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the \u201Ccurse\u201D upon the country. She boldly points out that the urban elite and those who are near sources of power link prosperity to repenting of sin, and in this case the sin of the Mayan tradition, and so prosperity: a) implies destroying Mayan traditions\u2019. Later she adds, \u2018b) this also excludes the Mayans from prosperity [...], as they are the indigenous people who are responsible for the \u201Ccurse\u201D which has been placed over the country (1998: 282). The NPL emphasize that in order to be able to develop they have to abandon certain values, thought patterns and conduct which they learned from indigenous worldview and the Iberian Catholic culture.\u000AThe NPL seek for a sort of reformation of the culture as was observed in the posture of the pastors in the previous Chapter. They are trying to attack the curse of some vices within the Guatemalan culture which flourishes in a context where ethical and moral values are in disarray. Mart\u00EDn states that the Pentecostals do not openly confront political issues. They work slowly and subtly transforming culture in areas such as power and gender issues. Later he underscores, \u2018In societies were politics is carried on by corrupt clienteles, a reform of culture through religion may well be the best option the populace has\u2019 (cited in Gifford 2004:181)\u000AOther studies of the religious world like Burdik (1993), Garrard-Burnett (1998), as well as Latin American writers like Octavio Paz (1976) and some Evangelical missionaries like John A. Mackay (1988) and some leaders of the Catholic Church like Monsignor Rodriguez of Honduras (2002) have emphasized the cultural element in their analyses of Latin American problems. These examples show that the opinions of the Neo-Pentecostals, although they may be deficient and incomplete, are not necessarily disconnected from, or outside of the discussion of analysis of the religious phenomenon from the academic world. The NPL have before them the challenge of evaluating if the values, doctrine and life styles of the adherents adjust to the values of the Kingdom of God found in the gospel.\u000A288\u000A