Take & Read: New titles in Global Christianity
In Review
The Charismatic Gymnasium
Breath, Media, and Religious Revivalism in Contemporary Brazil
Holy War
The Untold Story of Catholic Italy’s Crusade against the Ethiopian Orthodox Church
Migrational Religion
Context and Creativity in the Latinx Diaspora
Crossing Religious Boundaries
Islam, Christianity, and “Yoruba Religion” in Lagos, Nigeria
World Christianity and Indigenous Experience
A Global History, 1500–2000
The Politics of Persecution
Middle Eastern Christians in an Age of Empire
Christian Tradition in Global Perspective
Global Christianity
A Guide to the World’s Largest Religion from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe
By Maria José de Abreu
Duke University Press
This is not the first book to discuss Brazil’s Catholic charismatic renewal, but it is assuredly the first to apply this particular approach. Working from the concept of pneuma, which connotes both breath and spirit, Maria José de Abreu studies the role of breathing human bodies in the culture and theology of pneumatic, Spirit-based faith. She makes innovative observations about the material environment of charismatic worship, including airy tents, arenas, and outdoor settings. Churches speak of “the aerobics of Jesus” and preach both physical and spiritual “body-building.” De Abreu links these beliefs and practices to the mass media world that is critical to Pentecostal success. (Are not such programs always “on the air”?) Her theoretical language may puzzle the uninitiated, but her insights are provocative and demand application beyond the Latin American context.
