Pentecostal narratives, a techne designed to deal with rapid changes?

In a few days, a symposium on Pentecostalism and Transnationalism will be held at the University of Western Sydney. Far from old Europe and France? Not so far actually.

Annalisa Butticci's documentary on African Pentecostals is focused on Italy. And Mark Hutchinson's paper (University of Western Sydney) appears very stimulating to explain Pentecostal narratives in France and Europe. His point is that "internal stories of pentecostals are a source for understanding the movement as a form of ‘techne’ for dealing with rapidly changing contexts, in particular those associated with globalisation". Full program here (PDF).

A new leading figure of the European research field on African churches

Remember Annalisa Butticci’s name : as the Padova International Conference on Pentecostalism reaches its end today, she’s the one to be praised (along with her mentor Enzo Pace) for boosting studies on Pentecostal and immigrant churches in Latin Europe.

 After having completed her Ph.D in Sociology and Methodology for Social Science Research from the Catholic University of Milan (Italy), she conducted an ambitious field work, both in Nigerian immigrant churches and in Nigeria (she spent 8 months in Lagos), and she just achieved an amazing task in organizing such a large and successful conference in Padova. (Click to continue)

Religion studied by social sciences: the visual turn

As I attended the first day of "Pentecostals, politics of space and power", the Padova international Conference organized by Professor Enzo Pace and Annalisa Butticci, let's highlight one inspiring concept emphasized by Annalisa Butticci : contemporary teaching and science are facing a "visual turn".

Less texts, more images. Social sciences have to adapt!

It makes all the more relevant "Na God", the picture exhibit realized by gifted photographer Andrew Esiebo (pictured left).

Pentecostals, politics of space and power (Padova, 7-9 June 2012)

Pentecostals in Italy? Nothing really new, as Pentecostals spread in the motherplace of Catholicism since the beginning of the XXth Century.

However, this italian pentecostal landscape is rapidely changing through African first-generation immigrants, mainly from Ghana and Nigeria. More and more new African Pentecostal Charismatic Churches are now spreading in cities like Milano, Pavova or Rome.

This is one of the reasons why scholars Enzo Pace and Annalisa Butticci have successfully conducted a 4 years research project on African Pentecostal churches in Italy. The coming Padova Conference (7-9 June, 2012) aims to share the results of this project, as well as boosting comparisons and further studies.