Evangelical christianity in sri lanka the politics of growth

EVANGELICAL CHRISTIANITY IN SRI LANKA: THE POLITICS OF GROWTH ORLANDO WOODS B.A. (University College London) A THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY DEPARTMENT OF GEOGRAPHY NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE 2012 Acknowledgements Many people have contributed to this research. My supervisor, Lily Kong, has provided clear academic leadership throughout the course of the PhD, and has propelled my academic development fast and far. My thesis committee – Robbie Goh and Tracey Skelton – has provided encouragement, especially during the early stages of the research. In addition, the National University of Singapore has provided an institutional covering, financial support and access to resources, without which this research would not have been possible. During fieldwork in Sri Lanka, a number of people – Christian and Buddhist – assisted me with sampling and logistics. Although these individuals shall not be named, I am nonetheless grateful for their support. Many interviewees extended kindness to me, through the provision of food, tea, transportation or supporting documents. All of these people not only made the research process smoother, but more enjoyable as well. Finally, thanks to my partner, Samantha, for tolerating my absences – both physical and mental – over the past three years.   i   Table of Contents Acknowledgements Table of Contents Abstract List of Tables List of Figures i ii v vii vii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 1.2 1.3 Religion in postcolonial Asia Towards a geographical understanding of religious growth Research aims and thesis structure CHAPTER 2: THE GROWTH OF EVANGELICAL CHRISTIANITY IN GLOBAL AND LOCAL PERSPECTIVE 11 2.1 2.2 2.2.1 2.2.2 2.2.3 2.2.4 2.2.5 2.3 2.4 2.4.1 2.5 2.5.1 2.5.2 2.5.3 2.6 11 12 14 17 19 21 24 27 30 34 37 38 42 44 49 Introduction Theorising evangelical Christian growth in modernity Structural determinants of religious change Existing approaches to religious economy theorisation Problematising the structural determinants of change Human agency and religious conversion The evangelical organisation as an arbiter of religious change Variegated patterns of evangelical Christian growth Evangelical Christian growth within a spatial framework Theorising sacred space Conceptual framework The structural mosaic as an enabler of religious growth The spatial modalities of the structural mosaic The house church as networked space Summary CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY AND EMPIRICAL CONTEXT 52 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Sri Lanka’s contested religious marketplace 3.2.1 Christianity, Sinhalatva, and the rise of Buddhist protectionism in Sri Lanka 3.2.2 The Prohibition of Forcible Conversion Bill 3.2.3 Oligopoly dynamics and Sri Lanka’s informal religious economy 3.3 Critical ethnography in a cross-cultural context 3.4 Cross-cultural research ethics 3.4.1 Problematising institutional ethics 3.4.2 Positionality, personality, performativity: a triumvirate of researcher reflexivity 3.5 Methods 3.5.1 Sampling technique 52 53 54   57 60 64 68 70 72 77 79 ii   3.5.2 In-depth interviews 3.5.3 Observations 3.6 Research sites 3.6.1 Colombo and the Western Province 3.6.2 The Southern Province 3.6.3 The Central Province 3.6.4 The Northern and Eastern Provinces 3.7 Summary 82 88 91 93 97 100 106 108 CHAPTER 4: REALISING EVANGELICAL AGENCY WITHIN A STRUCTURALLY HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT 110 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.4.1 4.4.2 4.4.3 4.5 4.5.1 4.5.2 4.6 4.6.1 4.6.2 4.7 4.7.1 Introduction Scalar determinations and dissident geopolitics A relational model of Christian competitiveness Overcoming boundaries: patterns of secrecy and subterfuge The (in)visibility of evangelical Christian presence Mobilising and deploying the laity Strategies of spatial diffusion Foreign catalysts Relative need The space of parallel entitlement Strategic extra- and intra-group networks of influence Extra-group networks Intra-group networks The structural mosaic in action Using the structural mosaic as a strategy of Christian cooptation 4.7.2 Using the structural mosaic to influence others 4.8 Summary 110 111 115 117 118 122 127 131 133 137 140 140 144 147 148 CHAPTER 5: LOCATING EVANGELICAL PRAXIS IN SRI LANKA 164 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.4.1 5.4.2 5.4.3 5.5 5.5.1 5.5.2 5.5.3 5.5.4 5.6 5.6.1 5.6.2 5.6.3 5.7 164 165 169 169 170 173 176 178 180 184 190 195 201 203 207 209 212   Introduction Locational hierophanies Spaces of evangelism The urban-rural paradox Urban nodes and the spatial diffusion of evangelicals The supply of Christianity The demand for Christianity The public-private paradox The public place of religion in Sri Lanka The house as church Evangelism in the