Christson
James
Jakarta,
Indonesia
PROSPERITY THEOLOGY
1.
Prologue
Prosperity theology is
one of many Christian doctrines who is saying that prosperity, wealth, and
healthiness is God’s will for believers. Faith to be rich, positive words unto
self or another things that proclaim that someone is blessed by God. And if
someone does donation to the church, than God will bless either on wealth. This
believe rely on Malachi to see the connection between God and His people. If
someone has faith in God, then God will bless with secure and prosper. God will
count and answer every people who believe in the promises of God.[1]
Prosperity,
successful life, wealth, healing from sickness are needed as God’s proven unto
believers life, as a compensation of prayer and good actions that have been
done by someone. The salvation which Christ has done, is purposed to pure the
believers so that believers will become the blue print as Adam was, so that
believers will be prospered and given good health.
2.
Background
Prosperity
theology can’t be separated with the world secularism whom has been effected by
materialism and hedonism. Also economics growth after the World War II, and
Korean War. There were two countries which had fluently effect of this
theology, and they were USA and South Korea.
a.
USA
USA
had a great victory in WW2, and that was the turning back point to be a super
power country. It made people become so wealth and fulfill with prosper. But on
the other side, there were a big lost of spiritual life on the people. They
thought that they had been blessed, but that’s just for physical needs only but
not for their psychology and spiritual needs. Then they thought of fulfilling this
abandoned part. The post-war situation made any theology who can accommodate
wealthy and spiritual concern had a very huge attention. So this theology took
place indeed in the Christianity on that time.
b.
South Korea
WW2
and Korean War made suffering unto the citizen of South Korea. A very long
suffering made the prosperity theology was received very welcomely. The spreading
of this theology has boost unto Asia, included South Korea who gain back a
prosperous wealth after those wars.
Shamanism is
a tradition believe of the people that teaches gods will prosper whoever does
good things. So that this theology was received so did well, and that what made
the Christianity there influenced so hugely.
And even the spreads of gospel there
were did with claim that Jesus Himself is the God Shaman, the one who the
believe before. These things were did in order to Christianity can be
acceptable there.
The
prosperity theology itself was born in the 19th century, about 1884
by Russell Kelso Carter (1849-1928) a Methodist reverend. He wrote a book that
named “The Atonement for Sin and Sickness.
In his book, he said”
“O, Lord, make me sure of the truth, and I will
confess it; I have nothing to do with consequences; that is Thy part," and
again, "Jesus has the keeping part, I have the believing and confessing.”[2]
Then Essek William
Kenyon (1867-1948) got a big influence as a New Testament Reverend on Baptist
Church. He told his theology about holiness movement, healing faith, higher
level of life. He also wrote much about spiritual revelation, and positive
words.
Even on the beginning
this theology didn’t get attention of Pentacostal Christianity in early of 20th
century, but after the WW2 ended, this theology took a big place in the hearts
of Christians.
As the result, this
theology itself grown because of the prosperity that received by the post-war
people, which are USA and South Korea. But in other hand there was a big lost
in spiritual concern, and people were seeking so badly about this needs.
3.
Actors of Prosperity Theology: biography, and the teachings.
A. Rusell Kelso Carter
(1849-1928) – healing movement doctrine trough faith and medicine
He
lived as a child that born in a tough Christian family, his father was a
Presbiterian reverend. He decided to follow Jesus on 15. He was an athlete in
military, and he was successful as teacher and coach. Carter was a musician and
a song writer. When he was 23, he suffered heart disease, and on 27 he became
flocks shepherd meanwhile cured his healthiness. But on his age of 30, Carter
had critical condition, and he couldn’t be cured. He prayed unto God and
promised even he weren’t cured, he would dedicate his life unto God, and in
short, he was healed.[3]
In
1889, Carter had perspective that healing is constrict with atonement. But he
felt sick again in 1892, and after that he changed his theology perspective
into “healing can happens trough the maturity of faith as God’s pleasure and as
a special guidance from Holy Spirit.” In 1898 Carter got critical situation
after he was diagnosed have Tuberculosis, but in 90 days he get healed. After
that Carter In his doctrine taught that God works trough medicine. He worked as
doctor until his end of age on 1928.
