Lived religion

Last updated

Lived religion is the ethnographic and holistic framework in the sociology of religion and religious studies more broadly for understanding the religion as it is practiced by ordinary people in the contexts of everyday life, including domestic, work, commercial, community, and institutional religious settings. The term comes from the French tradition of sociology of religion, or "la religion vécue" [1] though it has followed its own trajectory among scholars with backgrounds in anthropology, cultural studies, history, and sociology or religion as well as religious studies and theology. It is also referred to as "everyday religion" [2] and "living religion." [3]

Contents

The concept of lived religion was popularized in the late 20th century by religious study scholars like Nancy T. Ammerman, David D. Hall, Meredith McGuire, and Robert A. Orsi. The study of lived religion has come to include a wide range of subject areas as a means of exploring and emphasizing 1) ordinary people as religious subjects over against the traditional focus in religious studies on élite practitioners of religion; 2) religious practices and material resources, including human bodies, over against a traditional focus on religious doctrine, dogma, and ideologies primarily engaged in written texts; 3) sites of religious practice outside of institutional religious settings; and 4) ways of understanding religion as particular, local, variable, and otherwise shaped by the specific cultural, social, political, material, and other contexts of human experience rather than as a sui generis universal phenomenon focused on beliefs, sacred texts, and notions of the sacred as separate from the ordinary.

Scholars

Nancy T. Ammerman

Nancy T. Ammerman is Professor Emerita of Sociology of Religion at Boston University. Her edited anthology Everyday Religion: Observing Modern Religious Lives [2] was a significant advance in the study of everyday religion—the term she tends to prefer—by bringing together work by scholars such as Courtney Bender [4] and Meredith McGuire [5] who have shaped the study of living religion significantly. Ammerman studies religion as it plays out in the everyday lives of ordinary people and the contexts they inhabit—homes, offices, healthcare facilities, as well as institutional religious settings. Her approach, illustrated in Sacred Stories, Spiritual Tribes: Finding Religion in Everyday Life [6] and detailed methodologically in Studying Lived Religion: Contexts and Practices, [7] draws on the narrative and photographic reports of subjects' descriptions of their religious practices and resources in diverse fields of lived experience.

Meredith McGuire

Meredith McGuire is Professor Emerita of sociology and anthropology at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. She is the former President of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion and the Association for the Sociology of Religion. Her notable contributions to the study of living religion include Lived Religion: Faith and Practice in Everyday Life, [8] Religion: The Social Context, and Ritual Healing in Suburban America. [9] Her work has been particularly important in highlighting the role of embodied experience in the practice of religion, drawing on Maurice Merleau-Ponty's concept of the "lived body" as the locus of human engagement with reality. McGuire's work illustrates the ways in which religion as practiced by ordinary people in the contexts of everyday life is often significantly different from "religion as prescribed [10] "

Robert Orsi

Robert A. Orsi is Professor of Religious Studies and History and Grace Craddock Nagle Chair in Catholic Studies at Northwestern University. He researches, writes, and teaches about religion in the United States, in the past and in contemporary contexts, with a particular focus on American Catholicism. [11] Orsi’s book The Madonna of 115th Street: Faith And Community In Italian Harlem, 1880-1950, won several prizes including the Jesuit National Book Award and is an example study of lived religion.

Orsi defines lived religion as including "the work of social agents/actors themselves as narrators and interpreters (and reinterpreters) of their own experiences and histories, recognizing that the stories we tell about others exist alongside the many and varied story they tell of themselves". [12] Orsi understands lived religion to be centered on the actions and interpretations of religious persons. He is less attentive to the uses of religion by people who may not identify as "religious" or who are not affiliated with institutional religious traditions.

In "Everyday Miracles: The Study of Lived Religion [13] ," Orsi identifies four basic elements of living religion: 1) idiomatic expressions of religion, what limits are placed on then and what possibilities are open for their use in specific cultural settings; 2) knowledges of the body cultivated through religious practices; 3) structures of social experience created and reinforced through religious experience; and 4) characteristic tensions in everyday life that emerge within religious contexts. To this basic framework, 5) the role of religion in the cultivation of place [14] as sacred or hold, secular or profane may be added as well as 60 the functions of religious discourse [15] in everyday life can be added.

In order to study and write about lived religion, Orsi suggests a broad field of study in terms of topic matter and methodology. Orsi describes his own process of studying lived religion for Madonna On 115th Street as wide in scope. "I came to realize that I was learning as much from how people were to me as from what they were telling me, as much as what was going on around the stories as from the stories themselves." [16] Rather than a narrow archival study, Orsi’s focus on non-traditional forms of research demands that scholars give attention to institutions and persons, texts and rituals, practices and theology, things and ideas. [17] In order to study lived religion, Orsi advocates for a complex academic lens where almost anything can hold meaning and serve as a source or "text" for study.

