Pentecost without Azusa: an historical and theological analysis of the Akorino Church in Kenya.

The address - 312 Azusa Street - is recognized as the locus for the creation of modern pentecostal movement. From there, the pentecostal message and experience spread world-wide through the agency of missionaries, sparking revivals that begun pentecostal churches. In Central Kenya, however, a "Pentecost" happened in the 1920s whose provenance and agency had no historical or theological connection with the Azusa Street revival. That "Pentecost without Azusa" gave rise to the Arathi movement which developed into what is now known as the Akorino Church, an African indigenous church in Kenya. This dissertation provides a historical and theological analysis of the Akorino Church, showing that although it is not connected historically or theologically to the Azusa Street revival, it exhibits beliefs and practices that are authentically penecostal and essentially African. It is characterized by emotional repentance of sins accompanied by loud prayers and weeping. It will be shown that central to that Pentecost is the doctrine of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, evidenced by speaking in tongues, dreams, visions and auditions, and a sustained healing ministry. That doctrine influences their interpretation of Christian theology, their understanding of the scriptures, their relations with the rest of the world, and their participation in the life of their society.