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06503
October 6, 2006
Pentecostals have a major influence on life globally, U.S. survey finds
by Chris Herlinger
Ecumenical News International
NEW YORK — A stereotype of Pentecostals and charismatic Christians as apolitical and retreating from social concerns is not valid, with sizeable numbers of those surveyed in the Unites States asserting the right of religious groups to express political views.
The study by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, a Washington-based research group, matches other studies and anecdotal evidence that Pentecostals and charismatic Christians are having a major influence on religious life globally.
”This survey demonstrates that Pentecostal beliefs and practices are literally reshaping the face of Christianity throughout the developing world,” Luis Lugo, Pew Forum director said in announcing the study on Oct. 5.
In a conference with U.S. journalists, Lugo said that for its adherents, Pentecostalism “is delivering” in part because of its stress on an “intimate and joyous relationship with God,” and its ability to adapt to local cultures, particularly those that have strong beliefs in the “spirit world.” He noted, “This is a group of folks for whom the world of spirits is very much alive.”
Pentecostals have generally not been seen as active politically in the United States as have evangelical Christians, a major political voice in the U.S. for some 30 years.
Still, in nine of 10 countries surveyed, at least half of Pentecostals and charismatic Christians said religious groups should express their views on social and political questions. The figures were even higher for Pentecostals in the United States, with 79 per cent saying such groups should do so — more than the 61 per cent of the U.S. public as a whole.
John Green, a Pew Forum senior fellow in religion and American politics said: “Pentecostals were once thought of as non-political, at least in the United States. That doesn’t seem to be the case anymore.”
Aside from the United States, the Pew survey was conducted in Brazil, Chile, Guatemala, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, India, the Philippines and South Korea.
The survey found that Pentecostal communities are mostly theologically conservative, though their views often parallel the social views of their wider national communities. |
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