Pentecostals place much emphasis on the spirit and the moving of the spirit in an individual's life. Yet at the same time, individuals of the faith are products of their socieities as well as their religion. This panel looks at the tension between Pentecostal beliefs in the spiritual and their regional or national identities.
The shift of world Christianity towards the Global South and its rising significance in Asia introduces the “Global East” concept, highlighting Asia’s key role and encouraging comparisons with Africa. This underscores striking connections and differences between these two regions, particularly within the context of global Pentecostalism. Pentecostalism greatly contributes to the rise of indigenous churches in non-Western World, notably AICs and China’s Three-self Movement, due to its proximity to local traditions. However, its American-dominated narrative often fails to fully capture the essence of indigenous movements, leading to a paradoxical relationship of both convergence and divergence. Therefore, a Pneuma-centric reconceptualization of Christian identity is essential in the Global South and East, going beyond traditional Pentecostalism towards a unique, non-western spirituality found in Africa’s “Spiritual Churches” and Asia’s “spiritual Christians.” This approach, emphasizing Spirit-centered practices and local expressions, seeks authentic Christianity that reflects global diversity and continues the apostolic age’s legacy.
Described as the “common cold” of mental health problems, depression is a burgeoning issue in the United States. Although depression is commonly pathologized as a biochemical, clinical disorder, there are claims that personal, social, and cultural contexts shape depression and that it is the contemporary society that makes people depressed. However, there is little research exploring how the Pentecostal social context might contribute to or shape Pentecostals’ experiences of depression. This dissertation contributes to this research gap. It uses Grounded Theory to facilitate an interpretative interaction between the researcher and the data to answer the research question of how Pentecostals living in the United States experience, understand, and respond to depression. The emergent theory helps explain the participants’ depression experiences and the meaning they created around those experiences while also exploring how their meanings and actions are embedded and shaped within larger social constructs.
| Daniel Ramirez | daniel.ramirez@cgu.edu | View |