La Madonna col Bambino La Madonna col Bambino.JPG
La Madonna col Bambino

In The Madonna Of 115th Street, Orsi studies the lived religion of Catholic Italian immigrants in Harlem New York. Orsi focuses on a particular religious celebration known as the festa for The Madonna and the social structures that create and layer the event. Through observations, story telling, conversations and research Orsi weaves a picture of life for this immigrant community. In his book, Orsi explores and explains various internal traditions, cultures, and power and social dynamics in order to illustrate the various religious meanings and significance for community in Italian Harlem.

Orsi talks about the importance of dynamic subject matter covered by the study of lived religion. "The study of lived religion is shaped by and shapes the way family life is organized, for instance; how the dead are buried, children disciplined, the past and present imagined, moral boundaries established and challenged, home constructed, maintained and destroyed, the gods and spirits worshiped and importuned and so on." [18]

Orsi critiques popular religion as being a limited framework and method for studying religion. Orsi claims that popular religion is “unclear, misleading, and tendentious”. [18] Orsi notes that popular religion is concerned only with the practices of "common folk" and distinguishing popular religion practices as separate from “official religion”. [18] In his introduction to The Madonna on 115th Street, he writes, "Popular religion served to seal off certain expressions of religious life from unspecified but obviously normative religion." [18] Orsi is concerned with the limitations of popular religions because he sees it as potentially authorizing legitimacy and boundaries in religious practices and beliefs. For Orsi, the implied intent in popular religion is to highlight the primitive, ignorant, and often marginalized practitioners of popular religion as a means of "policing religion". [19] Orsi’s scholarly move to lived religion as a theoretical framework was an attempt to provide a more holistic approach to religious studies and also highlights the perspective that "religious practices and understandings only have meaning in relations to other cultural forms and in relations to the life experiences and actual circumstance of the people using them". [20]

David D. Hall

David D. Hall has been a faculty member at Harvard Divinity School since 1989. Hall was Bartlett Professor of New England Church History until 2008, when he became Bartlett Research Professor. [21] Hall writes extensively on religion and society in seventeenth-century New England and England. Hall edited a series of essays titled Lived Religion In America: Toward a History Of Practice, which is a foundational compilation in the study of lived religion. Hall’s book covers topics including gift exchange, cremation, hymn singing and many other essays on lived and practiced religious belief. Many of Hall's students have gone on to become notable scholars in the field of lived religion.

Hall defines lived religion as "rooted less in sociology than cultural and ethnographical approaches to the study of religion and American religious history". [1] He instead sees lived religion as the study of the context and content about the practices of religious laity and their "everyday thinking". [1] Hall believes that using lived religion as an approach to the study of religion allows for a wider interpretation of meaning and also provides an opportunity for historians to examine the past and present from many angles. For Hall, lived religion "does not depend on any single method or discipline". [22]

Hall also acknowledges the limitations of lived religion. Hall suggests that as a field, lived religion is "fluid, mobile, and incompletely structured". [23] Hall calls lived religion an "imperfect tool" noting that even with a dynamic study of laity it is impossible to fully understand any one person’s religious practices, especially when summarizing from a single location be it time or place.

Hall distinguishes the study of lived religion from popular religion by saying that popular religion is concerned with hierarchy and opposition in religious beliefs and practices. Hall writes, "Popular religion has therefore come to signify the space that emerged between official or learned Christianity and the profane (or ‘pagan’) culture." [24] Hall critiques popular religion as imposing normative perspectives on practices.

See also

Other notable scholars

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sect</span> Subgroup of a particular religious or ideological doctrine

A sect is a subgroup of a religious, political, or philosophical belief system, usually an offshoot of a larger group. Although the term was originally a classification for religious separated groups, it can now refer to any organization that breaks away from a larger one to follow a different set of rules and principles. Sects are usually created due to perception of heresy by the subgroup and/or the larger group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sociology of religion</span> Branch of sociology

Sociology of religion is the study of the beliefs, practices and organizational forms of religion using the tools and methods of the discipline of sociology. This objective investigation may include the use both of quantitative methods and of qualitative approaches.

