Brinton Prophetic Ministry

7/29/2019 Brinton Prophetic Ministry

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PENDLE HILL PAM PHLET 54

Prophet ic M inistry

How ard H. Brinton

PEND LE HILL PUBLICATIONS

WALLINGFORD, PENNSYLVANIA


2/25

HOWARD H. BRINTON

Prophet ic M inistry2

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Howard Brin ton h as been a professor or

lecturer at Guilford, Earlham, Mills , Haverford, and Bryn

Mawr Colleges, and at Woodbrooke, one of the Selly Oak

Colleges in Birmingha m in En glan d. He h as also worked in

Eu rope for th e Am erican Frien ds Service Com m ittee an d in

J ap an . S in ce 1936 h e an d h is wife h ave been Direc tors of

Pen d le Hill.

Wh ile w aiting u pon the Lord in s ilence a s w e

often d id for m an y hou rs together . . . w e received

often the pouring d ow n of the S pirit upon u s an d

ou rhea rts w ere m ad e glad an d our tongues loos ed

and our mouths opened . . . and the glory of the

Father w as revealed .

Edward Burrou gh

Pu blish ed 1 95 0 by Pen dle Hill

Repu blish ed electron ically 20 05 by Pen dle Hill

h t tp: / / www.pendlehill.org/ pend le_h ill_pam ph le ts .htm

em a il: pu b lica tions @pen dleh ill.org


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


Foreword

Th e term prop hetic in dicates in a s in gle word th e ba sic

th eory of Qu ak er minis try. He who app ears in t h e min is tr y

in a Qu ak er m eetin g is , a t leas t th eoret ical ly a prop het, in

the sense tha t he or she i s an ins t rument th rough which

God sp eak s to th e congregat ion . Th e divin e call was m ore

del iberately waited for and consciously fel t in the older

Qu ak erism th an is th e cas e toda y. Bu t even today a proph etic

minis t ry i s s t i l l the goal , however di f ferent ly the word

prop hetic m ay be in terpr eted. A teach in g m in istr y cons istin g

of wha t Robert Ba rclay calls m at erial con n ed a n d gath ered

m ay ha ve its occas iona l place in a Qu ak er m eetin g, thou gh

it is gener ally m ore ap pr opriately exercised a t oth er t im es.

The most sat isfactory minis try in the Quaker meeting of

toda y a rises ou t of a fla sh of in sigh t, felt in th e silen ce an d

delivered with br evity an d a deep s en se of concern . Min ist ers

wh o can speak a t length an d exh ibit throu gh ou t th e genu in e

sp irit of proph ecy ar e rar e in an y gen erat ion .

Th is pa m ph let presen ts th e text of th e Du dleian Lectur e

which wa s d elivered a t Ha rvard Univers ity on Apr il 26 , 19 49 .

At th e sam e tim e tha t it is iss u ed to grad u ates of th e Harvar d

Divinity School in the Divinity School Bulletin it is also

published, with the permission of Harvard Universi ty, a t

Pen d le Hill.

Th e Dud le ian Lectu resh ip was es tabl ish ed by a t ru s t

in 174 5. Th e foun da tion requ ires one lectu re a year on th ree

subjects in rota t ion, (1) Natura l Rel igion, (2) Revealed

Religion a n d (3 ) Th e Va lid ity of Non -Ep is copa l Ordin a tion.

Th e presen t a u th or was in vited to deal with th e th ird su bjectfrom the point of view of the Society of Friends. It was

suggested to him that he treat the general theory of the

Quaker mini s t ry and then go on to t e l l how i t ac tua l ly

operates in p ra ct ice. Th is h e ha s a t tem pted to do.


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


I t may not be out of place at this t ime to recal l to

contemporary Fr iends the h igh asp i ra t ions of the pas t ,

as pirat ions often overlooked today, bu t n ever m ore needed

th an n ow. We ar e n ot cal led to imitate ou r forefat h ers . We

ar e called to seek with con secrat ion, h u m ility an d p at ience

th e sam e Sou rce of in spi ra t ion th a t was m an ifes t in th em.

Th e fire on th e altar is n ow low bu t s om e win d of th e Spirit

m ay fan it to a n ew flam e. Th en m en can sa y with J erem iah ,

th e greates t of th e an cient proph ets : Is n ot m y word like a

f i re , sa i th the Lord. and l ike a hammer tha t breaketh the

rock in p ieces.

H. H. B.


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


Th e Law sh al l n ot perish from th e priest , n or cou n sel

from th e wise, n or th e word from th e proph et . (J er . 18:18)

Th is s ayin g from t h e book of J eremiah m igh t be u sed to

des igna te the three main types of mini s t ry which have

appeared, not only in ancient Is rae l but a lso, in widely

var yin g form s, in th e Chris t ian Chu rch . Th ere is a m in is tr y

of r itu al , a m in is tr y of teach in g an d a m in is tr y wh ich waits

u n til it becomes a vocal expres sion of th e Divin e Word s poken

im m edia te ly in th e hear t . Oth er types could be ad ded su ch

as the ministry of healing, of art , of l i terature, of socialservice, bu t we are s pea king h ere only of wha t ta kes place

in con gregat ion al wors h ip.

Th e minis try of priest , seer , an d p roph et occu r in som e

degree in every Ch ris t ian grou p bu t in genera l, an d a llowin g

for except ions and l imi ta t ions , they a re charac te r i s t i c ,

res pect ively, of th e th ree m a in types of Ch ristian ity: Ca th olic,

P ro t e s t an t and Quake r ; t he a l t a r c en t e red , t he s e rmoncentered a n d, at leas t in in ten tion, th e proph etic. Th at wh ich

is m ost prom in ent in Cath olicism is th e priest ly sacram enta l

minis t ry , in Protes tant ism the minis t ry which expounds

Gods p lan of sa lvat ion a s d elin eat ed in th e sa cred Book,

an d in Qu ak er ism th e proph et ic min is t ry ar is in g spon tan -

eou sly an d u n pred ictab ly u n der a s en se of Divin e u rgen cy,

whi l e t he wors h ipe r wa i t s s i l en t l y upon God . I t mus t ,

h owever , be emph as ized th a t n o group is with out some who

exercise, in som e form , a p riest ly fu n ct ion, s ome a teach in g

fu n ction, an d s ome a p roph etic fu n ct ion. Atten t ion is here

directed to differen tiation s wh ich a re ch a ra cteristic. It m a y

seem extravagan t to clas sify so sm all a grou p a s th e Qu ak ers

as one of the three divis ions of Chris tendom, but in this

ana lys i s we a re conce rned no t w i th numbers bu t w i th

prevailin g ch ar acteristics in faith an d p ra ctice. Th e proph etic

m in istr y, to which t h e Society of Frien ds as pires, n ot always

or even gen era lly with su ccess , is n ot va lida ted b y a ri te of

priest ly con secrat ion , bu t s olely by the in ward requ irem ent ,

th e m igh ty ordina t ion of th e pierced h an ds .


