Prophetism and Psychosocial Wellbeing among Neo-Pentecostal Christians in Ghana - Francis Ethelbert Kwabena Benyah

Summary:

This project seeks to investigate how prophetism shapes the way Ghanaian neo-Pentecostal Christians understand and relate to God. The project is guided by the question: To what extent does the expectation in prophecy to speak to and address one’s existential needs influence their understanding and relationship with God? This question is set within the context of the understanding of prophecy as an act of communication. In Ghana, prophetism features very prominently among neo-Pentecostal Christians. In most Pentecostal church services, meetings, or gatherings, congregants gather in expectation to hear the pastor-prophet, who is seen as a representative of God, “speak the mind of God” or prophesy into their lives. While the communication from God (prophecy) may sometimes directly address one’s expectation, the reality is that not everyone will receive a response during such meetings or even at a later gathering. 

The question of what happens when such expectations are not met has not been explored. Failure to receive a communication from a prophet can sometimes lead to disappointment and disorientation in people’s lives that can potentially affect their psychological and social wellbeing. With the understanding of prophecy as a theological category, this project ties in well into the overall objective of examining how theology can potentially engage psychology by exploring the extent to which an individual’s psychosocial wellbeing is consequent to or dependent upon their understanding and relationship to God based on the expectations or outcomes of events in their lives. 

To achieve these goals, the project will involve a number of activities which include data collection, analysis, and dissemination of the results. Data will be gathered from members in Pentecostal/charismatic churches in four major cities in Ghana: Accra, Kumasi, Takoradi and Cape Coast. The project will employ a mixed-method approach.

The results of the study will be published in a scientific academic journal. Findings will also be presented at seminars and conferences for constructive feedback. It is anticipated that this project will help expand the discourses on the role of prophecy in the psychological and social wellbeing of people and show the extent to which people’s understanding of God are shaped by the outcomes and experiences of events in their lives as against their expectations. It is also envisaged that the study will contribute to the ways theological studies can engage psychology in providing an understanding of the psychosocial wellbeing of people.