Description: The prosperity movement has influenced millions of people in North America, Asia, Europe, South America, and Africa through Pentecostal, Charismatic and nondenominational preachers in some of the largest churches in the world. CNN, ABC, and Time magazine have examined the preachers and churches in this popular and controversial movement. Scholars and church leaders have studied it for more than two decades, producing dozens of books and articles on it. Considering the widespread popularity of the prosperity movement and the attention it is given by its critics, Brogdon asks, "Is prosperity preaching the new Pentecostal message?" In order to answer this question, one has to examine the prosperity movement as a Pentecostal movement instead of a Word of Faith movement that is a revised form of New Thought metaphysics and Science of Mind. Brogdon provides an introduction to the prosperity movement as a Pentecostal movement. He asks important questions in the study of the prosperity movement, such as who popularized prosperity teaching, Oral Roberts or Ken Hagin? Do all Pentecostals agree with the prosperity doctrine? Is prosperity teaching good news to the poor? Has prosperity replaced the emphasis on the Holy Spirit? The answers may surprise you.
Brief description:
Dr. Lewis Brogdon is a distinguished religious scholar, public intellectual, author, and prophetic voice on issues such as the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., reparations for African Americans, nihilism in Black America, slavery in the Bible, Black religion, and the enduring legacy of racism in the United States. He has been invited to speak at influential platforms including the Permanent Forum for People of African Descent--an advisory body to the United Nations Human Rights Council -- as well as at numerous media outlets, churches, colleges, and community organizations across the country.
Dr. Brogdon has offered prayers at the National Press Club and the South African Embassy in Washington, D.C. and delivered keynote addresses at prominent events such as the 2023 Virginia Counselors' Association annual meeting and Dayton, Ohio's city-wide Martin Luther King Jr. dinner. His international teaching includes lectures on Black Studies in Jerusalem, Haiti, and the Bahamas. He has taught his course on Martin Luther King Jr. at four institutions, including a session with Dr. Cornel West, and has lectured at a range of universities including the University of Central Florida, Abilene Christian University, Louisville Seminary, the Interdenominational Theological Center, Claflin University, Radford University, Campbellsville University, Bluefield University, and North Park Theological Seminary.
Dr. Brogdon currently serves as Associate Professor of Black Church Studies and Executive Director of the Institute for Black Church Studies at BSK Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. He is also Director of Institutional Effectiveness at Bluefield University in Virginia. A prolific author, his works include Hope on the Brink: Understanding the Emergence of Nihilism in Black America, The Bible in the Ashes of Social Chaos: An Introduction to Problematic Texts, and The Gospel Beyond the Grave: Toward a Black Theology of Hope.