Ritual, Discourse, and Community in Cuban Santeria: Speaking a Sacred World (Contemporary Cuba)
By
Kristina Wirtz (Author)
Hardback
Currently unavailable. We don't know when or if this item will be back in stock
Quantity
Description
How do Santeria practitioners in Cuba create and maintain religious communities amidst tensions, disagreements, and competition among them, and in the absence of centralized institutional authority? What serves as the ""glue"" that holds practitioners of different backgrounds together in the creation of a moral community? Examining the religious lives of santeros in Santiago de Cuba, Wirtz argues that these communities hold together not because members agree on their interpretations of rituals but because they often disagree. Religious life is marked by a series of ""telling moments"" - not only the moments themselves but their narrated representations as they are retold and mined for religious meanings. Long after they occur, spiritually elevated experiences circulate in narratives that may express skepticism or awe and hold the promise of more such experiences. The author finds that these episodes resonate in gossip and other forms of public commentary about the experiences of their fellow Santeria practitioners. Drawing on ethnographic research about Santeria beliefs and practices, Wirtz observes that practitioners are constantly engaged in reflection about what they and other practitioners are doing, how the orichas (deities) have responded, and what the consequences of their actions were or will be. By focusing their reflective attention on particular events, santeros re-create, moment to moment, what their religion is. Wirtz also argues that Santeria cannot be considered in isolation from the complex religious landscape of contemporary Cuba, in which African-based traditions are viewed with a mix of fascination, folkloric pride, and suspicion. 26 b&w figures, notes, bibliography, index
About the Author
Kristina Wirtz is assistant professor of anthropology at Western Michigan University.
More Details
- Contributor: Kristina Wirtz
- Imprint: University Press of Florida
- ISBN13: 9780813030647
- Number of Pages: 288
- Packaged Weight: 583
- Format: Hardback
- Publisher: University Press of Florida
- Release Date: 2007-07-30
- Series: Contemporary Cuba
- Binding: Hardback
- Biography: Kristina Wirtz is assistant professor of anthropology at Western Michigan University.
Delivery Options
Home Delivery
Store Delivery
Free Returns
We hope you are delighted with everything you buy from us. However, if you are not, we will refund or replace your order up to 30 days after purchase. Terms and exclusions apply; find out more from our Returns and Refunds Policy.