scholarly journals Religious Practices On Honoring The Dead: Need For Contextualized Christian Formation

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-95
Author(s):  
Julio Ramillo Mercurio
Author(s):  
Elena V. Gordienko ◽  

The article examines the cult of the bacteriologist, the discoverer of the plague bacillus Alexandre Yersin (1863–1943) in modern Vietnam. The cult of Yersin developed in the place of his burial near the city of Nha Trang in the south of Vietnam, and Yersin is worshiped there both as a rural guardian spirit in the Vietnamese folk religion (thành hoàng), and as a bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism, although he was not a Buddhist. One of the Buddhist temples in which he is worshiped was previously his office. Meanwhile, Buddhist cult is closely related to the popular veneration of the scientist. Worship of Yersin as a guardian spirit takes place at his grave. An important feature of the cult is that the popular veneration of Yersin was supported by the state: in 2013, a biography of Yersin was published in which his merits are referred as a basis for honoring him as the patron spirit of the area. In addition, secular ceremonies in honor of Yersin contain elements of religious practices rooted in the Vietnamese belief in the existence of the spirits of the dead and their active influence on the daily life of living people. I consider the veneration of Yersin as a new syncretic cult of post-secular Vietnam which give evidence of the vitality of traditional beliefs and their ability to develop in changing social conditions.


2010 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-177
Author(s):  
Diana Espirito Santo

This paper aims to conceptualize the relationship between the main Afro-Cuban religious practices and the experience of varied social and economic difficulties in Havana, and in particular, the role of the dead—the muertos—in its articulation. I argue that the dead are not just to be seen as socio-historical idioms or representations but as constitutive elements of a Cuban religious personhood, which must be discerned, acknowledged and objectified through one’s actions in the world. Achieving harmony in relation to oneself with one’s environment at any given moment thus requires a theory of self, and in the ritually and cosmologically fluid Afro-Cuban religious sphere this is most effectively given by the spirit mediumship cult of espiritismo cruzado.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sybil Tong

As Toronto runs out of burial space, there currently lacks a set of guidelines to direct the cemetery planning process. This paper explores the barriers in the cemetery planning process that have manifested in Toronto and the planning ramifications of alternatives to casket burials, such as cremation, green burials, and grave reuse. This analysis aims to examine the specific solutions taken by various cities considering their physical geography and the population’s cultural and religious practices. The purpose of these analyses is to identify which methods of cemetery design and alternative interment, if any, would be feasible in Toronto’s context with regards to environmental sustainability, cultural practices, and affordability. Keywords: cemeteries; Toronto; sustainability; land use


Author(s):  
Mayra Nuñez Pastor

Abstract This paper examines social, cultural and religious factors that affect the implementation of international humanitarian law concerning dead and missing persons in non-international armed conflicts. To this end, the behaviour of both armed groups and civil society is studied. The argument made in the paper is that in some cases endogenous and exogenous systems of value (social, religious and cultural understandings), operating within the logic of armed non-State actors and within local communities, should be considered by policies concerning the search for missing persons. The Colombian armed conflict is used as case study; the social, cultural and religious practices of the National Liberation Army and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army are analyzed as examples. Likewise, social and cultural values within affected populations can impact on post-conflict mechanisms agreed upon by the parties concerning the search for missing persons, and vice versa. Consequently, customs and traditions such as the “adoption” of unidentified buried people by local communities (social resignification of the dead) and the practices of indigenous communities are reviewed in order to establish a holistic framework.


2007 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 433-440 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael DiGregorio ◽  
Oscar Salemink

Since the inauguration in 1986 of the reforms known as Đổi Mới, ritual and religious practices have proliferated in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. This renewed interest in religious and ritual practice has been the object of intensive scholarly interest both in Vietnam and outside, and has been interpreted in terms of revival (phục hồi), invention and politics of tradition. This collection of articles deals with this phenomenon of ritual revival in Vietnam as well but attempts to go beyond the – by now common – approaches that connect it with the emerging religious practice and political liberalisation, economic reform and the emerging market in the context of Đổi Mới. Instead, these papers explore in more depth the ritual dimensions of life from the central state down to the individual level.


2009 ◽  
Vol 37 (6) ◽  
pp. 918-934 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Horstmann

AbstractIn this article, I consider the changing forms of a traditional art genre and ritual cycle, Manooraa Rongkruu, in which it is possible for the living to communicate with the dead. I did fieldwork on the dynamics of Theravada Buddhism, Islam and indigenous religion and multi-religious rituals in Southern Thailand from 2004–2007. Religious forms in Southern Thailand have been hybridised, fragmented, post-modernised and revitalised. The performance and art genre of the Manooraa enjoy high popularity in certain parts of Southern Thailand and is used to heal a number of modern ailments. The public performances in Takae, Patthalung and Ta Kura, Songkhla, attract hundreds of thousands of worshippers. I show that the revitalised and reflexive religious practices of people in Southern Thailand to engage and worship the great ancestor spirits represent a multi-vocal arena, in which social transformations and discursive shifts are negotiated. Illustrations of the new performances of the Manooraa Rongkruu are provided to illustrate a ritual in movement that negotiates traditional obligations and postmodern requirements.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sybil Tong

As Toronto runs out of burial space, there currently lacks a set of guidelines to direct the cemetery planning process. This paper explores the barriers in the cemetery planning process that have manifested in Toronto and the planning ramifications of alternatives to casket burials, such as cremation, green burials, and grave reuse. This analysis aims to examine the specific solutions taken by various cities considering their physical geography and the population’s cultural and religious practices. The purpose of these analyses is to identify which methods of cemetery design and alternative interment, if any, would be feasible in Toronto’s context with regards to environmental sustainability, cultural practices, and affordability. Keywords: cemeteries; Toronto; sustainability; land use


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