The other Pentecostals (kinda long)

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jones80 wrote:
|     I know you are correct ,we also have those Trinity Pentecosals where
I
| live.  Im just saying you can call yourself anything you want but that
dont
| make it so. Many people claim to be Pentecostal but beleive in the
Trinity.
| Here where I live they baptize in the titles not the name.

Here's a question for you (the general viewing public):

Does belief in Pentecost (or "being Pentecostal") *necessitate* a belief in
the Oneness of God?

I ask this for a very good reason.  People seem to be confused about what
it means to be "Pentecostal".  There are two general camps (the "nutshell"
descriptions):

1) Those who have had the so-called "Pentecostal Experience".  This term is
defined by most Encyclopedias of Religion as having *experienced* the
phenomenon of speaking in tongues without reference to the actual doctrine
preached by Peter on that day.  This particular experience is happening
more and more in non-Apostolic, non-Oneness churches in recent history.  In
fact, one of the largest groups experiencing this for the first time is
within the Catholic church.  Those who claim this "experience" can be found
in isolated cases tracing back to the first century church.  These groups
do NOT claim to be Pentecostal, but trace the experience instead to
Corinthians.

2) Those who consider themselves part of the "Pentecostal Movement".  These
are the groups who stem from the "outpouring" of the Holy Ghost in the year
1901 in Topeka, Kansas.  Groups claiming heritage to this point in history
include (but are not limited to: AOG/UPC/PAW/ALJC/Holiness, Nazarenes, etc.
 The origin of this movement occured when, for the *first time* since the
1C Church, a group actually sought and prayed *for* the Holy Ghost
*expecting* the evidence of tongues.  This was a Trinitarian group of Bible
Students.  Over the course of this century, (even as early as 1906), there
began to be breaks in the general belief system of the movement.  
	Some chose to adhere to Oneness belief, believe tongues are the universal
initial sign of the baptism of the Holy Ghost, and Baptism in the name of
Jesus Christ--generally called "Apostolics" (UPC/ALJC/PAW).  Others chose
Trinitarian belief and reduced the phenomenon of speaking in tongues to one
of many signs, (the Holy Ghost, they believe, manifests itself in many
ways) baptizing in Jesus' name only because of the command in Acts, but not
recognizing it as a statement of Oneness.  Still others chose Trinitarian
belief, believe speaking in tongues is one sign of many, and the Holy Ghost
can manifest itself in other ways besides tongues, and baptize in the
titles of the Trinity.  Still others believe in tongues, but believe they
must be understood by at least one person in audience in order to be
legitimate.  All of these groups lay claim to the name "Pentecostal"
because of the belief in the events of Pentecost as described in Acts.

What most Apostolics fail to realize is this:  belief in the events of the
day of Pentecost does NOT necessitate a belief in the Oneness of God, even
if one embraces baptism in Jesus' name.  Nowhere in the definition
(dictionary or history) of the word "Pentecostal" is there a reference to
belief in Oneness.  

The question NO ONE (but God) can answer is this:  If a group preaches
obedience to Acts 2:38, yet does not believe in the Oneness of God, are
they "saved"?

Since it isn't our call, I don't think any of us have the right to
speculate.


Anneliese