How Venezuelan church leaders' behaviors manifest cultural values of honor and shame in their interactions with church members

This dissertation seeks to discover and understand how church leaders' behaviors manifest cultural values of honor and shame in their interactions with church members. The central understanding of the study reveals 3 distinct classes in churches, with the upper class being the elite leadership. The second class is lower leaders, and the lowest is believers without responsibilities, transfers into the church, or those who are on discipline. The elitist class governs the church based on 1 of 3 styles: super leaders and Apostles with recognized gifts of prophecy and miracles; the pastoral family with favored friends; or the economically well-off and professionals. Each of the 3 elitist styles reflect caudillo-style leadership upheld by a patron-client value system of honor and shame based on the belief of limited resources regarding authority and power. The defining line between the elite and non-elites is maturity. Those not favored or considered mature do not share the same privileges and benefits that are part of the elite system.;The writer presents the context noting the historical, secular, and church usages of honor and shame values, leadership structures, local definitions and types of honor and shame, and the roles of groups and individuals. The writer enumerates how church leaders use shaming strategies to control congregants and likewise how leaders use honoring strategies to strengthen congregants while noting personal and ministerial characteristics of honorable church leaders. The writer explores how leaders use honor and shame to support their own social status and create a culture of spiritual elitism in the church. The positive and negative results of leaders' strategies are evaluated as well as how they affect believers' church participation and attendance.;The writer concludes that leaders using redeeming forms of honor and shame foster a sense of belonging and worth in others, resulting in true spiritual maturity and a desire to eagerly participate in and attend church. Contrarily, unredeemed cultural values result in competition, envy, shaming and self-gratifying forms of honor, leading to elitism and discouragement in believers, causing believers to leave the church.