Fieldwork in Religion
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR
<p>The journal publishes articles, review essays and book reviews relevant to the theoretical engagement with and practical undertaking of fieldwork in religion. Submissions are welcome from any disciplinary perspective, theoretical paradigm or methodological approach. <a href="https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/about">Read more about the journal.</a></p>
Equinox Publishing Ltd.
en
Fieldwork in Religion
1743-0615
<p>© Equinox Publishing Ltd.</p> <p>For information regarding our Open Access policy, <a title="Open access policy." href="Full%20details of our conditions related to copyright can be found by clicking here.">click here</a>.</p>
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Guglielmi, Marco. 2022. The Romanian Orthodox Diaspora in Italy: Eastern Orthodoxy in a Western European Country
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/26987
<p>Guglielmi, Marco. 2022. The Romanian Orthodox Diaspora in Italy: Eastern Orthodoxy in a Western European Country. London: Palgrave Macmillan. viii + 170 pp. ISBN 978-3-031-07101-0 (hbk) ISBN 978-3-031-07102-7 (e-book). 48.14 €. £31.00. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-07102-7.</p>
Book Reviews
migration
Orthodoxy
Romania
Italy
glocalization
sociology
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Giuseppe Tateo
Copyright (c) 2023 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-09-29
2023-09-29
264
265
10.1558/firn.26987
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Martin, Craig. 2021. Discourse and Ideology: A Critique of the Study of Culture
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/26986
<p>Martin, Craig. 2021. Discourse and Ideology: A Critique of the Study of Culture. New York: Bloomsbury Academic. 296 pp. ISBN 9781350246287 (pbk). $31.45.</p>
Book Reviews
discourses
poststructuralism
ideology
recrement
social power
belief
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Todd LeVasseur
Copyright (c) 2023 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-09-29
2023-09-29
261
263
10.1558/firn.26986
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Chazan-Gillig, Suzanne and Pavitranand Ramhota. 2023. Hinduism and Popular Cults in Mauritius: Sacred Religion and Plantation Economy
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/26985
<p>Chazan-Gillig, Suzanne and Pavitranand Ramhota. 2023. Hinduism and Popular Cults in Mauritius: Sacred Religion and Plantation Economy. Sriniket Kumar Mishra (trans.). London and New York: Routledge. ix + 233 pp. ISBN 978-1-003-29810-6 (e-book). £26.99.</p>
Book Reviews
religious studies
Mauritius
Hinduism
anthropology
fieldwork
religion
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Vineet Gairola
Copyright (c) 2023 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-09-29
2023-09-29
259
260
10.1558/firn.26985
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Halperin, Ehud. 2020. The Many Faces of a Himalayan Goddess: Hadimba, Her Devotees, and Religion in Rapid Change
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/26984
<p>Halperin, Ehud. 2020. The Many Faces of a Himalayan Goddess: Hadimba, Her Devotees, and Religion in Rapid Change. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. iv + 270 pp. ISBN 9780190913588 (hbk). £79.</p>
Book Reviews
religious studies
South Asia
Himalayas
anthropology
ritual fieldwork
religion, India
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Vineet Gairola
Copyright (c) 2023 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-09-29
2023-09-29
257
258
10.1558/firn.26984
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Editor’s Introduction
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/26983
Editorial
Editors’ Introduction
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Carole M Cusack
Copyright (c) 2023 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-09-29
2023-09-29
155
157
10.1558/firn.26983
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Spiritual Folklore Tourism
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/26830
