Page 198 - Aesthetic Formations Media, religion, and the Sense

Chapter 8

Modes of Binding, Moments of

Bonding. Mediating Divine Touch

in Ghanaian Pentecostalism

and Traditionalism

Marleen de Witte

Introduction

On a Sunday evening in 2002 a Presbyterian woman in Accra was baptized
by the Holy Spirit while watching a charismatic-Pentecostal television
broadcast. She had been sweeping the room when Living Word came on
and caught her attention. As she heard pastor Mensa Otabil preaching on
speaking in tongues, she put her broom away and sat down to listen to the
message. After the sermon, which was prerecorded in church, Otabil came
on to address the viewer at home. His wise and friendly face filled the screen
and in his deep voice he said “let’s pray together.” Suddenly the woman

found herself praying in tongues without stopping. For the first time in her
life she was filled with the Holy Spirit. That evening she wrote a letter to
the church to thank pastor Otabil, telling him how beautiful her experi-
ence was and how excited she was, and promising that she would from now
on allow God to use him to bless her. Similar testimonies of people who
experienced being touched by the Holy Spirit while watching a charismatic
TV broadcast abound. What can this tell us about religious bonding in the