The Gospel in Latin America: Historical Studies in Evangelicalism in the Global South

Baylor University Press under the editorship of David Bebbington has produced a noteworthy and insightful summary of evangelicalism in Latin America. After an introduction to the book by Ronald J. Morgan, two main sections in ten chapters examine the origins and effects of Latin American evangelicalism in general and then in particular according to country. Most of the contents of this volume comprise lectures given in a 2020 online conference called by Baylor’s Evangelical Studies Program and sponsored by Baylor’s Institute for Studies of Religion.

Morgan’s Introduction orients the reader to the purpose of this volume: “to extend the historical scholarship on [the] dynamic phenomenon” of the shift of the center of gravity in world Christianity “from the Global North (Europe and North America) to the Global South (Africa, South and East Asia, and Latin America)—Latin America in particular. (p.1) His exhaustive summary of the significant modern historiography is particularly noteworthy. Since most of these works are in Spanish or Portuguese, he introduces English-language readers to a whole universe of literature which they otherwise might not have noted.

The General Studies section begins with John Maiden presenting the connection between charismatic renewals in the US and the UK with that of Latin America, both in its Protestant and Roman Catholic settings. The significant figures and publications related to this connection as well as their positive and negative results are rehearsed.

The next chapter by J. Daniel Salina relates the formation and work of the Fraternidad Teológica Latinoamericana (FTL). As noted by Ecuadorian René Padilla, “The Latin American church is a church without theological reflection. . . . our literature is translated from English” (p. 42). Hence, there was the need for an organization like the FTL to provide an indigenous evangelical outlook, not an imported one. This chapter treats this movement from the 1970s up through the beginnings of the 21st century.

Virginia Garrard presents a chapter on the unhelpful impact of Christian Restorationism and Dominion Theology on Latin America due to its influence in the more conservative end of the political spectrum. After presenting the history generally, she traces the outworkings in Brazil and Bolivia in more detail. While this chapter is well done, it is marred by an intemperate characterization of Brazil’s Bolsonaro (p. 73), something not appropriate in an academic work and an intemperance not found in any other part of this volume.

In the next chapter, “Fertility and Faith,” Philip Jenkins presents a thoughtful argument that the more devout a people, the higher the birthrate. He contrasts Latin America’s birthrate with the below replacement level birthrate in a secularized Europe. He also cautions that Latin America could be headed to below-replacement, “Scandinavian” levels as her society turns away from Christianity due to scandals among her religious leaders and institutions.

David C. Kirkpatrick ends the general overview section with attention to the historiography of Latin American evangelicalism. He posits that this historiography is “organically connected to the lived experience of evangelical Protestants as religious minorities” (p. 104). The chapter contains a wealth of information, noting the studies and controversies associated with presenting this historiography.

The five-chapter section entitled Particular Lands examines evangelicalism in Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Peru, and among South Florida’s Brazilian immigrant population. Each chapter is a cogent presentation of the history and practices of evangelicals in the various countries or immigrant community. As with all the chapters in this book, the information in this section is well-documented with copious footnotes. Further, the authors draw on personal experiences since they were part of this history in the modern era. This academic “insider–outsider” perspective is applauded since the authors are better able to understand the cultures in which the evangelical Church has lived, and yet they have maintained an academic dispassion in their presentations. After unfolding the history and setting of the particular country or immigrant community, each chapter ends with a summary conclusion.

The Afterword’s opening ends where it began with a chapter by Morgan. His afterword’s opening words summarize this book well:

Evangelical Protestantism in Latin America is a diverse and dynamic phenomenon. As a result, the deeper scholars delve into historical, theological, and socioeconomic factors shaping it, the more we are left with the sense that we are viewing a kaleidoscopic image rather than a still life. (p. 223)

This book is recommended for those wanting an overview of Latin American evangelicalism and certainly for addition to a theological school’s library collection. Because of its historiographical chapters and copious footnotes, the reader is exposed not only to the picture presented in the text but is supplied with the information needed for further study.