Pentecostalism, Globalisation and Society in Contemporary Argentina, 2013
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PENTECOSTALISM, GLOBALISATION AND SOCIETY IN CONTEMPORARY GLOBALISATION PENTECOSTALISM, Pen In Argentina, Pentecostalism had a breakthrough in the early 1980s, and today more than 10 per cent of the population are Pentecostals. The revival coincided with a socio-political transformation of Argentinean society. After half a century of dictatorships and Perónism, democracy was restored, and structural changes paved te the way for a certain “autonomisation” of politics, economy, science and religion. The “new” form of society that developed resembles what in this study is called a Western model, which to a large degree is currently being diffused on a global scale. This work examines cos the new religious sphere and how Pentecostals relate to society at large, and the political and judicial sphere in particular. tal ARGENTINA ism Globalisation and Society in HANS GEIR AASMUNDSEN Contemporary Argentina Hans Geir Aasmundsen Södertörns högskola S-141 89 Huddinge www.sh.se/publications [email protected] Pen te cos tal ism, Globalisation and Society in Contemporary Argentina Hans Geir Aasmundsen Södertörn University Södertörns högskola SE-141 89 Huddinge www.sh.se/publications Cover Design: Jonathan Robson Layout: Per Lindblom & Jonathan Robson Printed by Elanders, Stockholm 2013 Södertörn Doctoral Dissertations 85 ISSN 1652-7399 ISBN 978-91-86069-76-6 (tryck) ISBN 978-91-86069-77-3 (digital) Department of Literature, History of Ideas, and Religion University of Gothenburg 36 ISSN 1102-9773 Abstract In Argentina, Pentecostalism had a breakthrough in the early 1980s, and today more than 10 per cent of the population are Pentecostals. The revival coincided with a socio-political transformation of Argentinean society. After half a century of dictatorships and Perónism, democracy was restored, and structural changes paved the way for a certain “autonomisation” of politics, law, economy, science and religion. The "new" form of society that developed resembles what in this study is called a Western model, which to a large degree is currently being diffused on a global scale. This work exam- ines the new religious sphere and how Pentecostals relate to society at large, and the political and judicial sphere in particular. Social systems theory and an idea of communication as constitutive of social spheres, such as religious, political and judicial ones, form the theo- retical foundation for the study. Methods that have been used are fieldwork, interviews and analyses of written material. It is concluded that evangelisa- tion and transformation are of major concern to Pentecostals in contempo- rary Argentina and that this follows a global trend. Evangelisation has al- ways been important to, even a hallmark of, Pentecostalism. What has be- come as important is the urge for transformation, of the individual, the family and society. This leads to increased socio-political engagement. However, Pentecostals do not have a “fixed” idea of how society should be organised, i.e., they do not yet have a full-fledged political theology, a public theology or what could be called a Pentecostal ideology. This is mainly be- cause they experience a lack of “compatibility” between the Pentecostal and the political communication. Their approaches to socio-political concerns seem to be based on an understanding of certain “values” as the fundamen- tal building block of society. Keywords: Argentina, globalisation, Pentecostalism, society, politics, evangelisation, religious freedom, equality. Contents Preface 7 Abbreviations 9 Introduction 11 1. Historical background 31 2. Theoretical framework 55 3. From negative to positive dualism 105 4. The struggle for religious freedom and equality 129 5. Pentecostalism and politics 173 6. Conclusions and final remarks 209 References 221 Preface In the autumn of 1997, I followed Anne, my wife, to Seville, Spain, where she was going to be an exchange student at the University of Fine Arts. I for my part had no particular plan for the stay, apart from touring the city on a daily basis, visiting cafés and walking in the gardens of Alcázar, a former Moorish fort and now a royal palace. I had, of course, brought along some books, among which was Religion and Globalization by Peter Beyer. That book became a turning point for my interest in the Study of Religions. Beyer discussed religion, globalisation and politics, topics which I had al- ways wanted to work on myself. When I returned to Bergen, Norway, I went to the Department for Religious Studies, where I luckily met one per- son who shared these interests, Håkan Rydving. His enthusiasm and sincere openness to my ideas and projects, in addition to the fact that he had started a course on religion and politics, were crucial to my, as well as many other students', academic progress. It was in this course that I first learned about Latin American Pentecostalism, its growth and recent impact on the conti- nent. So, there