Ascetismo e sectarismo no pentecostalismo clássico das Assembleias de Deus

Abstract

Pentecostals, historically, had the characteristic a sense of devaluation of the world toward a longing to live forever in heaven with Jesus. This motivated them not to “contaminate” with anything that could interfere with this hope, leading to a life of exclusion and alienation of/in the world. In addition to the oral speeches (sermons) heard in the churches, they were surrounded by theological materials that contributed to this worldview. This article aims therefore understand the principle of ascetic and sectarian formation in the classical Brazilian Pentecostalism, something that has characterized throughout its centuries-old history. This approach also seeks to contribute to a reading of the current Pentecostalism, given that does not consider only its functionality, but structural aspects that motivate this religious tradition. It is considered here as classical Pentecostalism that lived by the denomination that most represented in the Brazilian religious field, the Assemblies of God.