Ritual (Anthropology)

Is Baptism a Male Birthing Ritual? By Michele Stopera Freyhauf

by Feminism and Religion

Originally published on the Feminism and Religion project

Quite a number of years ago I had a conversation with one of my professors, a feminist theologian, who posed the... more Quite a number of years ago I had a conversation with one of my professors, a feminist theologian, who posed the question “Why do I need a man to purify my baby with the waters of baptism?  Is there something wrong or impure about the blood and water from a mother’s womb – my womb?”  Before you jump and shout the words Sacrament or removal of original sin, this question bears merit in exploring, especially in today’s world where women are taking a serious beating religiously, politically, and socially.  In today’s world, violations and rants are causing women to stand up and say STOP!  This is MY Body.  This outcry was provoked by chants of ethical slurs against women– Slut! Prostitute! Whore!  The cry got even louder when the issue of religion and government was raised in the fight of healthcare coverage of contraception. The cry got even louder with the enactment of the laws in Virginia and Texas (and many other states to follow suit) that forces women to undergo transvaginal ultrasounds in early stage abortions.  The mandatory insertion of a wand into a woman’s vagina (mandated by the government, mind you), is a violation and has women crying RAPE!

Symbols of Power in Rituals of Violence: The Personality Cult and Iconoclasm on the Soviet Empire’s Periphery (East Germany, 1945–61)

by Alexey Tikhomirov

published in: Kritika: Explorations in Russian and Eurasian History, Volume 13, Number 1, Winter 2012, pp. 47-88.

The Stalin Cult between Center and Periphery: Structures of the Cult Community in the Empire of Socialism, 1949-1956 – the Case of GDR, in: Ennker B., Hein-Kircher H. (ed.), Der Führer im Europa des 20. Jahrhunderts, Marburg: Herder-Institut, 2010, pp.297-321.

by Alexey Tikhomirov

Chapple, R. M. 2011 'Irish National Strategic Research (INSTAR) Programme- Findings From the First Phase 2008-2011. Review' Blogspot post

by Robert M Chapple

Ritual Water, Ritual Geist: An Application of Narratological Analysis to Luke's Development of Christian Initiation from John the Baptist to Pentecost

by David McCollough

This paper employs narratological analysis, especially focalization, the sequential development of entity... more This paper employs narratological analysis, especially focalization, the sequential development of entity representations and intertextuality, to demonstrate that through Luke 3, 11 and Acts 2, Luke prescribes a liminal ritual complex of initiation composed of four elements: repentance, water baptism, prayer and xenolalic experience understood as Spirit reception. The paper briefly explains focalization (the lens through which a narrator looks at something) and entity representations (ERs, the mental construct of a character, motif, procedure, network of relationships, etc., built up lineally through a narrative). It addresses the intertextual role of Isaiah and Malachi in the formation of the initiation ER, and implications of lukan Sinai imagery.
The paper traces the cumulative development of the initiation ER from John the Baptist’s prophecy of Spirit and fire baptism, to Jesus’ baptism, to Jesus’ teaching on prayer for the Spirit, to Pentecost. Luke’s use of priestly imagery is found to color his portrayal of believers. The Pentecost narrative is shown to redundantly focalize the xenolalia experience, and to identify it for the reader as the Spirit experience prophesied by Joel and promised by Jesus, and to prescribe that same xenolalic experience as a boundary marker obtainable through repentance, water baptism and prayer.
The paper will demonstrate that notwithstanding a strong, undeniable vocational role, narratological analysis indicates Luke subordinates Spirit experience under a broader soteriological heading which can be further refined as initiatory with a liminal aspect, thus ecclesiological.

Struttura e significato del silenzio nel rituale d’iniziazione pitagorico: il silenzio come morte rituale in Studia Patavina: Rivista di Scienze Religiose, Vol 52, N°1

by Pietro Piro

Publisced in Studia Patavina: Rivista di Scienze Religiose, Vol 52, N°1, Padova 2005, pp. 127-148, ISSN 0039-3304, ora in Le prime luci dell'alba. Materiali di storia delle religioni, Navarra Editore, Palermo 2009, pp. 94-122.