Anthropology of religion is the study of religion in relation to other social institutions, and the comparison of religious beliefs and practices across cultures. The anthropology of religion, as a field, overlaps with but is distinct from the field of Religious Studies. The history of anthropology of religion is a history of striving to understand how other people view and navigate the world. This history involves deciding what religion is, what it does, and how it functions. Today, one of the main concerns of anthropologists of religion is defining religion, which is a theoretical undertaking in and of itself. Scholars such as Edward Tylor, Emile Durkheim, E.E. Evans Pritchard, Mary Douglas, Victor Turner, Clifford Geertz, and Talal Asad have all grappled with defining and characterizing religion anthropologically.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Religious studies</span> Objective study of religion

Religious studies, also known as the study of religion, is the scientific study of religion. There is no consensus on what qualifies as religion and its definition is highly contested. It describes, compares, interprets, and explains religion, emphasizing empirical, historically based, and cross-cultural perspectives.

Ritualization refers to the process by which a sequence of non-communicating actions or an event is invested with cultural, social or religious significance. This definition emphasizes the transformation of everyday actions into rituals that carry deeper meaning within a cultural or religious context. Rituals are symbolic, repetitive, and often prescribed activities that hold religious or cultural significance for a certain group of people. They serve various purposes: promoting social solidarity by expressing shared values, facilitating the transmission of cultural knowledge and regulating emotions.

A religious experience is a subjective experience which is interpreted within a religious framework. The concept originated in the 19th century, as a defense against the growing rationalism of Western society. William James popularised the concept. In some religions, this is said to sometimes result in unverified personal gnosis.

Nancy Tatom Ammerman is an American professor of sociology of religion at Boston University School of Theology.

Secular spirituality is the adherence to a spiritual philosophy without adherence to a religion. Secular spirituality emphasizes the inner peace of the individual, rather than a relationship with the divine. Secular spirituality is made up of the search for meaning outside of a religious institution; it considers one's relationship with the self, others, nature, and whatever else one considers to be the ultimate. Often, the goal of secular spirituality is living happily and/or helping others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sociological classifications of religious movements</span> Classifications of religious movements

Various sociological classifications of religious movements have been proposed by scholars. In the sociology of religion, the most widely used classification is the church-sect typology. The typology is differently construed by different sociologists, and various distinctive features have been proposed to characterise churches and sects. On most accounts, the following features are deemed relevant:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theories about religion</span> Theories of religion in the social sciences

Sociological, psychological, and anthropological theories about religion generally attempt to explain the origin and function of religion. These theories define what they present as universal characteristics of religious belief and practice.

Russell Tracey McCutcheon is a Canadian religion scholar who earned a PhD in religious studies from the University of Toronto in 1995.

In religious studies and folkloristics, folk religion, popular religion, traditional religion, or vernacular religion comprises various forms and expressions of religion that are distinct from the official doctrines and practices of organized religion. The precise definition of folk religion varies among scholars. Sometimes also termed popular belief, it consists of ethnic or regional religious customs under the umbrella of a religion; but outside official doctrine and practices.

Robert Anthony Orsi is a scholar of American history and Catholic studies who is the Grace Craddock Nagle Chair professor at Northwestern University.

The Association for the Sociology of Religion (ASR) is an academic association with more than 700 members worldwide. It publishes a journal, Sociology of Religion, and holds meetings at the same venues and times as the American Sociological Association.

Wesley J. Wildman is a contemporary Australian-American philosopher, theologian, and ethicist. Currently, he is a full professor at the Boston University School of Theology, founding member of the faculty of Computing and Data Sciences, and convener of the Religion and Science doctoral program in Boston University's Graduate School. He is executive director of The Center for Mind and Culture, founding co-director of the Institute for the Biocultural Study of Religion, and founding co-editor of the journal Religion, Brain & Behavior. Wildman's academic work has focused on interpreting religion and building theories of religious beliefs, behaviours, and experiences that acknowledge value in longstanding traditions while attempting to remain intellectually viable in light of the biological, cognitive, evolutionary, physical, and social sciences. He is an important figure in the religion and science field, along with scholars such as Robert John Russell, Nancey Murphy, and John Polkinghorne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Definition of religion</span> Debated subject in religious studies

The definition of religion is a controversial and complicated subject in religious studies with scholars failing to agree on any one definition. Oxford Dictionaries defines religion as the belief in and/or worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods. Others, such as Wilfred Cantwell Smith, have tried to correct a perceived Western bias in the definition and study of religion. Thinkers such as Daniel Dubuisson have doubted that the term religion has any meaning outside of Western cultures, while others, such as Ernst Feil doubt that it has any specific, universal meaning even there.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mathew Guest</span>

Mathew Guest is a British sociologist and professor of sociology of religion at Durham University. Guest is the author or editor of numerous academic books, reports, journal articles and essays. His publications cover various topics in the sociology of religion, particularly evangelical Christianity in the UK, value transmission within clergy families, and the status of Christianity and Islam within university contexts.