B. Norman Vincent Peale
(1898-1993)[4]
– Be rich and healthy with self suggestion.
He
was known as the founder of mixing psychology and spirituality. Little Norman
lived in Ohio, and studied theology on Boston University Seminary. He ministered
in Brooklyn, and several years in University Methodist Church in Syracuse, and
then he moved to Marble Collegiate Church in New York. The last name would be
the place that he built psychology spiritual clinic. There were involved more
than twenty reverends, psychologist, doctors, and some volunteers. It begun
when he was young and started to work with Smiley Blanton. Smiley was Sigmund
Freud’s student and he was also a psychologist. And after five years later, his
clinic was so success.[5]
A
big lost of spiritual concern after WWII ended, made Peale and his theology got
lot of demands, and in one of his book that named The Art of Living, he said about spirituality is the best running
way to have peaceful heart and mind. Another famous books of him, named A Guide to Confident Living (1948), and
his best seller named The Power of
Positive Thinking (1952). After companied with Smiley, he had a doctrine
that says:
“
Religion teaches us about only what we think about, the good one and the
beautiful one only will be brought into the subconscious because everything
that has been brought will be sent back.”
The
core thing of Peale doctrine is a Christian can be success and prospered, if he
/she starts to think positively, means “a healed mind” so that he/she suggests
him/her self with a believe that God wants that one to be prospered. So that
man must say positive words as a self suggestion or self confidence.[6]
Peale
doctrine had attention on rich people in order to make them unworried, life
doubts, and other fears. Sins, repenting, and salvation had not much place in
his doctrine. He was also oftenly doing exegete the scriptures out of the
context and put only the verses that needed for his doctrine.[7]
C. Robert Schuller (1926-2015) –
positive words doctrine
He
was a televangelist (preaching and broadcasting with television), pastor,
motivator, and books writer. In 1955, he made breakthrough with preaching in
front of audiences who were sitting on their own cars’ chairs. He used
psychology as a message to Christians, and served it as “feeling good gospel.”[8]
Robert
was born on Septermber 16th 1926, in Iowa. He was
the smallest of five. His father’s name was Anthony Schuller, and mother’s name
was Jennie Beltman, and they were migrant from Netherland. When he was 5, his
uncle prophesied unto him, that oneday he would become an evangelist. After
graduated from Senior High School, he went further in his study in Hope College
and got his Master of Divinity title in Western Theological Seminary, a
Calvinist college. In 1950 he was proclaimed as a reverend in Reformed Church,
and in the same year he married Arvella de Haan. In 1955 he moved to Garden
Grove, California, the theater that for the first time he preach. With only 500
USD, he was in difficult situations to
get the place for starting his ministry, and then he rent Garden Grove. Many
people protested him about loosing the essence of a ceremony. He built Crystal
Cathedral, a huge and elegant church in 1961. The first preacher in this
building was Norman Vincent Peale. In 2010, he was bankrupt because of he
couldn’t pay his debts, then two years later this building had been bought
Catholic Romans.
The doctrine of
Robert Schuller was the continuing of Peale’s doctrine about psychology and
mind as the source of success itself, and used the term possibility thinking that was just same as the positive thinking from Peale. The audiences were pushed to think about
positive thinking and getting success in every aspects in life. So that
everyone has to love him/herself, and appreciate self as works of salvation.[9]
D. Paul Yonggi Cho (1936-present) – Healthy and Wealth as
rights
Yonggi
Cho is the founder of church growth based on psycho power, just as the two
characters before. From the background Korean War (1948-1954) that broke Korea
into two, The Northern and The Southern. Lived in poverty, and hard sickness
then he got healing after committed to Christ, coloring his theology.
Suffering, poverty, and diseases are not the part of Christian’s life, but Christians
must be prospered and healthy.
