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Agency in Ghanaian Neo-Pentecostal Deliverance Practices

Authors: Ben-Willie Kwaku Golo;

Agency in Ghanaian Neo-Pentecostal Deliverance Practices

Abstract

Using qualitative interviews of pastor-prophets and analyses of seeker testimonies on Alpha Hour, currently Ghana’s biggest online prayer ministry, this article examines agency in deliverance practices that have become prevalent in Ghanaian neo-Pentecostalism. This is done by accounting for the roles played by the different actors involved in the practice. Findings indicate that while there is a supreme divine agent – God – who is a constant in deliverance and whose role represents proxy agency, pastor-prophets who lead deliverance services also represent proxy agency in their role, with a secondary agentic influence in the deliverance process. This is because pastor-prophets act in support of the deliverance seeker and augment the seeker in attaining a desired goal that is initiated by the seeker and not the pastor-prophet. The deliverance seeker joins the pastor-prophet and other deliverance seekers in exerting influence through prayer. The deliverance seeker is the one who ultimately initiates deliverance towards transformation in their personal life outcomes and is a beneficiary of the process. The role of this agent/actor therefore represents personal agency with primary agentic influence in the deliverance process. This identifies personal primary agency as the ultimate agency around which deliverance revolves, with diverse implications for contemporary neo-Pentecostal deliverance, keeping in view the dynamics of deliverance on Alpha Hour.

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selected citations
These citations are derived from selected sources.
This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Citations provided by BIP!
popularity
This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Popularity provided by BIP!
influence
This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Influence provided by BIP!
impulse
This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Impulse provided by BIP!
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