Resilient Hope in Hybrid Spaces: Pentecostal Youth Ministry, Mental Health Flourishing, During and Post-COVID-19 in Ghana

Vollständiger Abstract

Worum geht es in dieser Arbeit?

Abstract During the COVID-19 restrictions in Ghana, Pentecostal youth ministries experienced a profound disruption of embodied worship and communal life. This paper argues that the crisis did not simply shift ministry activities to digital platforms but compelled a deeper theological and pastoral reworking of presence, care and leadership. Drawing on qualitative data from youth ministries in Accra, Kumasi and Cape Coast, the study examines how young Christians sustained community through hybrid practices such as WhatsApp prayer meetings, online all-night prayer (vigils), livestream worship and digitally mediated pastoral support. These practices nurtured resilience and hope while also exposing inequalities of access, digital fatigue, tensions around authority and legitimacy. The article contends that hope functioned as a shared spiritual discipline, enabling youth to become active agents of worship, care and meaning-making within constrained and uncertain conditions.