BENNETT, Dennis (1917–1991), pioneer of the charismatic movement in American Protestantism, made national headlines in 1960 when he claimed to his Episcopalian congregation that he had received the spiritual experience of speaking in tongues. Moving to another parish, Bennett found himself becoming the chief spokesperson for a growing number of Protestants who were no longer willing to hide experiences that they identified as the gifts, signs and wonders of the Holy Spirit. These adherents, who were found in every Protestant denomination, formed the nucleus of the rapidly expanding charismatic movement.
Bennett was born in England on 28 October 1917 and emigrated to the United States in 1927. After earning an undergraduate degree at San Jose State University, he began theological training and graduated with a Master's degree at the University of Chicago. Ordained as a Congregational minister in 1949, Bennett served as a pastor in San Diego, California, during 1949–1950. He joined the Episcopal Church in 1951, and moved to Lancaster, California. Bennett was ordained a deacon in February 1952 and an Episcopalian priest in October 1952. He became rector of St Mark's in Van Nuys, California, in 1953.
While at St Mark's, Bennett and his wife Elberta came under the influence of certain people who claimed to have received the baptism of the Holy Spirit, evidenced by their speaking in unknown tongues. Having had the same experience, the Bennetts found fresh vitality in their Christian lives. They were motivated to share their experience with others in their congregation, and a sizeable number of members claimed to be baptized in the Spirit. As the news spread, an opposition group was formed of members embarrassed by such 'enthusiasms', who sought to suppress their expression within the church.
On 3 April 1960, in the early Sunday service, Bennett felt compelled to announce publicly to his congregation that he had spoken in tongues and had encouraged others to seek this experience. Opposition was so vocal that he made the decision to resign as rector in the eleven o'clock service that day. Strange tongues among Episcopalians proved to be newsworthy. Bennett became a national figure almost overnight as Newsweek, Time and other major news publications carried his story. Yet his future as a minister was momentarily in jeopardy.Bennett's supervising bishop looked upon his case sympathetically. He was willing to protect Bennett's ministerial status within the Episcopalian Church, without forcing him to retract his testimony. He assigned Bennett to a new appointment as rector of a small, struggling parish near Seattle, Washington. St Luke's Episcopal Church was a congregation in desperate straits, on the brink of financial collapse. The congregation welcomed the 'notorious' Dennis Bennett as their new rector, knowing that he would be bringing with him his message of Spirit baptism. Bennett's first service at St Luke's was on 15 July 1960.
Dennis Bennett and St Luke's proved to be an ideal match. The congregation offered him acceptance and support and did not resist his vision of spiritual renewal. The majority of the church embraced the distinctive charismatic experience, and in turn ministered to the many seekers who made their way to St Luke's. Bennett had unexpectedly touched a central nerve in the Christian conscience of America; thousands of Protestants found the courage to declare openly that they had received Spirit baptism. Bennett emerged as the national spokesperson, and St Luke's the centre of attention and activity of a new movement. The charismatic movement, also known as the renewal movement, gained adherents not only from Episcopalianism, but from every Protestant denomination. St Luke's, now given a challenging new role as the centre of charismatic renewal, experienced a dramatic reversal of fortunes. Within twelve years of Bennett's arrival, it had become one of the most prosperous and dynamic Episcopal churches in the northwest.
Bennett soon found himself in demand as a speaker. Groups from both within and outside Episcopalianism wanted to hear his story. As early as 1961 he sensed a call to travel and share his message. Entering into a new era of growth and hope, St Luke's was willing to share the services of their pastor as a part of their mission of outreach. Yet in the midst of exciting ministry that was helping to promote an emerging Protestant renewal movement, tragedy struck the Bennett household. Bennett's faithful companion, Elberta, succumbed to cancer in 1963. She left behind three children as well as her husband.
Bennett poured himself into ministry, travelling extensively throughout the United States and abroad. In 1966 he married Rita Reed, who joined him at St Luke's. Rita's previous ministry experience was well suited to Bennett's role as a speaker. Their communication styles complemented each other, and they increasingly ministered together, both as speakers and as writers. In 1968 they formed the Christian Renewal Association, and after Bennett's retirement from the rectorship of St Luke's in 1981 they devoted themselves to it full time for the next ten years, conducting conferences and seminars and writing books and articles as the charismatic movement continued to thrive.
Bennett's most compelling book proved to be Nine O'clock in the Morning. Rita collaborated with him in the writing of The Holy Spirit and You (1971), an immensely popular book. She has also written her own books. Their ministry together ended on 1 November 1991, when Bennett died. Rita maintains the ministry of Christian Renewal Association, serving as president. She has defined the organization's mission: 'to bring emotional, spiritual and physical wholeness to those in need'. Her two most recent books, You Can Be Emotionally Free and To Heaven and Back, have been major bestsellers.
Bibliography
D. Bennett, Nine O'Clock in the Morning (Plainfield: Logos International, 1970); D. and R. Bennett, The Holy Spirit and You (Plainfield: Logos International, 1971); D. and R. Bennett, Trinity of Man (Plainfield: Logos International, 1979).
D. W. Dorries
About Biographical Dictionary of Evangelicals
The Biographical Dictionary of Evangelicals contains biographies of more than four hundred prominent evangelicals and evangelical forebears. Each of these figures has significantly influenced the evangelical community: to learn about them is better to understand the history and present nature of that community.
The volume ranges chronologically from the morning star of the Reformation, John Wyclif, to important shapers of twentieth-century evangelicalism such as John Stott. The greatest Reformers, Puritans and Pietists appear alongside the leaders of the eighteenth-century evangelical revival and many of their diverse successors, Ministers and theologians, evangelists and preachers, writers and missionaries, and some from other professions comprise a gallery of notables from the English-speaking evangelical world. Comprehensive and accessible articles combine rigorous historical scholarship with profound human interest.
The Dictionary, by an international team of contributors including some of the greatest contemporary scholars of evangelicalism, will serve as an invaluable reference tool for students, scholars, ministers and anyone interested in the history of this fascinating movement.
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Copyright 2003 Inter-Varsity Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher or the Copyright Licensing Agency.
Unless otherwise stated, Scripture quotations in this publication are from the Holy Bible, New International Version, Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton, a division of Hodder Headline Ltd. All rights reserved. 'NIV' is a registered trademark of International Bible Society. UK trademark number 1448790.
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