Challenged by pluralism : churchly expansion into magic and prophetism - the new roles of the catholic church in latin america
- Stockholm : Institute of Latin Amercian Studies / Stockholm University, 2012
Building on Weber's ideal religious types and Bourdieus's notion of the religious field, this article explores how the Catholic Church in Latin America reacts to the situation of increased religious pluralism and competition by embracing magical and prophetic practices. In the past when Roman Catholicism enjoyed monopoly over institutionalized religion, it represented a perfect example of 'priestly religion'. Today a pluralistic religious field has emerged. Both Evangelical 'prophets' and self-confident pre-Columbian and Afro-American 'magicians' have openly challenged the priestly monopoly of Catholicism. By using the example of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal, the largest lay movement in the Latin American Church, this article examines how the Catholic Church has effectively entered the religious competition within the fields of 'prophets' and 'magicians', and how this is currently challenging the priestly identity of the Church in Latin America societies.