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Pentecostalism—Africa’s fastest growing form of Christianity—is known for displacing that which came before. Yet anthropologist Devaka Premawardhana witnessed neither massive growth nor dramatic rupture in the part of Mozambique where he worked. His research opens a new paradigm for the study of global Christianity, one centered on religious fluidity and existential mobility, and on how indigenous traditions remain vibrant and influential—even in the lives of converts.
In Faith in Flux, Premawardhana narrates a range of everyday hardships faced by a rural Makhuwa-speaking people—snakebites and elephant invasions, chronic illnesses and recurring wars, disputes within families and conflicts with the state—to explore how wellbeing sometimes entails not stability but mobility. In their ambivalent response to Pentecostalism, as in their historical resistance to sedentarization and other modernizing projects, the Makhuwa reveal crucial insights about what it is to be human: about changing as a means of enduring, becoming as a mode of being, and converting as a way of life.
"Who would have thought that a book set in the middle of what is considered a quite remote location even in Mozambique-the Makhuwa area of Niassa Province-could so eloquently address important concerns relating to Pentecostalism and the enigma of change in Africa, in anthropology, and more generally? This gem of a book executes such a challenging task in highly original ways . . . [B]eautifully and compellingly written . . . Premawardhana has written a book that should-and will-have a broad impact."
"Literatures tied to themes of migration, refugees, religious conversion, and phenomenology are all brought to bear expertly. Analysis of the fluidity of rural Mozambicans' relationship to Pentecostal churches and teachings is enriched with sparing application of well-chosen theories. The author accomplishes this with nuance, and utmost respect for the human experiences that command his attention."
"Beautifully and brilliantly written . . . an existential ethnography of the Makhuwa people of Northern Mozambique, a meditation on colonialism, globalization, modernity and the nature of Pentecostalism, a critique of cultural theory, and a fascinating narrative of 'snakebites and elephant invasions, chronic illnesses and recurring wars, disputes within families and conflicts with the state.'"
"This book, no doubt, adds new, unique, and refreshing insight to the ever-growing research and publications on Pentecostalism. Not only does it examine Pentecostalism in a place where it had not been studied extensively, it does so by means of time-tested anthropological methods and theoretical frameworks. This unique approach and the vivid and enthralling narrative style make this book a must-read."
""Faith in Flux reminds us how intensive fieldwork and rich ethnography are not only what define anthropology but also what anthropologists draw on to challenge theoretical assumptions and make their voices heard in scholarly debates . . . Faith in Flux should be recommended not only to scholars of Christianity and Africanists but also to undergraduate and graduate students of anthropology.""
"Premawardhana's book is a pleasure to read, as he seamlessly weaves the theoretical discussion into his intriguing vignettes. He discusses his own presence and reception with the people among whom he lived in a way that established credible ethnographic authority. Whether the reader is interested in constructions of conversion, Christianity and cultural adaptation, or the impact of transnational Pentecostalism in local communities, Premawardhana's work provides a valuable and detailed case study."
"Faith in Flux brilliantly realizes the potential of ethnography not only to illuminate other lifeworlds but to offer incisive critiques of current theoretical assumptions in religious studies and the social sciences. In lucid and enthralling prose, Devaka Premawardhana takes us deep into the world of the Makhuwa, offering new ways in which global Christianity, tradition, mobility, conversion, and social change may be understood."
"Faith in Flux is a beautifully written and theoretically novel book that focuses on a geographical area that has been severely neglected in the anthropological record. Devaka Premawardhana amply illustrates the idea that radical renewal is neither foreign to traditional societies nor necessarily a byproduct of globalization, modernization, or Pentecostal conversion."
"Intersecting the study of Pentecostalism, modernity, and globalization with insights from existential anthropology, especially bodily dispositions toward mobility, Faith in Flux is a book that will no doubt lead anthropologists of Christianity to view their own work in a new light. Devaka Premawardhana challenges scholars to rethink the idea of religious conversion as a profound rupture with the past."
Introduction
PART I. Othama—To Move
Chapter 1. A Fugitive People
Chapter 2. Between the River and the Road
PART II. Ohiya ni Ovolowa—To Leave and to Enter
Chapter 3. Border Crossings
Chapter 4. Two Feet In, Two Feet Out
PART III. Okhalano—To Be With
Chapter 5. A Religion of Her Own?
Chapter 6. Moved by the Spirit
Conclusion
Notes
Works Cited
Index
Acknowledgments