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Chapter 9: Religion & Ritual
Objectives:
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Define religion, ritual, and myth and explain
their social functions
Describe the history of anthropological studies
of religion
Understand Clifford Geertz’s definition of
religion as a cultural system
Explain the relevance of anthropological study
of religion to Christian life
Studying Religion
Clifford Geertz’s
definition:
A system of symbols which
acts to establish powerful,
pervasive, and longlasting moods and
motivations in men [and
women] by formulating
conceptions of general
order of existence and
clothing these conceptions
with such an aura of
factuality that the moods
and motivations seem
uniquely realistic
What it accomplishes:
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Directs anthropologist’s
attention to the social and
cultural forms and meanings
of religion
Does not require conception
of “spirituality” or
supernatural being.
Studying Religion
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Anthropology offers an important perspective on the
cultural part of religion.
Studying Christianity anthropologically can benefit
Christians.
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Can help us see that Christian symbols work in similar
ways to other peoples’ symbols
Can help us perceive and critique how our Christian
symbols intersect with other parts of our social and
cultural life
Can help us understand how symbols and practices
change over time and across cultures
Can help us to understand how other religions reflect
our common humanity
Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft
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Magic and witchcraft are related to religion but are
also distinct.
Magic refers to ritual practices that are believed to
have effects on particular situations.
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It is like religion in that it addresses human
insecurities and fears, and it involves dealing with the
invisible realm of life.
It is unlike religion in that it is limited to specific
events and outcomes; it doesn’t involve a lifestyle of
devotion, and it has a much smaller corporate
component.
Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft (cont.)
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Witchcraft is evil done by a person without his or her
awareness.
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Sorcery is evil done by a person who caused it to happen.
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Harm that occurs to someone in the group may be attributed to
the witch, which may serve as a plausible explanation when all
normal causes for a problem have been exhausted
A sorcerer has access to spiritual power and is able to
activate the power to harm others
Witchcraft and sorcery are like religion because they help
address otherwise unexplainable human suffering and
provide an explanation for how the supernatural and
natural worlds intersect.
They are unlike religion in that they involve less extensive
ritual, less complex theologies, and few (if any) corporate
practices.
Early Anthropological Approaches to
Religion
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Edward Tylor drew on unilinear cultural evolution
theory to propose that changes in religious systems
provide a prototype for cultural change generally.
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All religions follow a common trajectory from primitive
to complex.
Most primitive religion is animism, the belief that souls
or spirits exist not only in humans, but also in plants,
animals, elements of nature, or even all of creation.
Animism leads to polytheism, the belief in many
gods/goddesses.
Polytheism leads to monotheism, the belief that there
is only one god.
Functions of Religion
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Anthropologists saw the limitations of unilinear
cultural theory and moved towards a functionalist
theory of religion.
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Anthropologists did not ask whether or not a religion
was really true; they were studying how religious
beliefs and practices worked to stabilize or improve the
culture as a whole.
Anthropologists also began to draw on materialist
theories.
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Cultural materialism is a theory that interprets
religious behaviors and beliefs in terms of how they
help humans adapt to the material conditions in which
they live.
Religion as a Cultural System
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Functionalist and materialistic theories of religion
were reductionistic because they saw religion as
merely an effect of other parts of culture.
Clifford Geertz’s definition of religion as a system of
symbols
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does not deny the functional consequences of religion.
encourages anthropologists to study religion as a thing
in itself, rather than a result of other causes.
focuses on how people use religion to make sense of
life, the universe, and everything.
Three important dimensions to religion as a cultural
system are: symbols, ritual, and myth.
Religion as a Cultural System
Symbols
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A symbol is an object, sound, action, or idea to
which people assign arbitrary meaning.
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Symbols affirm what people believe to be true of the
world.
A symbol system evokes moods and motivations
that allow for an expression of, and understanding
of, a particular conception of a general order of
existence.
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People use real objects and actions to help create a
sense that what they believe is true.
Religion as a Cultural System
Ritual
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Any patterned, repeated, predictable action
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May be secular or religious
Is performed to emphasize some fact, desire, or belief;
to transform or influence the feelings or beliefs of
those participating; or to resignify social relationships
Three significant categories of ritual are: Rites of
intensification, rites of affliction, and rites of passage
Religion as a Cultural System
Ritual: Rites of Intensification
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Rituals in which elements of society, belief, values,
or behaviors are made more dramatic, intense, or
real than in normal life
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A high school pep rally and a romantic date are
examples of nonreligious rites of intensification.
Christian worship, the Lord’s Prayer, and the Lord’s
Supper are examples of religious (specifically
Christian) rites of intensification.
Religion as a Cultural System
Ritual: Rites of Affliction
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Rituals directed at alleviating suffering or resolving a
problem
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Rituals for the growth and protection of crops, physical
healing, or the maintenance of good social
relationships are so much a part of life that people do
not consider them religion.
Baptism is a Christian rite of affliction.
Christian rites of affliction are not magic; they are not
transactions because the outcome is not guaranteed.
Religion as a Cultural System
Ritual: Rites of Passage
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Rituals that transform a person or people from one
life state to another
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Also known as life-cycle rituals
Take a person or people through phases in which
social status is thought to change
Victor Turner identifies three common stages of rites
of passage
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Separation
Liminality
Reintegration
Religion as a Cultural System
Rituals: Rites of Passage (cont.)
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Separation
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Symbolically or physically separating those going
through the transition from their old identity
Liminality
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Person/people move into an identity that is not yet the
new one but also not the old
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They are sometimes required to do things that under
normal circumstances would be forbidden, harmful, or
shameful.
Reintegration
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The person or people are welcomed back into the
community in their new identity
Religion as a Cultural System
Myth
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For rituals to have meaning they must be rooted in
foundational myths.
In anthropology, the word “myth” does not imply
that something is not true, but rather that it is
important.
A myth is any story with sacred significance.
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Tells people what is important, valued, and right
May be secular (like a ritual)
Two views of myth in anthropology
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Malinowski sees myths as charters for social
organization.
Levi-Strauss agrees with Malinowski but believes that
myths more fundamentally organize human thought.
Ritual Change
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The relative importance of particular myths change,
and as people’s concerns or values change, so too
do ritual forms.
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Ritual change is evident even in wedding rituals.
The most radical form of ritual change is when
someone converts from one religious system to
another.
Christians and Anthropology
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Anthropology analyzes religion as a cultural system
and offers holistic interpretation of how people
incorporate religion into their lives.
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It does not make any claims as to whether a religious
belief is true.
Anthropological analysis reveals how the image of
God, present in every human being, drives people
everywhere to seek God.
Those who feel called to cross cultural boundaries in
sharing their faith need to understand how the
symbols, myths, rituals, and other practices of
religion work together to help people believe.
God is never completely or perfectly represented in
any manifestation of human devotion, and therefore
it should not surprise us that Christians have many
different ways of expressing this commitment.