Pentecostalism Essay ⋆ Political Science Essay Examples ⋆ EssayEmpire

Pentecostalism describes a diverse group of Protestant Christians, distinguished theologically by a particular emphasis on the role of the Holy Spirit. Allan Anderson, in his Introduction to Pentecostalism, defines Pentecostal as “all churches and movements that emphasize the workings of the gifts of the spir it, both on phenomenological and on theological grounds” (13). Pentecostalism also frequently reflects local culture through adapting distinctive regional elements to its practice of Christianity. While some scholars suggest that Pentecostalism should be considered a third form of Protestantism distinct from the traditional division of mainline and evangelical, Pentecostalism is traditionally considered a subsection of Evangelicalism.

Two key factors can help distinguish Pentecostals from other Evangelicals. Most notably, for Pentecostals, spiritual authority and authentic experience as a Christian come from direct interaction with the Holy Spirit. Pentecostalism takes its name from the events of the Day of Pentecost recorded in the second chapter of Acts, which recounts that an outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the apostles allowed them to preach the gospel to a crowd in the native languages of the listeners.

In contemporary practice, signs of the presence of the Holy Spirit within an individual serve as evidence of faith. Practice from church to church varies widely. It may entail visible external signs of the Spirit, such as speaking in tongues, healing, ecstatic movement, and prophesy, or be demonstrated through prayer, meditation, and fasting. Further, Pentecostal theology tends to be developed through experience and personal revelation of the Spirit rather than being mediated through the interpretation of sacred texts. Rather than theological training, the blessing of the Holy Spirit is the most important quality of a Pentecostal leader. In terms of ecclesiastical organization, Pentecostal churches frequently exhibit great independence even when working within a denominational structure. In contrast to the majority of evangelical and mainline Protestant churches, which possess highly organized denominational structures and parachurch organizations, many Pentecostal churches have only tenuous, if any, links to a central governing body and largely operate independently. Rather than a denominational convention or synod, the independent megachurch is a hallmark of Pentecostal organization.

This loose organization results in significant differences between different Pentecostal denominations, in terms of both theology and practice. To the extent that a central authority structure exists in Pentecostal movements, this authority frequently relies on personality-driven leadership from a powerful individual or a small group of leaders. Particularly in the developing world, Pentecostal leaders often exercise tight control over their congregants, claiming sweeping authority from the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

Pentecostal Christianity is one of the fastest growing religions in much of the developing world, including Latin American, sub-Saharan Africa, and parts of Asia. In some areas of Africa, Pentecostal Christians likely form a majority, whereas in many other cases they comprise a strong minority of 10 to 25 percent of national population. Huge individual congregations are common; indeed, the largest Christian congregation in the world is currently a Pentecostal church in South Korea. Pentecostalism has also made relative gains in some parts of the developed world.

The interaction between Pentecostalism and politics is a complex relationship that depends greatly on both the dynamics of individual denominations and particular regional circumstances. Many Pentecostals embrace political activity, either through participating in faith-based political parties or by seeking to influence traditional political parties. However, such political participation is not a given. The American Foursquare Church, a large American denomination with significant ties to missionary-planted churches overseas, eschews political involvement on behalf of the church. There is no prohibition on political participation of individual members, but the church as a whole will not take political positions. Some large denominations in the developing world hold more radical positions, for example, the Brazilian Christian Congregation, which proscribes the political participation of members, but such a position places the denomination in a small minority of churches.

One factor that decisively shapes the form of political involvement of Pentecostals who desire such a role is the numerical and social strength of Pentecostals in a given country vis-à-vis other faith positions. In the developed world, Pentecostalism is rarely the dominant expression of Protestantism, and in areas where Pentecostalism is strong, its numbers are usually a small minority of the general population. Possibly due to this situation, it is often difficult to distinguish the political activities of Pentecostals from other evangelical groups with similar beliefs in developed nations.

In the developing world, the state of Pentecostal politics reflects the great variety in the status of Pentecostals from country to country. A variety of common political tactics include affiliating with traditional political parties, forming a Pentecostal political party, or creating parachurch political organizations.

Often, the great diversity of Pentecostal churches leads different groups of Pentecostals to compete politically within one country. Political structures and alliances frequently shift; for example, a party formed along Pentecostal religious lines may later ally with a major party, as in the case of the Camino Cristiano in Nicaragua, or a formally powerful parachurch political organization that brings together many different Pentecostals and other Evangelicals, such as Brazil’s Evangelical Association, may lose its influence. The importance of personality-driven leadership among Pentecostal religious leaders leaves the Pentecostal political landscape particularly susceptible to frequent change.

Class also plays an important role in shaping political involvement. The majority of Pentecostals in the developing world are members of the working class, and thus are often excluded from the top levels of leadership in traditional parties, which are frequently the domain of the elite (though important exceptions exist in traditional parties). However, in cases such as Guatemala and South Korea, where members of the elite or the upper-middle class have joined a Pentecostal movement in significant numbers, Pentecostal leaders have taken prominent positions within existing political parties.

The diversity of Pentecostalism has understandably spawned a variety of political goals. Pentecostal churches have a tendency to be conservative doctrinally, particularly by literally interpreting Christian scripture. This conservatism is often reflected in social goals such as strong opposition to abortion and homosexuality, positions that a majority of evangelical Protestants share. However, while conservative social norms are common, other political positions vary widely. For example, Nordic Protestant parties with a strong Pentecostal representation tend to favor a stronger welfare state and additional proenvironment policies, whereas prominent Pentecostals in the United States have called for limited government. Some Pentecostal leaders have worked with prodemocracy movements, as in South Korea, while in Guatemala, the Pentecostal elite closely identified with the authoritarian regimes of the 1980s.

Such a diversity of political practices and political goals suggests that understanding the politics of Pentecostalism requires a deep understanding of both the local milieu of a Pentecostal denomination and how it specifically believes its faith should interact with politics. Pentecostalism’s global growth suggests that the relationship between Pentecostalism and politics will continue to have great importance. The loose composition of Pentecostal churches and denominations, along with the wide range of models of political action and beliefs about the integration of faith and politics among Pentecostals, imply that this relationship will remain fraught with complexity.

Bibliography:

Anderson, Allan. An Introduction to Pentecostalism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004.
Cox, Harvey. Fire from Heaven. Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley, 1995.
Greene, Samuel R. “Explaining Illiberal Protestant Parties in the Developing World.” Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association, Toronto, Canada, September 3–6, 2009.
Freston, Paul. Evangelicals and Politics in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001.
Protestant Political Parties. Burlington,Vt.: Ashgate, 2004.
Jenkins, Philip. The Next Christendom. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002.

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