Ebertz MN. [The ritual challenge-Corona and the Holy Spoon].
Z Relig Ges Polit 2023:1-22. [PMID:
37359500 PMCID:
PMC10071459 DOI:
10.1007/s41682-023-00151-6]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2022] [Revised: 02/16/2023] [Accepted: 02/28/2023] [Indexed: 06/28/2023]
Abstract
The corona pandemic also triggered crises, even fights, in the religious fields that went beyond the usual disputes about the legitimate definition of religion. Last but not least, they concerned the ritual dimension, as is shown by an example of the liturgy of the Christian Orthodox Churches. A fierce conflict arose within them over the meaning of a ritual artefact, the 'Holy Spoon'. Its use is said to bring salvation, but it can also cause harm. The discourses about the 'Holy Spoon' triggered by the Corona crisis turn out to be discourses about the identity of the Orthodox Church and about its typical 'energetic' definition of reality of transcendence, which had to be secured in the 'field of power' (Bourdieu).
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