Diaspora Identity Crisis
Analyzing the Pentecostalization of Mainline Churches in Africa through the Study of Migration and Missions
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63988/Abstract
The global shift towards Pentecostalism has significantly impacted mainline churches in Africa, leading to a process known as “Pentecostalization.” This phenomenon can be attributed to factors such as migration and the influence of missions, which have notably reshaped the religious landscape in the region. The process of Pentecostalization has led to an identity crisis within the evangelical denominations in Africa, particularly in Nigeria. This qualitative research has investigated the identity problem experienced by Nigerian diaspora evangelical denominations. The research adopts ethnographic design by using participant observation, interviews, and document analysis to examine the extent of the identity crisis. By examining the intersection of migration, missions, and the influence of Pentecostalism, the study seeks to understand the challenges faced by Nigerian diaspora churches to maintain their distinct evangelical identity within a predominantly Pentecostal context. A threefold problem was identified, which entails the challenge of maintaining a distinct evangelical identity, cultural assimilation, and conflicting cultural influences and hybridization of religious practices. As mainline churches become more Pentecostal in nature, they also face the pressure to conform to certain charismatic practices and beliefs to remain relevant in a changing cultural, religious, and social society. Addressing these identity crises requires diaspora evangelicals to engage in the process of adaptation, cultural preservation, reimagining and redefining their identity, which necessitates a critical examination of present beliefs and practices and the willingness to embrace change, while maintaining a strong connection to the evangelical heritage.
References
Adogame, A., Barreto, R. C., & Rosa, W. P. da (Eds.). (2019). Migration and Public Discourse in World Christianity. Fortress Press.
Ammerman, N. T. (2003). Religious Identities and Religious Institutions. In M. Dillon (Ed.), Handbook of the Sociology of Religion (pp. 207–224). Cambridge University Press.
Bacote, V. E. (Ed.). (2021). Global Migration and Christian Faith: Implications for Identity and
Mission. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Becking, B. E. J. H., Korte, A.-M. J. A. C. M., & Liere, L. van (Eds.). (2017). Contesting Religious Identities: Transformations, Disseminations and Mediations. BRILL.
Bednarz, S., Bockenhauer, M., & Hiebert, F. (2023). Human Geography: A Spatial Perspective. Cengage Learning.
Bongmba, E. K. (Ed.). (2015). Routledge Companion to Christianity in Africa. Routledge.
Brown, N., & Stentiford, B. M. (Eds.). (2008). The Jim Crow Encyclopedia: Greenwood Milestones in African American History [2 Volumes]. Greenwood Publishing Group.
C, K., Harvey. (2014). Sent Forth: African Missionary Work in the West. Orbis Books.
Callahan, S. H. (Ed.). (2013). Religious Leadership. SAGE.
Cavanaugh, W. T. (Ed.). (2020). Gathered in my Name: Ecumenism in the World Church. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Crisp, T. M., Porter, S. L., & Elshof, G. T. (Eds.). (2014). Christian Scholarship in the Twenty-First Century: Prospects and Perils. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing.
Davies, C. B. (Ed.). (2008). Encyclopedia of the African Diaspora: Origins, Experiences, and Culture [3 volumes]. Bloomsbury Publishing.
Ebaugh, H. R. (Ed.). (2007). Handbook of Religion and Social Institutions. Springer Science & Business Media.
Ember, M., Ember, C. R., & Skoggard, I. (Eds.). (2004). Encyclopedia of Diasporas: Immigrant and Refugee Cultures Around the World. Volume I: Overviews and Topics; Volume II: Diaspora Communities. Springer Science & Business Media.
Emmanuel, K. (2017a). Born from Lament. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing.
Emmanuel, K. (2017b). Born from Lament. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing.
Essamuah, C. B., & Ngaruiya, D. K. (Eds.). (2014). Communities of Faith in Africa and the African Diaspora: In Honor of Dr. Tite Tienou with Additional Essays on World Christianity. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Finkelman, P. (Ed.). (2006). Encyclopedia of African American History, 1619-1895: From the Colonial Period to the Age of Frederick Douglass Three-volume Set. Oxford University Press.
Forbes, J. (2010). The Holy Spirit & Preaching. Abingdon Press.
Gomes, C. (2016). Transient Mobility and Middle-Class Identity: Media and Migration in Australia and Singapore. Springer.
Hanciles, J. (2008). Beyond Christendom: Globalization, African Migration, and the Transformation of the West. Orbis Books.
Hanciles, J. (2003). Migration and Mission: Some Implications for the Twenty-First-Century Church. International Bulletin of Missionary Research, 27(4), 146–153.
Harris, A. (2016). Rescripting Religion in the City: Migration and Religious Identity in the Modern Metropolis. Routledge.