<p>This article highlights the importance of spiritual pilgrims’ pre-travel experiences and belief in the divine spirit to fulfil their spiritual journey. We explore the experiences of travellers who visited the Naga Cave and sought spiritual help to fulfil their desires. We used netnography to collect travellers’ stories to reveal the importance of seeking spiritual help and sharing experiences on Facebook to promote the sacredness of Phu Aue Lue and the Naga Cave. Some travellers cleanse their spirits before the trip using meditation, prayer, adhering to the five Buddhist precepts, and going vegetarian. Physical fitness is also crucial, as the 1,400 metres of the extremely taxing trail in the cave demands four to five hours of hiking. Spiritual tourism offers an opportunity for psychological recovery post-COVID-19, and spiritual destinations with folkloric overtones, such as the Naga Cave, are expected to increase in prominence among spiritual and general tourists due to their inherent healing properties. Additionally, the tourism authority may employ further marketing and promotional initiatives to promote Naga Cave as a sustainable tourist destination. The use of mass media for communication has been of interest in recent years, with studies examining the use of new media by individuals and the significance of Naga in Thai architectural and sculptural ornaments.</p>
Articles
Naga Cave
Spiritual Tourism
Social Media
Thailand
Tourist Experience
Cave
Spiritual tourist
Social Science
Spirituality
Tourism
Business
Thai Spirituality
Ruchi Agarwal
Chompunuch Pongjit
Copyright (c) 2023 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-09-29
2023-09-29
236
256
10.1558/firn.26830
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Disease Perception and Social Order in Yi Traditional Ritual Therapy
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/26573
<p>Perspectives of the Yunnan Hongyi towards disease are closely related to their religion and culture. In the culture of the Hongyi, the causes of diseases are categorized into three factors: the soul; the ghost; and uncleansed (object/s). Whenever their people are feeling unwell, they will perform rituals to cure their illness. They have three different ritual therapies: namely, change of soul ritual; farewell to ghost ritual; and the Tutou ritual, each corresponding to the three factors causing illness. Through the performance space and ritual habits of these three healing rituals, the Hongyi achieve the purity and integrity of humans, integrating their view of various medical systems and their religious world via bodily experience, reorganizing the relationship between human and supernatural forces, and ultimately returning to the social order.</p>
Articles
Understanding Disease
Ritual Therapy
Purity
Bodily Experience
Social Order
Anthropology
Anthropology
ChunXiang Lei
Yang Chao
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-08-24
2023-08-24
217
235
10.1558/firn.26573
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Qigong (chee gung)
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/26526
<p>Qigong, like other Eastern techniques such as yoga and mindfulness meditation, has been shown to be beneficial for mental and physical health and has been a topic of debate in academic and scientific literature in recent decades. Qigong, which has been practised in China since ancient times, is becoming increasingly popular in the West. This article first examines the philosophical and spiritual roots of Qigong and how it has evolved in modernity. Second, it focuses on wellbeing-related issues based on the experiences of the researchers and practitioners who worked with clients ranging from members of Generation Z to older adults. Qigong practitioners frequently describe their technique as delivering a sense of inner serenity, relaxation, and mental clarity. Third, I challenge the various Qigong presumptions that are problematic in mainstream Western medical science, drawing on a variety of examples. Medical Qigong claims to boost cognitive capacities and concentration and provide physical benefits such as greater strength, balance and flexibility, as well as a sense of wellbeing. Stress and anxiety levels are also said to be reduced, according to studies. These claims, and the location of Qigong in the contemporary Western spiritual landscape, are evaluated.</p>
Articles
Asian Spiritualities
Integrative Therapy
Gen Z
Qigong
Wellbeing
Philosophy
Religion
contemporary spiritualites
Social and Cultural Anthroplogy; GN301-674
psychology and religion
Counselling
Philosophy
Thai religions
Religion
Spirituality
Alternative Medicine
sociology of health
Marzia Anna Coltri
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-08-24
2023-08-24
200
216
10.1558/firn.26526
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The CRETA Project
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/23763
<p>This article gives an account of a two-year project named CRETA (participatory construction of egalitarian societies) carried out by a group of 20 people in northern Italy. The initiative has tried to find concrete paths to establish an egalitarian society by building a new religious paradigm inspired by Modern Matriarchal Studies. After intensive training sessions, the participants began to develop concrete steps to get closer to the goal of creating an egalitarian community. The core aspects of matriarchal spirituality chosen by the participants which inspired the whole project are gender equality, immanent divinity and a cyclical worldview. The article presents the main results of the feminist participatory research that accompanied the community project. The pursuit of the participants to establish new, egalitarian religious practices is discussed and the challenges and achievements are reflected.</p>