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


Dem onstrat ion, Lecture, Laborat ory

As a form er teach er of ph ysics I m ay be p erm it ted tocom pa re th e th ree types of m in istr y to th ree ways of teach in g

sc ience , the l ec ture demons t ra t ion method, the l ec ture

method and the l abora tory method. The l ec ture demon-

s t r a t i on me thod in which t he l e c tu re i s i l l u s t r a t ed by

expe r imen t s co r re s ponds t o t hos e r i t ua l s i n wh ich t he

con gregat ion observes, h ears an d sp ir itu al ly part icipa tes in

acts performed by the pr ies t ; the lec ture method can becompared to the preaching of the pas tor expounding the

Word of God revea led in S criptu re; an d, fin ally, th e labora tory

m ethod is n ot u n like th e Qu ak er m eet in g in which direct

exper ience is s ought an d where words are u sed from t ime

to tim e as th ey ar ise from , or lead to, direct experience. In

scien tific in str u ction th e thr ee m eth ods a re u sed a t differen t

t im es an d u su al ly in different p laces . Th e sam e holds t r u ein religion . A grou p of pers on s in E n glan d wh o were plan n in g

a garden vi l lage decided to include only three houses of

wors h ip, Cath olic , Non-Conformist a n d Qu ak er. Th is th ey

bel ieved would sa t i s fy the range of re l igious needs . To

com bine th e th ree in one s ervice wou ld n ot al low an y on e of

th e th ree to reach fu ll developm en t. Th e worsh iper a tten din g

somet im es one an d som et im es an oth er cou ld, they th ought ,ach ieve a well-rou n ded religiou s experien ce.

To sa y tha t pr oph etic m in is tr y is ch ar acteris t ic of th e

Society of Frien ds is to sp eak of th e goal, n ot n ecess ar ily of

th e ach ievemen t . Th e Qu ak er m eet in g is des ign ed to m ak e

possible and encourage this type of minis try. I t was not

originally called a meeting for worship but a meeting to

wait u pon th e Lord. Th e worsh iper wa its s ilen tly in a s ta teof sensi t ive awareness and expectancy. He is not ent irely

pa ss ive, for, th ou gh th e gift of th e Spirit comes u n pr edicta bly

as an undeserved ac t of divine favor , man must , through

pr a yer a n d disciplin e, ren der h im self fit for i ts r eception . As


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


in c lim bin g a m oun ta in , energy mu st b e expen ded to reach

th e top, bu t th e view from t h e su m m it is a pu re gift requ irin g

n o effort t o receive. Ou t of th e dep th s of th e wors h ip ers

soul arise thoughts, feelings, intuitions of widely varying

va lu e. If th e will h a s b een pr operly directed, som e of th ese

in sigh ts from beyon d th e ma rgin of self-con sciou sn ess m ay

be r ecogn ized a s of divin e origin . Th ere is n o ab solu te tes t ,

but i f revelat ions come with power and create a uni ty not

only with others with in th e con gregat ion b u t also with th e

l iving Chris t , the worshiper may t ruly fee l tha t he has

received s t ren gth an d guidan ce from th e su prem e source .

Fin al ly som e word m ay arise in h is m in d to which is a dd ed

peculiar u rgency an d a cha racter wh ich m ark s it as in tend ed,

not for himself alone, but for the worshiping group. The

h ear t beats fas ter , th e prophet ic word m u st b e spoken. If

th e worshiper refu ses th e ca ll, he is b u rden ed with a s ens e

of gu ilt ; if h e obeys, Gods p eace en comp a ss es h is s ou l.

Primit ive Christian ity Revived

Quake r i s m, l i ke mos t o the r Chr i s t i an movement s ,

in itially cla im ed to b e a reviva l of pr im itive Ch rist ia n ity. In

the midd le o f t he 17 th Cen tu ry t he B ib l e had become

th orou gh ly fam iliar th rough out En glan d. Com pa rison s were

cons tan t ly drawn be tween the contemporary church and

the church described in the New Testament . The varying

degrees of Pu rita n ism repres en ted th e exten t to wh ich ea ch

grou p d esired to go in pu rifyin g th e ch u rch of all th at h a d

been a dd ed s in ce ap ostolic t im es. Th e sta ges of pu rificat ion

repr esen t in creas in g degrees of ra dicalism in religiou s term s.

Th ey exten d from righ t t o left , p roceedin g from Cat h olic, to

Angl ican , to Presbyte r ian , to Independent (or Congre-

gat iona list), to Bap tist an d fin ally to Qu ak er. Th is su btr active

process m igh t seem to im ply th a t Qu ak er ism was reached

by a n egat ive road. Bu t in real ity someth in g n ew an d very


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


im portan t was a dded. Th is n ew elemen t was th e proph et ic

m in is try. Th e trait in Qu ak ers which m ost sh ocked th e more

con servative Pu ritan s was th eir claim to spea k with th e sam e

kin d of in spi ra t ion with wh ich proph ets a n d ap os t les s poke

in Bible t im es. After des cribing an ar gu m en t on th is s u bject

with J esu its , George Fox sa ys: An d m an y other d isp u tes

w e h a d w i t h s u c h l i k e a n d w i t h a l l o t h e r s e c t s a s

Presbyterians, Independents , Seekers , Baptis ts , Episcopal

m en , Socin ian s, Brown ists , Lu th eran s, Calvin is ts , Arian s,

Fifth Mona rch y m en , Fam ilist s, Mu ggletonian s, Ran ters . Bu t

none of them would confess to the same power and spir i t

that the Apost les had and were in. (Journal , Cambridge

Ed ition . Vol. II. p. 11 , 12 .) It was on th is p oin t th at Qu a ker-

ism pu t forth its cla im to b e Prim itive Ch ristian ity Revived,

to u s e th e title of on e of Willia m Pen n s ess a ys. Prim itive

Chr is t ian ity h ad its p roph ets a n d a post les . According to th e

Society of Frien ds n o tru e reviva l of it cou ld b e with ou t th em .

