The Rationality of Spirits and Demons

Late modernity (neo-)liberal states—into which we also inscribe most contemporary African countries—are democracies or semi-authoritarian regimes, not theocracies. Demons and spiritual warfare are not terms that readily belong to this contemporary political lexicon, other than in specific contexts or studies. The study of Pentecostalism in Africa offers an advantageous starting point to the study of demons and spiritual warfare, as there is no need to first reconcile demons and spirits with modernity. The modern/unmodern tension in this field began to be addressed at the beginning of the 21st century, while other areas of enquiry (for example, Pentecostalism and Politics in the United States) remain tied up with questions concerning modernization. However, while spirits and warfare are fully recognized as part of the African political imagination, they are still to be fully integrated into political lexicon and understood in their operational logic, especially with regards to their work in national political spaces. With the rise of Pentecostal politics in the African state, there is still a need to elaborate the necessary lexicon and tools to explain in political terms how demons motivate and shape public action and how they operate within the national political space.