African Journal of Pentecostal Studies最新文献

{"title":"A critical view on the rising spate of Pentecostal churches in Port Harcourt, Rivers State","authors":"Peace N. Ngwoke","doi":"10.4102/ajops.v1i1.23","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/ajops.v1i1.23","url":null,"abstract":"Background: This study scrutinises the cult of personality cultivated by Pentecostal leaders, creating an atmosphere of unquestioning devotion conducive to financial exploitation. Promising miracles for money to create dependency and financial strain among vulnerable followers.Objectives: The aim of the study is to investigate the exploitation and commercialisation of the gospel as a contributing factor to the rising spate of Pentecostal churches in Nigeria, and propose remedial strategies.Method: The article employs the phenomenological methodology. Purposive sampling technique was used to interview five selected participants from Port Harcourt city in Rivers State. Information extracted from participants’ interviews, newspaper, documentaries, books and journal articles were reviewed and analysed using discourse analysis.Results: Findings show that the insidious methods employed by some Pentecostal leaders to amass wealth at the expense of their followers such as elaborate seed-sowing schemes to prophetic extortion, and commercialization of spirituality through the sale of anointing oils, miracle stickers, and exorbitant fees for ‘prayer sessions’ further underscores the exploitation rampant within certain Pentecostal circles.Conclusion: Ultimately, addressing the challenges require a collaborative effort from all stakeholders. Thus, the need for all stakeholders to join forces in fighting the phenomenon and working towards solutions that can uphold the integrity of religious practice, protect the welfare of believers, and ensure that Pentecostalism continues to be a force for positive change in Nigeria.Contribution: This study introduces novel insights by unravelling the manipulating and exploiting practices of some Pentecostal churches in Nigeria. ","PeriodicalId":516646,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Pentecostal Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141799448","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Experiences of divorced people in Pentecostal churches in Botswana","authors":"B. Moeti, Michael Gaotlhobogwe, Lebogang Moeti, T. Madigele","doi":"10.4102/ajops.v1i1.18","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/ajops.v1i1.18","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Cases of divorce are on the increase across societies and within the Pentecostal churches. Pentecostal church doctrine disapproves of divorce, and the people experience discrimination consequently. Despite the overall impact divorce has on the spiritual well-being of the victims, Pentecostal churches do not provide sufficient support to them.Objectives: The objectives of the study were to explore the lived experiences of divorced people in Pentecostal churches and the impact divorce had on their spiritual well-being.Method: A qualitative phenomenological design was utilised. The study recruited six divorced people, three pastors and 24 men and women from three Pentecostal churches. Purposive and snowball sampling were used to select the sample. A thematic content analysis was used to analyse data.Results: The study revealed four major effects that divorced people face such as psychological and emotional effects, social effects, spiritual effects and economic effects.Conclusion: The study’s findings unearthed the impact that divorce has on the divorcee’s spiritual well-being. Although the Bible disapproves of divorce, some research indicates that divorce may have positive outcomes in some instances, and therefore, it should not always be viewed negatively.Contribution: The findings of the study would possibly assist Pentecostal church leadership in coming up with effective interventions that can support divorced members in the church.","PeriodicalId":516646,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Pentecostal Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141811104","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Prophecy, Pentecostals and South Africa’s socio-economic inequality","authors":"Marius Nel","doi":"10.4102/ajops.v1i1.14","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/ajops.v1i1.14","url":null,"abstract":"Background: The article dissected white South African classical Pentecostals’ concept of prophecy in the context of widespread poverty and the resulting socio-economic inequality that characterises their society. As a rule, most white Pentecostals do not respond to the challenges of inequality and disparities by getting involved in assemblies in former apartheid-segregated ‘black’ communities that are characterised by widespread poverty. The legacy of apartheid’s separate neighbourhoods is still intact, implying that racial distinctions determine, to a great extent, who lives where. In addition to preaching practices, the congregational prophecies that occur among them also do not reflect these dire circumstances that characterise a majority of South Africans and play no role in arousing their social conscience.Objectives: The article aims to define Pentecostal prophecy against the context of South African socio-economic inequality.Method: A qualitative conversation with 43 white Apostolic Faith Mission of South Africa (AFM) pastors at the level of regional and national conferences during 2024 provides a view of white Pentecostals regarding the church’s handling of social inequality.Results: Most white Pentecostals in South Africa (SA) are aware of the social inequality that mars the separateness between formerly white and black neighbourhoods. However, the awareness has not infiltrated their spirituality to the extent that it is reflected in the prophetic practice.Conclusion: Most white South African Pentecostals still live in neighbourhoods separated from the squalid conditions of many black townships and ignore the structural, political, economic, and social issues that cause poverty. They interpret their prophetic task to exclude consideration of social ethics and structural challenges. What is needed is an urgent reconsideration of prophecy and its relevance for current socio-economic challenges.Contribution: The article was presented to awaken and stir up the consciences of white Pentecostals for the dire economic circumstances of most South Africans threatened by unemployment and poverty.","PeriodicalId":516646,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Pentecostal Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141645787","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A study of Matthew 20:20–28 in relation to Pentecostal churches leadership in Nigeria","authors":"Daniel C. Unachukwu","doi":"10.4102/ajops.v1i1.13","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/ajops.v1i1.13","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Matthew 20:20–28 contains Jesus’ teaching on a leadership model that is anchored on selflessness, love, and