These Quakers did not claim to be as good as or as

great in s t ru m ents of th e Spir it as were Isa iah or Pau l, bu t

th ere was, th ey in sisted, n o differen ce in kind . God still sp oke

to ma n directly. He needed n o in term ediary except His Word,

th e livin g Ch rist with in , th e Light wh ich ligh teth every m a n

th at com eth in to the world. Th e Pu ritan s a dm it ted th e Holy

Spir it a s an a id to u nd ers tand in g the Scr ip tu res , bu t th e

Qu a ker concep t a llowed for th e p oss ibility of a revelat ion of

n ew tru th in depend ent of Scriptu re, th ough n ot in con sis ten t

with it . Th is a pp eared t o the Pu rita n s to open th e gat e for

an archy an d con fu s ion .

Qu ak er proph et ic m in is t ry arose pa r t ly in respons e to

an im m edia te dem an d. Am ong the m an y religious group s

which ca m e in to exis t en ce in Crom wells En glan d wh en

religiou s freedom firs t exist ed, were th e Seeker s who, from

stu dy of th e New Testa m en t , ha d a rr ived at th e con clu sion

th at a chu rch was im poss ible with out proph ets . Th ey gave

u p a ll form a l religiou s ser vices a n d waited, often in silen ce,


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for the prophet to appear. There are several examples of

whole con gregat ion s t ogeth er with th eir m in ist er join in g th e

Seeker m ovement . When the Qu aker prophe t app eared a n d

spoke to them they accepted the man or woman as t ru ly

ordained of God, for Qu ak er prea ching was accompa n ied by

m an ifes ta t ions of th e Spir it su ch as h ad been descr ibed in

the New Tes t amen t . The conve r s ion o f a l a rge Seeke r

con gregat ion in 16 52 lent th e firs t great imp etu s to th e early

Quaker movement, f ive years after George Fox began to

preach .

Though the Quakers claimed to have received their

enl ightenment direct ly from within there is no doubt that

th ey were powerfu lly in flu en ced b y th e Bible. Th e pr oph ets

of Israel were their principal models. Some early Friends

even pron oun ced doom s th rough s ign s an d symbols as did

J eremiah an d Isa iah . A few at t emp ted to perform m ira cles .

They did not say I proclaim to you. Their message was

Th u s s a it h t h e Lo r d . P a u ls a d v ic e t o d e s p i s e n o t

pr oph esyin gs was often on th eir l ips . His list of gifts in th e

firs t epis t le to the Corinthians (12:28) is arranged in an

o r d e r o f i m p o r t a n c e t o w h i c h Q u a k e r s a g r e e d first

apos t les , second proph ets , th ird teach ers , then workers of

mirac les , then healers , he lpers , adminis t ra tors , speakers

in variou s kin ds of tongu es.1 Th e as cen den cy of th e proph et,

or th e apos t le wh o was h im self a m iss iona ry proph et , was

c lea r . Earnes t ly des i re the sp i r i tua l g i f t s , sa id Paul ,

esp ecially th a t you m ay p roph esy. (I Cor. 14 :1)

Pau l also declar ed th at all gifts a re in sp ired b y the sa m e

Spirit . (I Cor. 12:11 ) Th ere was in ear ly Qu a ker ism a k in d of

teach in g m in is tr y, bu t it was n ot exercised in th e meetin g

for worship. So called public Friends, men and women

wh ose in s t ru ct iona l capa city ena bled th em to expou n d th e

fai th to m u lt itu des, often sou gh t to convin ce their h earers

by reason in g an d b y Bibl ical exam ples . Bu t convin cemen t

was not conversion. The convinced, having consented in


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


th e ir m in ds to the fa ith which h ad been expoun ded, would

thereaf ter a t tend a meet ing for worship. Exposed to the

Divin e Light in st illn ess som etim es b roken by th e voice of

prophecy, the i r l ives would gradual ly be changed f rom

within.

Early Quakerism

The Society of Friends has not always held the same

view of the nature of prophecy and of the prophetic call . I

sh a ll divide its h ist ory in to fou r p eriods in order t o in dicate

th e m ajor ch an ges. Th e firs t a ge las ted rou gh ly from 16 50

to 1700. This period was characterized by a fiery zeal to

sp read th e mes sa ge. Th ere was wait in g for in sp ira t ion b u t

there was also a real izat ion of frequent and sometimes of

a lmos t con t inuous i ns p i r a t i on . P reache r s o f t he L igh tt r a v e r s e d E u r o p e a n d A m e r i c a i n t h e f a c e o f s e v e r e

persecution. They left behind them cell-l ike groups which

met together to wait upon the Lord and to experience the

Spirit , welding them together into an organic whole, the

body of Ch ris t an im ated by His Presence. Ou t of th e s i lence

o f t h e m e e t i n g a r o s e t h e i n s p i r e d v o i c e o f p r o p h e c y ,

somet imes ecs ta t i c , occas iona l ly incoherent , f requent lyorderly an d logical, cau sing th e worsh ipers to qu ak e in th e

dread an d a wfu l presen ce of th e Lord. Edward Bu rrou gh ,

one of the greatest of the early preachers, wrote, While

wait in g up on th e Lord in s i len ce as we often did for m an y

h ou rs togeth er . . . we received often th e pou rin g down of

the Spir it u pon u s an d our h ear t s were ma de glad a n d our

tongues loosed a n d ou r m outh s opened . . . an d th e glory of

th e Fat h er was revealed. (In t r odu ct ion to Foxs Great

My s tery )

Th e secon d a ge las ted ap proxim ately from 1 70 0 to 180 0.