Budhism
and Shamanism (Korean Witchcraft) are involved in his theology. In his ministry
he has been pushing his people until now to do meditation, and praying unto ancestors
in the underworld. He has been teaching about the fourth dimension, a situation
where trough imagination, vision and dreams and also from meditating in Yoga, a
person can find spiritual world, so that the person (Christian) can conquer the
body. Yonggi Cho claimed that the fourth dimension teaching was illuminated by
The Holy Spirit.[10]
Then he also taught his people, to be prospered and healthy physic, Christians have
to pray a lot. Christians have to depend on mind power, and say positive words.
In 1960-1990, the numbers of his discipleship increased to 500.000 souls.[11] He
also claimed his followers in 2007 is about 830.000 souls. In 2014, he is
claimed guilty of tax embezzling, and punished three years jailing and five
million dollars fine.[12]
Yonggi
Cho came in the right moment when people of South Korea needed a hope after a
long suffering. After the war ended in 1954, and the booming of Cho in 1958,
has proven how the shamanism which teaches about the affection between hopes
and blessed quality life are connected as God willingness. This approaching was
affected by the other cultures and believes, such as Shamanism, Budhism,
ancestors worshipping, made the syncretism in this theology. So that the
prosperity theology, and also positive thinking doctrine were demanded by Cho’s
doctrine. And shall to remember, the homogeny of the people of South Korea made
this theology received very well.
4. Conclusion
In
the time of Russel Carter this theology had no enough attention, but he was the
founding even it bombed in the time of post-World War 2. Here are the characters:
1. 1948
– Peale’s booming three years after
WW2;
2. 1955
– Schuller booming ten years after
WW2;
3. 1958
-
Yonggi Cho booming four years after
Korean War.
So I’ll take a
conclusion about the emptiness of spiritual need of the people made a huge passions
on prospered USA citizens, and also in South Korea, Yonggi Cho was booming
because of there were hopefulness of South Korea citizens after long suffering,
and need of a doctrine which was infected by syncretism, that could fulfill and
answer questions on their life.
5. Theology Methods
Webster’s
New Collegiate Dictionary says eisegese is
a process of interpreting text, which there are presupposition, agenda, and
bias information from someone or a group of people, will be included in the way
of interpret the text. [13]
In other hand Browning says eisege is
the way to include stranger things into the context of the text.[14]
So the conclusion is a ways of interpreting the text, not by what the text
talks about itself, but by presuppositions, and his/her own thoughts and picking
up text carelessly in order to defend the doctrine.
These are the ways those many
theologians, which the prosperity theology is involved to protect their
doctrines. None of all person that no affected by presupposition, but a
presupposition has to be responsible in order to find out the truth of Bible.
There are concepts, core things, and methods those can be used universally to
interpret, as we know as hermeneutic.[15]
After we understand how this
theology was born and grew up, this theology took a big place in the heart of
many Christians who have a big emptiness to fulfill the spiritual concern in
their lives. In order to fulfill this emptiness, they were so attracted to the
doctrine that mixing both prosperous and Christianity. The essences of
Christianity were banished, and even, Jesus as the subject of Christian Faith
was changed into the object to fulfill the needs as human became the main
subject.
They teach about Christians
who are blessed by God, will be fulfilled with healthiness and prosperous as
the sign of God’s will, because of someone’s good spiritual life and close
relation with God, but they who don’t have a good spiritual lives, and live far
away from God will be cursed by the poorness and sickness.
This doctrine is just
only to fulfill human needs, and everything’s core is human. This is what we
call as antropocentrism. Human as the main thing, and God is just as the tools
to fulfill human needs. The central of theology is human and not God.
These
interpretations are commonly interpreted by the letterary, and chop off a text
from a full unit that link to each other. So they don’t use hermeneutics
correctly. This doctrine commonly, also use someone’s personal life as
doctrine. Special revelation, testimony, and personal life have a big portion
on this theology, but the Bible is just only as decoration to strengthen the
built doctrine. The authority and legitimation of Bible are not respected as
much as it use to. According to Herlianto, these methods have manipulated the
texts of Bible.[16]
6. Points of doctrine
Texts
manipulations and eisegese can’t be
separated with this method. And they are:
A.
