The long-term sustainability of Pentecostal studies requires the establishment of a broader research agenda. This is not a project one can do by her/himself. I've asked a number of people to consider writing their thoughts about Pentecostal studies and over the next several months I will post their comments here.
GLOBAL PENTECOSTALISM IN THE 21 ST CENTURY . Edited by Robert W. Hefner . University of Indiana Press. 2013. Pp. v + 270; paper. This edited volume offers the reader excellent coverage on a range of issues about the social, cultural, and political aspects of Pentecostalism. With contributions from sociologists, anthropologists, and religion scholars, the editor has brought together some of the top experts in the field with cases from most regions of the world including Brazil, Zimbabwe, China, Russia, Ukraine, India, and the Philippines. The chapters include rich empirical findings, theoretical sophistication, and debates in the literature about the social and political impact of Pentecostals, its civic and public role, why Pentecostalism is or is not growing, issues of institutionalization, relationship to the varieties of modernity, and impact on family and gender issues. The Introduction offers a solid overview of how the volume contributes to the schol...
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