public domain Evangelism in the private domain Spaces of youth evangelism Proximate spaces of evangelism: the youth club Detached spaces of evangelism: the youth camp Non-Christian spaces of evangelism: the university campus Obfuscating evangelical space using the structural mosaic 156 161 iii   5.7.1 The Buddhist temple as a space of subordination 5.7.2 The house church as a space of subversion 5.8 Summary 213 217 221 CHAPTER 6: THE POLITICS OF EVANGELICAL CHRISTIAN GROWTH 223 6.1 6.2 6.2.1 6.2.2 6.3 6.3.1 6.3.2 6.3.3 6.4 6.4.1 6.4.2 6.4.3 6.5 6.6 Introduction Place-bound politics of growth Spatial buffering as a strategy of resistance The politics of permission Converting houses into churches The politics of place(lessness) and church fission The volatility of sacred networks House churches and religious dualism Converting people The market mentality Negotiating public and private spaces of evangelism Unethical conversion and the structural mosaic Debating “unethical” conversion Summary 223 224 226 233 236 237 243 245 250 252 254 260 267 272 CHAPTER 7: BUDDHIST HEGEMONY IN A GLOBAL SCHEMA 274 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.3.1 7.3.2 7.3.3 7.4 7.4.1 7.4.2 7.4.3 7.5 274 276 278 279 282 285 289 289 294 300 306 Introduction The destabilisation of primordial power structures Constructing the Christian “threat” Christianity as a symptom of the (neo-) colonial “West” Connecting Christianity and the NGO conspiracy Buddhist insecurity in global perspective Buddhist protectionism and hegemony The discursive formations of self-Orientalism Cultural intransigence and religious (im)mobility The violent outcomes of Buddhist hegemony Summary CHAPTER 8: CONCLUSIONS 308 8.1 Chapter summaries 8.2 Key contributions and relevance for future research 8.2.1 A spatial understanding of evangelical Christian growth 8.2.2 Network-based sacred space 8.2.3 Towards a more extrospective geography of religion 8.3 Autocritique and final comments 308 314 316 317 319 320 BIBLIOGRAPHY 323 APPENDIX 1: The Prohibition of Forcible Conversion Bill 345 APPENDIX 2: Interview Schedule 350   iv   Abstract This thesis develops a new understanding of evangelical Christian growth in the contemporary world. Existing explanations of growth are well rehearsed within the social sciences, and draw clear distinctions between the characteristics of evangelical organisations, and the structural contexts in which they operate. Notwithstanding, a number of theoretical and empirical assumptions render such explanations applicable in some countries, but not others. Drawing on qualitative data collected in Buddhistmajority Sri Lanka throughout 2010-11, I argue that closer examination of the recursive relationship between organisation (agency) and context (structure) will lead to recognition of the fact that growth is a spatially defined process, with evangelical organisations being tied to localities in complex and multifarious ways. Four empirical chapters develop this argument further. The first examines how, in structurally hostile environments, evangelical groups grow in ways that are more relational than otherwise recognised, and become adept at spreading their evangelical influence through the appropriation and use of non-religious spaces. The second focuses on the spatial variability of evangelical praxis, showing how it varies between urban and rural, and public and private spaces and, more specifically, how strategic engagement in and through space is a defining feature of youth evangelism. The third critically draws upon the findings of the first two chapters by exploring the politics of evangelical Christian growth – specifically the politics of the house church, and the allegations of “unethical” activity that foreground the politics of converting both people, and space. The fourth empirical chapter explores how Buddhist hegemony develops as a response to evangelical Christian growth, and how Buddhist insecurity in the face of Christian globalism can translate into extreme forms of religious   v   protectionism and violence. To conclude, I show how the findings not only contribute to the continued evolution of the geographies of religion, but also highlight the value of a more extrospective sub-discipline that engages with, challenges and develops more wide-ranging debates that exist outside our putative disciplinary boundaries.   