Introduction

This article is based on my experience conducting field research among African Pentecostal churches in the city of Johannesburg, South Africa. My research project involved conducting interviews and examining liturgical practices for the purpose of identifying processes of reconciliation in these churches. It also investigated how such practices could complement socio-political ideologies that were proving inadequate in dealing with the problem of violence, cleavages, and xenophobia ravaging some local communities. Religion has always been regarded as a source of division, with some extremist groups using it to advance violence and exclusiveness.1 This view tends to overlook the critical role that religion plays in bringing different people from diverse backgrounds, ethnic groups, and different particularities together as they seek to have divine experiences and worship a particular deity in unison. Given the diversity of people that form part of many religious entities, particularly African Pentecostalism, there is a need to determine how these entities are able to keep their adherents together, resolve emerging conflicts, and achieve reconciliation. The understanding that religion can be a source of ideas that can help build bridges, propagate unity, and reconcile warring parties formed the basis of my research project.

Accessing African traditional and religious spaces for research purposes

Despite religion being a potential resource for fostering reconciliation and making a difference in volatile South African communities, most African Pentecostal churches that are inclined towards African traditional religion and cultural systems are closed spaces. Hence conducting research in such spaces requires a proper strategy, which includes adhering to certain relational values and ethical precepts.2 There are a number of strategies that I employed that helped me to access these sacred spaces. These included making appointments and having one-on-one meetings with the designated religious leaders of the churches being investigated, in order to explain the purpose of the research. Explaining the purpose of the research involved articulating the merits and the potential benefits of the project for the churches participating in the study, and for the community at large. This process also involved applying certain African customs and values, such as bowing as a sign of respect when interacting and approaching elders and the use of proverbial language, and identifying myself as a Pentecostal leader.

One of the most pivotal aspects of empirical research is the researcher involving the participants by considering them as co-partners, rather than as simply subjects to provide raw data for their project. Employing this approach, in my case, entailed building relationships with religious leaders in order to establish trust, a necessary asset for them to open up, which allowed me to access to critical documents, observe and participate in their daily and religious activities, and attend their Sunday worship services. I recall that during an SSRC workshop in Casablanca, Morocco, in 2022, one of the facilitators identified trust-building as a vital component of collaborative research. We were advised to note that accessing sacred spaces, particularly religious organizations, requires treating them as partners in research by showing that you are willing to learn from them, including on how such kind of research can be done in their settings.3

Collaborative research also implies that the researcher must treat participants with respect,4 and immerse themselves into the research environment by participating in their programs. I must also state that my positionality as religious leader within African Pentecostal churches has played a critical role in helping me gain entry into the religious systems of the churches I was investigating. My religious position has also been vital in the analysis and interpretation of the data that has been collected. However, I have also been aware of the pitfalls that are associated with being an insider researcher. Hence, I have taken some critical steps to guard against bias and lack of objectivity by being transparent, sensitive, and adhering to the ethical values that governs ethnographical research in religious organizations.5

One interesting experience during my research was when I was collecting data among migrant Pentecostal churches within the city. I interpreted them as a unique experience at first, but was surprised to discover I already had the same experience—when dealing with local churches. A number of the participants from migrant churches were hesitant to respond to certain questions because of the fear of sounding political; others did not want to come forward to be interviewed because they were unsure of the organizations that I represent, with some suspecting that I was from the Home Affairs (migration department), to arrest or implicate them. For example, one of the respondents6 did not want to provide an answer to a question about the causes of xenophobia because she felt that it is was a political question, though after further assurances she was able to answer the question. It was surprising that some participants felt some unease at the start of the research, despite all efforts to present all necessary documents which indicated that I was a researcher, one who outlined clearly the purpose of my research. However, after interviewing the first few participants that boldly came forward, a number of them were soon keen to participant as well. The first participants served as ice breakers; hence, it became easier for others to come forward once they had seen their fellows going through the process without any challenges.

It was also quite interesting that most of the churches investigated were able to mobilize the leaders that were willing to be interviewed, an aspect that made my work easier. However, in one of the churches, despite the executive leadership accepting that this kind of research should happen in their congregation, they chose not to avail the church leaders that needed to be interviewed. I had to find my way around the church premises after every Sunday service in order to identify key leaders that were willing to be interviewed. Although this task of identifying key leaders served as a challenge because the church is huge and has a large following, it served as an opportunity to interact with the members, hold informal conversations with them, and observe and navigate the church premises and understanding its organizational structures.

Conclusion

Despite all the challenges and ethical protocols that characterised investigating African Pentecostal churches in Johannesburg in order to identify grounded and local ideas on unity, social cohesion, and achieving reconciliation, it served as an opportunity to excavate uncharted territories or closed societies in search for new information. Although investigating African Pentecostal churches in search of ideas may not necessarily be likened to discovering a new diamond or gold mine (especially since some ideas identified in these faith organization are not necessarily unique to these religious institutions), the way these organisations are able to blend western ideologies, African traditional precepts, and their own spiritually-led concepts to form a workable tapestry, as well as discourses, is something the world needs to know about. These ideologies can be useful in a world ravaged by wars, divisions, and insecurity; a world  n dire need for locally bred ideas that can easily be understood by ordinary people.

 

Endnotes

  1. Rosen, D., 2017. Violent extremism: is religion the problem or solution. Online. Available at https://www.weforum.org/stories/2017/05/violent-extremism-religion-problem-solution/.
  2. Makola, M. & Ntoyanto-Tyatyantsi, N., 2023. Post Graduate Students’ Experience with Research Ethics: A South African Perspective. Journal of Empirical Research on Human Research Ethics, 18(4), pp. 2008-217.
  3. Oyinloye, B., 2022. Reimagining the researcher-participant ethics relationship: a participant-centred, values-based ethics approach in comparative and international education. Compare: A journal of Comparative and International Education, 54(4), pp. 646-660.
  4. Corgo, M. & Mercer, S. I., 2008. The value and challenges of participatory research: Strengthening its practices. Annual Review of Public Health, 29(1), pp. 325-350.
  5. Saidin, K., 2016. Insider researchers: Challenges and opportunities. ICECRS, Volume 1, pp. 849-854.
  6. Participant One (1), 14th May 2023.
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