There was no change in theory regard ing the na ture of


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inspi ra t ion and minis t ry , but there was more wai t ing in

silen ce for th e m ovin g of th e Spirit . Real pr oph ets , th ou gh

less n u m erou s , appear ed in m an y m eet in gs . Often, u n der a

deep sense of guidance, these minis ters left their homes,

th e ir wives or h u sb an ds , ch ildren , farm s or sh ops to t ravel

for years to u pbu ild th e chu rch. Th e Qu ak er movemen t s t i ll

grew in n u m bers bu t m ore s lowly th an at firs t . Th is a ge was

cha racter ized by a ph enomen on which a ppeared in an cient

Is rae l and a lso in Chris t iani ty , an inevi table sequence ,perhaps, in the history of religion. Gradually the priestly

type of m in d took preceden ce over th e pr oph etic. Th e creator

gave wa y to th e con ser va tor, th e pion eer to him wh o devises

techniques and discipl ines for holding ground which has

been gained. This was by no means al l loss . Man cannot

always m ainta in th e h eat of creat ive pa ss ion. Th e priest ly

type performs an essential funct ion. I t is the priest who

tran sforms th e oracles of th e prophets in to a cu ltu ral pattern ,

a way of life th at ca n be h an ded on by on e gen erat ion to th e

n ext . Beha vior com es to be bas ed on a ccepted n orms ra th er

t h a n o n t h e u n p r e d i c t a b l e , d i s t u r b i n g , a n d s o m e t i m e s

revolu tiona ry u ttera n ces of proph ets. Ligh tn in g from h eaven

is r eplaced by th e h om elike glow of th e alta r fire. Th e Sp irit

no longer drives i ts votaries to convert the world. Settled

piety sheds i ts radiance upon the normal rout ines of l i fe .

But th e pr ies t becomes da n gerou s when h e su ppresses the

voice of prophecy.

Rivalry between the priest-l ike type of mentality and

th e proph etic type as su m ed a different form in Qu ak erism

from th at which it a ssu m ed in ear ly Ch ris t ian ity. Becau seit was carefu lly cu ltivat ed t h rou gh a u n iqu e type of religiou s

prac t i ce and a un ique t ype o f church gove rnment , t he

prophe t i c t ype l a s t ed l onge r i n Quake r i s m than i n t he

primit ive Chu rch .


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


Priest and Prophet

Early Chris t ian docum ents in dica te th e wan in g powerof th e proph et an d th e growin g ascen da n cy of th e priest . In

th e Did ach or Teachings of the Tw elve Apos tles , an d in Th e

Sh epherd of Herm as , both da t in g from th e early h alf of th e

second century , the t rue prophe t i s h ighly honored but

careful ly dis t inguished from the false prophet . The true

prophet is meek, peaceable and humble and contents

himself with fewer wants than other men. When a manwish es th e Spir it to sp eak i t does n ot speak bu t only wh en

God wish es it to sp eak. Th e false proph et on th e other h an d

exalts himself, takes the first seat, is talkative, lives

in lu xu ry an d ta kes reward for h is proph ecy. In th eEp is tles

of Igna tius , proba bly writ ten a bou t th e sam e t im e, th e priest

is p laced in th e ascen da n cy for two reason s, th e necess ity

o f m a i n t a i n i n g s o u n d d o c t r i n e a n d t h e i m p o r t a n c e o f ad m in is tering sacra m ent s . Ye are su bject to th e bish op as

to Jesus Chris t , wri tes Ignat ius , perhaps not more than

sixty year s a fter Pau l h ad written th e spirits of th e proph ets

are su bject to the proph ets .

A vis ible head in ful l charge of the second century

church was needed to control prophets whose rhapsodic

u tteran ces were un predictable an d som etim es u psettin g. Th e

Monta n is t m ovem ent , a ren ewal of proph ecy in th e secon d

h a l f o f t h e s e c o n d c e n t u r y , w a s h a r s h l y s u p p r e s s e d .

Prophetic minis try as an accepted tendency and a l iving

power in th e Chris t ian Chu rch h ad las ted ha rdly m ore th an

a hundred years . By the end of the second century the

proph etic office as su ch h ad ceased to exis t . Old p roph ecies

took precedence over new prophecies . One of the chief

resp ons ibilit ies of ch u rch m en was to in terpret wh at t h e old

prophec i e s mean t , t he s e u t t e r ances be ing by t h i s t ime

ensh r in ed in wh a t h ad become a sa c red book.

The two causes of the decl ine of prophecy in early

Chr istian ity, sa cram en ta lism an d a fixed doctrin e expr ess ed


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in a creed, were both absent in Quaker ism. The Quakers

disp ens ed with vis ible sacra m ents an d s o removed th e ma in

cause of the growth of the priestly function. They held to

the pr imacy of inspi red ut terance over Scr ipture and so

rem oved th e ma in cau se of th e growth of au th oritar ian ism

in the church. But the Society of Friends never ceased to

ins is t tha t inspi ra t ion, though independent of Scr ipture ,

m u st b e con s is ten t with it , ha vin g it s s ource in th e sam e

Spirit th rou gh which th e Scriptu re was written . Th is p rovided

a br oader ba sis of u n ity th an a written creed. An other reas on

for the pers is tence of Quaker prophecy was the form of

Qu aker ch u rch governm ent wh ich prevented a n y in dividu al

or pa rty from exercis ing con trol. Decis ion s ar e m ad e in th e

Society of Frien ds by th e m eetin g as a whole on t h e ba sis of

u n an im ity. Sin ce th ere is bu t one Ligh t of Tru th th e nea rer

the mee t ing approaches t h i s L igh t t h rough p raye r and

wors h ip th e more com plete will be th e u n ity an d th e more

n early can th e m em bers h ip com e to a d ecision . Th eoretically

the ru l e o f t he Sp i r i t i n t he congrega t ion wou ld make

u n n ecess ar y an y form of chu rch govern m en t. A few Qu ak ers

act u ally took th is p osition . Wh en a form of govern m en t was

set up which ranked group inspi ra t ion above individual

in sp ira tion th ey with dr ew from th e Society of Frien ds . Bu t

som e form of con trol was ines capa ble for th e sa m e reas on

th at control was n ecess ar y in early Chr is t ian ity. Th ere were

eccent r i c and i l l -ba lanced prophe t s who c la imed to be

genu in e. Th ese were disa ss ociated or b rought u n der restra in t

even before th ere wa s a n y defin ite m em bers h ip in th e Society

of Frien ds .

Th e growth of th e Qu a ker disciplin e does n ot explicit ly

concern us here . I t developed throughout the e ighteenth

centu ry an d h ad to do lar gely with m oral beh avior, bu t it is

im portan t to poin t ou t th at th e Qu ak ers took s eriou sly Pau ls

injunct ion to make the prophets subjec t to the prophets .

