Spirit Possession And Popular Religion

Author : Clarke Garrett
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 294 pages
File Size : 46,6 Mb
Release : 1987
Category : Religion
ISBN : 0801834864

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Spirit Possession and Popular Religion by Clarke Garrett Pdf

"The description is outstanding. Nowhere else can one find such a succinct and eminently readable account that places Shakerism in its broadest context. Garrett makes character and personality come alive throughout the book, from the Prophets' strange gyrations to Mother Ann Lee's drinking problem."--Journal of American History "The most successful study yet written of transatlantic spiritual enthusiasm in the century of the Enlightenment."--Jon Butler, Yale University Pietists, Methodists, and sectarian groups such as the Shakers all shared the conviction that God touched the individual directly and visibly; manifestations of spirit possession, accompanied by prophecy, visions, and ecstatic seizures, became outward signs of an inner expedience, a kind of sacred theater as believers acted out their possession before others. Clarke Garrett follows this "sacred theater"back to the Camisards of southeastern France, an ecstatic Protestant group whose doomed rebellion against Louis XIV led to their dispersal among Huguenot exiles. Then, Garrett writes, "in a form that the Huguenots themselves would probably not have recognized, a dozen English ecstatics, who in their native Manchester had been known as Shakers, brought Huguenot spirit possession to America in 1774."The Shakers emerge as the culmination of the century's religious quest, preserving the immediacy of spirit possession while making it the basis for the formation of an ideal Christian community. "[Unravels] the subtle links among such apparently divergent manifestations of popular religion as that of the Camisards and French Prophets of the seventeenth century, German pietism, the early Methodists in England, the revivalsof the Great Awakening, the Amana community, and the Shakers... Garrett's study deserves the attention of all who would understand the history and nature of ecstatic experience and its continuing presence in Western religion."--Church History "Shaker buffs will not find this study very comforting, but serious students of Shakerism and historians interested in other communal societies stand in Garrett's debt for his excellent contribution to the field, for his determination to address a range of important but difficult interpretive issues, and for his willingness to employ a critical approach to texts too long handled uncritically."--American Historical Review "A carefully researched, methodologically sophisticated, and lucidly written work.."--Catholic Historical Review Originally published as Spirit Possession and Popular Religion: From the Comisards to the Shakers

Author : Clarke Garrett
Publisher : JHU Press
Page : 308 pages
File Size : 53,9 Mb
Release : 1998-04-13
Category : History
ISBN : 0801859239

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Spirit Possession and Popular Religion by Clarke Garrett Pdf

The Shakers emerge as the culmination of the century's religious quest, preserving the immediacy of spirit possession while making it the basis for the formation of an ideal Christian community.Originally published as Spirit Possession and Popular Religion: From the Comisards to the Shakers

Author : Éva Pócs,András Zempléni
Publisher : Central European University Press
Page : 556 pages
File Size : 42,5 Mb
Release : 2022-05-31
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 9789633864142

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Spirit Possession by Éva Pócs,András Zempléni Pdf

Possession, a seemingly irrational phenomenon, has posed challenges to generations of scholars rooted in Western notions of body-soul dualism, self and personhood, and a whole set of presuppositions inherited from Christian models of possession that was “good” or “bad.” The authors of the essays in this book present a new and more promising approach. They conceive spirit possession as a form of communication, of expressivity, of culturally defined behavior that should be understood in the context of local, vernacular theories and empiric reflections. With the aim of reformulating the comparative anthropology of spirit possession, the editors have opened corridors between previously separate areas of research. Together, anthropologists and historians working on several historical periods and in different European, African, South American, and Asian cultural areas attempt to redefine the very concept of possession, freeing it from the Western notion of the self and more clearly delineating it from related matters such as witchcraft, devotion, or mysticism. The book also provides an overview of new research directions, including novel methods of participant observation and approaches to spirit possession as indigenous historiography

Author : I. M. Lewis
Publisher : Psychology Press
Page : 224 pages
File Size : 53,8 Mb
Release : 2003
Category : Ecstasy
ISBN : 041530508X

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Ecstatic Religion by I. M. Lewis Pdf

First Published in 2004. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Author : Caroline Blyth
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 179 pages
File Size : 43,6 Mb
Release : 2020-11-29
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 9781000290110

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Spirit Possession and Communication in Religious and Cultural Contexts by Caroline Blyth Pdf

Spirit Possession and Communication in Religious and Cultural Contexts explores the phenomenon of spirit possession, focusing on the religious and cultural functions it serves as a means of communication. Drawing on the multidisciplinary expertise of philosophers, anthropologists, historians, linguists, and scholars of religion and the Bible, the volume investigates the ways that spirit possession narratives, events, and rituals are often interwoven around communicative acts, both between spiritual and earthly realms and between members of a community. This book offers fresh insight into the enduring cultural and religious significance of spirit possession. It will be an important resource for scholars from a diverse range of disciplines, including religion, anthropology, history, linguistics, and philosophy.

