iceland. Second, we call for
better and more nuanced statistics regarding the number of Charismatics in
the Nordic region, where transdenominational aspects are considered. In
this regard, we find it crucial to look at developments outside conventional
denominations, in new networks and cooperative fora. Finally, Pentecostal
studies would benefit from research on Charismatic movements within
Nordic national churches. This “organizational embrace” of the former
outsider and opponent may not only contribute to discussions about
Charismatization as transformation of other denominations, but also illu-
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

minate the refashioning and possible taming of the global Charismatic fire.

A in the Holy Spirit, 3, 8, 39, 41, 51,

Adventism, 38, 114 53, 54, 57, 72n10 (see also
Americanization Glossolalia)
critique of, 3, 4, 28, 177, 183n8 infant, 31, 37, 114
as process, 12, 26, 42, 45, 166, 201 “Baptist Union of Sweden, the” (Svenska
Anderson, Allan H., 2–5, 7, 8, 12–15, Baptistsamfundet), 192, 217
44, 54, 59, 72n10, 73n17, 83, Barratt, Thomas Ball, 8, 25, 26, 41,
84, 86, 113, 161, 168, 182n1 42, 49, 51–54, 56–62, 66, 69,
“Arch, the” (Arken), 209n7, 225, 226 71, 71n3, 73n18, 73n21, 115
Assemblies of God, 56, 72n4, 118 Bauman, Zygmunt, 113, 114
Augsburg Principle, 28 Bible, Books of, 74n33, 90, 155n6,
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

Authority 155n7
political, 68, 149 1 Timothy 3:1, 235n25
spiritual, 140 1 Corinthians 14: 24–25; 12; 14:
Azusa Street revival, 3, 7, 41, 182n1 24–25, 84, 86
2 Corinthians 11: 2, 155n7
Ephesians 4: 11–12, 90
B Genesis 22, 153
“Banda Mission, the” Isaiah 54: 5, 74n33
(Bandamisjonen), 56, 59, 61 John 4: 24, 155n6
Baptism, 3, 8, 31, 37–39, 41, 42, 51, Matthew 28: 18–20; 24: 14, 53, 54
53, 54, 57, 67, 72n10, 114, 115 Revelation 21: 9–27; 7: 3-8,
adult, 37, 38, 42 39, 155n7

1
Note: Page number followed by ‘n’ refers to notes.

Bible College, 85, 87, 89, 90 Coleman, Simon, 12, 83, 144, 148,
Bible school, 12, 66, 118–120, 122, 192, 221, 235n19
138, 140 Congregationalism, 9, 61, 63, 69,
Bloch-Hoell, Nils, 3, 8, 9, 15, 25, 41, 124, 152, 165, 170, 171, 221
51, 52, 54, 57, 71n2 Conventicle Act, 29
Bourdieu, Pierre, 16, 112, 113, Converts, 1, 8, 30, 37, 42, 43, 45, 54,
128, 131 65, 66, 104, 111, 118–120, 130,
Bride of Christ, 137, 144, 145, 148, 166, 193, 194, 198, 229, 235n20
149, 152, 153 Cox, Harvey, 3, 174, 178, 179, 223
Brofeldt, Pietari, 114 “Credo Church, the” (Credokirken),
Bundy, David, 7, 14, 17n2, 49, 51–53, 16, 81, 82, 84, 88–92, 96, 97,
55, 57, 59, 61, 62, 65, 66, 69, 71n3, 99, 101–104
72n9, 72n14, 73n18, 74n28 Csordas, Thomas, 10, 177, 188, 189,
209n1

C
Calvary Chapel, 12, 189, 193–198, D
206, 208, 209n3, 209n4 “Day, the” (Dagen)
Castrén, Hanna, 114 Norway, 88
Catholic Church, the, 14, 30, 163, Sweden, 9, 214, 233n3
235n24 Democracy, 28, 143
“Channel 10” (Kanal 10) Demons, 117
Norway, 226 See also Evil spirits
Sweden, 224–227 Devil, the, 167
Charisma Dissension Act, 31, 33
as emic concept, 6, 83
Weberian, 4, 16, 82, 83, 85, 89, 93,
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

94, 100, 103, 104, 115, 120, E

124, 149 Edvardsen, Aril, 68, 74n30
Charismatic gifts, 128, 181 Ekman, Ulf, 12, 84, 144, 148,
Charismatic Movement, the, 10 215, 221
in the Catholic Church, 163 “Embers from the Altar”
in Protestant churches, 10 (Glöd från altaret), 216
(see also Oasis Movement, the) Engstrøm, Dagmar, 54, 56–59, 61,
China Inland Mission (CIM), 52, 55 68, 69, 72n11, 72n13, 73n15
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Eschatology, 43, 217
Saints, 34 Evangelicalism, 35
See also Mormons Evangelical-Lutheran Church of
CIM, see China Inland Mission Finland, 6, 7, 109, 115
“City Mail, the” (Byposten), 41, 71n3 Norway, 2, 6, 11, 27, 39, 44, 52, 57
Claesson, Börje, 224–227, 229–233 Sweden, 2, 6, 11, 215