<i>Armageddon in Waco</i> Anthology on the Waco siege

Armageddon in Waco: Critical Perspectives on the Branch Davidian Conflict is a 1995 non-fiction anthology book on the Waco siege edited by Stuart A. Wright. It was published by the University of Chicago Press.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Madonna and religion</span> Aspect of Madonnas career

American singer-songwriter and actress Madonna has incorporated in her works references of religious themes of different religions and spiritual practices, including Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sufism, and Kabbalah. Diverse theologians, sociologists of religion and other scholars of religion have reviewed her, while professor Arthur Asa Berger stated that she has raised many questions about religion. Due to her prominent use, an academic described her as "perhaps the first artist of our time to routinely and successfully employ images from many spiritual cultures and multiple religious traditions".

<i>The New Vigilantes</i> Nonfiction book on the American anti-cult movement

The New Vigilantes: Deprogrammers, Anti-Cultists, and the New Religions is a 1980 nonfiction book on anti-cultism, deprogramming, and new religious movements (cults) by sociologists of religion Anson D. Shupe and David G. Bromley. A foreword was written by Joseph R. Gusfield. It was published by SAGE Publications in its Library of Social Research series as volume 113. Some have described the volume as a companion to their previous work, "Moonies" in America: Cult, Church, and Crusade (1979). Shupe and Bromley approach the anti-cult movement in the United States through a resource-mobilization lens.

References

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 Hall 1997, p. vii.
  2. 1 2 Ammerman, Nancy T. (2006-12-14). Everyday Religion: Observing Modern Religious Lives. Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0-19-804157-3.
  3. ↑ Bender, Courtney (May 2003). Heaven's Kitchen: Living Religion at God's Love We Deliver. University of Chicago Press. ISBN   978-0-226-04282-4.
  4. ↑ "inauthor:"Courtney Bender" - Google Search". www.google.com. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
  5. ↑ "Meredith McGuire - Google Search". www.google.com. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
  6. ↑ Ammerman, Nancy Tatom (2013). Sacred stories, spiritual tribes : finding religion in everyday life. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0-19-989645-5. OCLC   854585562.
  7. ↑ Ammerman, Nancy Tatom (2021). Studying lived religion : contexts and practices. New York. ISBN   978-1-4798-0435-1. OCLC   1243028679.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  8. ↑ McGuire, Meredith B. (2008). Lived religion : faith and practice in everyday life. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0-19-972140-5. OCLC   703151477.
  9. ↑ McGuire, Meredith B. (1988). Ritual healing in suburban America. Debra Kantor. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press. ISBN   0-8135-1312-X. OCLC   17478182.
  10. ↑ McGuire, Meredith (2008). Lived Religion: Faith and Practice in Everyday Life. Oxford University Press. pp. 22–25.
  11. ↑ "NUsites – A website publishing platform for Northwestern University".
  12. ↑ Orsi 2002, p. xxxix.
  13. ↑ Orsi, Robert (2020-09-01), "EVERYDAY MIRACLES:", Lived Religion in America, Princeton University Press, p. 7, retrieved 2023-12-07
  14. ↑ Relph, Edward (2016-07-15), "The Paradox of Place and the Evolution of Placelessness", Place and Placelessness Revisited, New York: Routledge, 2016. | Series: Routledge research in planning and urban design: Routledge, pp. 20–34, retrieved 2023-12-07{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
  15. ↑ "Religious Practice in the Kitchen", Heaven's Kitchen, University of Chicago Press, pp. 62–89, retrieved 2023-12-07
  16. ↑ Orsi 2002, p. xxix.
  17. ↑ Orsi 2002, p. xxxvii.
  18. 1 2 3 4 Orsi 2002, p. xxxii.
  19. ↑ Orsi 2002, p. xxxiv.
  20. ↑ Orsi 2002, p. xxxviii.
  21. ↑ "David D. Hall".
  22. ↑ Hall 1997, p. x.
  23. ↑ Hall 1997, p. xii.
  24. ↑ Hall 1997, p. viii.

Bibliography

  • Hall, David (1997). Lived Religion In America: Toward A History Of Practice. Princeton University Press.
  • Orsi, Robert (2002). The Madonna of 115th Street: Faith And Community In Italian Harlem, 1880-1950. Yale University Press.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.