New Books in Sociology Laurie Denyer Willis, "Go with God: Political Exhaustion and Evangelical Possibility in Suburban Brazil" (U California Press, 2023)
Shift from Policing to Evangelicalism
- Laurie Denyer Willis intended to research policing and pacification in Rio's favelas but shifted focus to evangelicalism as locals found politics less relevant.
- This shift led to years of ethnographic work centered on understanding evangelical faith's role in their community's life and future.
How Evangelical Faith Transforms Political Engagement in Brazil's Suburbs
Laurie Denyer Willis explores how evangelicalism reshapes people's relationship with the state in Rio de Janeiro's outlying communities by shifting political engagement from traditional demands to a "politics of salvation."
Evangelical faith offers an intimate, community-based alternative to conventional political movements, which many find exhausting and risky, especially given the state's history of violence and neglect. Instead of public protests, people participate in prayer circles and experience evangelical promises as deeply personal and immediate, often exchanged within homes and close relationships.
This religious engagement does not just provide spiritual solace but articulates new visions of the future — emphasizing hope, healing, and protection for families amid systemic inequalities and political disillusionment. Laurie highlights the need to take evangelical believers' feelings seriously rather than dismissing them as manipulated or foolish, arguing for ethnographic approaches that reveal the depth and complexity of these faith practices.
Politics of Salvation over Demands
- Evangelicalism offers a personal, intimate politics of salvation rather than collective political demands.
- It provides hope and community in daily life, contrasting with exhausting and risky protest movements under a violent, neglectful state.