Articles
matriarchy
new spirituality
participatory research
feminism
HM(1)-1281 Sociology
cultural sociology
Alessandra Piccoli
Andrea Fleckinger
Angela Chiavassa
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-12-19
2022-12-19
88
106
10.1558/firn.23763
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Modern Postural Yoga and the Health-Spirituality-Neoliberalism Nexus
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/24253
<p>The practice of yoga has become an integral part of practitioners’ lifestyles, spirituality and therapeutic paths across the world, not to mention institutional and governmental interventions of a pedagogical, rehabilitative and political nature in settings as diverse as schools, hospitals and prisons. While social science literature has explored some of these areas of analysis, we currently know little about how particular conceptions of health and wellbeing, of the sacred and of the economic-political continuum overlap, diverge and reciprocally influence each other, with reference to yoga and beyond. Using the example of “modern postural yoga”, this article aims to provide a preliminary account of what we term the Health-Spirituality-Neoliberalism Nexus, that is, of the ways in which different “social fields”, such as the medical/therapeutic, the spiritual/religious and the political/economic fields, are partly governed by the same practical-discursive logics and display profound “symbiotic relationships”. More specifically, this article elucidates how specific health discourses, centred around practitioners’ self-care, self-responsibility and self-control, dominate not only the medical/therapeutic field, but also the landscape of contemporary spiritualities and the widespread neoliberal ethos that characterizes the current social, political and economic model of Westernized societies. Here, the categories of physical and psychological health, the idea of a fulfilling spiritual life, and economic success display deep “elective affinities” that we seek to uncover by mobilizing a series of foundational sociological concepts such as the Bourdieusian notion of “field” and a Foucauldian reading of “biopolitics” and “governmentality”. </p>
Articles
yoga
health and wellbeing
field
biopolitics
governmentality
Health-Spirituality-Neoliberalism Nexus
yoga
health and wellbeing
the health-spirituality-neoliberalism nexus
field
biopolitics
governmentality
sociology of religion
social theory
qualitative sociology
Matteo Di Placido
Anna Strhan
Stefania Palmisano
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-12-19
2022-12-19
8
36
10.1558/firn.24253
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Life’s Meaning and Religion in Contemporary Europe
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/24304
<p>The challenges of modernity in the West have been numerous, affecting even the deepest or existential segments of human being. That the anxiety of the modern era has led to crises has been claimed by many. At the same time religion, in this case Christianity, has undergone notable changes, where its institutional and social roles have been particularly weakened. Since religions seek to assert metaphysical knowledge and answer existential questions, I examine if and to what extent religiosity determines meaning in an individual’s life. A questionnaire was developed consisting of seven scales measuring Higher Meaning of Life, General Meaning in Life, Religiosity, Spirituality, Faith Maturity, Faith in Day-to-Day Life and Social Connectedness. Results show that higher meaning of life and general meaning in life are two separate categories, determined by different parameters. In terms of absolute values, participants have reported significantly lower mean value on the Higher Meaning of Life scale in comparison with General Meaning in Life scale. Further analysis shows that religiosity is not a key predictor of higher meaning of life, nor general meaning in life. As giving meaning and purpose is considered to be one of the essential functions of religion, I conclude that religiosity, and consequently religion, does not fulfil one of its main functions in contemporary Slovenia. However, spirituality has been measured to have a considerable effect on the higher meaning of life.</p>
Articles
Meaning of Life
Meaning in Life
Religion
Religiosity
Spirituality
Social Connectedness
