What is vernacular catholicism? : the "dignity" example

The fact of Christianity’s negative attitude toward homosexual relations has not stopped a large number of gay and lesbian Christian believers from continuing to think of themselves as members of their respective denominations. In many American metropolitan settings, groups of homosexual Roman Catholics have formed a religious organisation named ‘Dignity’ to fulfill a need for worship and socializing. Focusing on the Philadelphia branch of Dignity, this paper examines the reasons for the continued involvement by homosexual American Catholics in religion in general and in such an antagonistic religious institution in particular. The study of the sexual politics of this Dignity congregation has generated a new perspective which underscores the insufficiency of the conventional terminology of “sectarian,” “popular,” or even “official,” religion for describing the vitality of lived religion. In response, I offer the term “vernacular religion” which will be explained and assessed as a new approach in the search for understanding of any given community of believers and their various categories of religious belief. The relation of the study of vernacular religion to the Philadelphia Dignity community will be discussed through an examination of its history and developments; of the negotiated beliefs of its members; and its reactions to the institutional church, and to the AIDS crisis

What is vernacular catholicism? : the "dignity" example

The fact of Christianity’s negative attitude toward homosexual relations has not stopped a large number of gay and lesbian Christian believers from continuing to think of themselves as members of their respective denominations. In many American metropolitan settings, groups of homosexual Roman Catholics have formed a religious organisation named ‘Dignity’ to fulfill a need for worship and socializing. Focusing on the Philadelphia branch of Dignity, this paper examines the reasons for the continued involvement by homosexual American Catholics in religion in general and in such an antagonistic religious institution in particular. The study of the sexual politics of this Dignity congregation has generated a new perspective which underscores the insufficiency of the conventional terminology of “sectarian,” “popular,” or even “official,” religion for describing the vitality of lived religion. In response, I offer the term “vernacular religion” which will be explained and assessed as a new approach in the search for understanding of any given community of believers and their various categories of religious belief. The relation of the study of vernacular religion to the Philadelphia Dignity community will be discussed through an examination of its history and developments; of the negotiated beliefs of its members; and its reactions to the institutional church, and to the AIDS crisis

Zaobljuba kot vizualni praznik. Čaščenje sv. Jožefa v domovih ameriških Sicilijancev

This article discusses the home altars built by Sicilian American women to honor St. Joseph in the seaport community of Gloucester in the state of Massachusetts. Of particular importance when considering the communicative and creative esthetics of this belief and practice is the rich way this votive tradition expresses and exemplifies nine fundamental characteristics of vernacular Catholicism. *** Prispevek obravnava domače oltarje, ki jih ameriške Sicilijanke v pristaniški skupnosti v Gloucesterju (Massachusetts) postavljajo v čast sv. Jožefu. Ob obravnavi komunikacijske in ustvarjalne estetike verovanja in prakse je posebnega pomena bogatost votivne tradicije, ki izraža in ponazarja devet temeljnih značilnosti vernakularnega katolištva

From “Folk Religion” to the “Search for Meaning” : Teaching Folklore Outside the Discipline

This article discusses the challenges of assembling and teaching a course on vernacular religion in an Institute of Religious Studies. The interface of folklore and folklife studies with religious studies in the classroom offers rich opportunities for students to learn about the lived religion of others as well as themselves.Cet article expose les difficultés tenant à la préparation et à l’enseignement d’un cours de pratiques religieuses populaires dans un institut d’études religieuses. Dans ce cours, l’interface études de folklore/études religieuses présente aux étudiants de nombreuses opportunités d’appréhender les pratiques religieuses des autres autant que les leurs

Intrinsically Catholic: Vernacular religion and Philadelphia\u27s Dignity

The fact of the negative attitude of the Roman Catholic Church toward the genital expression of homosexuality has not stopped some gay Catholic believers from thinking of themselves as members of the Church while continuing a choice of active sexual lifestyle which the institution condemns. While there are many gay and lesbian Roman Catholics who belong solely to traditional parishes, a number of Catholic men and women have banded together to form an organization called Dignity which is composed of independent regional congregations throughout the United States and Canada. These North American religious base communities are supportive of gay and lesbian sexuality, and, further, affirm it as a spiritual value. These communities fulfill for their members a need for worship and social activity within a context of the Catholic tradition. Focusing on the Philadelphia branch of Dignity, this dissertation tells the story of this complex congregation by exploring the religious lives of a number of its members during the years 1986-1987, the time before and after the promulgation by the Vatican of a letter to its bishops condemning gay sexual activity, and referring to the orientation itself as intrinsically evil. These individuals are a mirror of the changes in thinking among many American Catholics as they have balanced the values of the pre-conciliar Church with the spiritual freedoms that they perceived were supported by the Second Vatican Council. The dissertation chronicles the beliefs and practices of the men and women who struggled to maintain the existence of this congregation during this period and examines the reasons for the continued involvement by these homosexual American Catholics in religion in general, and with such an antagonistic religious institution in particular. The study of this Dignity congregation has generated a new perspective which underscores the vitality of lived religion and the insufficiency of the conventional terminology of sectarian, folk, popular, or even official, religion. In response, I offer the term vernacular religion which is explained and assessed as a new approach in the search for the understanding of any given community of believers and their various categories of religious belief. The relation of the study of vernacular religion to this urban Catholic congregation is discussed through an examination of the following issues: its history and developments, the negotiated beliefs of its members, their formation of a personal sexual theology, the dynamic between male and female members, and their reactions to the institutional Church

Text and Icon in Religious Art

At the 2013 AFS annual meeting, when giving the lecture named for him, Don Yoder isolated the traits that separate Protestant from Catholic folk art in the United States. From a global perspective, those differentiating traits appear most radically and clearly in the traditional art of Islam and Hinduism. Islam is rigorously monotheistic, aniconic, and its highest art is the calligraphic representation of Koranic texts. Hinduism is polymorphous, iconic in the extreme, and its highest art is the sculptural representation of the deities. Islam has a single great text that unifies arts and acts. Hinduism does not; icons, not texts, are foundational. Rituals, orally performed myths, and images flourish in abundance, varying from region to region, temple to temple, house to house. The limitless, inclusive nature of Hinduism, closely paralleled in the religions of Mediterranean antiquity, befuddles interpretations by scholars accustomed to faiths based on texts