servanthood. Today, when this teaching is juxtaposed with some Pentecostal churches’ leadership situation in Nigeria, it is apparent that the opposite is the case. Some Pentecostal church leaders in Nigeria have demonstrated a leadership mentality that is focused on selfishness, materialism, and abuse of power.Objectives: The study provides a re-reading of Matthew 20:20–28 to reveal its implications for Pentecostal churches leadership in Nigeria.Method: This study is a qualitative research conducted through a triangulation of a historical-critical method and in-depth interview (IDI). The historical-critical approach was used to study the pericope, while IDI served as a means of data collection from respondents.Results: Matthew 20:20–28 paints a picture of servant leadership, which entails placing others above self, divine approval above human commendation, responsibility above position, contribution above recognition, and care above ownership.Conclusion: The pericope pierces deeply into the heart of the leadership problems in some Pentecostal churches in Nigeria, and calls for imitation of Jesus’ leadership model.Contribution: Drawing from the pericope, this study unfolds a biblical model of leadership that is crucial to lessening the current leadership problems in Pentecostal churches in Nigeria.","PeriodicalId":516646,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Pentecostal Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140993578","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Nyaa, ‘motlhanka wa Jehofa’! (Stop it, ‘man of God’!): An Ubuntu Pentecostal response to gender-based violence within the Neo-prophetic Movement in South Africa","authors":"Abraham Modisa Mkhondo Mzondi","doi":"10.4102/ajops.v1i1.11","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/ajops.v1i1.11","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Statistics from the Pew Research Centre indicate that in sub-Saharan Africa, 796 million out of 822 m people claim the same Christian religious affiliation. Pentecostal Christians total 107 m. These figures suggest that religion shapes the worldview of many sub-Saharan inhabitants. Many are adherents of Ubuntu, which does not dichotomise lived experiences from the influence of the spiritual (the Supreme Being, spirits, and the ancestors). On the one hand, the World Health Organization has labelled South Africa as the rape capital of the world because it accounts for the highest figure of gender-based violence (GBV) globally. Intimate partner violence (IPV) and non-partner violence, characterised by rape and attempted rape, constitute a significant portion of sexual violence, which is the primary and highest category of GBV in South Africa. The second, third, and fourth categories are physical violence, socio-economic and financial violence, and psychological/emotional violence. Various South African courts have sentenced several pastors from the Neo-prophetic Movement (NPM) for non-partner violence.Objectives: The aim of this study is to reflect on non-partner violence within the NPM in South Africa and to respond to this scourge by applying Ubuntu Pentecostalism as a framework.Method: This article thus poses the question: How might South African Pentecostals address the scourge of non-partner violence within the NPM? It, thus, uses Ubuntu Pentecostalism.Results: The article shows that is that is possible to mobilise members of NPM and the surrounding community to counteract the scourge of non-partner violence among NPM in South Africa.Conclusion: The article concludes by providing a four-step strategy to curb th scourge of non-partner violence in the NPM in South Africa.Contribution: This strategy contributes to curbing the scourge of non-partner violence within the NPM in South Africa.","PeriodicalId":516646,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Pentecostal Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-05-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141015913","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Gender-based violence perpetrated against migrant women during lockdowns: A pastoral care challenge","authors":"Nomathemba N. Msipa, M. Masango","doi":"10.4102/ajops.v1i1.4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/ajops.v1i1.4","url":null,"abstract":"Background: The article unpacks the complexities of gender-based violence (GBV) against illegal migrant women during lockdowns and contributes to the broader discourse on gender equality, human rights and social justice within the Pentecostal or Charismatic pastoral praxis. The geographical demography was a semi-formal area located between South Africa’s Gauteng and Northwest provinces. The period for the inquiry was South Africa’s coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) induced lockdowns that began on 27 March 2020 until 05 April 2022.Objectives: The study aimed to shed light on the unique challenges faced by this vulnerable population, exploring the intersectionality of their undocumented status, gender and the socio-economic impacts of restrictive measures and the challenges to pastorally care for them.Method: The qualitative approach and case study were used to select two sets of participants; 13 illegal Zimbabwean Migrant Women (ZMW) and 3 Pentecostal or Charismatic clergy.Results: There was a disturbing prevalence of GBV incidents, ranging from physical, sexual to psychological abuse. The illegal status of migrant women exacerbated their vulnerability and reluctance to seek help due to fear of deportation and societal stigmatisation. The lockdown-induced economic strain further compounded their susceptibility to GBV.Conclusion: There was nonexistent pastoral care policy or praxis within the Pentecostal or Charismatic church for illegal ZMW who were victims of GBV during the lockdowns. These themes emerged: (1) high incidents of GBV perpetrated against illegal ZMW during lockdowns; (2) barriers to seeking pastoral care were lack of trust, migration status, fear of deportation, fear of infection and (3) no physical virtual pastoral care.Contribution: This article is embedded in the Pentecostal or Charismatic practice of care; postmodern, using the interpretive narrative framework to highlight the narratives of illegal Zimbabwean Migrant Women (ZMW) who were victims of gender-based violence (GBV) during South Africa’s COVID-19 lockdowns and the challenges of pastorally caring for them.","PeriodicalId":516646,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Pentecostal Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-04-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140664637","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A new baby is born!","authors":"K. T. Resane","doi":"10.4102/ajops.v1i1.2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4102/ajops.v1i1.2","url":null,"abstract":"No abstract available.","PeriodicalId":516646,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Pentecostal Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-01-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139640555","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}