Since there is no centralized authority in pentecostalism, as there is...

[GoldfishLord]

Since there is no centralized authority in pentecostalism, as there is in Roman Catholicism, it is possible that some faction within the movement could decide to mobilize God’s army in a righteous crusade, but I don’t see this as the inherent logic of the movement.

Source: https://www.pewresearch.org/religio...-the-emergence-of-progressive-pentecostalism/

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I'm not sure if "as" means "in the same way that" or "which".
What exactly is the meaning of "as"?

 

[jutfrank]

there is no centralized authority in pentecostalism, as there is in Roman Catholicism

This part of the sentence is contrastive. There isn't in pentecostalism whereas there is in Catholicism.

Can you understand that?

 

[White Hat]

There is a central authority in Roman Catholicism. It is the papacy. 'As there is in' here means 'unlike in'.

 

[5jj]

There is a central authority in Roman Catholicism. It is the papacy. 'As there is in' here means 'unlike in'.

No. It's more like 'in the way that there is in'.

 

[GoldfishLord]

Since there is no centralized authority in pentecostalism, as there is in Roman Catholicism

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Because this part of the sentence is contrasive, I think that "as there is in Roman Catholicism" means "in the opposite way that there is in Roman Catholicism".

Where am I wrong?

 

[5jj]

I think that "as there is in Roman Catholicism" means "in the opposite way that there is in Roman Catholicism".

Where am I wrong?

That makes little sense in English. You could say that it means "in contrast to Roman Catholicism".