meaning of life
religion
spirituality
sociology
religious studies
Matija Kržan
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-12-19
2022-12-19
53
87
10.1558/firn.24304
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Christianity Without Christ
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/24385
<p>As a result of the poor historiographical research that has been done on mythicism (the position that there was no historical Jesus), a particular phenomenon has been somewhat overlooked, that of mythicist Christians. Mythicist Christians occupy a strange space as both being conceptualized as heretics to Christians, and oddities to non-Christians, and their space within mythicist research is, as a result, entirely understudied. This article seeks to provide a starting point for such research by discussing two case examples of mythicist Christians: Eliza Sharples and Thomas L. Brodie. The article then provides a list of other figures and potential starting places for further research on historical Christian mythicists and calls for further study of this phenomenon among contemporary Christian populations.</p>
Articles
mythicism
Christianity
historicity of Jesus
Thomas Brodie
Eliza Sharples
Mythicism
Christianity
historicity of Jesus
Religious studies
Christopher M Hansen
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-03-15
2023-03-15
37
52
10.1558/firn.24385
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De-Radicalization of Former Terrorists
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/25145
<p>This article depicts the reality of de-radicalization programmes for former terrorists in Indonesia. The article aims to clarify the central advocates for, and content of, the programmes. There are several institutions that are engaged in de-radicalizing former terrorists, including both government and non-government organizations. The government is represented by the National Counter Terrorism Agency or Badan Nasional Penanggalangan Terorism (BNPT). This article also examines how these institutions play a role in the process of de-radicalization. The actual voices of former terrorists obtained through fieldwork will also be analysed with regard to how they came to regret their actions in order to scrutinize the process of their religious metamorphosis. The concept of forgiveness in Islam will also be discussed. As some might believe that Islam is a religion of punishment, it is worth analysing the merciful side of Islam.</p>
Articles
Islam
Indonesia
terrorism
de-radicalization
forgiveness
repentance
Islamic studies
Religious Studies
sociology of religion
Hisanori Kato
Copyright (c) 2023 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-03-15
2023-03-15
107
126
10.1558/firn.25145
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Religious Orientation and Motivations in a Sample of Italian Catholic Volunteers
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/25269
<p>The aim of the research was to study motivations to volunteer, and their relationship with religious orientation in a sample of volunteers working in a Catholic organization. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to 190 volunteers working in a Catholic organization based in a large city in northern Italy and devoted to ending poverty and situations of marginalization through the promotion of social justice. Of these, 160 (90 females, 70 males) agreed to participate. The main result was that all motivations, except Career, increased with the intrinsic religious orientation. The Social and Career functions increased with the extrinsic-social religious orientation. The Protective and Enhancement functions increased with all religious orientations. The result concerning gender differences showed that the creation of a social network through volunteering and the opportunities to create and maintain a positive relationship with others are more important to women than men. Managers could benefit from these findings to improve the recruitment and retaining of volunteers and to think strategically about the mission and the cultural/religious belief of the organization. The impact of two and a half years of Covid-19 policies, however, remains unclear.</p>
Articles
volunteers
management of volunteer organizations
motivation
religious orientation
gender difference
Catholic
Psychology of Religion
Psychology of Religion
Daniela Acquadro Maran
Maurizio Tirassa
Copyright (c) 2023 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-03-15
2023-03-15
127
149
10.1558/firn.25269
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Institutional, Nurses’ and Patients’ Spiritual Imaginaries Compared
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/25878