Fr iend s who were m ore accu s tomed th an others to speak in


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


meeting were cal led minis ters . These minis ters often met

together for mu tu al en cou ragemen t an d cr it ic ism . In 166 8

there was constituted in London a Yearly Meeting of all

m in is ters . Permission to at tend su ch m eetin gs, firs t gran ted

b y t h e m e e t i n g o f m i n i s t e r s i t s e l f a n d l a t e r b y t h e

con gregat ion from wh ich th e minis ter cam e was th e Qu ak er

form of recognition. A minister so approved could travel in

h is m in is tr y with an ap propr iate let ter of in trodu ction a n d,

if need be, with the help of financial support. Meetings of

m in is ters frequ ent ly iss u ed writ ten ad vices , fra n k cou n sel

about consistency of l ife with preaching, but with l i t t le or

n o s tress on d octr in e. Of th e twenty Cau tions an d Cou n sels

to Ministers issued by the Yearly Meeting of Ministers in

170 2, ha lf a re con cern ed with th e man n er an d cha racter of

sp eak in g a n d h a lf with th e priva te life of th e m in ist er. Non e

are d oct r in a l tes ts . In s tead, th e m in is ter is warn ed a gains t

laying s tress on the authori ty of his message which was

expected to cont a in its own eviden ce of a u th ority.

Before long, however, this higher school of the Holy

Spirit suffered an intrusion. The earliest reference to this

circu m sta n ce in Am erican records occu rs in th e followin g

minutes of Phi ladelphia Year ly Meet ing of 1714. This

m eetin g a grees th at . . . each Mon th ly Meetin g . . . ch oose two

or m ore Frien ds ou t of each Month ly Meetin g (where m eetin gs

of m in ist ers a re or sh a ll be h eld) to sit with th e m in ist ers in

th eir m eet in gs , tak in g care th a t th e Fr iend s ch osen for tha t

service be pru den t , solid Frien ds . Su ch Friend s a pp oin ted

to ad vise th e m in is ters cam e to be called elders . Th e h is tory

of the Socie ty of Fr iends in the 18th century i s la rgely

ch a ra cterized b y th e growin g in flu en ce of th ese elders who

developed a pr ies t ly type of mind as did the e lders , or

presbyters , in the ear ly Chris t ian Church. These Quaker

elders were priestly, not in the sense of being qualified to

adm in is ter sacram ents , bu t in a b roader sense . Th ey tended

to cul t ivate a defini te , c learly defined, cul tural pat tern.


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


Toward th e en d of th e centu ry a Qu ak er was dis t in gu ish ab le

by the way h e talked, dres sed a n d beh aved. Th is u n iform ity

w a s b r o u g h t a b o u t b y e l d e r s w h o m a g n i f i e d o u t w a r d

ap pear an ces as eviden ces of in ward grace. At th e sa m e t im e

every effort was made to encourage the spirit of prophecy.

Eldersh ip wa s itself looked u pon a s a divin e gift . Th ere is n o

dou bt th a t th e e lders of th e 18th cen tu ry were frequen t ly

m en a n d wom en of acu te spiritu al discern m ent wh ose advice

was of ben efit to th ose who sp oke in m eetin g a n d es pecially

to the you n g wh o somet im es lacked coura ge to break th e

solemn silence. Begin with, keep with, and quit with the

Life was t h e su bs ta n ce of th eir cou n sel.

Bu t on th e wh ole ou r records sh ow th at m ore repression

was exer ted by the e lders than encouragement . Entrance

into the minis try became a more diff icul t and exceptional

u n derta king tha n it h ad been b efore. Religiou s jou rn als or

au tob iograph ie s o f hundreds o f 18 th and 19 th cen tu ry

m in is ters ar e extan t . In n early every cas e th e in n er call to

the min i s t ry was r e s i s t ed by t he one who was ca l l ed ,

somet imes for many years . This resul ted in acute menta l

distres s, occas ion ally ph ysical illn ess . Fin ally th e jou rn alist

m an ages to u t ter a few words in a m eet in g, perha ps only a

single verse of scripture. This was a very important event.

Wh at h ad been s t ir r in g in h is b reas t was n ow kn own to his

family and fr iends, sometimes to their surprise. Further

p rogre s s was o f t en s low and in t e rmi t t en t un t i l f i na l l y

recogn it ion occu rred, u n certain ty van ish ed an d th e speaker

becam e an ap proved m in is ter . As s u ch h e was privileged to

at ten d th e m eet in gs of m in is ters a n d e lders .

D u r i n g t h i s p h a s e o f t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f Q u a k e r

m in is t ry wh ich gradu ally cam e to an end in th e la t ter pa r t

of th e 19th cen tu ry th ere was an in tens e effor t to gu ard th e

spr ing of inspi red ut terance f rom human contaminat ion.

Fam ou s m in isters som etim es s at in su fferin g silen ce when

visit in g m eetin gs wh ich m ight b e crowded with pers ons who


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


h ad com e express ly to hea r th em. No extern al pressu re cou ld

prevent them from waiting for the turning of the key of

David wh ich , accord in g to th e book of Revela tion , sh u ttet h

an d no man opene th an d opene th an d no man s hu t t eth .

Yet they did not hesi tate to prepare themselves for their

se rv ice . They pondered the Bib le and were fa i thfu l in

p re s e rv ing da i l y pe r iods o f r e t i r emen t . When g rowing

bu sin ess interfered with religious du ties it was th e bu sin ess

which was curtai led. Much t ime was devoted to vis i t ing

families and holding small religious meetings with them.

Here the proph etic voice was often h eard . Sometimes it was

directed to th e pecu liar s ta te of an in dividu al person .

Later Quakerism

Th e third period in Qu ak er h istory, ap proxim ately 18 00

to 1900, may be des igna ted as a t ime of conf l i c t . The

proph etic type of m in d wh ich derived tru th from deep s pr in gs

of inward life could not come to terms with the priest-l ike

type which em ph as ized tra dition, organ izat ion a n d doctrin e.

A fa i r degree of un i ty was main ta ined unt i l the e lders

at tempted to regulate the minis ters on matters of bel ief .

This broke the prophetic-priest ly synthesis or what might

be m ore properly cal led a t th e begin n in g of th e n in eteen th

cen tu ry , t he mys t i ca l - evange l i ca l s yn thes i s wh ich had

con t in u ed for n ear ly two cen tu r ies a s a genu in e sou rce of

power. Sepa ra tions occu rred , resu ltin g fin ally in th ree bodies

of Friends. These were the l iberal , non-authori tarian and

n on-doct r in a l group plac in g th e pr im ary emph as is on th e

I n w a r d L i g h t o r t h e I n w a r d C h r i s t , t h e e v a n g e l i c a l ,

au th or itar ian or doct r in a l group emp h as izin g the Bible an d

th e his toric Chris t , an d a grou p between th ese two which in

a measure avoided both ext remes . This thi rd group was

proper ly ca l l ed Conserva t ive because h i s tor ica l ly they

con tin u ed to be n earest to Friend s of th e earlier t im e.