Evangelization, 17n1, 58, 67, 73n16, Gifts of the Spirit, 3

120, 122, 162, 167, 179, 181, Glossolalia, 39, 54, 84, 87, 101,
198, 213, 218, 220, 233n1, 102, 198
235n20 prohibition, 102, 174
“Evidence of Faith World See also Speaking in tongues
Evangelization” (Troens Bevis “Good News, the” (Det gode
Verdens Evangelisering), 67–68 budskap), 55
Evil spirits, 167 “Gospel Herald, the”
See also Demons (Evangelii härold), 217
Grace, 34, 38, 84, 93–95, 98–101
Gulbrandsen, Chrissie, 56, 65
F Gulbrandsen, Parley, 51, 56, 61, 65
Faith healing, 161–181
Faith Movement, the, 1, 2, 6, 11, 12,
16, 72n4, 87, 94, 144, 154, 192, H
194, 196, 198, 199, 226, 241 Habitus, 110–114, 119, 120, 123,
Filadelfia Congregation in 125–133
Knutby, 137–155 Hagin, Kenneth E., 12, 215
Oslo, 8, 37, 41, 62, 63 Hauge
Stockholm, 194, 205, 217, 218, Hans Nielsen, 28, 52, 53
234n9 movement, the, 30, 52
“Flaming Fire” (Flammende Ild), 87 Healing Rooms, 16, 162, 167–169,
Flåten, Enevald, 85–89 176, 179, 182n2
Fossmo, Helge, 137, 138, 140, 141, See also Prayer Clinic
144, 146–149, 151–154, 155n5, Helsinki Saalem, 121
156n14 Hillsong Church, 2, 12, 189,
Free Friends (Frie venner), 52, 56, 193–198, 208, 209n3, 215
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

61, 62 Holiness Movement, the, 34, 52,

“Free Pentecostal Movement of 55, 164
Finland, the” (Suomen vapaa Holistic healing, 166, 167, 174, 175,
Helluntaiherätys), 10, 116 179, 191
“Friends” Hollenweger, Walter J., 3, 5, 113
of Hauge, 29–32 Hugs, 16, 187, 209n12
of Pentecost, 8, 51, 115

I
G Imsen, Arne, 10, 215
Gembäck, Peter, 141, 143, 145, “Inner Mission, the” (Indremisjonen),
155n9 30–32, 34, 35, 37–39, 42, 44,
Gender roles, 119, 145 45, 57
Generation conflicts, 124, 130, 214 Intercessory prayer, 1, 162, 170

International Broadcasting Radio Migration

Association (IBRA), 218, 219, to Nordic countries, 6–9, 11, 12,
234n13, 234n14, 235n15 14, 15
Intimization, 187, 241 to North America, 32, 189
See also Therapeutization Monopolies
Islam, 11, 87, 191 in media, 6, 88, 89, 118, 119, 137,
138, 141, 142, 149, 150, 152,
165, 168, 190, 216–221, 230,
J 231, 233, 234n11, 240
Jesus Movement, the, 9, 144, 188 in religion, 2, 11, 13, 15, 16, 27,
Johnson, Andrew G., 8, 214 28, 71, 111, 115, 130, 138,
149–152, 162, 163
Moravians, 52, 72n5
K Mormons, 34, 36, 39
Karisma Center, 193 Mukti Mission, the, 58, 59, 73n17

L N
Lake, John, 168 Neitz, Mary Jo, 4, 177, 180
“Lammers Movement, the” Neo-liberalism, 173, 180, 181
(Lammersbevegelsen), 31 New Age, 177–180, 191, 200
New Life Church, 187, 188, 193–195,
197, 204–206, 208, 209n3
M New Religious Movements, 11, 16,
Macedo, Edir, 223, 224, 233 137, 156n13, 191
Mahmood, Saba, 112 New Thought, 178
Maranata Movement, the, 10, Nordquelle, Erik Andersen, 52, 55, 61
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

144, 228 “Norway’s Free Evangelicl Heathen

Martin, David, 3, 7, 189 Mission” (Norges Frie Evangeliske
McGuire, Meredith, 10, 178 Hedningemisjon), 56, 60
Members “Norwegian Pentecostal
class, 33, 39, 43, 111, 112, Congregations’ Outer Mission,
114, 115, 119, 129, 131, the” (De norske pinsemenigheters
132, 194 ytremisjon), 63
education, 9, 43, 53, 54, 57, Nostalgia, 17, 93, 214, 215,
119, 120, 192, 224, 231, 229–233
235n16
gender, 169
socialized, 9, 111, 118–120, O
128–133, 207, 208 Oasis Movement, the, 10
Methodism, 26, 34, 36, 39, 114 Denmark, 10
Methodist Church, 36, 42, 52, Finland, 10
61, 73n17 Norway, 10

