Rabbi David E. Ostrich, Congregation Brit Shalom
Clergy Column for The Centre Daily Times
Published October 4, 2026
Back in 1995, a local church in Pensacola, Florida had a revival. Revivals are fairly common in Evangelical Christianity, and this revival at the Brownsville Assembly of God seemed like it would be pretty typical: good preaching, great music, enthusiastic prayers. Many worshippers would feel God’s Spirit. However, this revival turned out to be extraordinary. It continued a second night, and then a third, and then a fourth. Pretty soon, it was running several nights a week—and for five years! Pilgrims came from all over the globe, and the town’s usual beach-tourism industry got a surprise burst of religious travelers. In the Pentecostal world, The Pensacola Outpouring was a seminal event. While God is everywhere, God seemed more present in Brownsville.
The excitement generated a lot of local conversations and newspaper stories. One story featured interviews with local pastors. Have you attended? What was it like? Are the miracles and healings real? Is God really there? Is this a legitimate and sincere religious event, or is it merely a commercial operation?
I was surprised when they called me for an interview. I am not an expert on Christianity and had not attended the revival. Yet, when asked about whether God was present, I found myself surprised at the question. Of course God is present! God is present everywhere—in every blade of grass and passing breeze. As it says in Deuteronomy (4.39), “Know therefore this day and keep it in mind that the Lord alone is God in heaven above and on earth below; there is nothing else.”
In other words, how could God not be at the revival? If God is everywhere, and, if those Pentecostals feel God’s Presence at the revival, why would anyone doubt them? When it says in Psalm 145, “The Lord is near to all who call, to all who call out with sincerity,” the Bible does not leave out anyone: “The Lord is near to all!”
To me, the more important question was about the effect of God’s Presence. Were the spiritual gifts—like speaking in tongues or being “slain” by the Spirit—merely a night’s entertainment? Or did an evening “In the Garden” have an effect on the way the worshippers lived their lives?
This was a potential problem for Moses who, while up on Mount Sinai, was as happy as a person could be. Close to the Lord and filled with Torah and holiness, his spirit was completely fulfilled. And yet, each session with God ended with the commandment to re-enter the world of humans and their problems. Spiritual time is wonderful, but what God wants us to take our spiritual enlightenment and bring it to bear in the world.
So, in the context of the Brownsville Revival, my question was not whether Gods’ Presence could be felt there. My question was how godly would the worshippers behave after they had “come down from the mountain?” Did they drive with politeness? Did they treat other people as they wished to be treated themselves? Were they kind, patient, loving, and charitable? Did they pay their child support and taxes on time? Did they take the question of WWJD (What would Jesus Do?) seriously?
Christianity is well-known for some very sophisticated religious thinking, but among the most profound observations I have ever heard came from Episcopal Bishop Charles F. Duval. He taught that one does not truly believe in Jesus unless he/she behaves in a Christ-like manner. Though Bishop Duval spoke in Christian terms, I believe that this principle is true for all religions. It is nice to declare our faith in God or to have a religious experience, but neither is complete unless we actually behave in godly ways.