PENTECOSTALISM AND THE DIALECTICS OF CHRISTIANITY IN THE POSTCOLONY
March 14, 2024
An international conference organized by the Polin Institute of Åbo Akademi University
Espoo, Finland, 27th-30th August 2024
Pentecostalism is one of the most dynamic and influential forms of Christianity in contemporary Africa. It has been variously described as a response to modernity, a postmodern phenomenon itself, a revitalization movement, a return to the fundamental theology embodying the Third person of the Trinity, a source of hope, empowerment, a vehicle of social transformation, a challenge or concession to the postcolonial state, a recalibration of public religion, a power behind spiritual and socio-economic development in Africa today. Pentecostalism also reflects and mirrors the complex and often contradictory interactions between Christianity, African cultures, traditions, identities, and the very idea of the Church as a historic faith community.
This conference, aiming at producing an edited volume, invites contributions that explore the dialectics of Pentecostalism and Christianity in the postcolonial context of Africa. We are interested in papers that address questions such as:
- How does Pentecostalism relate to the historical and contemporary expressions of Christianity in Africa, such as African Instituted Churches, revival movements, mainline denominations, and ecumenical initiatives?
- How does Pentecostalism engage with postcolonial Africa’s political, economic, social, and cultural realities, such as democracy, development, poverty, gender, health, violence, migration, and media?
- How does Pentecostalism articulate and negotiate its identity and mission in relation to other African religious traditions and movements, such as Islam, African traditional religions, new religious movements, and secularism?
- How does Pentecostalism shape and challenge the theological and ethical discourses and practices of African Christianity, such as pneumatology, eschatology, soteriology, ecclesiology, spirituality, morality, and social justice?
This is an interdisciplinary project, and we welcome papers grounded in different disciplines and employing diverse methods and sources. We especially encourage papers based on empirical research and offering critical and constructive insights into the phenomenon of Pentecostalism in Africa.
The deadline for abstract submissions (300 words) is 30 April 2024. The deadline for preliminary papers (drafts) is 31 July 2024, and for full chapters (6000-8000 words, ready for submission to the publisher), it is 30 October 2024.
To register for the conference, please use this link. To submit your abstracts, please use this link. To submit your preliminary paper, please use this link.
The conference will be held at Backby Manor, Espoo, Finland https://www.backby.fi/en/
The conference fee, 580€, covers accommodation and full board during the conference.
Editors of the planned volume:
- Elias K. Bongmba – Rice University
- Martina Björkander – Åbo Akademi University
- Peter White – Stellenbosch University
Program
27th August
5 pm-7 pm Arrivals and dinner
7 pm Welcoming session: working methods, aims
Keynote: Prof Chammah Kaunda: The Charismatization of African Christianity: Challenges and opportunities for mission, theology and ecumenic
8 pm Social evening
28th August
9 am-10:30 am Session 1
Papers presented by Nimi Wariboko & Evelyn Mayanja & Devaka Premawardhana
10:30 am -11 am Coffee break
11 am-12:30 pm Session 2
Papers presented by Peter White, Francis Benyah & Itohan Idumwonyi
12:30 pm-2 pm Lunch
2 pm-3 pm Keynote: Prof Elias Bongmba: Living in a complex world: How Pentecostalism intersects with and affects the socio-political and religious realities of contemporary Africa
3 pm-3:30 pm Coffee break
3:30 pm-5 pm Session 3
Papers presented by participants through the call of papers
6 pm-7 pm Dinner
8 pm Social evening
29th August
9 am-10:30 am Session 4
Papers presented by participants through the call of papers
10:30 am-11 am Coffee break
11 am-12:30 pm Session 5
Papers presented by participants through the call of papers
12:30 pm-2 pm Lunch
2 pm-3 pm Keynote: Prof Maria Frahm-Arp: Decolonising the Self: Pentecostalism as a framework for self-reformulation and reconstruction in post-colonial South Africa
3 pm-6:30 pm Helsinki sightseeing
6:30 pm-7:30 pm Dinner
30th August
9 am-10:30 am Session 5
Papers presented by Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu (online) & Mika Vähäkangas & Martina Björkander
10:30 am-11:00 am Coffee break
11 am-12:30 am Publishing workshop & closing session
12:30 pm Lunch and departure