Starting from an analysis of Greek society, wholly orientated, in political terms, towards creating an essentially... more Starting from an analysis of Greek society, wholly orientated, in political terms, towards creating an essentially structural paideia, the author aims to illustrate how the mystical alternatives represented an attempt to accede to an alternative way of salvation to that offered by the political religion. The Pythagorean sect represented such an alternative and precisely because of its characteristics as a communitas, was exposed to the typical tensions of the structure/anti-structure dialectic which pervaded the society. In this light the events which culminated in the anti-Pythagorean revolt are examined and interpreted. Having considered the general political context, the role of silence within the initiation ritual of the sect is analysed, firstly by considering some interpretations which concentrate more on the doctrinal contents to leave unsaid rather than on the actual use of silence as a structural moment of the initiation ritual. The role of silence as part of the ritual practice is then analysed, identifying four fundamental phases: an initial physiognomic and anamnestic exam; a preliminary three-year period; a further intermediate period of five years; and a final phase of either aggregation to the communitas or violent expulsion. In this perspective silence was interpreted as a period of ritual death and rebirth, inserted within a specific initiation context.

The Law of Jealousy: Anthropology of Sotah

by Adriana Destro

Perceiving Pain: Health, Culture and Ritual

by Dan Houser

" Moral Irony:" Modal Particles, Moral Persons and Indirect Stance-Taking In Sakapultek Discourse

by Robin Shoaps

Re-imagining Islamic Death Rituals in a Small Town Context in the Netherlands. Ritual Transfer and Ritual Fantasy

by Claudia Venhorst

CLAUDIA VENHORST, ERIC VENBRUX & THOMAS QUARTIER: ‘Re-imagining Islamic Death Rituals in a Small Town Context in the Netherlands. Ritual Transfer and Ritual Fantasy’, in Jaarboek voor liturgieonderzoek/Yearbook for Liturgical and Ritual Studies 27 (2011) 169-187.

Satanás se «desregula»: sobre la paradoja del fundamentalismo moderno en la Renovación Carismática Católica (Artículo)

by María Angélica Ospina

Published in: Universitas Humanística No. 61, 2006; Available in: Scielo, Redalyc, Dialnet

Resumen

En este artículo, la autora discute cómo la Renovación Carismática, en tanto una corriente... more Resumen

En este artículo, la autora discute cómo la Renovación Carismática, en tanto una corriente espiritual de relativamente reciente aparición en la iglesia católica, se constituye en un claro ejemplo sobre la tensión latente entre tradición y modernidad en el campo religioso. A través de información etnográfica sobre las actuales jornadas rituales carismáticas de sanación y liberación (o exorcismo), se plantea la coexistencia paradójica en esta corriente de un ánimo progresista y renovador, junto a un retorno al imaginario barroco de la lucha espiritual contra el demonio. Esta situación, expresada principalmente en las prácticas rituales, refleja una suerte de «fundamentalismo moderno» que se encontraría sustentando las nuevas expresiones de la feligresía cristiana católica en los ámbitos institucional y cotidiano.

Palabras clave: Antropología de la religión, nuevos movimientos religiosos, Renovación Carismática.

Abstract

In this article, the author discusses the Charismatic Renovation, a new spiritual movement within the Catholic Church, as a clear example of the latent tension between tradition and modernity in the religious field. This work is based upon ethnographic evidence about the actual charismatic rituals of healing and liberation (or exorcism). It suggests the paradoxical coexistence of a progressist and renovating spirit in this movement, and a revival of baroque ideas about the spiritual fight against the devil. This situation is evident in the ritual practices, and reflects a kind of «modern fundamentalism» that supports the new expressions of the catholic Christian parishioners, in the institutional and private-quotidian fields.

Key words: Anthropology of religion, new religious movements, Charismatic Renovation.

