Evaluation of the Charismatic Movement and Pentecostalism Phenomenon By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. Before entering on the formal presentation, I think it will be useful to first clarity some possible sources of misunderstanding. The immediate focus of this study is Pentecostalism. It is not directly concerned with the persons who call themselves Pentecostals or, as some prefer, Charismatic. Moreover, the purpose here is to make an evaluation. It is not to impart information about Pentecostalism, since such information is fairly presumed, with all the literature by and about the movement and, from many people, either personal experience or direct observation of the movement in action. Finally, though I seldom do this when speaking, in this case it may be useful to give a run-down of “references” about the speaker’s own qualifications in talking on the subject. My professional work is teaching Comparative Religion. A phenomenon like Pentecostalism, I know has
In an article called "Pelosi Questions President Trump's Fitness Then Lapses Into Insanity," journalist Onan Coca wrote: Nancy Pelosi "repeatedly calls President Trump, President Bush. She routinely gets simple facts about the nation and world, wrong... butchering the English language and confusing... with her rambling nonsense." "The same thing has happens with other anti-Trumpers, like Maxine Waters, Hillary Clinton and John McCain. The one common threat among all of them is their extreme old age. Science teaches us that as we age our abilities (both mental and physical) decline." (Freedom Outpost, June 11, 2017) 80 year old anti-Trumper Pope Francis, who in 2016 called Trump "not Christian," may fall into this select group. Philosopher Edward Feser wrote: Francis made "the statement that the death penalty is 'incomparably worse than' the crime for which an offender might be executed... Does any sane person r