The Attenuation of Female Empowerment among Three Pentecostal-Charismatic Chinese Churches in Malaysia and Singapore

Abstract

Among all branches of Christianity, female empowerment has been valorized in Pentecostalism. However, questions remain regarding the extent of empowerment in its egalitarian ethos. This article examines some historical and sociological aspects of pentecostal-charismatic female power and leadership among three Chinese majority churches in Malaysia and Singapore. It does so by a participant-observation methodology of these churches and in-depth interviews of church and lay leaders to enquire into the degree in which women are (dis)empowered for ministry. It concludes that specific practices and traits of Pentecostalism such as the charismata, prayer and worship, and church female leadership are configured in response to contextual sociocultural influences to produce a Christian/pentecostal woman that is both modern yet distinctly Chinese but attenuated within a Confucian family logic.