Analyzing Mega-churches: New Forms of Religious Global Organization in Argentina

ALGRANTI JOAQUIN

Global Studies Review

Commercial Press

Lugar: Shanghai; Año: 2012; p. 79 - 97

Globalizing processes can be firstly understood as a rearticulation of both global and local elements within different domains of society. This perspective reaches the specific way in which religious organizations develop a historical synthesis between both dimensions of cultural life. Following these leads, we can say that some of the most important innovations introduced by neo-pentecostalism in Latin America as the fastest growing expression of the evangelical world- are linked to the consolidation of mega-churches (Gramby-Sobukwe y Hoiland, 2009) in middle and high class neighborhoods and the training of evangelical leaders on a large scale. In the present study we work with one temple in particular, where this class orientation is expressed more strongly the Evangelical church Rey de Reyes (King of Kings). To tackle the different dimensions of this institution, the paper is divided into four parts. We will first present an outline of the religious social space in Argentina from the point of view of the renewal of pentecostal churches. Then in the second part we are going to study the morphology of the temple, paying special attention to the organization and division of labor that defines what we will call cellular system. The third part aims to differentiate the basic religious profiles that crystallize in the churchs network of relationships. Lastly, in the closing comments we are going to focus on the political dimension that leader training assumes in view of the two most important problems that, in our opinion, the Argentine Evangelical movement is facing. The first one refers to the obstacles that appear within the Evangelical world, which we will call the problem of representation, to speak about the gap that exists between the Ministers of megachurches and the Christian politician who pretend to represent the entire religious community. The second matter is the problem of demand, related to the political agenda and production of points of reference where collective claims crystallize and project into civil society.