African Pentecostalism and the 1918 influenza pandemic: The supernatural amid the fearful and implications for the COVID-19 pandemic

Omololu Ebenezer Fagunwa

doi:10.15566/cjgh.v7i5.455

Omololu Ebenezer Fagunwa

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.15566/cjgh.v7i5.455

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Abstract

Infectious outbreaks that lead to epidemics and pandemics are dreaded because of the adverse health, economic, and social effects. The 1918 pandemic caused by the H1N1 influenza virus killed about 40 million people worldwide. Like the case of COVID-19, the pandemic of 1918 kept Christians, as well as people of other faiths, from worshipping together. However, African indigenous Pentecostal movements and groups emerged in various parts of the continent around the same time. This period was the time of huge Pneumatic experience and spiritual awakening. Pentecostals devoted themselves to building their faith and praying ceaselessly during that time, and this has become the foundation of the doctrine and theological instruction of most African-initiated churches (AICs). Because there have been no studies that consider the 1918 flu pandemic and Pentecostal response in Africa, this study was undertaken. The time of the 1918 pandemic appeared to be a good opportunity for spiritual awakening. Intense prayer prevailed during those times, and teaching and exposition about prayer formed the core of the theology of most AICs. Pandemics often bring devastation but could also be an opportunity for spiritual awakening through prayer, love in action, social justice, compassion, and care.

Highlights

In 1918, the entire world was overwhelmed with a viral infection caused by a new strain of influenza virus and characterised by three waves.[1,2] Africa had its large share during the deadly second wave (Aug–Dec 1918), and the simultaneous third wave (Jan–Jul 1919)
Different spiritual activities that characterised the response of the Pentecostal movement to the pandemic were the bold application of faith, fervent prayers, and faithful expectations of supernatural healing based on the Word of God when all medicines, and Fagunwa vaccines failed
The period of the 1918 pandemic appears to be a time of great awakening in African Christianity—including the birth of indigenous Pentecostals, whose splinter churches are scattered all over the world with millions of members emphasizing the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ

Summary

Introduction

In 1918, the entire world was overwhelmed with a viral infection caused by a new strain of influenza virus and characterised by three waves.[1,2] Africa had its large share during the deadly second wave (Aug–Dec 1918), and the simultaneous third wave (Jan–Jul 1919). In the West Coast of Africa, the spread of the infection started in August, in a. Freetown, and Accra, spread to Lome, Lagos, and Calabar. In September 1919, the pandemic broke out in Douala, and in October of the same year, it reached Libreville and Equatorial Guinea (Figure 1). The disease killed 40 million people globally, and a conservative estimate of the mortality in the African continent was 1.4 million.[1,2] The 1918 influenza pandemic

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