Montanism and Present Day “Prophets”

Abstract

AbstractOver the past decade and a half, William Tabbernee, the world’s leading authority on Montanism or the New Prophecy, has written four major works on the subject. Three of them are reviewed in this article. One looks at Montanism through the eyes of church and state; a second provides documentation for the identification of the headquarters city of the Montanists; and the third puts the two together in a creative narrative. These three volumes are placed within the context of larger issues surrounding the history of this powerful prophetic movement that originated in late second-century Asia Minor and subsequently spread throughout the Roman Empire up until the sixth century. The reactions and responses of various orthodox Christian leaders and secular government officials to the claims of this highly independent prophetic movement, which called for more reliance upon the spontaneity of the Holy Spirit and a more conservative personal ethic, suggest strong parallels between Montanism and what might be found in today’s Charismatic, New Apostolic, and Emerging Church movements.