Diversity within Protestant Transnationalism: Differences in the Scope and Reach of Pentecostal/Charismatic and Evangeli
- PDF / 951,250 Bytes
- 23 Pages / 439.37 x 666.142 pts Page_size
- 57 Downloads / 179 Views
Diversity within Protestant Transnationalism: Differences in the Scope and Reach of Pentecostal/Charismatic and Evangelical Missions Jared Bok1 Received: 15 January 2020 / Accepted: 29 August 2020 © Religious Research Association, Inc. 2020
Abstract Background: A growing number of studies have begun to emphasize differences between Pentecostals and Charismatics (P/Cs), on the one hand, and Evangelicals, on the other. Yet few of these studies have considered differences in transnational missions. Purpose: This study explores the extent to which P/C and Evangelical organizations vary in their transnational outreach, both in terms of what they do and where they operate. Methods: To examine these differences, I explore data on transnational American Protestant mission agencies using descriptions of trends over time and time series logistic regressions. Results: Although both P/Cs and Evangelicals tend to be concerned with otherworldly soteriological issues, I find that P/Cs are even more likely to engage in otherworldly types of activities that allow for the propagation and proliferation of the Gospel, especially with respect to evangelism and the publication and distribution of Christian literature. In addition, although both P/C and Evangelical agencies gravitate towards countries where the percentage of Protestants is low, P/C agencies are comparatively less active in countries with the lowest percentages. However, there is little evidence of differences between P/C and Evangelical agencies’ ministries when it comes to countries’ varying levels of development. Conclusions and Implications: The study concludes with several implications. First, although many differences may be more salient when distinguishing Evangelicals and P/Cs together from other Protestant traditions, there are sufficient important variations between the two former traditions to warrant treating them as analytically distinct, at least with respect to their organized transnational activism. Second, at the same time, non-findings in the study also suggest that differences between Evangelicals and P/Cs are not as pronounced at the organizational as compared to the individual level. Finally, the study reflects on the limitations of the data with recommendations for further research. Keywords Pentecostalism · Charismatic movement · Evangelicalism · Transnationalism · Missions
Extended author information available on the last page of the article
13
Vol.:(0123456789)
Review of Religious Research
Introduction Despite scholarly awareness of diversity within Conservative/Evangelical Protestantism, research on the topic has often operationalized the concept as a unitary whole, in part due to the empirical utility of Steensland et al.’s (2000) taxonomy, which classifies American Protestantism into Evangelical, Mainline, and Black Protestant traditions. While distinctions between Evangelical and Mainline Protestants remain important, recent research on Pentecostals and Charismatics (henceforth referred to as P/Cs) has highlighted the importance
Data Loading...