Harvey, Kwiyani C. (2014). Sent Forth: African Missionary Work in the West. Orbis Books.
Jackson, R. O. (Ed.). (2011). Geography of the Haitian Diaspora. Routledge.
Johansen, K. H., & Schmidt, U. (Eds.). (2022). Practice, Practice Theory and Theology: Scandinavian and German Perspectives. Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG.
Katongole, E. (2015). Of Coffins and Churches: Seven Marks of an Emerging African Ecclesiology. In A. Orobator, E (Ed.), The Church We Want: Foundations, Theology and Mission of the Church in Africa (pp. 190–202). Paulines Publications.
Kobylinski, A. (2016). The Global Pentecostalization of Christianity and its Ethical Consequences. Chicago Studies, 55(2).
Kurewa, J. W. Z. (2011). An African Pilgrimage on Evangelism: A Historical Study of the Various Approaches to Evangelism in Africa. Abingdon Press.
Lamport, M. A. (Ed.). (2022). The Rowman & Littlefield Handbook of Contemporary Christianity in the United States. Rowman & Littlefield.
Lemay-Hebert, N., & Freedman, R. (Eds.). (2017). Hybridity: Law, Culture and Development. Taylor & Francis.
Li, G. (2010). Culturally Contested Literacies: America’s “Rainbow Underclass” and Urban Schools. Routledge.
Malik, K. (2015). The Failure of Multiculturalism: Community versus Society in Europe. Foreign Affairs, 94, 21.
Manning, P. (2010). The African Diaspora: A History Through Culture. Columbia University Press.
Mannion, G., & Mudge, L. S. (Eds.). (2007). The Routledge Companion to the Christian Church. Routledge.
Meagher, K. (2009). Trading on faith: Religious movements and informal economic governance in Nigeria. The Journal of Modern African Studies, 47(3), 397–423. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022278X0900398X
Minahan, J. B. (2013). Ethnic Groups of the Americas: An Encyclopedia: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO.
Nel, M. (2018). An African Pentecostal Hermeneutics: A Distinctive Contribution to Hermeneutics. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Ngong, D. T. (2012). Theology as the Construction of Piety: A Critique of the Theology of Inculturation and the Pentecostalization of African Christianity. Journal of Pentecostal Theology, 21(2), 344–362.
Nguyen, vanThanh, & Prior, J. (Eds.). (2014). God’s People on the Move: Biblical and Global Perspectives on Migration and Mission. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Okpewho, I., & Nzegwu, N. (Eds.). (2009). The New African Diaspora. Indiana University Press.
Omenyo, C. N. (2006). Pentecost Outside Pentecostalism: A Study of the Development of Charismatic Renewal in the Mainline Churches in Ghana. Boekencentrum.
Pinn, A. B. (Ed.). (2009). African American Religious Cultures. ABC-CLIO.
Poewe, K. O. (Ed.). (1994). Charismatic Christianity as a Global Culture. University of South Carolina Press.
Reed, R. L. (Ed.). (2018). African Contextual Realities. Langham Publishing.
Rommen, E. (Ed.). (1995). Christianity and the Religions: A Biblical Theology of World Religions. William Carey Library.
Sands, J., & Verhoef, A. H. (Eds.). (2018). Transforming Encounters and Critical Reflection: African Thought, Critical Theory, and Liberation Theology in Dialogue. MDPI.
Shorter, A. (2006). Toward a Theology of Inculturation. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Studebaker, S. M. (Ed.). (2010). Pentecostalism and Globalization: The Impact of Globalization on Pentecostal Theology and Ministry. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Theodora Frederiks, M., & Nagy, D. (Eds.). (2016). Religion, Migration and Identity: Methodological and theological explorations. BRILL.
Tira, S. J., & Uytanlet, J. L. (Eds.). (2020). A Hybrid World: Diaspora, Hybridity, and Missio Dei. William Carey Publishing.
Toğuşlu, E., Leman, J., & Sezgin, İ. M. (Eds.). (2014). New Multicultural Identities in Europe: Religion and Ethnicity in Secular Societies. Leuven University Press.
Uche T., O. (Ed.). (2019). Multidisciplinary Issues Surrounding African Diasporas. IGI Global.
Vondey, W. (2010). Beyond Pentecostalism: The Crisis of Global Christianity and the Renewal of the Theological Agenda. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing.
Wild-Wood, E. (2008). Migration and Christian Identity in Congo (DRC). BRILL.
Winks, R. (Ed.). (2001). The Oxford History of the British Empire: Volume V: Historiography. OUP Oxford.
Yamane, D. (Ed.). (2016). Handbook of Religion and Society. Springer.
Young III, F. L. (2021). World Christianity and the Unfinished Task: A Very Short Introduction. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Henry Marcus Garba
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
