Protestants and Pentecostals in Latin America (1900–Present)

Author(s):  
David W. Kling

The growth of evangelicalism in Latin America, largely of the Pentecostal type, is a recent phenomenon. After half a century of relative dormancy, Pentecostalism exploded during the last three decades of the twentieth century, reshaping the Latin American religious landscape that for nearly four centuries had been monopolized by the Catholic Church. This chapter explores the origins and growth of Pentecostalism in Latin America, first in its Protestant expression, then in its spread within the Catholic Church. Basic to both is the necessity of a conversion experience followed by a receptivity to the transformative work of the Holy Spirit. As a movement and religious phenomenon, the impact of Pentecostalism has been enormous. Particular attention is given to theoretical models proposed to explain Pentecostal conversions.

Worldview ◽  
1979 ◽  
Vol 22 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 13-15
Author(s):  
Renato Poblete

The Third General Assembly of the Latin American Episcopate took place last February in the Mexican city of Puebla. Without doubt it will make a profound impact upon the evangelizing action of the Church in Latin America. The documents produced at Puebla, like those produced in Medellin ten years earlier, will give rise to reflections that will find their way into the diverse pastoral plans of each nation.Neither Medellin nor Puebla can be considered isolated phenomenon. On the contrary, each should be seen as fruits of a maturing process in which Christian people, together with their pastors, express both the depths of their anguish and their high hopes and visions. That vision encompasses raising people from subhuman situations to a fuller experience of human life. Such experience should be expected to bring people together in brotherly love and lead naturally to a greater openness to God.


Author(s):  
John F. Schwaller

The Catholic Church was one of the most important institutions of colonial Latin America; yet, it is poorly understood by many scholars. This chapter outlines the important features of the Catholic Church both from the point of view of institutional structure and the impact of these on the society at large. While generally considered a monolithic institution, the Church consisted of many disparate and often competing units. The clergy itself was divided between those who were members of religious orders and communities and those who were directly under the administrative control of bishops and archbishops. The Church also touched the life of nearly every resident of the colonies, from baptism until death. The Church also had an important impact on the finances of the colonies. In short, this study looks at the broad scope of the actions and activities of the Catholic Church in colonial Latin America.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madelyn Evans

Since the earliest days of colonization, religion – in particular, the Roman Catholic Church – has been a driving force in the Latin American politics, economics, and society. As the region underwent frequent political instability and high levels of violence, the Church remained a steady, powerful force in society. This paper will explore the relationship between the Catholic Church and the struggle to defend human rights during the particularly oppressive era of bureaucratic-authoritarianism in Latin America throughout the 1960s–1980s. This paper seeks to demonstrate that the Church undertook the struggle to protect human rights because its modernized social mission sought to support the oppressed suffering from the political, economic, and social status quo. In challenging the legitimacy of the ruling national security ideology and illuminating the moral dimensions of violence, the Catholic Church became a crucial constructive agent in spurring social change, mitigating the effects of violence, and setting a democratic framework for the future.


1964 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 307-318
Author(s):  
Fredrick B. Pike

Throughout Latin America the Catholic Church has embarked upon a process of modernization. The key element in modernization has been the assumption of an active role in the quest for economic betterment of the conditions in which a majority of the population lives. Realizing that a modern nation is an integrated nation, the Church seems to have adopted as its motto: A Modem Church in a Modern Nation. Consequently, it has begun to help Latin American republics become nations through the integration of previously excluded groups into society.


2012 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 35-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rodney Stark ◽  
Buster G. Smith

AbstractReliable data on Protestant and Catholic membership in 18 Latin American nations show that Protestants have recruited a larger percentage of the population in many nations than previously estimated. Analysis of these data shows that, as predicted by the theory of religious economies, the Catholic Church has been invigorated by the Protestant challenge: Catholic mass attendance has risen to unprecedented levels, and is highest in nations where Protestants have made the greatest gains.


1987 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 33-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel Escobar

Not enough attention has been paid to the impact of Catholic North American and European missionary work on the contemporary state of Christianity in Latin America. Another important aspect of recent missionary history is the effect of the Protestant missionary presence in Latin America on the Catholic Church there. This article makes an initial exploration into these processes, examining especially how Latin-American Catholicism is experiencing a change in three areas: a self-critical redefinition of the meaning of being a Christian, a fresh understanding of the Christian message in which the Bible plays a vital role, and a change of pastoral methodologies more relevant to the situation of the continent.


1961 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 559-569
Author(s):  
Edwin Lieuwen

“A new Latin America is rapidly emerging” — this has been the message of many Hispanic-American social scientists. The traditional order, under which a landed aristocracy, a praetorian military caste, and a Catholic church hierarchy monopolized power, wealth, prestige, and influence, is crumbling. Society is in a state of upheaval; politics is being revolutionized; the economy is undergoing a fundamental transformation; new institutional forms are reshaping the environment.The extent and intensity of change among the various Latin-American countries has been uneven. At one extreme is Mexico whose “new look” strikes nearly all contemporary observers. Meanwhile, neighboring Nicaragua still lives in the nineteenth century. Despite their distinct identities, however, all the Latin-American states have felt the impact of fundamental shifts in the recent world environment.


Author(s):  
Felix Wilfred

Small Catholic communities in Central Asia drew world attention from the visit of Pope John Paul II to Kazakhstan in 2001. Russian Orthodoxy has been the dominant Christian tradition in the region, and has enjoyed state support. Evangelical, Charismatic and Pentecostal groups have done much proselytising, to the chagrin of the Russian Orthodox Church. South Asian Catholicism has experienced much conflict, lately around and between the Oriental and Latin traditions, ethnic strife being among them, leading to a concession of double jurisdiction in some parts. While the clergy plays an important role in the overall management of the Catholic Church, criticism has come from the Dalits who fight for acceptance as equals. The early twenty-first century has seen the adaptation of many Pentecostal forms of worship. Modern South Asian Catholic theology stresses the universal presence of the Holy Spirit in peoples of other religious traditions, and inspiration of sacred texts of other religions. Conversion has been banned in some Indian states, increasing state control over the activities of the Catholic Church, including the flow of foreign funds. Institutions of the official Church might come under government control and censure, making their operation more difficult.


Author(s):  
John L. Allen

The Catholic Church makes some pretty exalted claims for itself. Over the centuries, the Church has described itself variously as the “Mystical Body” of Jesus Christ, the “Spotless Bride” of the Son of God, and the “Temple of the Holy Spirit,” the only path to...


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