was a “new” religious movement on a (for me) “new” conti- nent, providing an excellent opportunity for field work! I soon learned that Argentina was a country rarely mentioned in books and articles about the Pentecostal growth in Latin America, and I started out with the following questions: Why are there so few Pentecostals there? Is it because the culture or society or religion of Argentina are different; and, by the way, how many Pentecostals are there anyway, and what are they up to? With these ques- tions in mind, I started to write a master thesis (hovedoppgave) on Pente- costalism in Argentina and went on my first field trip in 2001. As this Ph.D. thesis will reveal, my “imagined ethnography”, my ideas about Argentina, Pentecostalism and globalisation have changed a great deal since that time. Argentina is, in my view, still different from other countries in Latin Amer- ica, but also “similar” in many respects. Moreover, Pentecostalism was a far larger movement than I thought, and globalisation was, and is, far more 7 PENTECOSTALISM AND GLOBALISATION complex and diverse than what it seemed to be when I began working on my master thesis. In 2006 I started my doctorate studies at Södertörn University in Stock- holm. That year I also became father for the first time, a fact that delayed the academic progress. In the autumn of 2007 I was beginning to feel at ease with the new “life-world” and set out for a second, and this time more thor- ough, field work. However, Anne became pregnant with twins, and her pregnancy became quite a trial. She was sick most of the time. After she gave birth to two healthy babies, her condition worsened, and for two more years, until she had an operation in May 2010, I was almost completely away from academic thinking and writing. Thus, it was not until late 2010 when I really started working intensively on this project. I would like to thank Anne in particular. Besides being a hero in the years of tough pregnancy and illness, she has had to listen to all my talk about Pentecostals, politics and globalisation for more than a decade. In addition to Håkan Rydving, I also wish to thank in particular my good friend and academic sparring partner Bjørn-Ola Tafjord, who acted, more or less, as an academic “life-line” in the difficult years. Thanks also to Astrid Hovden, Terje Østebø, Hans Egil Offerdal and other great friends and aca- demic companions. I would also like to warmly thank David Westerlund, my main supervisor at Södertörn University. He has been most helpful and did not give up on me when I was doing “nothing” because of the above- mentioned circumstances. Thanks also to Göran Larsson, my assistant su- pervisor from Gothenburg University, and Susanne Olsson for reading and commenting on the text when I first started writing. Last but not least, thanks a lot to all the good friends and colleagues at Södertörn and in Ber- gen, Stavanger and my new friends Hans, Monica and Fredrik, who have provided with me “safe havens” when I have been alone in Stockholm. Fi- nally, a special greeting to my wonderful children Sofie, Jonas and Hanna. Bergen, October 2013 Hans Geir Aasmundsen 8 Abbreviations ACIERA Alianza Cristiana de Iglesias Evangélicas de la República Argentina (Christian Alliance of Evangelical Churches in Argentina) AoG Assemblies of God CAN Comunidad Andina de Naciones (Union of Andean Nations) CLAI Consejo Latinoamericano de Iglesias (Latin American Council of Churches) CONADEP Comisión Nacional sobre la Desaparición de Personas (National Commission on the Disappearance of Persons) CRECES Comunión Renovada de Evangélicos y Católicos en el Espíritu Santo (Renewed Communion of Evangelicals and Catholics in the Holy Spirit) CRM Charismatic Renewal Movement FAIE Federación Argentina de Iglesias Evangélicas (Argentinean Federation of Evangelical Churches) FECEP Federación Confraternidad Evangélica Pentecostal (Federation for the Fraternity of Evangelicals and Pentecostals) IADA Iglesia Asamblea de Dios en Argentina (Church Assembly of God in Argentina) IMF International Monetary Fund MD Military Dictatorship (1976–1983) MERCOSUR El Mercado Común del Sur (the Southern Common Market) NRMs New Religious Movements PP Princípe de Paz (Prince of Peace) RFE Religious freedom and equality UEB Unión Evangélica Argentina Bautista y Hermanos Libres (Argentinean Evangelical Union of Baptists and Free Brethren) UNASUR La Comunidad Sudamericana de Naciones (Union of South American Nations) VDF Visión de Futuro (Vision of the Future) 9 Introduction Since the first “outpouring of the Spirit” in a poor neighbourhood in Los Angeles in 1906, what has been called the Azusa Street revival, Pentecostal- ism has experienced tremendous growth worldwide. Although the remark- able story of this form of Christianity began in a modest locality, the urge to spread the message was already in its infancy an explicit trademark of its creed.1 As early as 1910, the Pentecostal magazine Confidence claimed to be in circulation in over 46 countries (Anderson 2007: 12).