Introduction

Abstract This chapter presents the central puzzle of the book: How do evangelicals and gangs, the two most ubiquitous social organizations in lower class El Salvador, interact? And what does this say about how evangelicals interact with society and social problems more generally? In a world where global political, economic, and social systems connect many of us to events El Salvador, answers to such questions take on increased importance. The chapter provides historical sketches that outline the rise of evangelicals and gangs in El Salvador, including the transnational origins of both. It then explains the inadequacies of existing ways of thinking about evangelical social interaction. The chapter introduces a new theoretical lens, the entanglement thesis, that more usefully frames the contemporary evangelical experience in Latin America, including the relationship between evangelicals and gangs.