Paper short abstract:

In this paper, invoking the Aristotelian notion of energeia as the encapsulation of potentiality into actuality, I will perform an ethnographic exploration of spiritual possession as a form of creativity and poiesis that is a product of a micro-utopia.

Paper long abstract:

In this paper, invoking the Aristotelian notion of energeia as the encapsulation of potentiality into actuality, I will perform an ethnographic exploration of spiritual possession as a form of creativity and poiesis that is a product of a micro-utopia. I will use the example of two prophetic and charismatic churches in Angola, the Tokoist Church and the Church of the Union of the Holy Spirit (ICUES), which incorporate diverse traditions and modalities of spiritual incorporation. I will suggest that the longue-durée relationalities that emerge between humans and spirits in these churches become micro-utopias that devise and configure alternative understandings of social life. To do so, I will critically address the concept of micro-utopia in itself.