Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Aug 7, 2026

Berlin Declaration (1909)

The Berlin declaration was a theological statement by 56 leading Evangelic theologians in Germany. The declaration condemns the German Pentecostal movement which had started two years earlier in Kassel. It stated that the Pentecostal movement was “not from above, but from below”. The declaration specifically mentions Jonathan Paul as the movement's leader, but it is not clear that Jonathan Paul saw himself as such. The declaration was formally revoked by the Gnadauer Gemeinschaftsverbandes in a statement of January 2009. This move is seen a major step toward reconciliation between Pentecostals and non-Pentecostal churches in Germany.

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The Berlin declaration (German: Berliner Erklärung) was a theological statement by 56 leading Evangelic theologians in Germany.1 The declaration condemns the German Pentecostal movement which had started two years earlier in Kassel. It stated that the Pentecostal movement was “not from above, but from below”.2 The declaration specifically mentions Jonathan Paul as the movement's leader, but it is not clear that Jonathan Paul saw himself as such. The declaration was formally revoked by the Gnadauer Gemeinschaftsverbandes in a statement of January 2009.3 This move is seen a major step toward reconciliation between Pentecostals and non-Pentecostal churches in Germany.

References

References

  1. Allan Anderson, An introduction to Pentecostalism, page 89, Cambridge University Press, 2004
  2. Hocken, Peter D. (2002). "Berlin Declaration". In Stanley M. Burgess (ed.). The new international dictionary of Pentecostal and charismatic movements (Rev. and expanded ed.). Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan Pub. House. p. 371. ISBN 0310224810.
  3. This statement in German: "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-25. Retrieved 2011-10-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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