Sweden, 10, 215, 225, 226 Roberts, Oral, 10, 221, 222
See also Charismatic Movement, the Robertson, Pat, 222, 235n24
Örebro Mission (Örebromissionen), Rønhovde, Olav, 88–92
215, 220 Rymker, Fredrick Ludvig, 37
Östberg, Emma, 8

S
P “Sanctification Union, the”
Pentecostal Alliance of Independent (Helgelseförbundet), 139,
Churches, the (PAIC), 147, 155n3
156n12, 192, 193, 209n8, 233n5 Satan, 57
Pentecostal Church of Finland Second Coming of Christ, 43
(Suomen helluntaikirkko, SHK), Secularization, 9, 11, 44, 45, 124,
110, 121–129, 131–133, 164 126, 205
Pentecostal People (Helluntaikansa, Seventh-day Adventist Church, 169
HK), 110, 122–125, 127–129, Sexuality, 146
131–133 Sharing, 187–208, 209n13
“People of the Cross” (Ristin See also Testimony
Kansa), 122 Sinfulness, 30, 32
Petersen, Ole Peter, 33, 36 Small group meeting, 82, 196
Pethrus, Lewi, 8, 62, 66, 147, 214, Speaking in tongues, 1, 3, 25, 39,
217, 218, 234n12, 236n27 41, 101, 102, 114, 128, 130,
Pierce, Cal, 168 230, 241
Pietism, 28–30, 35, 114, 173 See also Glossolalia
Postmodernity, 113 Spirit manifestations, 39, 40, 57, 82,
Prayer, 1 83, 95, 98, 101, 103, 167
houses, 32 Spiritual Revolution, the, 179
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

requests, 162, 172, 173, 187, 200, Spiritual warfare, 146

201, 221, 232 “Star of Hope, the”
Prayer clinic, 162, 163, 167–172, (Toivon tähti), 114
174–176, 178, 179, 181 Subjectification, 37, 53, 54, 70,
Prophecy, 54, 84–90, 93, 94, 99, 100, 83, 84, 89, 96, 101, 104, 111,
102–104, 141, 153, 174, 241 112, 127, 128, 144, 149, 152,
Prophetic speech, 85, 86 216, 218
Prosperity Gospel, 180
Psychologization, 163, 165–167
See also Therapeutization T
“Tabernacle, the” (Tabernaklet), 41, 60
Telechurch, 213
R Televangelism, 213–233, 233n1
Ramabai, Pandita, 58, 59, 73n17 Testimony, 85, 88, 200, 201, 226–228
Reformation, the, 4, 7, 27, 28 See also Sharing
Ritualization, 203, 204, 208 Thelle, Agnes, 56–59, 61, 69, 72n14

Therapeutization, 11, 16, 189–191, 241 “Voice of the Bridegroom”

See also Psychologization (Brudgummens röst), 216, 217
Third Wave Charismatics, 161, 165, 167
Tollefsen, Gunnerius, 61, 63, 66,
73n23 W
“Traditional Pentecostal Churches” Waldau, Åsa, 137–146, 148–154, 155n1
(Perinteinen helluntaiseurakunta, Weber, Max, 26, 82, 83, 89, 93, 94,
PHS), 122, 124–126, 145 103, 110, 120, 149
TV Inter, 219, 220, 229 Welfare state, 9–11, 116
Word of Life (Livets ord), 12, 84, 88,
104n3, 138, 144, 148, 192, 215,
U 220, 221, 225, 226, 229, 235n19
Urbanization, 7, 32, 42, 188, 192, Words of Knowledge, 84, 98, 104, 174
195, 207 Worship music, 12, 17, 118, 132, 198,
207, 215
Wounds of the soul, 176
V
“Victory of the Cross”
Finland (Ristin Voitto), 116, X
118, 122 Xenolalia, 54
Norway (Korsets Seier), 54, 71n3,
72n9
Vineyard Movement, 6, 12, 189, 192, Y
209n9 Yli-Vainio, Niilo, 116–118
Copyright © 2018. Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved.