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


All th ree br a n ch es cu ltiva ted th e gift of pr oph ecy, bu t

it was inevitab le th at p roph ecy sh ou ld d eclin e in th e m ore

au th orita rian sector. In th e cou rse of th e evan gelical revival

in the la t ter par t of the 19th century which affec ted a l l

religious bodies, this group was reinforced by influences

an d m emb ersh ip from ou ts ide. Th e priest ly m in d p revai led.

In m an y areas th e older form of Qu ak er m eetin g, th e wait in g

wors h ip, was given u p in favor of a con ven tion a l pr ear ra n ged

form of preaching, prayer, and singing. Two-thirds of the

m o r e t h a n 1 0 0 , 0 0 0 F r i e n d s i n Am e r ic a h a v e n o w

programmed the i r mee t ings , l e av ing s ma l l l e eway fo r

spon tan eou s , proph et ic m in is t ry ar is in g un predic tably ou t

of s i l ence . Here , a s e l sewhere in the Chr i s t i an church ,

profession al minis ters m ay, an d often do, r ise to pr oph etic

ut terance . But prophet ic ut terance i s no longer the bas ic

as su m pt ion u n der lyin g a ll min is t ry .

Th e twen tieth centu ry ma y be cal led th e fou rth period

in Quaker his tory. Two new influences have considerably

m odified th e cha ra cter of th e earlier pr oph etic m in istr y; th ese

are intel lectual ism aris ing from higher educat ion and the

modern social gospel . Earl ier members of the Society of

Frien ds , while th ey ma de grea t s acr ifices t o give th eir own

children an d th e chi ldren of th ose u n der th e ir care a good

grou n ding in edu cat ion , were afra id of th e h igh er learn in g

as ten ding toward wha t th ey called a n otion a l religion or a

religion a float on th e su rfa ce. Th ey were n ot a fra id of th e

h is torical s tu dy of th e Bible bu t th ey feared th at ideas ab ou t

religion m ight ta ke t h e place of religiou s exp erien ce its elf.

I n t h e t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y m o s t F r i e n d s s e n d t h e i r

ch ildr en to college. As a res u lt of th is tra in in g an d s im ilar

cau ses , rhap sodic , u n premedita ted u t t eran ce h as become

s ick lied oe r with th e pa le cas t o f th ou gh t . Mod ern

preach ing i n F r i ends mee t ings t ends t o be t hough t fu l ,

in st ru ctive an d s elf-con sciou s. Th e an cien t fervor is r epla ced

by a del iberate , sometimes a conversat ional tone. A new


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


ph ilosoph y of th e divin e-hu m an relat ions h ip h as developed

which is m ore ak in to th e Hellen ic an cestor of Ch ris t ian ity

than to the Hebraic ancestor . According to this view the

h igh es t in m an is d ivin e an d a ll Tru th , wh ether reach ed by

in tu ition or by a pr ocess of self-con sciou s th ou ght , is from

God and truly inspired. Spirit has given place to intellect,

prophecy to teaching. This change has occurred wi thin a

genera t ion . Bu t ju s t a s th ere has been a t a l l per iods som e

teaching minis try in the Society of Friends, so today the

au th en tic voice of pr oph ecy is occas iona lly h ear d. Th e cha n ge

is on e of degree.

The second cause of change is the predominance of

th e social gospel. Frien ds h ave always b een socially mind ed.

Th e works of service wh ich h ave brou gh t th em in to th e pu blic

eye today can be paralleled in every generation of Quaker

h is tory th roughou t th e pas t th ree cen tu r ies . Bu t th e older

socia l ac t ivi ty resul ted f rom individual concerns which

gen era lly origin at ed in per iods of wors h ip, eith er when th e

wors h iper was alon e or in th e grou p. Th e mind bein g directed

to the ul t imate source of al l Light and Truth, some quite

unexpected sense of responsibili ty might arise. The abili ty

to face f resh ly and d i rec t ly in the s i l ence the fac t s of

exis tence, un obscured b y a m ist of words, m ad e the Qu akers

pion eers in s evera l lin es of en dea vor. Th e process a t pr esen t

is less con du cive to origin a lity. Socia l resp on s ibility is often

delegat ed to comm ittees or to pers ons who m ay not escap e

th e lim ita tion s of sp ecia liza tion .

Today m in is try n ot in frequen tly in clu des th e s ta temen t

of publ ic problems wi th sugges t ions for the i r solut ion.

Form erly ministry directed th e wors h iper t o th e divin e Sou rce

of al l solut ions. The modern type of minis try has i ts use

an d im portan ce, bu t it tends to be set in a s ecu lar , pra gm atic

frame of reference. Having less depth it is delivered more

eas ily, h ence m ore frequ en tly. A Qu ak er m in is ter who h ad

spent eight years on a single religious journey once wrote,


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


Mu ch ta lk on religiou s s u bjects m ay be com pa red to great

au ct ions , wh ich are p re t ty su re in dica t ions of ap proach in g

ba n k ru pt cy. (George Dillwyn , Occa s ion a l Reflections .) Th e

s ta te of some Qu ak er meet in gs today migh t a t tes t th e t ru th

of th is ob ser vat ion .

Prophecy an d secular ism

T h e f a c t s h o u l d n o t b e o v e r l o o k e d t h a t w e a r e

cons ide r ing changes which have a f f ec t ed a l l fo rms o f

m in istry, both lay an d professiona l, th roughou t th e Christian

world. These changes grow out of the increasing secular-

iza t ion of modern l i fe . The urbanizat ion of our socie ty

s u r rounds us w i th con t ro l l ab l e man-made ob j ec t s . The

in creas e of scien t ific kn owledge app ears to h ave robbed th e

u n iverse of it s m ystery. Th e great dem an ds m ade u pon m en

by th e extern a l world leave little tim e or in clin a tion to d evelop

the inward l i fe . Such tendencies have contributed to the

elim in ation of a tru ly proph etic m in istry eith er in th e Qu ak er

m eetin g or th e pu lpi t .

In m y boyh ood th ere s t i ll exis ted a proph etic m in is tr y

which exerted m ovin g power. Sometimes it was pou red forth

in a torren t with com plete aba n don , sometim es s lowly an d

laboriously as if brought forth with enormous effort from

uns een dep ths . I t had i n i t a qua l i t y o f t he numinous ,

in sp irin g awe an d r everence a n d a sen se of th e in fin ite realm

of m ystery su rrou n din g m a n s fin ite exist en ce. Su ch voices

are se ldom h eard today.