vi   List of Tables Table Table Sri Lanka’s mainline and evangelical Christian denominations by representative body Interview sample by location (province/district) and organisation type 62 87 List of Figures Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure 10 Figure 11 Figure 12 Figure 13 Figure 14 Figure 15 Figure 16 Figure 17 Figure 18 Figure 19 Figure 20 Figure 21 Figure 22 Figure 23 Figure 24 Figure 25 Map showing the territorial delineations of the 10/40 Window Map showing field sites at the district level in Sri Lanka Inside the People’s Church, Colombo The external façade of the Calvary Church, Colombo A sign of Buddhist religiosity in Galle? Kandy – “the Vatican of Buddhism” – at dusk An estate line in Nuwara Eliya Inside the estate lines (Re)building Hinduism in Trincomalee Growing the church by asking the laity to “Harvest 12” An evangelical church in Nuwara Eliya, built using funds raised in Singapore Providing toilets for an estate line in Nuwara Eliya A clean water source in Hambantota district A Christian NGO in Vavuniya receiving a consignment of bibles Proclaiming a Christian message in an urban setting The Dutch Reformed Church in Galle Fort A mobile pastor in Nuwara Eliya The handbag of an evangelical pastor’s wife in Trincomalee A house church service in an estate line in Nuwara Eliya A fully-grown Bo tree and adjoining Buddhist shrine, Colombo Spatial crowding in a Colombo suburb Hindu shrine located in the line room of a recently converted “Christian” family Disadvantaged children queue up for a free lunch at a feeding centre in a north Colombo suburb The United Nations headquarters in Colombo under siege Military personnel in front of a Buddhist statue, Colombo 29 93 95 96 99 102 104 105 107 125 136 146 151 158 176 181 187 192 202 229 231 247 263 283 303 N.B. Figures 2-25 are the author’s own.   vii   CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Religion in postcolonial Asia Evangelical Christianity is one of the fastest growing and most widely dispersed religious groups in the world today. The evangelical remit, pursued to varying degrees by all Christian groups, is a biblical mandate1, yet the processes of evangelisation that lead to growth are fraught with politics that are under-researched, and often misunderstood. This thesis fills the lacuna by exploring the politics of evangelical Christian growth. It focuses specifically on how evangelism catalyses inter- (and intra-) religious competition for resources, such as ‘people, territory, wealth, positions of power, and economic advantage… dignity, prestige, and all manner of symbolic capita’ (Lincoln 2003: 74), and how religious conflict is often a by-product of the competitive desire to ‘overcome, eliminate, or convert the other to extinction’ (Bouma 2007: 190). In doing so the thesis adopts a systemic approach to understanding Christian growth; one that positions evangelical groups not as autonomous agents, but as situated stakeholders that are both sensitive, and responsive to the structural conditions of a locality. I this using a detailed analysis of the religious context of Sri Lanka, where I also explore how religious competition can legitimate the political aspirations of anti-Christian religious groups, and can lead to a number of paradoxical outcomes that contribute to, whilst simultaneously compromise, Christian growth. Such a dynamic is not unique to Sri Lanka, but is particularly pronounced in postcolonial Asia, where growth often reveals an irreconcilable tension between the                                                                                                                 In particular, the Great Commission is the instruction of the resurrected Jesus Christ to his disciples, telling them to ‘go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit’ (Matthew 28: 19).     globalist ambitions of evangelical Christianity, and the localist ambitions of primordial, non-Christian religious groups. In Malaysia, for example, police recently sanctioned a mass gathering of Muslims in the capital city, Kuala Lumpur, seeking to ‘defend Islam against Christian proselytisation’ (The Straits Times 20.10.2011). The so-called ‘anti-proselytisation rally’ had been organised to bolster proposals put forth by a confederacy of Muslim organisations for a new law to punish those who try to convert Muslims. This example reflects similar anti-conversion legislation proposed (and implemented) in Bhutan, India2 and Sri Lanka, and contributes to an emerging trend amongst postcolonial nation-states seeking to defend their religious sovereignty against the destabilising threat of unchecked Christian proselytism. Strategies of “religious protectionism” (see Robbins 2004) typically involve the strengthening of dominant religious groups along nationalist and/or ethnic lines, as ‘the cause of “nationalism” has [often]… turned a religiously plural society into one defined by religious hegemony’ (Ammerman 2010: 164). This contributes to a dual occurrence of hegemony: the aspirations of Christian globalism and the assertions of religious nationalism, both of which have a role to play in catalysing competition and conflict. In Sri Lanka, more specifically, recent decades have witnessed the emergence of a Buddhist political elite; one that is intolerant to difference, chauvinistic, and seeks to contain the spread and influence of evangelical groups via increasingly punitive means. 