Pentecostal Lived Body as a Path to Urban Presence

Both day and nighttime sonic pollution from sources of religious worship is a grave issue in Ghana’s major cities. Public concerns over health threats caused by high levels of noise have resulted in several initiatives in the past decade. Ghana’s National Noise Awareness day, launched by the Environmental Protection Agency in 2004 is one example – the holiday is dedicated to raising awareness about the perils of noise. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has also been active in the supervision of noise-levels in the city by accepting complaints and imposing regulations. The official categories of complaints in the EPA reflect a record rise in religious noise –  the agency distinguishes between church-related and other noise complaints, such as equipment, drinking spots, hotels and generators. A rough estimate is that church-related complaints make up the striking 50% of all noise-related complaints. The paper discusses major scholarly theories that account for the popularity of Christian movements known for their noise-making and offers an alternative interpretation built on Maurice Melreau-Ponty’s concept of the “lived body.”