<p>In this article we seek to compare institutional, professional (largely nurses’) and patients’ perspectives on spirituality with the aim of contributing to two different, albeit potentially overlapping, strands of research, namely, the study of the governance of religious diversity and the inclusion of spiritual interventions in hospital settings, using data collected in the research project RESPIRO (breath) (2019–2022). Importantly, in this article we rely on the toolkit of the sociological trade to explore what we can learn about religion and spirituality by studying hospitals, building on the working hypothesis that the practical and discursive universe of ‘health’ and ‘salvation’, the two most valued symbolic resources of the medical and the religious/spiritual fields respectively, are inherently interrelated. In so doing, we reconstruct the “spiritual imaginaries” surrounding institutional, nurses’ and patients’ perspectives on spirituality in hospital, a previously unexplored subject. These three spiritual imaginaries are the expression of hospital management’s, nurses’ and patients’ respective positioning in the broader field of religion and spirituality in healthcare; that is, they voice different instances of what is considered the legitimate representation of religion and spirituality within healthcare institutions and care practices.</p>
Articles
spiritual imaginaries
health and salvation
religion in hospital
governance of religious diversity
Sociology
nursing
health and wellbeing
Healthcare
BF1228-1389 Spirituality
sociology
nursing
sociology of religion
sociology of health
sociology of organisations
Matteo Di Placido
Stefania Palmisano
Fiona Timmins
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-06-01
2023-06-01
158
183
10.1558/firn.25878
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Editors’ Introduction
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/25621
Editorial
Editorial
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Carole M Cusack
Rachelle Scott
Copyright (c) 2023 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-03-15
2023-03-15
5
7
10.1558/firn.25621
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The Perception of Anti-Semitic Hatred in the Italian Media and Justice System
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/25585
<p>The so-called neo-anti-Semitism, perceived differently by Italian journalists and lawyers, highlights the problem of identity in a multicultural society at the local level, of understanding the Other and (its) history, of the relationship between the public sphere and the networked society: the Jews, due to their unique history of diaspora, have always brought out the dialectic between the particular and the universal in the eyes of the world. This condition further “stretched” hatred in societies, especially anti-Semitic sentiment combined with conspiracy. Therefore, it is necessary for public institutions to understand and investigate contemporary forms of hate. This article will present part of the results of research that investigated the level of perception of journalists and jurists on the phenomenon of anti-Semitism.</p>
Articles
crime
journalism
justice
hate speech
anti-Semitism
Politics and Religion
Jewish studies
HM(1)-1281 Sociology
qualitative sociology
cultural sociology
media ecology
Giacomo Buoncompagni
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2023-05-12
2023-05-12
184
199
10.1558/firn.25585
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Chryssides, George D. 2022. Jehovah’s Witnesses: A New Introduction
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/24136
<p>Chryssides, George D. 2022. Jehovah’s Witnesses: A New Introduction. London: Bloomsbury Academic. viii + 197 pp. ISBN: 978-1-350-19089-4 (pbk). £65.00.</p>
Book Reviews
Jehovah’s Witnesses; lived religion; Watch Tower; American religion; new religious movements; Christian sects
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Camille Kaminski Lewis
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-09-28
2022-09-28
242
243
10.1558/firn.24136
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Stout, Adam. 2020. Glastonbury Holy Thorn: Story of a Legend
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/24135
<p>Stout, Adam. 2020. Glastonbury Holy Thorn: Story of a Legend. Glastonbury: Green & Pleasant Publishing. xiii + 154 pp. ISBN 978-1-9162686-0-9 (hbk). £12.99.</p>
Book Reviews
Glastonbury Thorn; folklore; holy trees; Christianity; Paganism; Joseph of Arimathea
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Sarah Penicka-Smith
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-09-28
2022-09-28
248
249
10.1558/firn.24135
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Zeller, Benjamin E., ed. 2001. Handbook of UFO Religions
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/24134