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(2006) ‘How Religious Organizations Influence Chinese Conversion to Evangelical Protestantism in the United States’, Sociology of Religion, 67(2): 149-159   344   APPENDIX 1: The Prohibition of Forcible Conversion Bill THE GAZETTE OF THE DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF SRI LANKA Part II of May 28, 2004 SUPPLEMENT (Issued on 31.05.2004) PROHIBITION OF FORCIBLE CONVERSION OF RELIGION (Private Member’s Bill) A BILL to provide for prohibition of conversion from one religion to another by use of force or allurement or by fraudulent means and for matters incidental therewith or incidental thereto To be presented in Parliament by Ven. Dr. Omalpe Sobhitha Thero, M. P. PRINTED AT THE DEPARTMENT OF GOVERNMENT PRINTING, SRI LANKA TO BE PURCHASED AT THE GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS BUREAU, COLOMBO Price : Rs. 5.25   Postage : Rs. 4.50 345   Prohibition of Forcible Conversion of Religion AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR PROHIBITIONS OF CONVERSION FROM ONE RELIGION TO ANOTHER BY USE OF FORCE OR ALLUREMENT OR BY FRAUDULENT MEANS AND FOR MATTERS INCIDENTAL THERE WITH OR INCIDENTAL THERETO. WHEREAS, Buddhism being the foremost religion professed and practiced by the majority of people of Sri Lanka, due to the introduction by great Tathagatha, the Sambuddha in the 8th Month after he had attained Buddhahood on his visit to Mahiyangana in Sri Lanka and due to the complete realisation after the arrival of Arahat Mahinda Thero in the 3rd Century B.E Preamble. AND WHEREAS, the State has a duty to protect and foster the Buddha Sasana while assuring to all religions the rights 10 granted by Article 10 and 14(1) (e) of the Constitution of the Republic of Sri Lanka : AND WHEREAS, the Buddhist and non Buddhist are now under serious threat of forcible conversions and proselyzing by coercion or by allurement or by fraudulent means : 15 AND WHEREAS, the Mahasanga and other religious leaders realising the need to protect and promote religious harmony among all religions, historically enjoyed by the people of Sri Lanka : BE it enacted by the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist 20 Republic of Sri Lanka as follows :— 1. This Act may be cited as the Prohibition of Forcible Conversion of Religion Act, No. of 2004 Short title. 2. No person shall convert or attempt to convert, either directly or otherwise, any person from one religion to another 25 by the use of force or by allurement or by any fraudulent means nor shall any person aid or abet any such conversion. Forcible conversion illegal. 3. (a) Whoever adopts a religion from one religion to another shall within such period as may be prescribed by the Minister, send an intimation to that effect to the Divisional 30 Secretary of the area in which such adoption took place. Intimation to the Divisional Secretary. – H 20502 — 375 (05/2004)   346   Prohibition of Forcible Conversion of Religion (b) Whoever converts any person from one religion to another either by performing any ceremony by himself for such conversion as a facilitator or by taking part directly or indirectly in such ceremony shall within such period as may be prescribed by the Minister, send in an intimation to that effect to the Divisional Secretary of the area in which such adoption took place. 4. (a) Notwithstanding contrary to any provision in the Code of Criminal Procedure Act, whoever contravenes the 10 provisions of section above shall, without prejudice to any civil liability, shall be guilty of any offence and on conviction before a magistrate be liable to be punished with imprisonment for a term which may not exceeding five years and also be liable to a fine not exceeding Rupees one hundred 15 and fifty thousaned : Offences. Provided that whoever contravenes the provisions of section above in respect of a minor, a woman or a person referred to in schedule hereof, shall on conviction before a Magistrate be punished with imprisonment for a term not 20 exceeding seven years and also be liable to a fine not exceeding rupees five hundred thousand. (b) Whoever fails, without sufficient cause, to comply with the provisions of section (a) and (b) above shall on conviction before a Magistrate be punished with imprisonment 25 for a term not exceeding five years or with a fine, not exceeding rupees one hundred and fifty thousand; 5. Proceedings before a Magistrate may be instituted in one of the following ways :— 30 Institutional Proceedings. (a) by the Divisional Secretary of the area or an officer authorised by him for the purpose ; (b) by the Police in terms of Section 136 of the Code of Criminal Procedure Act, No. 15 of 1979, upon a complaint made to the Police by a person aggrieved   347   Prohibition of Forcible Conversion of Religion by the offence or in the case of a Minor, by his or her father or mother or a lawful Guardian or any other interested person who has reasons to believe that the provisions of the act has been violated, acting in the public interest ; (c) by a person aggrieved by the offence ; (d) by an Attorney-at-Law ; (e) by any person authorised by the Minister. 