Individualism and Protestant subjectivity
A view from anthropology
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61303/24525308.v1i1.7Keywords:
Protestantismo, individualismo, prosperidad, Guatemala, BoliviaAbstract
In Latin America, it is common to criticize evangelical churches for the individualism they allegedly propagate. Even Protestant pastors disapprove of their colleagues' theology of selfishness. This refers to the academic contributions of Max Weber, who traces a relationship between Protestant lifestyles, capitalist entrepreneurship and the individualistic subject of Western modernity. In current evangelical practice, prosperity and self-improvement are central themes, and many pastors are sympathetic to the political agents of free-market capitalism. For this reason, academic observers tend to evaluate evangelical communities on the basis of their own stance toward capitalist modernity. However, an ethnographic look shows that the place of the individual in evangelical theology and practice depends, among several aspects, on local circumstances. This article argues that, rather than simply discerning between "good" Christians and those whose gospel promotes privilege and individualism, we must notice the communitarian processes through which specific senses of self become part of Protestant subjectivities. The argument of this article is based on the findings of fieldwork conducted in Pentecostal and Neo-Pentecostal churches in Guatemala and Bolivia.
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