The Pentecostal Ethic and the Spirit of Development

Freeman, Dena

doi:10.1057/9781137017253.0005

Cited by 13 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…Research indicates that Pentecostalism is increasingly reaching the middle class and stipulates that the characteristics of Pentecostalism itself (e.g. ethics of hard work) contribute to this upward social mobility (Berger, 2010;Freeman, 2012). Yet, given that the movement fits poorly with middle class culture, an affiliation with the movement can damage the acceptance in middle class networks and thereby limit the upward mobility.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

From the ‘What’ and ‘How’ to the ‘Where’: Class Distinction as a Matter of Place

Köhrsen

2019

Cultural Sociology

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Research on the symbolic boundary work of upper-and middle-class actors has placed a greater emphasis on the "what" and "how" of cultural consumption than on the "where". However, the spaces where actors move are important: the "what" and "how" of marking distinction vary according to national class cultures and cultural fields. This article focusses on the "where" arguing that interaction settings shape actors' boundary work. Based upon research on Argentinean Pentecostalism, the study shows that middle-class Pentecostals switch between distinction-marking and "omnivore" performances of Pentecostalism depending on the social permeability of the spaces where they move. These insights suggest that the contextual conditions in which actors present themselves as "omnivores" or "snobs" deserve more attention.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

From the ‘What’ and ‘How’ to the ‘Where’: Class Distinction as a Matter of Place

Köhrsen

2019

Cultural Sociology

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“…5 Tithes are therefore transfers yielding multiple kinds of returns: tangible public goods that materialize over the long term and benefit a broader collective in the form of infrastructure or welfare contributions; spiritual returns in the afterlife; and immediate surprise rewards and divine interventions interpreted as the miraculous work of God. Bringing together both the developmental and spiritual effects of tithes as monetary transfers, both Freeman (2012a) and Piot (2012) suggest that paying tithes can perhaps be considered a 'new form' of taxation in African contexts, where "churches, rather than governments, provide most social services" (Freeman 2012a: 15). While this is a compelling argument, the object of inquiry may be more productively formulated as follows: how do people mobilize the comparison between taxes and tithes to express concerns and aspirations for the delivery of public goods and just politics of redistribution?…”

Section: Charismatic Pentecostal Churches As Models Of Raising Publicmentioning

confidence: 99%

God's Delivery State

Kauppinen

2020

Social Analysis

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Middle-class Christians in Ghana’s capital Accra voice ambivalence about paying taxes: some claim that the government wastes their hard-earned money, while others consider taxes a Christian duty enshrined in the scripture. By contrast, most Christians in Accra esteem tithes to churches as contributions that yield infrastructural ‘development’ and divine favor. Drawing on the explicit comparisons that Ghanaian Christians make between the benefits of paying taxes vis-à-vis paying tithes, this article argues that taxes exist as part of a wider conceptual universe of monetary transfers. The efficacy of such transfers is evaluated in relation to what I call a ‘rightful return’. The unveiling of tithes as the counterpoint to taxes ultimately elicits an emergent Ghanaian conception of the public good between the state and God’s Kingdom.

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“…111 Dena Freeman points out that Protestantism developed in Europe against a backdrop of Catholicism which promoted an ascetic ideal, but in Africa, it is developing against an ATR background which emphasises sacrifices and offerings to receive blessings. 112 272 Court • STJ 2020, Vol 6, No 1, 249-282 misfortune. Mbiti notes that endurance is a valued trait and something which Akamba children are encouraged to display by bravely bearing the pain of puberty rites.…”

Section: Theme 3: Offering and Sacrificementioning

confidence: 99%

“…136 Some have pointed to the practice of making offerings for prosperity as a resonant feature contributing to PT acceptance. 137 And many note the role of suffering and eschatology in the growth of PT in Africa. 138 What others have hinted at is confirmed by our synthesis of the case study of Oyakhilome and Mbiti's presentation of ATR.…”

Section: Theme 5: Eschatologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Prosperity Theology and African Traditional Religion

Court

2020

STJ

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Studies of Prosperity Theology in Africa have increased as research into Pentecostalism has burgeoned, but few theological analyses have explored the significance of African Traditional Religions and their role in shaping Prosperity Theology. While some studies have explored the resonance of Prosperity Theology and African Traditional Religions, they tend to do so briefly, or with a focus on sociology rather than theology. Through a case study of Nigerian Pastor Chris Oyakhilome, this research tests the thesis that many have intuited: Prosperity Theology resonates with traditional African religion, and these resonances contribute to an explanation of the expression and proliferation of Prosperity Theology in Africa. Evaluating the resonance of Oyakhilome’s teaching with African Traditional Religions (relying especially on John S. Mbiti’s work) demonstrates that Oyakhilome’s emphasis on accessing blessing, spiritual enemies, and activating power draws heavily on the resources of the typical African religious worldview.

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The Pentecostal Ethic and the Spirit of Development

Cited by 13 publications

References 21 publications

From the ‘What’ and ‘How’ to the ‘Where’: Class Distinction as a Matter of Place

From the ‘What’ and ‘How’ to the ‘Where’: Class Distinction as a Matter of Place

God's Delivery State

Prosperity Theology and African Traditional Religion

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