Nothing is Impossible
Texts:
Gen. 18:14; Jer. 32:17, 27; Mat. 19:26; Mk 9:23, 14:36; Luk. 1:37; Mat. 19:28; Phl
4:13.
“Nothing
is impossible” use as a mantra to get prosperity and wealth. Of course these
texts interpret out of context, though I can’t deny that God is Full of Power,
but let God use His power by His own rights, and not to fulfill what human
want. This mantra is irresponsible.
B.
Give then will be given
Texts:
Mal. 3:10; Luk. 6.38; 2 Cor. 9:6
Ron
L. Jones (Funeral Chappels) thoughts offers to church make someone be set free
from debt, love of money, and have generous hearts.[17] People
are used to give offering to God. The preacher commonly includes life testimony
in preaches. Prosperous life become the main doctrine.
C.
Believers are King’s children
Every King’s children have rights to enjoy the
richness and prosperity from the King. God is the king, and the King is rich,
so are His children.[18]
D.
Positive Thingking
Text: Phl. 4:8
The main point in this theology is positive
thinking. Many of Christian preachers teach about positive thinking and believe
in self. This come from a mind of fulfill needs of someone’s life, and human as
the central. A situation of human to look out for feeling right even guilt.
E.
Be Cured from diseases
Texts: Mat.
8:17; 1 Pet. 2:24; Num. 21:5-9; Isa. 53; Rom. 5:2
Diseases come from devil and curse.
So the cross is the answer to redempt so that won’t be sick and always have
good health.[19]
Once
Yonggi Cho said:
“
we as Christians can live free from sickness in this world.. in OT and NT, God
acts just the same. God wants human not to get sickness but cure from every
sickness.
Sickness
is a curse from God, so everyone who confess his/her sins and receive God’s
grace trough His’ Son, will be saved, and receive also the curse from
sickness.”
7. Theologians Commentaries
A. Stephen Tong
Poorness
comes from sins, and the only way to conquer this is trough salvation.
Unfairness, poorness are caused by sins, especially managing of money. Richness
of Christian, must be gotten from correct ways, and then richness is God’s
grace, so then the rich men have to bless other people also.
But
he thought that every Christian shall not chasing for richness, further to have
faith that someone is willing by God to be rich. The essences of Christianity to
bear the cross and deny self are forgotten in this theology. Every Christian
must be brave to take up the cross, and even when facing difficulties to work
hard to get money, it shall be done in correct ways.[20]
B. Yakub Tri Handoko
As
he thought this theology is a doctrine that teaches prosperity as the sign if
someone is blessed by God. The prosperity in life includes healthiness and
richness. Those happen because God’s repaying someone’s prayer or good actions
(law of reciprocity). Yakub said that this theology is very wrong, because Christianity
is not talking about following desires of someone, otherwise to be fruitful in
life, and glorify God trough believers lives.[21]
C.
Charles Spurgeon
Charles Spurgeon
(1834-1892), a well known Baptist reverent, rejected hardly this teaching. In a
congress about a century ago, he said:
“I believe
that it is anti-Christian and unholy for any Christian to live with the object
of accumulating wealth. You will say, ‘Are we not to strive all we can to
get all the money we can?’ You may do so. I cannot doubt but what, in so
doing, you may do service to the cause of God. But what I said was that to
live with the object of accumulating wealth is
anti-Christian.”[22]
D. Roman
Catholic
They reject this
theology very hard. It doesn’t suit with the humbleness of Christ, not suit
with the living of the apostles, not suit with the teaching of church fathers,
and this theology makes people loves money but not God.[23]
7. Responses
A. Positive
- They live in a high quality of life in
moral, spiritual, and I see that they are afraid of punishments and no
blessings.
