AAlthoff

Religious Identities of Latin American Immigrants in Chicago: Preliminary Findings from Field Research von Andrea Althoff — Zuletzt verändert: 06.07.2009 18:12

In the United States today, Latin Americans, mainly Mexicans, constitute the largest number of immigrants, and this majority puts them at the center of debates regarding integration into U.S. civil society. Some parties to these debates regard immigrants’ religions as an impediment to their integration, yet there are very few studies that cover recent immigration from a religious perspective. The role of religion and religious institutions for immigrants in the past is, by contrast, well documented. Research on immigration from Europe, for instance, underscores the fact that religious institutions have been among the most important resources for meeting the challenges immigrants face in a demanding and often threatening new environment. It is also manifestly the case that immigrant religions contribute to a pluralism that alters the American religious landscape. The essay addresses and links two major issues that are embedded in the above descibed dynamic. One is the analysis of the changing patterns of immigration in the United States while the second is concerned with the flourishing of Pentecostalism among the Latino community. The central question that links both developments is: What is the functional role of religion within the new patterns of recent immigration? This essay presents preliminary results of a broader comparative research project that focuses on the Latino Pentecostal movement and the Catholic Charismatic Renewal. However, to limit the scope of the submission I present data that mainly characterizes Latino Pentecostalism. The project is located at the Martin Marty Center of the University Chicago Divinity School where I am currently a Senior Senior Research Fellow.