Projects per year
Abstract
Much of the literature on Pentecostal-charismatic Christianity (Pc/C) and African diasporas in the Global North has focused upon African-Majority or -Initiated churches that are either branches of African churches or were created in the diaspora. This focus often frames the appeal of Pc/C to African migrants in terms of: a) its emphasis upon the 'Prosperity Gospel' offering a path not only to salvation, but also to earthly riches; b) its opportunities for achieving status among church hierarchies, which is attractive to socially marginalised groups, and; c) the practical assistance it provides to support settlement. However, African diasporas have diverse histories of migration, and settlement experiences. This article considers the appeal of Pc/C to a group of professional African migrants in Australia, who self-identify as 'middle-class'. It argues that professional African migrants have consciously favoured the Australian megachurch Hillsong over Australia's African-Initiated churches. They have done so in pursuit of a process of an imagined class-mobility, and as a result, their choice of church can be understood as largely strategic.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 25-45 |
Number of pages | 21 |
Journal | Culture and Religion |
Volume | 22 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2021 |
Fingerprint
Dive into the research topics of ''Middle-class' Africans in Australia: choosing Hillsong as a global home'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Projects
- 1 Finished
-
The African Diaspora and Pentecostalism in Australia
Vokes, R. (Investigator 01) & Rocha, C. (Investigator 02)
ARC Australian Research Council
27/05/19 → 30/04/24
Project: Research