Author : I. M. Lewis
Publisher : Psychology Press
Page : 220 pages
File Size : 50,9 Mb
Release : 2003
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN : 0415301246

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Ecstatic Religion by I. M. Lewis Pdf

First Published in 2004. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Author : Joseph P. Laycock
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Page : 464 pages
File Size : 54,9 Mb
Release : 2015-05-26
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN : 9798216147909

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Spirit Possession around the World by Joseph P. Laycock Pdf

This book provides a fascinating historical and cultural overview of traditional beliefs about spirit possession and exorcism around the world, from Europe to Asia and the Middle East to the Americas. Possession and exorcism are elements that occur in nearly every culture. Why is belief in spiritual possession so universal? This accessible reference volume offers a broad sample of the traditions and cultures involving possession and exorcism, presenting thoughts on this widely popular topic by experts from the fields of anthropology, sociology, religious studies, history, neuroscience, forensics, and theology. The entries cover the subject of possession and exorcism across all inhabited continents, from the Bronze Age to the 21st century, providing information that is accessible and intriguing as well as scholarly and authoritative. Beyond addressing the Christian tradition of possession and exorcism, Pentecostalism, and "New Age" and less widely known Western concepts about possession and exorcism, this work examines ideas about possession and exorcism from other world religions and the indigenous cultures of Asia, Africa, and the Americas. It also covers historic cases of possession and presents biographies of famous theologians, exorcists, and possessed individuals. High school and undergraduate readers will learn about world history, religious and spiritual traditions, and world cultures through a topic that figures prominently in popular culture and modern entertainment. Bibliographies that accompany each entry as well as a selected, general bibliography serve to help students locate print and electronic sources of additional information.

Author : Frederick M. Smith
Publisher : Columbia University Press
Page : 733 pages
File Size : 55,7 Mb
Release : 2006
Category : Literary Criticism
ISBN : 9780231137485

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The Self Possessed by Frederick M. Smith Pdf

The Self Possessed is a multifaceted, diachronic study reconsidering the very nature of religion in South Asia, the culmination of years of intensive research. Frederick M. Smith proposes that positive oracular or ecstatic possession is the most common form of spiritual expression in India, and that it has been linguistically distinguished from negative, disease-producing possession for thousands of years. In South Asia possession has always been broader and more diverse than in the West, where it has been almost entirely characterized as "demonic." At best, spirit possession has been regarded as a medically treatable psychological ailment and at worst, as a condition that requires exorcism or punishment. In South (and East) Asia, ecstatic or oracular possession has been widely practiced throughout history, occupying a position of respect in early and recent Hinduism and in certain forms of Buddhism. Smith analyzes Indic literature from all ages-the earliest Vedic texts; the Mahabharata; Buddhist, Jain, Yogic, Ayurvedic, and Tantric texts; Hindu devotional literature; Sanskrit drama and narrative literature; and more than a hundred ethnographies. He identifies several forms of possession, including festival, initiatory, oracular, and devotional, and demonstrates their multivocality within a wide range of sects and religious identities. Possession is common among both men and women and is practiced by members of all social and caste strata. Smith theorizes on notions of embodiment, disembodiment, selfhood, personal identity, and other key issues through the prism of possession, redefining the relationship between Sanskritic and vernacular culture and between elite and popular religion. Smith's study is also comparative, introducing considerable material from Tibet, classical China, modern America, and elsewhere. Brilliant and persuasive, The Self Possessed provides careful new translations of rare material and is the most comprehensive study in any language on this subject.

Author : Heike Behrend
Publisher : Univ of Wisconsin Press
Page : 198 pages
File Size : 41,5 Mb
Release : 1999
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN : 0299166341

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Spirit Possession, Modernity & Power in Africa by Heike Behrend Pdf

In Africa as well as in Europe, many spirits and their mediums are part of local as well as global cultures. Christian spirits named Hitler, Mussolini, or King Bruce (Bruce Lee) flourish in a pantheon of new holy spirits in Uganda waging war against the government. Spirits of airplanes, engines, guitars, and angels are found in Central Africa; and thunder, snakes, and rain as well as playboys and prostitutes inhabit the spirit world in West Africa. Spirit possession cults have continued to proliferate, even in the secular West, and continue to be a subject of intense interest. Despite the continuous expansion of the field, some problems are only now beginning to be explored. The experts in this volume focus on questions of power, the history and inner dynamics of cults, the role of gender and images of the other, based on research conducted during the last fifteen years in Africa. The contributors document changes taking place across the continent as possession beliefs and practices respond to new circumstances and address the shifting local implications of an increasingly global socio-economy. Gender, ethnicity, and class are examined as intersecting forces and features of spirit phenomena. The case studies presented are richly contextualized: history, social organization and upheaval, alternative religious options--all are considered relevant to an understanding of possession forms. Contributors: Leslie Sharp, Heike Behrend, Adeline Masquelier, Mathias Krings, Jean-Paul Colleyn, Alexandra O. de Sousa, Susan Kenyon, Tobias Wendl, Ute Luig, and Linda Giles Co-published with James Currey Publishers, U.K. The Wisconsin edition is not for sale in the United Kingdon, the traditional British Commonwealth (excepting Canada), nor in Europe.