- Christianity growth significantly,
even is built from a wrong doctrine.
- Actualization positively.
b. Negative:
- Healing is God’s prerogative rights,
and not because of human’s kind.
- This theology is totally wrong and
unbiblical, because this theology oftenly make people in wrong ways.
- Make a lot of people has wrong
motivation.
- Justify, whom be cursed will get
diseases and poorness, and react otherwise.
- Preachers often use the words of God
for covert intention.
- Between desire and ambition take the
first place to this theology.
References:
1.
Herlianto, Teologi Sukses: Antara Allah dan Mamon. Jakarta: BPK Gunung Mulia,
1993.
2.
Jones, Ron. L., Jesus Money and Me Discovering the Link Between Your Money and Your Faith. USA: Lincoln, iUniverse.Inc, 2004.
3.
Richardson, D., Eternity in Their Hearts.
California: Regal Books, 2005.
4.
Sutanto, Hasan, Hermeneutik: Prinsip dan Metode Penafsiran
Alkitab. Malang: SAAT, 2010.
5.
www.wikipedia.com
6.
http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/5-errors-of-the-prosperity-gospel
7.
http://www.katolisitas.org/5544/teologi-kemakmuran-ajaran-gampang-tapi-salah
8.
http://dennytan.blogspot.co.id/2010/07/theologi-kemakmuran-ev-yakub-tri.html
9.
http://www.sharefaith.com/guide/Christian-Music/hymns-the-songs-and-the-stories/standing-on-the-promises-the-song-and-the-story.html
10.
http://healingandrevival.com/BioRKCarter.htm
11.
http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/sch2bio-1
12.
http://www.yfgc.org/n_english/yonggi_cho/dr_bio.asp
13.
SABDA 4.11.02
[1]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prosperity_theology diakses pada Jumat 13
November 2015 08.15 WIB
[2]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._W._Kenyon diakses pada Jumat 13 November 2015
pukul 12.40 WIB
[3] http://www.sharefaith.com/guide/Christian-Music/hymns-the-songs-and-the-stories/standing-on-the-promises-the-song-and-the-story.html
[4]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Vincent_Peale diakses Selasa 17
November 2015 pukul 15.20 WIB.
[5] Herlianto, 17-18.
[6]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Vincent_Peale#Concealed_hypnosis
diakses pada Selasa 17 November 2015 pukul 15.26 WIB.
[7] Herlianto, 19-20.
[9] Herlianto, 21-22.
[10] Herlianto 23-24.
[11] Herlianto, 24-26.
[12] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Yonggi_Cho
diakses pada Rabu 18 November 2015 pukul 12.55 WIB.
[13]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eisegesis diakses Selasa 17 November 2015 pukul
12.54 WIB.
[14] Kamus Browning dengan pengetikan
kata “Eisegesis”, Kompilasi Kamus Alkitab @4674 dari SABDA 4.11.02.
[15] Hasan Sutanto, Hermeneutik: Prinsip dan Metode Penafsiran
Alkitab (Malang: SAAT, 2010), 3.
[16] Herlianto, 32.
[17] Ron. L. Jones, Jesus Money and Me Discovering the Link Between Your
Money and Your Faith (USA:
Lincoln, iUniverse.Inc, 2004), 1-6.
[18] Herlianto, 69-70.
[19] Herlianto, 147.
[20]
http://reformata.com/news/view/211/miskin-itu-karena-dosa-bertobatlah diakses
Selasa 17 November 2015 pukul 12.35 WIB.
[21] http://dennytan.blogspot.co.id/2010/07/theologi-kemakmuran-ev-yakub-tri.html
diakses pada Selasa 17 November 2015 pukul 10.50 WIB.
[22]
http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/5-errors-of-the-prosperity-gospel
diakses Selasa 17 November 2015.
[23]
http://www.katolisitas.org/5544/teologi-kemakmuran-ajaran-gampang-tapi-salah
diakses Jumat 13 November 2015 pukul 09.40 WIB.
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