The power dimensions of the Christian community: An anthropological model

Droogers, André

doi:10.1016/s0048-721x(03)00059-9

Cited by 13 publications

(10 citation statements)

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“…10 Ethno-theologies such as Karu's remind us that, for the faithful, such reflexivity is also about their religion, their place in the cosmos, their value in the eyes of God -even their aspirations to realise their inner Araha -as much as anything else (cf. Droogers 2003).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘I Was Like Abraham’: notes on the anthropology of Christianity from the Solomon Islands

Scott¹

2005

Ethnos

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘I Was Like Abraham’: notes on the anthropology of Christianity from the Solomon Islands

Scott¹

2005

Ethnos

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“…I begin with power (Droogers, 2003;O'Dea, 1966;Ter Borg, 2009;Waggoner, 2009). How is people's behaviour influenced in the religious setting?…”

Section: A Basic Discrepancymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The idea of a double disparity in religion, between hard and soft power and play, can be further made visible by considering the three interacting dimensions that are present in any religious group: the internal, external and transcendental dimensions (Droogers, 2003). Each dimension is characterised by a particular type of social relationship, which in the transcendental dimension includes the sacred.…”

Section: Three Dimensionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Generally speaking, both power and play refer to basic human capacities, power being the capacity to influence other people's behaviour, even against their will, through the control of scarce resources (Droogers, 2003, p. 265, inspired by Weber, 1968; and play referring to human beings' capacity to deal simultaneously with two or more realities (Droogers, 2008a, p. 455, inspired by Turner, 1988. Neither power nor play is used here as a metaphor, but as a capacity that is part of the human gear.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Most commonly it is the power component within the set that dominates the capacity for play, causing disparity (Droogers, 2003(Droogers, , 2004Van Harskamp et al, 2006). When prevailing as a goal in itself, power will frustrate the capacity for play to deal simultaneously with two or more realities.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Towards the concerned study of religion: Exploring the double power–play disparity

Droogers

2010

Religion

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a b s t r a c tIncreasing numbers of students of religion, from various disciplines, address issues of public interest, going beyond documentation and analysis, taking the quality of human life in religion and society as a criterion for their recommendations. Accordingly, systematic reflection on the concerned study of religion is gaining relevance. The approach chosen in this article is to focus on one particular aspect, in this case the double -cognitive and moral -disparity in religious contexts between forms of power and play. Power is viewed as the human capacity to influence other people's behaviour, even against their will. Play is defined here as the human capacity to deal simultaneously with different realities. Power and play represent two human capacities that in themselves are neutral but in combination may change from means, a situation of parity, into goal, a situation of disparity. A first type of disparity is cognitive in nature. It stems from the reduction of the potential open dynamic meaning-making that the power-play constellation could stimulate as well. A second disparity is of a moral nature. It stems from the fact that the power-play set may come to interfere with the quality of human life. As a set, power and play thus move between the roles of being either subservient means or self-fulfilling goal, between a soft and a hard version. Religion is one field in which the gift for play is applied, resulting in the relationship with a sacred or divine reality. Whereas religions cannot survive without some form of power, the form given to the power-play set marks out a religion's identity. Within our time the critical study of the double disparity of hard power and play has gained urgency. Global society faces severe problems of poverty, violence, pollution and miscommunication. Religions may act as a cause, but also as problem solver. Students of religion are invited to form multidisciplinary teams to study the double disparity in its actual form, while simultaneously exploring prospects for the promotion of both open meaning-making and the quality of human life, with power and play in a relationship of parity. This turn would necessitate a reappraisal of the research agenda for Religious/World-view Studies. It demands an identity change for this study field, both in the selection of themes for research and funding, and in the explicitly applied nature of scholarly work.

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Zwischen Begeisterung und Unbehagen: Ein anthropologischer Blick auf den Begriff der Kultur

Karagiannis

Randeria

2015

Transkulturelle Politische Theorie

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The power dimensions of the Christian community: An anthropological model

Cited by 13 publications

References 5 publications

‘I Was Like Abraham’: notes on the anthropology of Christianity from the Solomon Islands

‘I Was Like Abraham’: notes on the anthropology of Christianity from the Solomon Islands

Towards the concerned study of religion: Exploring the double power–play disparity

Zwischen Begeisterung und Unbehagen: Ein anthropologischer Blick auf den Begriff der Kultur

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