Abstract:

This paper revisits the scholarship associated with the so-called Toronto Blessing. Since the revival meetings associated with the Toronto Blessing in the mid 1990s, the church has developed from a single congregation into a network of churches with centres in a number of cities around the world. The network is called “Catch the Fire” and propagates revivalist Pentecostalist spirituality. Leaders from the network have allied themselves with others also advancing revivalism from North America and beyond. This global relational network of churches and ministries is called “Partners in Harvest”. The paper aims to describe and interpret the narrative that is central to this global network of churches and which sustains spiritual identity and global relevance. In particular, it considers the Toronto church as a centre of revivalist spirituality, providing a continued place of centripetal pilgrimage, personal catharsis, as well as centrifugal global mission.

Author: Mark Cartledge