Pentecostalism and Politics in Africa by Unknown

Author:Unknown
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9783319749112
Publisher: Springer International Publishing

“Exceedingly Rich in Christ”: African Pentecostalism and Class

Socioeconomic class describes the differential levels or distribution of material possession, wealth, power, prestige, respect, and authority in a society. This difference often influences access to other socially valued goods such as education, leisure, and healthcare. Generally, variations in resources and outcomes constitute the basis for socioeconomic inequality and differences in class status.44 As a grassroots movement, Pentecostalism was in at the inception of class conscious. Its message of empowerment through the superior working of the Holy Spirit on the bodies of poor and marginalized persons found traction and relevance among the lower or working economic classes. While there are many factors that make Pentecostalism attractive to a variety of social groups, it is particularly appealing to the poor whose faith “helps them endure the harshness of life [and] provides them with a sense of power and purpose. The power of the Holy Spirit gives them the ability to bind demons, to heal the sick, to live at peace with their neighbors, and when necessary to stand up for their rights.”45

The power of the invisible Holy Spirit to transform and elevate the human body through speaking in tongues (a form of spirit possession), healing, or generating a new person, is a pivotal feature of Pentecostal Christianity. Among those who claimed to possess this power, a new social cleavage—in other words, class—of ostensibly pure, saved, and spiritually enriched believers emerged. Since the protection and furtherance of economic interest is central to class formation and consciousness, by interacting with capitalist and neoliberal practices Pentecostalism soon developed a class of entrepreneurs of the Spirit, a special group of men and women experienced in the production and distribution of the power of the Spirit and the goods of salvation. The emergence of this new and empowered spiritual class of believers challenged the socioeconomic status quo, sometimes necessitating the mobilization of media, or even legal, instruments to constrain their actions and practices. The history of Pentecostalism and the transformation of practices and organizations demonstrate the power and attraction of a new source of wealth, prestige, control, and capacity to exercise authority over human and non-human resources. This is most evident in the emergence and popularity of so-called prosperity Pentecostalism.

An important, although neglected, aspect of the study of African Pentecostalism is the emergence of an elite Pentecostal class who articulate and defend a common economic interest. As Pentecostalism emerged from the shadow of its pioneers and transformed into a public religion of great social, commercial, and global consequence, its “class structure” has become more discernible. The Pentecostal big wo/man is a member of that elite group of producers who structure their organization according to a neoliberal culture driven by the profit motive. For many reasons this Pentecostal class has escaped analysis, until recently. The association of the study of class to Marxist theory and the collapse of the Soviet Union in the late 1980s partly accounts for this neglect.46 Furthermore, the largely unsubstantiated assumption that there is a democratization

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