CHRISTIAN MOVEMENTS

A Historical Perspective

Abstract

The Christian religion is the presence of the Incarnate Word in the
world. Jesus Christ preached the Kingdom values and in the
establishment of this new Kingdom he had challenged and
questioned the existing social order and religious structures. This
radicality, novelty and spontaneity of the Christian religion are
partially lost in the course of time when the Church got established
and got institutionalized. Although there are exceptions, many of the
movements in the Church throughout the history of her existence are
responses to the challenges of going back to the original spirit of the
Gospel. New expressions and new modes of living of Christian life in
the Church are generally viewed as the active and vibrant presence of
the Holy Spirit in the Church aiming to improve the quality of her
inner life. The individuals who are inspired by the Holy Spirit or who
claim to be specially gifted by the Holy Spirit, are the exponents of
the movements and it is the duty of the ecclesiastical authorities to
assess the movements and approve or disapprove them.