Th e ch an ges in th e 20th cen tu ry represent ga in as well

as loss . It is importan t th a t th e mind be won as well as th e

h eart . Th e older m in istry wh ich claimed to con tain n o hu m an

element was often obviously very human. The water, as

som eone expr ess ed it, ta s ted of th e pipes. A n ew ph ilosoph y

was n eeded to br idge th e cha sm between flesh an d s pir it so

as to render re ligion a cceptable to modern m in ds . Bu t su ch


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


a p h ilosop h y ca n go too fa r. If th e ch a sm be com pletely filled

and a l l bounda ry s tones e l imina t ed , ins p i r a t i on may

becom e rou tin e an d comm onplace an d t h e voice of proph ecy

stilled.

Wh at th en can we learn from th ese three cen tu r ies of

exper im ent with an u n ordain ed m in is t ry exercised by m en

an d wom en with only su ch tr aining for th eir service as th ey

h ave been ab le to give th ems elves. It would h ave been m ore

illu m in at in g to h ave dr awn ou r exam ples of su ccess or failu re

in proph etic m in is tr y from a wider r an ge of experien ce th anth at of th e Society of Friend s, bu t th e su bject wou ld h ave

been too vas t a n d, a s i t is , we ha ve only been ab le to ou t lin e

genera l t rends in one sm all group .

Prophecy and Christian ity

Firs t i t mu st b e ma de c lear th a t p rophet ic minis t ry of th e type of which I am sp eaking serves a pu rpose d ifferent

from th at of m ost m in is tr y from th e pu lpi t . In th e Cath olic

Chu rch t h ere are Spiritu al Directors wh o aid th ose en gaged

i n t h e s p i r i t u a l e x e r c i s e s o f p r a y e r , m e d i t a t i o n a n d

contemplation. The director guides by suggesting definite

su bjects for m edita t ion. Th ese a re gau ged to th e degree of

progress of th e person in tra in in g. In a Qu ak er m eetin g th ere

are worsh ipers who n eed spi r itu a l gu idan ce to en ab le th em

to m a ke p roper u se of th e silen ce. Th is h elp is n ot likely to

be pr ovided b y a su sta in ed discour se. If som eone a rises with

a brief message which seems to grow out of the l ife of the

m eetin g an d which h ar m onizes with th e s ilen ce, wan derin g

th oughts m ay become focu sed on th e Way, th e Tru th an d

th e Life. Su ch sp iritu al direction s eeks to elim in at e th e n eed

for its elf. It is a m ight y th in g, wrote Geor ge Fox in 16 58 ,

to be in t h e work of th e m in ist ry of th e Lord God a n d t o go

forth in it for it is n ot a cu stom ar y prea ch in g bu t to brin g

people to the end of all preaching. (Jou rn a l, Cambridge

Ed ition Vol. I, p . 32 1)


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


As h as been p oin ted ou t , proph et ic m in is t ry con t in u ed

longer in th e Society of Friend s t h an in th e early Ch ris t ian

com m u n ity becau se of th e preservat ion of cond it ions which

gave it an opportu n ity. Can th e Christian Ch u rch toda y offer

su ch oppor tu ni ty?

There are Seekers today as there were in the 17th

cen tu ry. Th ey know, an d ps ychologists agree, th at someth in g

m ore is n eeded th an r igh t ideas . Sou ls n eed h elp wh ich will

go beyond the mind to reach the springs of the will . This

m in istr y mu st pierce th e self-con sciou s, ego-centered su rface

of ideas . It is on ly in th e depth s of th e sou l th at th e mea n in g

a n d p u rp ose of life can be r ea lized. An over-in tellectu a lized

religion of th eories, con cepts , an d ca lls to s ocia l a ction can

discover wh a t is relative. Th e resu lt is likely to be a sen se of

fu tility an d bewilder m en t. Th e Abs olu te l ies deep er. Wh en

th e Spirit of God m oves u pon th e cha otic waters of th e sou la n e w c r e a t i o n o f L i f e a r i s e s . N o t b y a r g u m e n t s o r

explanat ions but by a few simple words spoken while the

h ear t l ies fa llow ma y th e seed of divin e grace a ccomp lish a

n ew birth . Deep calls u n to deep, wrote the Psa lm ist . Su ch

m in is tr y can occu r only when th e deep in one sou l calls to

th e deep in an other . For su ch service there is n o t ra in in g

sa ve th at of th e Spirit .Th e experien ce of th e Society of Frien ds wou ld in dicate

that there are spi r i tua l gi f t s in the la i ty which are los t

th rou gh n eglect. Given t h e right con dition s, a p owerfu l la y

m in is tr y m igh t emerge. Bu t th e sam e freedom wh ich wou ld

permit the development of a powerful ministry would give

opportu n ity for weak , u n in sp ired m in is tr y. Th is is a price

wh ich m an y are u n willin g to pa y. Becau se we can n ot en du rethe weak, we deny opportunity to the s trong. The wind of

the Spirit bloweth where i t l isteth. We cannot control i t .

Th erefore men ar e temp ted to place th eir relian ce on wha t

th ey can con trol.


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


A tru ly in sp ired p roph et delivering h is m ess a ge is free

f rom the c ramp of se l f -consc iousness . He speaks wi th

freedom a n d s elf-su rren der, a ware only of th e t ru th wellin g

u p from with in . For th e mom ent h e is th e Tru th , for he s ees

it n ot from th e out s ide, as a su bject viewin g an object , bu t

from th e in side, as on e who feels i t as pa rt of h im self. Th e

typical camp-meeting evangelist moves within a narrowly

re s t r i c t ed t heo log i ca l s ys t em. H i s me thods f r equen t ly

resem ble those of h igh -pressu re sa lesma n sh ip. But the t ru e

pr oph et, like th e tru e ar tist or th e tru e poet, is freely crea tive.

He pu ts h im self in u n ity with th e livin g Word th rou gh which

as J ohn sa ys al l th in gs were ma de. Th e n ew does n ot arise

through del iberat ion, but through flashes of insight . I t is

on intui t ion ra ther than on del ibera t ion tha t the prophet

depend s , on feelin g ra th er tha n on th ought .

