ReligionLink polled some of its in-the-know sources and asked, “What should religion reporters keep their eyes on in 2015?”

Peter Althouse is an associate professor of religion at Southeastern University in Lakeland, Fla. He is an expert on Pentecostalism and charismatic renewal and has studied the growth of both in Canada.

Atletas de Cristo, or Athletes for Christ, is a Brazil-based international organization of Christian — usually Pentecostal and evangelical — athletes. Its purpose is to “bring the Gospel to the world through the athlete.” Brazilian soccer players have been known to flout FIFA’s rules against proselytizing via clothing at games.

The Rev. David Wells is general superintendent of the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada, a fellowship of 1,100 congregations that is based in Mississauga, Ontario. He can discuss Pentecostalism in Canada.  

Rose Engcoy teaches church history at Asia Pacific Theological Seminary, which is affiliated with the Assemblies of God national churches of Asia, Pacific Oceania, and the Assemblies of God World Missions-USA and located in Baguio City, Philippines. She does oral history research on the beginnings of Pentecostal groups, especially in the Philippines. She is fluent in […]

Paul Gracza is a rector and a professor at the Pentecostal Theological College  in Budapest, Hungary. He is an expert on Pentecostalism in Europe and speaks fluent English.

Timothy Wadkins is a professor specializing in the history of Christianity and director of the Institute for the Global Study of Religion at Canisius College in Buffalo, N.Y. He is conducting a research project, “The Preferential Option for the Spirit: Pentecostalism and Culture in Modern El Salvador,” through a grant from the University of Southern California’s […]

Daniel Jordan Smith is an associate professor of anthropology and chair of the anthropology department at Brown University in Providence, R.I. He is conducting a research project, “Pentecostalism and AIDS in Nigeria,” through a grant from the University of Southern California’s Pentecostal and Charismatic Research Initiative.

John McCauley is an assistant professor of comparative politics at the University of Maryland. He is conducting a research project, “Pentecostal-Charismatic Christianity and the African Political Landscape,” through a grant from the University of Southern California’s Pentecostal and Charismatic Research Initiative. He specializes in African politics.