Vanishing Vestments?
For nearly a year, I have been researching the use of vestments and clerical attire within the Pentecostal church. To understand this issue, we must look deep into the history of our denomination. And by “deep”, I mean that we must realize that our history pre-dates the birth of Pentecostalism (as a denomination) in the late 1800s. Many evangelicals (to include Pentecostals) fall into the trap of not considering church history prior to the mid-1800s. We tend to form many of our beliefs and values as if we were created in a vacuum some 1,800 years after the resurrection of Christ. This perspective can tend to skew our understanding of many “orthodox” practices. In 1738, John Wesley had a religious experience that led to the founding of the Methodist Church. Wesley was a priest ordained by the Church of England (Anglican). Even though he founded the Methodist denomination, he never left the Anglican priesthood. Regarding the use of vestments and more orthodox worship styles (responsi