Neopentecostalização do pentecostalismo clássico: mudanças na concepção escatológica das Assembleias de Deus

Abstract

The aim of this research is to analyze and discuss the changes taking place in the Assemblies of God‟s conception of eschatology, studied according to the International Congress of the Missionary Gideons of the Latter Hour. For such, we seek to comprehend the eschatology that rules the aforementioned denomination from its doctrinal writings, which allow to establish a model very close to the classical Pentecostalism. This model is described according to the way Pentecostals interact with the world, adopting an ascetic and sectarian ethos promoted by the hope they had to live the future time, considering that only parousia would bring definitive and immediate comfort facing the idiosyncrasies of the modern world. From the analysis of the Congress it is remarkable that, even corroborating some points considered essential to classical Pentecostalism, there is a mix of new convictions coming from the sermons delivered at the event. These convictions are closer to another model of Pentecostalism, the one that values aspects such as the prosperity theology, the pragmatism, the immediatism and the anthropocentrism, features of what is currently known in Brazil as Neopentecostalism. Once these features are found in an atmosphere that represents the classical Pentecostalism, one can notice some conflicts in relation to Pentecostal theology, especially regarding its eschatology, and therefore justifying the title of this Master thesis: the neopentecostalization of classical Pentecostalism.