The Faith Factor: A Study on the Responses of Neo-Pentecostal Churches During the 2014 Ebola Outbreak in Monrovia, Liberia

This research explores the impact of faith on health beliefs and responses within the context of the Ebola outbreak in Liberia. It looks at the responses of neo-Pentecostals (NPs) to the Ebola outbreak and containment measures. In much of sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), faith stakeholders are crucial for community acceptance of health information and recommended behavior changes. While traditional community engagement strategies recognize the need for faith engagement, Christianity is often treated as one broad faith category without acknowledging the many faith subsets that exist within it. The religious landscape in SSA has changed dramatically in the last few decades. Historically dominated by mainline denominations with roots in the West and linkages to centralized authority structures, Pentecostalism, and more specifically neo-Pentecostalism, has rapidly emerged as the primary expression of Christianity in Africa. NPs are a subset of Christianity known for their beliefs in spiritual causality and divine healing, expressed through prayer and the laying on of hands. While NPC responses to HIV/AIDS have been discussed in the scholarship, their impact on health behaviors in SSA has not been thoroughly studied. Additionally, there is a deficit of detailed analysis on the barriers and facilitators to their engagement in health initiatives. This study employed qualitative research methods to examine this faith/health interaction. Interviews were conducted with a broad range of demographics and results were compared with the literature to determine consistency among findings. This thesis demonstrates that several NP beliefs and characteristics were linked to adherents’ perceptions of and responses to Ebola. Their beliefs, culture of independence, and the high degree of trust ascribed to their leaders rendered traditional engagement methods largely ineffective. This study argues that a ‘one size fits all’ engagement strategy is ineffective in today’s religious climate and hinders faith inclusivity.