Touloutoutou and Tet Mare Churches: Language, Class and Protestantism in the Haitian Diaspora of the Bahamas

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4 Scopus citations

Abstract

Within Haiti’s growing transnational Protestant community, there are different types of churches and adherents that practice traditional forms of Protestant Christianity (such as the Adventist, Methodist and Baptist faiths) and Pentecostal/Charismatic forms of Protestant Christianity. Using Michèle Lamont’s work on symbolic boundaries, I explore how Haitian Protestants living in New Providence, Bahamas, differentiate these two major Haitian Protestant church cultures through the use of denigrating terms about differing religious traditions. Churches which practice traditional forms of Haitian Protestantism, for example, are sometimes called touloutoutou churches. Churches where Pentecostal/Charismatic forms of Haitian Protestantism are practiced are sometimes referred to as tet mare churches by some Haitian Protestants. In addition, practitioners’ descriptions reflect issues of social class and contested notions of Christian authenticity among Haitian Protestants in the Bahamas.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)216-230
Number of pages15
JournalStudies in Religion/Sciences Religieuses
Volume41
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 2012

Keywords

  • Les Bahamas
  • Protestantism
  • The Bahamas
  • class
  • classe sociale
  • frontières symboliques
  • language
  • langue
  • protestantisme
  • symbolic boundaries

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Religious studies

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