Poverty, prosperity and faith : An analysis of the prosperity gospel in the neo-Pentecostal church Winners Chapel International in Bamenda, Cameroon

Cameroon has undergone a period of economic crises, which has rendered its citizens extremely poor of which the UN Millennium development goal has its objective to eradicate extreme poverty in Sub Saharan Africa. As a researcher, I wanted to find out how the prosperity gospel preached to the adherents has influenced their views towards poverty and prosperity. Poverty is not predominantly an issue of a certain group of people but an international challenge, it is paradoxical seeing that prosperity gospel is rapidly growing in Cameroon. This dissertation critically reviews the theological interpretation of poverty and prosperity in Winners Chapel International Bamenda. Prosperity theology has been greatly criticized maintaining that it is irresponsible, promotes idolatry, it is contrary to the Bible and that the preachers of this theology quote scriptures in a certain way to argue their claim. A qualitative study with the application of semi-structured interview was conducted in Bamenda. This research discovered that the prosperity gospel has a remarkable influence on the lives of the adherents who view themselves as having observed an economic change because they worship in this church. The adherents believe it is their covenant right to prosper because God wills prosperity for all God’s children. Their belief is that if they play their part God will equally fulfil his part. Poverty is viewed as a combination of wrong mentality and wrong covenant. Their belief is that with faith and the right application of the covenant poverty can be eluded. This research was governed tremendously by the exponential growth of Pentecostalism and the advent of the gospel of prosperity in Cameroon notably in Bamenda an Anglophone region. This research has shown that poverty is not only multidimensional and complex but has several fundamental causes. Urban areas in Cameroon are facing major challenges arising from globalization, demographic changes and migration of the young well-trained people. A conclusion cannot be drawn mainly that poverty is because of wrong covenant and mentality

Christian Cult of Saints : The threat of Rape and the female martyr Saint in the Golden Legend

The hagiographic narration of popular legends by Jacobus Voragine in the Golden Legend has had a wide readership in the 13th century and onwards. The cult of saints was rooted in the Christian tradition. These venerated saints had their feast days celebrated in the liturgical church season. To portray the legends and traditions of the church, Jacobus writes of historical female saints who met the threat of rape. Although he writes about both the male and female saints, the virginity of the female saint is somehow tied to her martyrdom. In Jacobus’ narrative, these virgin martyr saints are of noble birth, beautiful, pious, and desirous. The virginity of these female saints is put online when menaced with rape and their male counterparts never face this horrendous threat. Sexual shaming and physical punishment were related uniquely to the female saint. The sex and gender of the female saint made their martyrdom defer significantly from the male saints though they went through the same magnitude of torture. Particularly only the female saint’s virginity was ardently related to their martyrdom. This research was done using the source-oriented approach and question-oriented approach. It explored Jacobus’ narrative of the male and female saints and attempts to understand how virginity was communicated and propagated. Virginity is articulated as being valuable by the Church Fathers who came up with treatises in the 4th century. Some of these Church Fathers significantly influence Jacobus, who was also a member of the Dominican Order. These Church Fathers regarded Mary as the virgin par excellence, and she epitomized virginity. In conclusion, Jacobus’ narrative promotes the sanctity of the female saints by showcasing their purity. He depicts virginity as having physical and spiritual attributes but overemphasizes that of the female saint