Practicing the Faith

Martin Lindhardt is a lecturer in ethnology at the University of Copenhagen. His research and writing mainly focus on Pentecostalism in Chile and on charismatic revivalism, witchcraft, medical pluralism, and occult economies in Tanzania.

“The book is a solid piece of work…Besides the theoretical novelties, the amount of empiric material that is presented is one of the book’s major benefits…the anthology represents a breakthrough in Pentecostal studies...it is one of the most interesting books that has been written on charismatic Christianity for a long time, and it must absolutely be read by everyone with an interest in Pentecostalism or/and ritual theory.”  ·  Alternative Spirituality and Religion Review“The quality of the essays is thankfully high, even as the cumulative result of the volume is suggestive for rethinking contemporary theories of ritual. This suggests that Practicing the Faithnot only tells us about pentecostal-charismatic life, but it also has methodological implications for anthropologists and other students of ritual. The study of Pentecostalism, thus, shows itself to be no less surprising than the phenomenon itself.”  ·  Religious Studies Review"This is a welcome collection of essays on ritual within Pentecostal and charismatic churches [that] will stake out new ground in a very crowded field."  ·  Matthew Engelke, London School of Economics

• IntroductionMartin LindhardtChapter 1.The Obvious Aspects of Pentecostalism: Ritual and Pentecostal GlobalizationJoel RobbinsChapter 2. Laying our sins on the altar: Ritualising charismatic Catholic reconciliation and healingJacqueline RyleChapter 3. Healing and Redomestication: Reconstitution of the Feminine Self in South Korean Evangelical Cell Group Ritual PracticesKelly ChongChapter 4. Ritualization of LifeThomas J. CsordasChapter 5. Adventure and Atrophy in a Charismatic Movement: Returning to the ‘Toronto Blessing’Martyn PercyChapter 6. Ritual Use of the Bible in African PentecostalismPaul GiffordChapter 7. Voices: Presence and Prophecy in Charismatic RitualSimon ColemanChapter 8. When God Interferes. Ritual, Empowerment and Divine Presence in Chilean PentecostalismMartin LindhardtChapter 9. Quiet DeliverancesJon BialeckiChapter 10. Imperfect Vessels: Emotion and rituals of anti-Ritual in American Pentecostal and Charismatic devotional lifeGretchen PfeilChapter 11. Public Rituals and Political Positioning: Venezuelan Evangelicals and the Chávez GovernmentDavid SmildeNotes on ContributorsBibliographyIndex