"Rituales y nuevos espacios religiosos en el movimiento carismático del Padre Ignacio"

by Ana Lucía Olmos Alvarez

Ponencia presentada en el  X Congreso Argentino de Antropología Social – Instituto de Ciencias Antropológicas/ Departamento de Antropología Social (FFyL – UBA) y Colegio de Graduados de Antropología Social de la República Argentina. Buenos Aires, 29 de noviembre al 2 de diciembre de 2011

La expansión constante del campo sociorreligioso argentino se evidencia en la proliferación de cultos y... more
La expansión constante del campo sociorreligioso argentino se evidencia en la proliferación de cultos y agrupaciones religiosas que desafían el supuesto monopolio del catolicismo, habilitándonos a describir este proceso como un “re-encantamiento” del mundo. En este contexto, nos proponemos describir los procesos de transformación de la territorialidad religiosa, en su relación específica con el ritual, en el movimiento carismático de sanación formado en torno al padre Ignacio Peries, párroco de la iglesia Natividad del Señor (Rosario, Provincia de Santa Fe).
En el caso de estudio, notamos que la religiosidad franquea las fronteras de los espacios institucionales formales, en aras de incluir ámbitos externos y distintos a ellos, no siempre en arreglo a preceptos institucionales.
Constituyen el foco de nuestro interés los intercambios que se efectúan entre el cura y los asistentes, otorgando centralidad a las bendiciones  (imposición de manos mediante) y al deber hogareño  que el Padre Ignacio encarga a los asistentes por el lapso de dos meses, para luego retornar a la iglesia. En este sentido, buscaremos evidenciar cómo se genera y qué características adquiere dicho intercambio.

“Pídeme lo que quieras. Intercambio y rituales en el movimiento carismático del Padre Ignacio”

by Ana Lucía Olmos Alvarez

Ponencia presentada en II Jornadas de Religión y Sociedad en la Argentina y Países del Cono Sur (RELIGAR – SUR) / IV Jornadas de Religión y Sociedad en Argentina - Grupo de Trabajo de Religión y Sociedad en la Argentina Contemporánea (RELIG-AR) Instituto Ravignani (FFyL – UBA) / Dpto. Cs. Sociales (UNLu) , Buenos Aires, 22 al 24 de junio de 2011

“Pídeme lo que quieras” es el título de uno de los libros publicados por el reverendo Ignacio Peries. Procedente de... more “Pídeme lo que quieras” es el título de uno de los libros publicados por el reverendo Ignacio Peries. Procedente de Sri Lanka y ordenado sacerdote en Inglaterra por la orden religiosa Cruzada del Espíritu Santo, congregación conformada por sacerdotes misioneros que son enviados principalmente a ‘países subdesarrollados’, el Padre Ignacio es párroco de la iglesia Natividad del Señor (Rosario, Provincia de Santa Fe). El Padre Ignacio es conocido masivamente por impartir bendiciones sistemáticamente a todos aquellos que la soliciten, personas enfermas en particular. Si bien, la posibilidad de curar es inherente a los sacerdotes dentro del dogma católico, al padre Ignacio se le atribuyen cualidades sanadoras desde diferentes esferas de la sociedad, como ser la propia feligresía, los medios de comunicación, las empresas de transporte y de turismo, diversas páginas en internet, entre otros. Esta característica ha generado un movimiento religioso que congrega a más de seis mil seguidores por fin de semana, que al estar inserto en una dinámica social mayor, implica también transformaciones económicas y sociales.
En la presente ponencia nos proponemos describir y posteriormente, analizar los rituales que acontecen en la mencionada iglesia, otorgando centralidad a los intercambios que se efectúan entre el cura y los asistentes. Optamos por hablar de asistentes, en detrimento de fieles, ya que hemos detectado la participación de personas que se apropian de la ritualidad católica sin afirmar, discursivamente, su pertenencia a dicha denominación religiosa. Entendemos que las bendiciones que otorga el cura constituyen uno de dichos intercambios. No obstante, no podemos dejar de mencionar que por medio de las bendiciones se produce un continuum ritual que excede y trasciende el espacio de la iglesia para alcanzar el hogar del asistente. Este lazo lo crea el cura ya que prescribe la realización de ciertos deberes rituales en el hogar por el lapso de dos meses, para luego retornar a la iglesia. En este sentido, buscaremos evidenciar cómo se genera y qué características adquiere dicho intercambio.
Para llevar a cabo nuestros objetivos realizaremos una descripción y análisis etnográficos, centrándonos en las prácticas y los discursos de diversos asistentes a la iglesia. El análisis será enriquecido por la perspectiva proporcionada por los estudios de ritual y en particular, por la noción de marcos interpretativos. Éstos se presentan como conjuntos de saberes o conocimientos que se realizan en la práctica a partir de la interacción con otros y proveen esquemas de interpretación y organización de la experiencia como sujetos sociales. Su utilidad analítica radica en que permiten indagar en: los procesos de creación de los marcos; las modificaciones que sufren debido a la adhesión a un movimiento (religioso o de otro tipo); las transformaciones de situaciones cotidianas por su implementación, como también dar cuenta de los actores involucrados en dichos procesos.
Para finalizar, se señalarán otras líneas posibles de investigación que surgen a partir del análisis de los datos etnográficos.

