Sensual Religion - Religion and the Five Senses - Graham Harvey
10. Touching, Crafting, Knowing: Religious Artefacts and the Fetish within Animism
Sensual Religion - Religion and the Five Senses - Graham Harvey
Amy Whitehead [+]
Massey University
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Dr Amy Whitehead is a Senior Lecturer in Social Anthropology at Massey University in Aotearoa New Zealand with a background in the Study or Religions. She specialises in ritual, NRM’s, and the material and performance cultures of religions.
Description
At the shrine of the Virgin of Alcala in Spain, touch is the medium through which Catholic Christians perform their devotion and maintain traditions. In moments of touch, the personhood of the Virgin emerges, and material objects (perhaps ‘fetishes’) are offered not only to the Virgin but also to critical exploration.