Author : Karen Fjelstad,Nguyen Thi Hien
Publisher : Cornell University Press
Page : 194 pages
File Size : 41,5 Mb
Release : 2018-05-31
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 9781501719141

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Possessed by the Spirits by Karen Fjelstad,Nguyen Thi Hien Pdf

The essays in this volume examine the resurgence of the Mother Goddess religion among contemporary Vietnamese following the economic "Renovation" period in Vietnam. Anthropologists explore the forces that compel individuals to become mediums and the social repercussions of their decisions and interactions.

Author : I. M. Lewis
Publisher : Penguin Group
Page : 248 pages
File Size : 41,6 Mb
Release : 1971
Category : Religion
ISBN : UCAL:B4967117

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Ecstatic Religion by I. M. Lewis Pdf

Author : Paul Christopher Johnson
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Page : 351 pages
File Size : 43,6 Mb
Release : 2014-05-07
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 9780226122939

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Spirited Things by Paul Christopher Johnson Pdf

The word “possession” is anything but transparent, especially as it developed in the context of the African Americas. There it referred variously to spirits, material goods, and people. It served as a watershed term marking both transactions in which people were made into things—via slavery—and ritual events by which the thingification of people was revised. In Spirited Things, Paul Christopher Johnson gathers together essays by leading anthropologists in the Americas that reopen the concept of possession on these two fronts in order to examine the relationship between African religions in the Atlantic and the economies that have historically shaped—and continue to shape—the cultures that practice them. Exploring the way spirit possessions were framed both by material things—including plantations, the Catholic church, the sea, and the phonograph—as well as by the legacy of slavery, they offer a powerful new way of understanding the Atlantic world.

Author : Vincent Crapanzano,Vivian Garrison
Publisher : New York ; Toronto : Wiley
Page : 488 pages
File Size : 51,9 Mb
Release : 1977
Category : Religion
ISBN : STANFORD:36105036712599

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Case Studies in Spirit Possession by Vincent Crapanzano,Vivian Garrison Pdf

Author : Alvin Eng Hui Lim
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 334 pages
File Size : 41,6 Mb
Release : 2018-09-13
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 9781351188852

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Digital Spirits in Religion and Media by Alvin Eng Hui Lim Pdf

In many contemporary and popular forms of religious practice, digital technology and the spiritual are inseparable. Ranging from streaming broadcasts of spiritual possessions to screenings of mass prayer conferences in stadiums, spirits and divinities now have new forms in which they can materialise. By offering the notion of ‘digital spirits’, this book critically attends to the intersections of digital media and spiritual beings. It also puts forward a new performative perspective on how they interact. Taking cues from the work of Stewart Hoover and Heidi Campbell, among others, the book begins with an outline of the current debates around religion, performance and digital media. It then moves on to examine how mediality and religion, where embodied practices are carried out alongside virtual practices, work together in contemporary Asia. These case studies focus on lived religious practices in combination with various forms of media, and so help demonstrate that digital technology in particular reveals the layered processes of spirituality in practice. Gods and divinities have always relied on media to manifest, and this book is a fascinating exploration of how digital media has continued that tradition and taken it in new directions. As such, it will be of great interest to scholars of religious studies, digital media and performance studies.

Author : Moshe Sluhovsky
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Page : 386 pages
File Size : 41,6 Mb
Release : 2008-11-15
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9780226762951

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Believe Not Every Spirit by Moshe Sluhovsky Pdf

From 1400 through 1700, the number of reports of demonic possessions among European women was extraordinarily high. During the same period, a new type of mysticism—popular with women—emerged that greatly affected the risk of possession and, as a result, the practice of exorcism. Many feared that in moments of rapture, women, who had surrendered their souls to divine love, were not experiencing the work of angels, but rather the ravages of demons in disguise. So how then, asks Moshe Sluhovsky, were practitioners of exorcism to distinguish demonic from divine possessions? Drawing on unexplored accounts of mystical schools and spiritual techniques, testimonies of the possessed, and exorcism manuals, Believe Not Every Spirit examines how early modern Europeans dealt with this dilemma. The personal experiences of practitioners, Sluhovsky shows, trumped theological knowledge. Worried that this could lead to a rejection of Catholic rituals, the church reshaped the meaning and practices of exorcism, transforming this healing rite into a means of spiritual interrogation. In its efforts to distinguish between good and evil, the church developed important new explanatory frameworks for the relations between body and soul, interiority and exteriority, and the natural and supernatural.