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the basis of living and of membership, stabilizes families, and impels those who have undergone in to reach out to others\u2019 (1999:140).\u000AAccording to NPS, evangelism and conversion are key items for the social transformation of the country. In other words, they think that salvation is not just a ticket to heaven. They consider that \u2018winning Guatemala for Christ\u2019, will bring changes to the country. They note that \u2018salvation\u2019 does not just belong to the spiritual sphere, but there are also social repercussions. Their religious discourse describes change starting from a person\u2019s conversion experience. According to the NPS, \u2018winning the nation for Christ\u2019 implies the transformation of people and later the life of the nation. David Stoll commenting on the Guatemalan situation affirms that the Evangelicals are trying to translate personal moral reformation into public morality. He says that this starts with the Evangelical traditional belief in the transforming power of individuals who have been born-again to change society (1994: 109, 112). Stoll adds that this idea comes especially from the middle classes who continue to think that conversion to Christianity could change society without radically transforming the structures (1994: 114). Garrard-Burnett points out that the difficulty encountered is the \u2018the lack of political platform which many people are looking for\u2019.98\u000AThe NPS do not think in terms of \u2018social change\u2019, but rather changed lives. This concept includes both the spiritual as well as the social dimension of life. So they do not usually speak about changing structures in society, but rather the change in the lives of individuals who can contribute in favour of social changes. They believe that this change comes as a result of Evangelism. Weber observed a similar situation among the reformers of the sixteenth century. He says that:\u000AWe need to emphasise the fact that none of the reformers [...] gave much importance to programmes of moral reformation. There was not even one among them who could be called the founder of an ethical culture; likewise it is not possible to say that any of them represented a humanitarian desire for social reform or cultural aspirations. The centre of their lives and actions was circumscribed totally to the salvation of the soul. So that the\u000A98 Virginia Garrard-Burnett, \u2018Commentary on Israel Ortiz\u2019 thesis chapter five\u2019, Garrard@mail.utexas.edu 21. 06.07.\u000A184\u000A 


































































































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