F o r t h e p r o p h e t h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n h a s c e r t a i n

ad van ta ges. It m ay sa ve h im from fan at icism , from errors

of fact, from isolation from the currents of thought of his

t ime. But modern educat ion does not develop re l igious

ins igh t and i n tu i t i on . I t s emphas i s i s on ana lys i s and

experim en t in a h ighly secu la r fra m e of referen ce. It covers

the inner depths of the soul with a surface layer of ideas

wh ich a re valua ble in m an ipu lat ing ma n s en vironm ent, bu t

w h i c h r e v e a l n o t r u t h r e g a r d i n g h i s d e s t i n y . H i g h e r

edu cat ion , wh eth er in a college or th eological sch ool, ten ds

to dampen the spi r i t of prophecy, whereas under proper

con ditions it cou ld s tren gthen it b y fu rn ish in g powerfu l tools.

Th ere is n o reason why th e in sigh t of th e proph et cou ld n ot

be so integrated with the cri t ical mind of the scholar that

each would s t rengthen a nd su pplement th e other .

Inward and outw ard authority

I t h i n k Q u a k e r h i s t o r y s h o w s t h a t t h e o p t i m u m

con dit ions for pr oph etic m in is tr y are real ized wh en th ere is


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


an appropr ia te balance between outward control and the

sen se of in ward ins pirat ion . Of th e thr ee Qu ak er grou ps in

th e 19th centu ry it was th e middle on e wh ich lon gest retained

th e sp ir it of proph ecy. Th is was m idway between th e m ost

an d th e least au th oritarian . We may conclu de tha t too m u ch

regu lat ion qu ench es th e spir it a n d too lit t le leaves open th e

door for u n edifyin g u ttera n ce. By ou tward regulation I m ean

n ot on ly the ju dgmen t of th e con gregation express ed th rou gh

its members appointed for the purpose, but al l object ive

s ta n dar ds which emb ody th e in s igh ts of previous proph ets

an d tea ch ers , especially thos e of Biblical t im es.

Quake r s have been ca l l ed mys t i c s bu t t hey neve r

in ten ded to be exclu sively m ystics. In th e 17 th centu ry, pa rtly

because of Calvinistic, influences, Christianity showed a

seriou s lack of th e m ystical in gredien t. Th is was th e elem en t

wh ich th e Qu ak ers were in a p os it ion to ad d. Th ey h ad n o

in ten t ion to fou n d a sect . If th e Qu ak ers h ad been religiou s

an arch is ts with n o ou tward con trols it is u n likely tha t th ey

would have survived. If they had been more authori tarian

than they were the spr ing of prophe t ic mini s t ry would

probably have dr ied up . Too much inwardness l eads to

vagueness an d form lessness , too m u ch ou twardn ess to a

rigidity which h a m per s th e freedom of th e Spirit .

But ou tward and inward a re not of equa l va lue in

religion. The Spirit is primary. Its fruits in doctrine and

organ izat ion ar e secon da ry. It is b et ter to err on t h e s ide of

too much ra ther than too l i t t le f reedom. A Quaker sa int

once wrote, Dear people of God, be tender over the least

b r ea th in gs o f Gods S p ir i t in on e an o th e r . (Willia m

Dewsbury, Works, 179 ) Su ch tend erness toward th e weak

is a sou rce of spi r itu a l s t rength to both spea ker an d h earer .

Qu aker prophe t s an d m ys t ics h ave se ldom a t t em pted

to work out a theology or philosophy of the Inward Light.

Th eir m yst icism h as been God-centered, Ch ris t-cent ered or

Spirit -cen tered. Sometimes i t can be s aid to be cent ered in


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all th ree, as wh en Robert Barclay, th e firs t system at ic Qu ak er

th in ker , wrote of a s piritu a l, hea ven ly an d invis ible principle

in which God as Father, Son and Spirit dwells. (Barclay,

Apology , Prop. V., XIII)

I th ink i t can be shown that prophet ic minis t ry has

h ad th e greates t drivin g power when it h as been of a Ch ris t-

cen t e red t ype . He re t he re i s bo th a s ub j ec t i ve and an

objective reference. The Inward Light becomes less diffuse

an d m ore focu sed wh en as sociated with J esu s a s its su preme

revela t ion in his tory. This may resul t in an appropr ia te

balance between inward and outward. Revela t ions f rom

within may be accepted as genuine when cons is tent , not

only with th e words b u t a lso with th e wh ole spir it , tone a n d

tem per of th e life of J esu s. Th is is th e positive ad va n ta ge of

a n a ctivist Hebra ic type of m ysticism over a cont em plative

Hellenic type , thou gh both h ave an essen t ia l an d im portan t

place in th e Chris t ian re ligion. Th ough th e Chu rch m ay be

in on e sen se a people of God ga th ered ou t of th e world it is ,

in another sense , in the world, for the human and divine

fou n der of th e Chu rch was h im self in th e world, seeking to

es tab lish a socie ty th a t sh ould be both h u m an an d divin e .

J esu s cal led h im self a p roph et an d pr oph etic religion is th e

re ligion of J esu s ra th er tha n th e religion a bou t J esu s .

Christianity was itself a revival of prophetic religion

a fter a long p eriod of pr iestly domina tion in Isr ael. Doctrin al

elemen ts were su bs idiary to th e one great experience sh ared

by every convert, the outpouring of the Spirit , the divine

energy perm eat in g the s oul . Th e Greco-Rom an cu ltu re h ad

reach ed its l im it in ph ilosoph ical an d religiou s developm en t.

Its crea tive tim e was pa s t. In s pite of every evid en ce of va s t

mate r ia l power , d i s so lu t ion had begun. In th i s cu l tura l

barrenness appeared a new creat ive outburs t of spi r i tua l

power . It cam e am ong ordin ary m en an d women engaged in

h u m ble task s . Th e age in wh ich we n ow live presen ts m an y

resemb lan ces to tha t epoch in th e Greco-Rom an world wh en


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HOWARD H. BRINTON


Chr is t ian ity began . Th ere is th e sa m e eviden ce of cu ltu ra l

an d religiou s n on-crea tiven ess in th e midst of great m at erial

power, the same searching of the inward because of the

fa i l u re o f t he ou tward . Can we look fo r s ome s imi l a r

outp ou rin g? It m ay be in a n ew an d u n expected form, which

will on ce m ore fu lfill th e p rop h ecy of J oel You r son s a n d

your d au gh ters sh all proph esy.

Notes:

1. This and su bsequ ent qu ota t ions from the New Tes tam ent

are taken from th e Revis ed S tand ard Vers ion .

La s t u pd a te: 2 / 2 2 / 05

Brinton Prophetic Ministry

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