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PALGRAVE STUDIES IN NEW RELIGIONS AND ALTERNATIVE SPIRITUALITIES

EDITED BY JESSICA MOBERG

More information about this series at

Palgrave Studies in New Religions and Alternative Spiritualities

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017960949

Cover illustration: Karen Ilagan / Getty Images

Printed on acid-free paper

This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature

I commend this volume to you wholeheartedly. This volume on

the Assembleias de Deus in Brazil, was started by two Swedish migrants to

American Methodism also had great significance in the beginnings of

his first experience of Pentecostalism. Boddy never left the Church of

so-called “Third Wave,” there were other significant movements in North

neously, the new form of Pentecostalism exhibited a fierce independence

Within a century of their commencement, Pentecostal and Charismatic

University of Birmingham Allan H. Anderson

No book is created in a vacuum, and the present volume is the product of

Part 1 Historical Perspectives on the Early Pentecostal

2 Paving the Way for Pentecostalism: A Historical

3 The Norwegian Pentecostal Foreign Mission: A Survey

Part 2 Internal Dynamics 79

4 In the Wake of God’s Fire: Transforming Charisma

5 The Finnish Pentecostal Movement: An Analysis

6 Knutby Filadelfia: A Schismatic New Religious

Part 3 Novelties and Contemporary Innovation 159

7 Faith Healing Revisited: A Charismatic Christian

8 Sharing and Holy Hugs: The Birth and Development

9 Televangelism in Sweden—Now? Is Channel 10 in

10 Postscript: Embers from a Global Fire 239

Jessica Moberg and Jane Skjoldli

Jan-Åke Alvarsson is a professor of cultural anthropology at Uppsala

Teemu T. Mantsinen is a researcher and anthropologist of religion at the

Anne Stensvold is a professor of history of religion at the University of

Jessica Moberg and Jane Skjoldli

Somewhere in Finland shoppers at a local mall saturated by sale offers and

© The Author(s) 2018 1

mere century. Can we even claim to be speaking of the same tradition?

Definitions and Terminology

interdisciplinarity in Pentecostal studies. On the other, it conceals a lack of

Attempts have been made to complicate and deconstruct “Pentecostalism”

the “common origins” hypothesis, highlighting its Americentrism. Allan

“Pentecostal-Charismatic Christianity,” and to outline suggestions for

of Pentecostal studies. Secondly, it offers us a way of pinpointing certain

postwar period. The latter is characterized by emphasis on well-being here

developments. While this reflects awareness of religious movements’ inher-

and now, emotional healing, adoption and sacralization of popular music,

The Nordic Backdrop

formed. These movements were comparably loosely organized, avoided

Post-World War II Nordic Contexts

hippie Christians in California, which attracted many young Pentecostals.

Late Modern Developments

Pentecostal churches and congregations in the same direction. Word of

On the global stage, Charismatics dominate the Christian landscape,

number of Pentecostals and Neo-Charismatics is lower than 100,000 in

in a special issue of Approaching Religion (2015) dedicated to the Baltic

ing on some of the “smaller narratives” in countries that are usually

The Contributions to This Volume

twenty-first-century innovations. The historical chapters are based on two

Movement, from a new religious movements perspective.

Pentecostal churches in general, as a result of the adoption of contempo-

Bergunder, Michael. 2010. The Cultural Turn. In Studying Global Pentecostalism:

Iceland. New York: P. Lang.

Hovi, Tuija. 2010. Gender, Agency and Change in Neo-charismatic Christianity.

Marshall, Ruth A. 2009. Political Spiritualties: The Pentecostal Revolution in

———. 2013b. Pentekostal spiritualitet i Stockholms län: En kartläggning.

Historical Perspectives on the Early

Paving the Way for Pentecostalism:

The first European country that was introduced to Pentecostalism was

© The Author(s) 2018 25

As already mentioned, the first Pentecostal preacher in Norway was

enthusiastic preachers needed in order to make sense of the new message.

I approach the establishment of Pentecostalism in Norway as an example

The Monarch’s Religious Power: The Protestant

interference, religion in the Nordic countries was integrated in the state.

t­ horoughly stripped of decoration, much Catholic art remained unharmed,

realization of Protestantism, and a logical conclusion of its critique of Catholic

University of Birmingham Allan H. Anderson

Part 1 Historical Perspectives on the Early Pentecostal

2 Paving the Way for Pentecostalism: A Historical

3 The Norwegian Pentecostal Foreign Mission: A Survey

Part 2 Internal Dynamics 79

4 In the Wake of God’s Fire: Transforming Charisma

5 The Finnish Pentecostal Movement: An Analysis

6 Knutby Filadelfia: A Schismatic New Religious

Part 3 Novelties and Contemporary Innovation 159

7 Faith Healing Revisited: A Charismatic Christian

8 Sharing and Holy Hugs: The Birth and Development

9 Televangelism in Sweden—Now? Is Channel 10 in

10 Postscript: Embers from a Global Fire 239

t horoughly stripped of decoration, much Catholic art remained unharmed,

state church. Hauge was imprisoned for 10 years (1804–1814) in an i neffective

The religious landscape encountered by the migrants differed s ubstantially