Emasculation among the Hijras

by Oleg Nekrassovski

draft only

O DEPUNERE RITUALĂ DE ANIMALE DESCOPERITĂ LA MĂGURA ‘BUDUIASCA’ (JUD. TELEORMAN)

by Pavel Mirea

co-authored with Valentin Radu et al.
published in "Buletinul Muzeului Judeţean Teleorman. Seria Arheologie 1, 2009" (in Romanian)

The Măgura ’Buduiasca’ site, discovered in 2001, is situated on the lower terrace of Teleorman River, in the... more The Măgura ’Buduiasca’ site, discovered in 2001, is situated on the lower terrace of Teleorman River, in the South-East side of Măgura commune (Teleorman County).
In 2004 campaign a pit (complex 36) was discovered in which were deposited as offerings three animals: two domestic cattle (an adult and a calf) and a bird (a goose).
The complex is dated most probably to the 4th century AD.
Considering the ’stratigraphical relations’ between the animals’ skeletons, the order of their deposition in the pit can be known: first, the adult cattle, then the calf, and finally the goose.
Cattle parts were deposited in three groups: the legs and the pelvis and a part of the spine in the central-western side; the thorax in the northern side; and the head and neck in the eastern
side. The cow was slaughtered in many parts; the calf was skinned and bent in two; and the goose was complete.
As a whole, this ritual manifestation took part in at least two stages: one of sacrificing, slaughtering and taking of internal organs; and a second of deposition in the pit. Even though for the
sacrificing, we cannot distinguish all of the activities performed on the animals, or the order of activity, or their significance, it is possible to notice (in the deposition stage) three moments in which humans gave special attention: 1) the deposition in the center of the pit of the three legs which had been detached from the adult cattle; 2) the deposition and arrangement of the calf over the neck of the adult cattle; and 3) the deposition and display of the goose on top of the adult cattle.
The ritual depositions of these animals together (and in an almost complete condition) are unknown in the archaeo-zoological literature for this period.

The Megaron at Pylos: A New Interpretation

by Jarrett Farmer

At the center of the Palace of Nestor near modern-day Pylos there is a feature we call the megaron, a room with... more At the center of the Palace of Nestor near modern-day Pylos there is a feature we call the megaron, a room with striking similarities to megara at the contemporary palaces of Mycenae and Tiryns: laid out along a central axis with a porch, vestibule, and main hall containing a large circular hearth at its center, surrounded by four columns, and a throne emplacement along one wall. According to scholarly consensus, these megara were "throne rooms" in which the wa-na-ka (the king in Linear B) and his retainers held court. Although scholars have subjected other rooms of the Palace of Nestor--such as the archives complex, the northeast building, and the storage pantry--to intense scrutiny, and in so doing have revealed how close attention to rooms of such utilitarian function as storage can reveal a great deal about Mycenaean society. Since the megaron was not devoted to storage, and was clearly the largest and most central room of the mainland palaces, it seems a serious oversight not to question our assumptions about the megaron as medieval-style audience hall. The discourse surrounding the megaron itself—as a throne room occupied by a king and his retainers for political audiences—does not rest on careful treatment of the evidence. The physical evidence actually indicates that the megaron was a "hearth room," a highly structured space in which Mycenaean persons ritually consumed wine in the presence of fire. Furthermore, iconographic evidence suggests that a woman, not a man, officiated in ceremony here. The picture that emerges of Mycenaean palace life, then, is more complex than widely assumed.

