n
a member of any of the Protestant Pentecostal religious groups or Churches. They believe that illnesses can be healed by faith and in ‘baptism in the spirit’ in which a person ‘speaks in tongues’ with unknown words that come from the Holy Spirit. Pentecostalism began in the US at the beginning of the 20th century and now has support in other major Christian Churches. The largest Pentecostal Church in the US is the Church of God in Christ, with more than 5.5 million members.
► Pentecostalism n [ U ]
► Pentecostalist adj .