<p>Zeller, Benjamin E., ed. 2001. Handbook of UFO Religions. Leiden and Boston, MA: Brill. xvii + 542 pp. ISBN: 978-90-04-43437-0 (hbk). €199.00.</p>
Book Reviews
ufology; contactee; abductee; extraterrestrials; alien-based religions
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Anna Lutkajtis
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-09-28
2022-09-28
246
247
10.1558/firn.24134
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Sutcliffe, Steven J., and Carole M. Cusack, eds. 2017. The Problem of Invented Religions
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/24133
<p>Sutcliffe, Steven J., and Carole M. Cusack, eds. 2017. The Problem of Invented Religions. Oxford and New York: Routledge. x + 152 pp. ISBN: 978-1-138-09903-6 (pbk). £42.99.</p>
Book Reviews
invented religions; new religious movements; play; narrative; fandom; fiction
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Anna Lutkajtis
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-09-28
2022-09-28
244
245
10.1558/firn.24133
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Editors’ Introduction
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/24132
Editorial
Editorial
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Carole M Cusack
Rachelle Scott
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-09-28
2022-09-28
121
123
10.1558/firn.24132
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Ancestors, Goddesses, Ritual and Politics
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/23786
<p>This article will recount the author’s fieldwork in Bhaktapur, Nepal, between 2015 and 2016, during two separate stints, which coincided with the aftermath of an earthquake that occurred in April 2015. The author conducted his research with a family of dancer-mediums in Bhaktapur—known locally as the Banmalas—in an area known as Kamalvin?yak. Annually, from October to June, the Banmalas perform a series of ritual performances in and around Bhaktapur. During these rites, each medium embodies a member of a goddess-family (Navadurg?) whose respective shrines encircle Bhaktapur’s borders. Broadly, this article will introduce the family’s traditions, rituals and political affinities, whilst also highlighting the importance of combining group-centred fieldwork with a cross-sectional study for scholars of contemporary religion.</p>
Articles
Nepal
Bhaktapur
Newars
Ritual Performance
Politics
Goddesses
Fieldwork
Religion
Fieldwork
Religion
Ritual
Anthropology
Ethnography
Religion
Matthew Martin
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-09-28
2022-09-28
225
241
10.1558/firn.23786
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Different Shades of Green
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/23668
<p>The article investigates the process of the greening of Catholicism from a discursive perspective. Using semantic field analysis, we examined differences and similarities in the approach to ecology and “assessed” the impact of Laudato Si’—the encyclical letter by Pope Francis—on discourse in selected Polish and Italian weekly publications. The article demonstrates how ecology is being “absorbed” within the Catholic press and how it works in the discursive environment; it also reveals the process of legitimation of “ecological norms” in Catholic practical narratives which differ in Poland and Italy.</p>
Articles
Catholicism
ecology
Poland
Italy
press
greening
discourse
ecology
Catholicism
sociology
religious studies
Marcin Jewdokimow
Wojciech Sadłoń
Marco Castagnetto
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-09-28
2022-09-28
186
202
10.1558/firn.23668
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From the Camino de Santiago to English Cathedrals
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/23533
<p>In this article I analyse my experiences of conducting fieldwork in four English cathedrals: Canterbury, Durham, Westminster and York. The focus will be on various challenges related to carrying out fieldwork in sacred spaces. I will also reflect on my role as a researcher and pilgrim/visitor and compare it with my previous experience of researching the Santiago pilgrimage. I explore the following: similarities and differences between conducting fieldwork on the Camino and in cathedrals; and how what I have learned in the Camino context is (or is not) transferable to the Cathedrals context. I will also reflect on how some of the practicalities of conducting fieldwork—such as the location of our workspace in the cathedral—can lead to wider understanding of several topics, for instance, what defines a sacred space, and how different sources of information interact methodologically.</p>
Articles
Contemporary Pilgrimage
English cathedrals
