African Pentecostals In Catholic Europe

Over the past thirty years, Italy—the historic home of Catholicism—has become a significant destination for migrants from Nigeria and Ghana. Along with suitcases and dreams of a brighter future, these Africans bring their own form of Christianity, Pentecostalism, shaped by their various cultures and religious worlds. At the heart of Annalisa Butticci’s beautifully sculpted ethnography of African Pentecostalism in Italy is a paradox. Pentecostalism, traditionally one of the most Protestant of Christian faiths, is driven by the same concern as Catholicism: real presence. In Italy, Pentecostals face harsh anti-immigrant sentiment and limited access to economic and social resources. At times, they find safe spaces to worship in Catholic churches, where a fascinating encounter unfolds that is equal parts conflict and communion. When Pentecostals watch Catholics engage with sacramental objects—relics, statues, works of art—they recognize the signs of what they consider the idolatrous religions of their ancestors. Catholics, in turn, view Pentecostal practices as a mix of African religions and Christian traditions. Yet despite their apparently irreconcilable differences and conflicts, they both share a deeply sensuous and material way to make the divine visible and tangible. In this sense, Pentecostalism appears much closer to Catholicism than to mainstream Protestantism. African Pentecostals in Catholic Europe offers an intimate glimpse at what happens when the world’s two fastest growing Christian faiths come into contact, share worship space, and use analogous sacramental objects and images. And it explains how their seemingly antithetical practices and beliefs undergird a profound commonality.

Catholic Italy is a destination for migrants from Nigeria and Ghana, who bring their own form of Christianity—Pentecostalism, the most Protestant of Christian faiths. At the heart of Annalisa Butticci’s ethnography is a paradox. Believers on both sides are driven by a desire to find sensuous, material ways to make the divine visible and tangible.

Through fieldwork research, this book seeks to explore Catholic ecumenism and the proliferation of Pentecostalism. Using data gathered from four West African countries, it additionally endeavors to investigate the sociopolitical impact of Pentecostalism, which is growing exponentially and is seen by many as the new face and phase of Christianity on the continent. This book puts a search light on the reality of West African Pentecostalism and its relationship with the older Christian traditions. It cogently asks if Pentecostalism is a cog in the wheels of the fragile ecumenical work among West African Christianity and wonders about its impact on the poor existing social, economic, and political situations common to most West African politics and governments. This book is for professionals and students of religion and theology, and is useful for the casual reader.

Justification by faith: The Viewpoint of Most African Pentecostals The author has discussed the viewpoint of most African Pentecostal churches on the doctrine of Justification by faith in comparison with the theories of some selected twenty-first Theologians. What does the teachings of the Apostles James and Paul on justification actually means to the contemporary Christian? Were the two Apostles contradicting themselves or not? Should the believer of Jesus Christ continue to sin deliberately because of the grace of God? This is an Interesting Book and must be read.

An interconnected account of the progress of the Pentecostal and charismatic movements in Europe has long been needed but has never before been attempted because of the diversity of languages spoken across the continent. This book provides historical, theological and sociological perspectives on European Pentecostalism.

Through an ethnographic study of a Charismatic movement in Cameroon and Paris, the book explores the dialectics between ‘Pentecostalization’ and ‘Africanization’ within contemporary African Catholicism. It appears that both processes pursue, although for different purposes, the missionary policy of dismantling local cultures.

This “excellent study” of the Latino Pentecostal movement is “an important resource for understanding the future of Christianity in North America” (Choice). Every year an estimated 600,000 U.S. Latinos convert from Catholicism to Protestantism, a transformation spearheaded by the Pentecostal movement and Assemblies of God. Latino Assemblies of God leaders—and their 2,400 churches across the nation—represent a new and growing force in denominational, Evangelical, and presidential politics. In a deeply researched social and cultural history, Gastón Espinosa uncovers the roots and contemporary developments of this remarkable turn. Latino Pentecostals in America traces the Latino AG back more than a century, to the Azusa Street Revivals in Los Angeles and Apostolic Faith Revivals in Houston from 1906 to 1909. Espinosa describes the uphill struggles for indigenous leadership, racial equality, women in the ministry, social and political activism, and immigration reform. Their outspoken commitment to an active faith has led a new generation of leaders to combine the reconciling message of Billy Graham with the social transformation politics of Martin Luther King Jr. This eye-opening study explains why this group of working-class Latinos once called "the Silent Pentecostals" is silent no more. By giving voice to their untold story, Espinosa enriches our understanding of the diversity of Latino religion, Evangelicalism, and American culture.

There has been a recent shift in global Christianity from North to South. Christianity, particularly Pentecostalism, is growing day by day in the continents of Africa, Latin America and Asia whereas it is declining in the Western world. Africans are now bringing the Gospel back to Europe and other parts of the world. This reverse in missions has been a recent phenomenon and is the subject of this book. This book documents the history and contributions of European missions in Africa. It then chronicles the history and development of African Churches in Europe, focussing on the UK. It is passionately articulated that these Churches are certainly contributing positively to global and local Christianity. The historical development of Kingsway International Christian Centre (KICC) is documented to illustrate the impact African Churches are making in Europe. It is a book that is valuable to people interested in African Churches in the UK. “The presence of so many vigorous and committed black churches is one of the bright spots on the horizon of churches in the UK. This work is a pioneering contribution to understanding where these churches are coming from, how they understand their mission in and to the UK and how they are likely to shape the future of Christianity in these islands. It is very welcome.” Dr Nigel Wright, Principal of Spurgeon’s College, London “Rev Israel has produced a winning combination of research, history and practical theology with this wonderful piece. I believe it is essential reading for every leader who is serious about contemporary cross cultural ministry and mission in 21st century Britain.” Dr Jonathan Oloyede, Convener Global Day of Prayer, London