My friend Mike Foley was a Catholic missionary in Sudan and Kenya for more than 50 years. His life is an example of the dedication American clerics have to Christ and to the people of Africa. The continent needs young people--men and women--who make Christian love their lives. Good essay, Mr. Ogunmodede.
First of all, my sincere condolences. I wasn’t aware that you are a Catholic adherent.
This piece on the papacy of the late Pope Francis was both fascinating and deeply insightful. I especially found resonance in your penultimate paragraph, which struck a chord with me as a member of the Baptist denomination.
The shift of many within our flock toward Pentecostal churches, as you rightly pointed out, cannot be attributed solely to the allure of promises of financial prosperity. Rather, it reflects a deeper, more complex spiritual and emotional yearning—a desire for immediacy in worship, a sense of personal connection to the divine, and a communal atmosphere that speaks to the existential challenges people face today. Pentecostalism, with its emphasis on lived spiritual experience, healing, and active engagement, often fills a gap that traditional denominations have sometimes struggled to address.
Your reflections serve as an important reminder for all faith communities to re-examine how we engage with our congregants and remain attentive to the evolving needs of the faithful.
Thanks for the condolence and your comment, Seun. I am in full agreement regarding your point about the experience from the Baptist denomination. It has become an article of faith among many that African converts to Pentecostalism are motivated by financial prosperity.
Leaving aside how one-dimensional this reasoning is, I have never understood why that is taken to be a negative thing given the outsized role the church plays in the lives of Africans. And as you note, Pentecostalism appears to offer so much to its adherents that they evidently do not believe they can get elsewhere. This is not to suggest that there are no downsides of their beliefs and practices, but Pentecostalism should not be viewed from the prism of competition in my view but should instead be considered to be part of the fabric of the societies in which they are prominent.
Loved this article, Chris. You nailed something I've been speaking of to anyone who will listen - the inherent Eurocentrism - and specifically Italian nature - of the institutional Church in Rome. That said Pope Francis took the Church several steps forward in shaping leadership that more closely resembles its people. In the meantime, I will be praying for the incoming pope.
My friend Mike Foley was a Catholic missionary in Sudan and Kenya for more than 50 years. His life is an example of the dedication American clerics have to Christ and to the people of Africa. The continent needs young people--men and women--who make Christian love their lives. Good essay, Mr. Ogunmodede.
Thank you for the feedback, Jill.
First of all, my sincere condolences. I wasn’t aware that you are a Catholic adherent.
This piece on the papacy of the late Pope Francis was both fascinating and deeply insightful. I especially found resonance in your penultimate paragraph, which struck a chord with me as a member of the Baptist denomination.
The shift of many within our flock toward Pentecostal churches, as you rightly pointed out, cannot be attributed solely to the allure of promises of financial prosperity. Rather, it reflects a deeper, more complex spiritual and emotional yearning—a desire for immediacy in worship, a sense of personal connection to the divine, and a communal atmosphere that speaks to the existential challenges people face today. Pentecostalism, with its emphasis on lived spiritual experience, healing, and active engagement, often fills a gap that traditional denominations have sometimes struggled to address.
Your reflections serve as an important reminder for all faith communities to re-examine how we engage with our congregants and remain attentive to the evolving needs of the faithful.
Thanks for the condolence and your comment, Seun. I am in full agreement regarding your point about the experience from the Baptist denomination. It has become an article of faith among many that African converts to Pentecostalism are motivated by financial prosperity.
Leaving aside how one-dimensional this reasoning is, I have never understood why that is taken to be a negative thing given the outsized role the church plays in the lives of Africans. And as you note, Pentecostalism appears to offer so much to its adherents that they evidently do not believe they can get elsewhere. This is not to suggest that there are no downsides of their beliefs and practices, but Pentecostalism should not be viewed from the prism of competition in my view but should instead be considered to be part of the fabric of the societies in which they are prominent.
Loved this article, Chris. You nailed something I've been speaking of to anyone who will listen - the inherent Eurocentrism - and specifically Italian nature - of the institutional Church in Rome. That said Pope Francis took the Church several steps forward in shaping leadership that more closely resembles its people. In the meantime, I will be praying for the incoming pope.
Many thanks for reading and for sharing your feedback, Andrea.