Zar-Rituale in Cairo. Zwischen Tradition und Medialisierungen

by Tanja Granzow

MA thesis (German), 2008

Noise and perception in the Akkadian Rituals

by Anne-Caroline Rendu Loisel

in the colloquium "Questioni di rito. Rituali come fonte di conoscenza delle religioni e delle concezioni del mondo nelle culture antiche"

(Rome, 29-30 November 2011)

In the inquiry regarding the ritual process, the powerful incantations, gestures, and the particular use of objects... more In the inquiry regarding the ritual process, the powerful incantations, gestures, and the particular use of objects help the priest experience the divine. Luminosity, noise and fragrance create a special atmosphere and human and divine senses complement each other. They make the meeting easier and above all, real and efficacious.
This paper will focus on perception’s effects staged in Akkadian rituals. The voice of the priest, with its particular variations, may also have a powerful effect: the whisper is of the utmost importance in the mīs pî ritual, and the growling is one of main characteristics of the exorcist In particular, the paper will turn its attention to noisy rituals described in the canonical Utukkū Lemnūtu (Evil Demons) incantations. With the visual and the sonorous effects created during the exorcistic process, a beneficent agent (a good genius) will be physically present, embodied in the ritual instrument, such as the copper drum. Hearing and seeing reply to each other and create a real physiological experience.

Encounters with Jizō-san in an Aging Japan

by Jason Danely

From "Studying Buddhism in Practice," J Harding (ed) 2012 Routledge

Jizō Bodhisattva is undoubtedly Japan's most beloved and widely represented Buddhist icon, encountered in busy urban... more Jizō Bodhisattva is undoubtedly Japan's most beloved and widely represented Buddhist icon, encountered in busy urban shopping centers as well as remote mountain forests. “OJizō-san,” as he is often referred to in Kyoto, where I conducted fieldwork, is a ubiquitous and yet ambiguous figure in the religious landscape. Seen as a protector of children, and yet often represented as childlike himself, Jizō appears as a Buddhist manifestation not only of compassion, but also of the Japanese concept of amae, or “passive dependence”. It is little wonder that rituals dedicated to OJizō-san find affinity with those of the ancestors, both intimate objects of offering and granters of benevolent care. This association is made even stronger through Jizō-san’s role in guiding the dead safely through the other world (ano yo), and his appearance and sites of memorial, such as cemeteries. Upon initiating my fieldwork on aging and religion in Japan I had found myself unprepared for dealing with Jizō, who I had associated almost exclusively with rituals directed towards non-ancestral spirits, such as those of fetuses (mizuko). One particular encounter with Jizō convinced me that his importance is far from limited to children, but links old and young in the larger generation life-cycle. In this paper I describe this encounter, which took place at a courtyard shrine of an shopkeeper’s home, as one that symbolically links the spirits of the dead with those of persons yet to be born—in this case my own son. The older woman who brought us to this shrine had also conducted rituals there for deceased friends without family, and the simultaneous presence of both mourning and blessing emotionally fortified the linkage between her life and ours. Unexpectedly encountering Jizō in this way, outside the boundaries of both religious institutions and the scholarly discourse, brings to light the way everyday practices integrate Buddhism into people’s experience

The Oath of Fidelity in Iceland: a Tie of Feudal Allegiance ?

by gregory cattaneo

http://www.scandinavianstudy.org/site/

[réf. The Oath of Fidelity in Iceland: a tie of feudal allegiance, in Scandinavian Studies 82 (1), Spring 2010,... more [réf. The Oath of Fidelity in Iceland: a tie of feudal allegiance, in Scandinavian Studies 82 (1), Spring 2010, 21-36.]

An analysis of the oath of fidelity as first step of the ties from men to men in medieval Europe : "comparison cannot constitute a resulting obligation, but the means to evaluate one's own culture as confronted by others".

1. Recommandation and fidelity in Norway and Europe
2. The Norwegian oath of fidelity : a copy of European rituals ?
3. An oath of fidelity during Saga Age Iceland ?
4. The oath of fidelity during Sturlunga Age Iceland: similarities with feudal practices ?
5. The oath ritual in Iceland: look under the text.
6. Concluding points.