6. The Minister for the time being in charge of Justice Regulations. 10 may make rules and regulations for the enforcing and carrying out the provisions of this act and all such rules and regulations so made shall be published in the Government Gazette and shall be placed before the Parliament for approval. 7. In the event of any inconsistency between the Sinhala Sinhala text to prevail in and Tamil texts of this Act, the Sinhala text shall prevail. 15 case of inconsistency. 8. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires — Interpretation. (a) “allurement” means offer of any temptation in the form of — 20 (i) any gift or gratification whether in cash or kind ; (ii) grant of any material benefit, whether monetary or otherwise ; (iii) grant of employment or grant of promotion in employment. 25   (b) “convert” means to make one person to renounce one religion and adopt another religion ; 348   Prohibition of Forcible Conversion of Religion (c) “force” shall include a show of force including a threat or harm or injury of any kind or threat of religious displeasure or condemnation of any religion or religious faith ; (d) “fraudulent” means includes misinterpretation or any other fraudulent contrivance ; (e) “minor” means a person under eighteen years of age. SCHEDULE 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.   Those persons classified as samurdy beneficiaries Prison inmates Inmates of rehabilitation centres Inmates of detention centres Physically or mentally disabled Employees of an organisation Members of the armed forces or police Students Inmates of hospitals and or places of healing Inmates of refugee camps Any other category as may be prescribed by the minister by regulations. 349   APPENDIX 2: Interview Schedule Interview schedule for “elite” Christian research subjects (i.e. leaders of Christian church and parachurch organisations) Warm-up/background information • Religious and family background • Background and role(s) working with the organisation o Length of service o Job scope within the organisation Organisational characteristics • Characteristics o Number of pastors/staff o Contextual characteristics (e.g. ethnic/religious composition of community; notable changes in community over time) o For churches: size and composition of congregation (changes over time?); key activities, etc. o For parachurch organisations: nature of work; measures of “success” (e.g. number of churches planted), etc. • Origins and growth o Inception (i.e. how did the church come about) o Spatial development (e.g. building upgrades/expansion) o Where organisation is located (site/situation – include both permanent and temporary locations) o Growth milestones over time • Transnational linkages o Number and nature of linkages o Type and degree of dependency (if any) o Effect on organisational operations, strategies and outcomes   Strategies and spaces of evangelism • Key factors affecting the development and implementation of strategies of evangelism o What strategies are commonly used? o Efficacy of different strategies; why are some strategies used and not others? o Explore tension (if any) between strategies of evangelism and context (i.e. demand, other religious agencies, etc.) • Spaces of evangelism o Characteristics of spaces commonly used 350   o Efficacy of different spaces; why are some used and not others? o Explore how space is used to reflect and reproduce evangelical Christianity • • • • •   Intersections of strategy and space o To what extent are strategies of evangelism place-specific? o How is space used to implement different strategies, and how is evangelical strategy influenced by space (if at all)? Resistance to evangelism • Key sources and forms of resistance o Where does resistance come from (i.e. which religious/ethnic/social groups) and who they target (i.e. physical buildings, symbols, or persons)? o Probe spatial dimensions of resistance o Explore the effect of resistance on strategies and outcomes of resistance • Reciprocal/mitigating responses from evangelicals o How evangelicals (i.e. organisations, clergy and laity) respond to resistance? o Explore the idea that the relationship between evangelical strategy and context is reciprocal, and in a constant state of (re)negotiation o Explore how the use of space is a means/outcome of resistance/counter-resistance Evangelism in Sri Lanka Key challenges facing evangelical organisations in Sri Lanka/locality Implications of the Prohibition of Forcible Conversion Bill, if passed Other regulatory constraints that affect the practice or outcomes of evangelism Understanding of the position of non-evangelical groups and possible options for tolerance in the future 351   [...]