According to Chesnut, the Brazilian Assembly of God church is the largest Pentecostal denomination in the Western Hemisphere. Many of Chesnut's descriptions of Latin American poverty and the impact of Pentecostalism will prove interesting to those unfamiliar with that part of the world. For instance, he points out how alcoholism is a serious problem among males. This vice, so strongly connected with masculine self-identity, yields domestic violence and ironically brings frustration at not being able to provide adequately for basic family needs because so much is spent on the consumption of liquor. The downward destructive spiral is then compounded by abandonment and marital infidelity.
Individuals thus reach a crisis point in their lives.
At this juncture they are often contacted through friends or extended members who are Pentecostal. After conversion, this radical change is reinforced by the baptism of the Spirit, the emotive church services, and the encouragement of the congregation. The new religious affiliation is accompanied by a positive difference in personal morality. The juxtaposition of this grassroots reality with the development of the institutional side of the Assembly of God Church is intriguing. He has offered a hypothesis which demonstrates that poverty in and of itself is a necessary, but not sufficient, condition to explain the growth of this faith in the sprawling urban centers of Central and South America.