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Religious Interaction Ritual: The Microsociology of the Spirit

2020; Oxford University Press; Volume: 99; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1093/sf/soaa039

1534-7605

Scott Draper,

Religion and Society Interactions

Scott Draper’s book offers a rich theoretically driven study of religion, specifically the role of ritual. The study draws largely upon the work of Randall Collins and his theory of interaction ritual. While Collins work focuses on a range of ritual activities, he offers little empirical work on religion. This is where Draper’s book makes its mark and offers an important contribution to the sociology of religion. Draper’s main argument is that ritual is the source of beliefs, morality, identity, and purpose. This is central to his critique of studies of religion that privilege beliefs. Practice, for Draper, is the “spirit” of religion. Drawing upon Durkheim’s collective effervescence and its role in social solidarity, Draper argues that shared activity produces sacred beliefs and values. Expanding on Durkheim, Draper looks to Collins for his ideas about ritual including social interaction, emotional energy, symbols, sacred objects, and embodiment. The research is based on a wide range of religious traditions and expressions giving the reader an opportunity to think about ritual in different contexts. The various religious groups include conservative Jews, Muslims, white Baptists, black Baptists, Latino Catholics, and Buddhists. Draper uses a mixed methods approach and conducts congregational studies with six congregations that included informal interviews, focus groups, observation, and a sample from The United States Congregational Life Survey (USCLS) where he did a secondary statistical analysis. The book is structured around five chapters that explore key concepts from ritual theory with each of the congregations and include: effervescence, social solidarity, physical copresence, intersubjectivity, and barriers to outsiders. Draper concludes with a discussion about the implications of ritual for understanding the origins of religion, religious experience, religious identity, and theories of religion.