O Claustro das mulheres assembleianas: limites e horizontes discursivos nas igrejas pentecostais – Pernambuco (2001-2022)

Abstract

This research analyzes one of the largest and oldest Pentecostal denominations in Brazil. The Assembly of God has a significant presence throughout the country, including in the state of Pernambuco. Therefore, female participation in church activities and leadership is a discussion that varies according to denominations and regions. Therefore, some specific areas or congregations may have more active female participation, while others may be more traditional in their perspectives. of gender. In Pernambuco, as in other states, it is common for women to play different roles in congregations, such as: participation in worship, whether singing, witnessing or praying; in the Prayer Circle, where they gather to pray, witness, intercede and study the Bible; on missions, both locally and abroad; in teaching, especially when they teach biblical classes, especially for children, teenagers and other groups of women, as well as in preaching, although sensitive in terms of the final preaching in services. In this case, culture and society in Pernambuco, as in other parts of Brazil, influence church dynamics and female participation. It is worth mentioning that churches vary in their practices and theologies, herefore, to obtain a more precise understanding of the role of assembly women in Pernambuco, we seek to orient ourselves from the perspective of Cultural History and representations, as well as the history of women as field of investigation, as well as the use of oral history, this time we dialogued with Michelle Perrot (2007); Roger Chartier (1990); Michel de Certeau (1998); José de Assunção Barros (2020), among others. To this end, we seek to understand the historical processes relating to the construction of Assembly thought; its sociocultural and religious practices in relation to its place of production, with a view to the dissemination of the Assemblies' Doctrine and Uses and Customs through the institution's literary texts, used as a cultural system from the Foucauldian perspective (2004); as well as the ecclesiastical and administrative hierarchy and cultural practices, which, in this case, are also religious practices that are present in the Assembly today. This plurality of approaches allows for a discourse analysis about the experiences of assembly women and their actions within the congregation, taking as a time frame the following years between 2001 and 2022.