From consumption to communion: Reconstructing Pentecostal economic ethics in the age of Neoliberal

Abstract

Pentecostals seldom attend to economic ethics, functioning instead within their country’s prevailing economic system. The article aims to suggest guidelines for an economic ethic that conforms to the Pentecostal ethos by addressing Western exploitative neoliberal capitalist economics, which thrives on consumerism and results in socio-economic inequalities. Through comparative literature research and grammatical-historical exegesis, it becomes clear that such an economic ethic should be characterised by sharing rather than exclusive consumption, as illustrated by the narrative of 1 Kings 17:8–16, which recounts in Elijah’s stay during a famine with a poor widow and her son, where they shared their sustenance. Neoliberal capitalist economics is based on resource patterns of consumption and the commodification of persons. The article concludes that, in response, responsible Pentecostals should emphasise care and compassion for the marginalised, focusing on the communal, thereby contributing to greater socio-economic equality. These insights contribute to current research by offering direction towards a Pentecostal economic ethics more representative of its unique ethos.
Contribution: The article contributes a constructive theological and ethical reorientation of Pentecostal economic thought. Firstly, it provides a historically grounded analysis of the gradual shift from early Pentecostal economic ethics to institutional, middle-class, and prosperity-oriented expressions. Secondly, it offers a theological reading of economic ethics through the lens of 1 Kings 17, highlighting values such as the inclusion of the marginalised in contrast to exclusionary and exploitative neo-capitalist systems. Thirdly, it advances Pentecostal social ethics by challenging prosperity theology and neoliberal assumptions while proposing a Spirit-led ethic rooted in justice, hospitality, sacrificial sharing, and stewardship. Finally, it contributes practically by calling for renewed Pentecostal public witness in addressing poverty and inequality, thereby positioning Pentecostalism as a potential countercultural moral voice within contemporary global economic systems.