Camino de Santiago
Canterbury
Durham
Westminster
York
Pilgrimage
Cathedrals
Anthropology
Ethnology
folkloristics
Tiina Sepp
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-09-28
2022-09-28
203
224
10.1558/firn.23533
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Exploring Engaged Spirituality through Martial Arts
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/23097
<p>In this article, through a carnal and participant approach to ethnography, we consider the pedagogical repertoires of Boxe Popolare (a style of boxing codified by Italian leftist grassroots groups) and Odaka Yoga (an innovative type of postural yoga blended with martial arts elements). We provide a close reading of what we call the pedagogies of engagement cultivated by these two practices, appreciating how their underlying spiritual philosophies are internalized in self-reflective projects oriented towards societal transformation. Our analysis draws from Pierrre Bourdieu’s dispositional sociology and the concept of “body pedagogics”. With regards to this framework, we explore the physical-spiritual apprenticeship to Boxe Popolare and Odaka Yoga in relation to the rise of a series of engaged dispositions, which bring practitioners to conceive of their own transformation as a way to encourage social change and support social justice programmes. More specifically, we emphasize the ritual dimensions of these practices, their forms of commitment, and finally their ambivalences regarding contemporary neoliberal governmentality and societal transformation. We conclude by reflecting on how the neoliberal character of contemporary martial activities, too often simply assumed, is socially reproduced—in practice— via specific processes of knowledge transmission; and calling for more attention to the overlaps between different social fields.</p>
Articles
engaged spirituality
hybrid field
martial activities
pedagogies of engagement
Boxe Popolare
Odaka Yoga
contemporary spiritualites
physical practices
self-transformation
pedagogy
ethnography
Sociology
sociology of religion
sociology of the body
ethnography
cultural sociology
Matteo Di Placido
Lorenzo Pedrini
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-09-28
2022-09-28
165
185
10.1558/firn.23097
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Mirsky, Yehudah. 2021. Towards the Mystical Experience of Modernity: The Making of Rav Kook, 1865–1904.
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/23037
<p>Mirsky, Yehudah. 2021. Towards the Mystical Experience of Modernity: The Making of Rav Kook, 1865–1904. Boston, MA: Academic Studies Press. xix + 392 pp. ISBN: 978-1618119551. US$30.99 (pbk).</p>
Book Reviews
history of Judaism
Religious Zionism
mysticism
ethics
Israel
Chief Rabbinate
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Norman Simms
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-05-19
2022-05-19
114
115
10.1558/firn.23037
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Roberts, Thomas B. 2019. MindApps: Multistate Theory and Tools for Mind Design.
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/23036
<p>Roberts, Thomas B. 2019. MindApps: Multistate Theory and Tools for Mind Design. Rochester, VT: Park Street Press. xii + 212 pp. ISBN: 978-1-62055-818-8. US$17.99 (pbk).</p>
Book Reviews
multistate theory
psychedelics
singlestate fallacy
entheogens
legality
consciousness
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Anna Lutkajtis
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-05-19
2022-05-19
112
113
10.1558/firn.23036
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Luke, David and Rory Spowers, eds. 2021. DMT Entity Encounters: Dialogues on the Spirit Molecule.
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/23035
<p>Luke, David and Rory Spowers, eds. 2021. DMT Entity Encounters: Dialogues on the Spirit Molecule. Rochester, VT: Park Street Press. xiv + 370 pp. ISBN: 978-1-64411-233-5 (pbk)</p>
Book Reviews
entity encounters
DMT
entheogens
science
spirituality
psychedelics
mysticism
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Anna Lutkajtis
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-05-19
2022-05-19
110
111
10.1558/firn.23035
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Thomas, Aled. 2021. Free Zone Scientology: Contesting the Boundaries of a New Religion.
https://journal.equinoxpub.com/FIR/article/view/23034
<p>Thomas, Aled. 2021. Free Zone Scientology: Contesting the Boundaries of a New Religion. London: Bloomsbury. 190 pp. ISBN: 978-1-3501-8254-7. £85.00 (hbk).</p>
Book Reviews
Free Zone
Church of Scientology
L. Ron Hubbard
Captain Bill Robertson
tech
Religious Studies
Religious Studies
Edward Graham-Hyde
Copyright (c) 2022 Equinox Publishing Ltd.
2022-05-19
2022-05-19
108
109
10.1558/firn.23034