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Pentecostals Have Lunch with Pope Francis

A group of evangelical leaders recently had lunch with Pope Francis including Pentecostals and Charismatics Brian Stiller, James Robison, Kenneth Copeland, and John Arnott.

Brian Stiller, a prominent Canadian leader was raised in the home of a Pentecostal preacher in the Prairies. He completed a graduate degree at Wycliffe College, University of Toronto and wrote his thesis about Canadian Pentecostalism. Later he served as President of the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada and worked hard to include Pentecostals in the evangelical fold. Stiller recently retired as President of Tyndale University College in Toronto and now serves as Global Ambassador for the World Evangelical Alliance.

Stiller reported on the luncheon and included observations about the Pope's views on Christian unity, relationship with Pentecostals, and challenges facing the Roman Catholic Church including issues of sexual abuse, finances, and leadership.

Stiller's report can be found here.

Pope Francis continues to fascinate evangelical Protestants and especially Pentecostals with his openness for dialogue. The lunch is another of his ecumenical gatherings meant to highlight global Christian unity. At this point there does not appear to be anything institutionally or structurally that points to any long term or ongoing discussion, which would be of interest sociologically. Having said that, the initial stages of discussion and openness do point to a cultural shift and that requires some reflection and analysis about the future of world Christianity.

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