... programmes) with their evangelical objectives in order to co-opt or influence others Chapter 5 explores the locations and determinants of evangelical praxis in Sri Lanka Through a focus on two dichotomous pairings – urban-rural and public-private – Chapter 5 starts by examining some of the locational paradoxes that are an inherent part of evangelical praxis in Sri Lanka Specifically, I explain why, in urban... In the Sri Lankan context, such volition is challenged by allegations of “unethical” conversion to Christianity on the one hand, and the difficulty of converting out of Buddhism on the other Such allegations and difficulties fuel the politics of evangelical Christian growth in Sri Lanka and are, to a large extent, a function of the idiosyncrasies of the “geo-religious” context within which they occur... understanding of Christian growth in hostile environments By recognising the heterogeneity of structure, the structural mosaic sensitises discourse to how religious agents can infiltrate (seemingly hostile) religious structures via non-religious structural influencing I also focus on the important role of space in mediating and determining strategies of evangelical Christian growth, and explore in detail the. .. how the case of Sri Lanka requires new understandings of the workings of an “oligopolistic” religious marketplace Guided by my multivalent understanding of religious growth, in the second part of the chapter I highlight the need for more qualitative understandings of religious change – something that presents a significant departure from the existing, quantitative methodologies that currently dominate... and the planting of churches, but also more intangible markers, such as public debates surrounding Christianity, and growing awareness of Christian actions in the public conscience The privileging of the quantifiable over the unquantifiable has caused discourse to focus on numerical increases in Christian populations rather than the discursive effects of a strengthening religious cohort Whilst the. .. sections, each of which focuses on a different facet of the politics of evangelical Christian growth The first section examines the placebound politics of growth that prevents many evangelical groups from establishing a formal religious presence I examine how spatial buffering – through the use of Bodhi (“Bo”) trees and Buddhist statues – is used to contain Christian expansion, and how the politics of permission... congregations In the third section I examine the politics of converting people, with particular reference to the market mentality of evangelicals, the spatial modalities (with particular regard to the public-private paradox, previously discussed in Chapter 5) of the “unethical” conversion debate, and the value of the structural mosaic in helping to contribute new perspectives to the debate The chapter... present themselves for further research   10   CHAPTER 2: THE GROWTH OF EVANGELICAL CHRISTIANITY IN GLOBAL AND LOCAL PERSPECTIVE 2.1 Introduction Over two decades have passed since Poloma and Pendleton’s (1989) criticism of the lack of research explaining the explosive growth of evangelical Christian groups in modernity; a phenomenon that is widely recognised as being ‘one of the most important religious... deprivation and anomie that foster the growth of small, independent religious groups that are adept at meeting the felt needs of a population This has commonly been used to explain the phenomenal growth of evangelical and charismatic forms of Christianity throughout Latin America and Africa in the latter half of the twentieth century (e.g Martin, 1990, 2002; Chesnut, 1997, 2003) In Latin America, Protestant churches... decline In addition there is a belt of territory that has received recognition for resisting the encroachment of evangelical groups, and restricting the growth of Christianity Spanning Northern Africa, the Middle East, and much of Asia, such territories are collectively referred to as the “10/40 Window” (as they span the latitudes ten to forty degrees north – see Gerhardt 2008: 917-9), and challenge the . engagement in and through space is a defining feature of youth evangelism. The third critically draws upon the findings of the first two chapters by exploring the politics of evangelical Christian growth. dramatic shift in the character and growth of Christianity. Increasingly associated with the Southern, rather than Northern Hemisphere, revivalism has seen large mainline denominations decline, smaller,. difficulties fuel the politics of evangelical Christian growth in Sri Lanka and are, to a large extent, a function of the idiosyncrasies of the “geo-religious” context within which they occur (see