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Laura Dudley Jenkins, Religious Freedom and Mass Conversion in India Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2019. 312 pages. Cloth, $89.85. ISBN 9780812250923. Freedom of religion is one of the most [...]

Why are the Bhil tribals increasingly converting to Pentecostalism in India? Drawing on more than a decade of in-depth ethnographic fieldwork among the Bhils in southern Rajasthan, this article argues that the Pentecostals have approached conversion not as "change of religion" (dharma parivartan) but as "holistic transformation of life" (jeevan parivartan). In a context in which the state has been withdrawing from providing basic social services to people at its margins, the pentecostal churches have come to play a vital role. Specifically, the article discusses that the presence of the Holy Spirit has brought about three major transformations—miracle healing, ethical subjectivity, and gender relations—in the lives of the Bhils. Finally, the article concludes that by combining developmental programs with prayer and fellowship, the pentecostal churches have not only brought ethical transformations among the Bhils but have also converted them "to a morally inspired existence." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How is Pentecostalism changing the notions and experiences of citizenship at the margins of the state? Addressing this question, the paper argues that in the context of south Rajasthan, the Pentecostal church has played a vital role in combining the values of both pedagogical and governmental paradigms of citizenship not just to fill in the absence of the state but also to create an alternative model of citizenship that goes beyond the mere political rights. This alternative model of 'Christian citizenship' has effectively combined development with Pentecostal moral values. Furthermore, the Pentecostal church, by acting as a pedagogical agent, by organising active social ministries, and by developing ethical subjectivities among the Bhils, has engendered new notions of agency, autonomy and citizenship at the margins of the state. Résumé: Comment le pentecôtisme modifie-t-il les conceptions et les expériences de la citoyenneté aux marges de l' État ? Cet article montre que dans le contexte du Sud du Rajasthan, l' église pentecôtiste a joué un rôle déterminant, en combinant les valeurs des paradigmes pédagogiques et gouvernementaux de la citoyenneté, mais aussi en créant un modèle alternatif de citoyenneté qui va au-delà des seuls droits politiques. Ce modèle alternatif de « citoyenneté chrétienne » associe le développement aux valeurs morales pentecôtistes. En tant qu'acteur pédagogique, à travers son action sociale et en développant de nouvelles subjectivités éthiques chez les Bhils, l' église pentecôtiste a contribué à façonner de nouvelles formes d' agentivité, d' autonomie et de citoyenneté aux marges de l' État. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]