Syrian Identity in Bethlehem: From Ethnoreligion to Ecclesiology
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At first sight, the Syriac Orthodox community in Bethlehem appears to be well-described as âethno-religiousâ: while many Palestinian siryÄn emphasise their connection to an ancient Aramean ethnos, this identification also usually entails some relationship to the Syriac Orthodox Church. However, âreligionâ (ethno or otherwise) is arguably too overburdened a category to tell us much about how being siryÄni in Bethlehem compares to being something else. I propose, instead, that thinking of Syrian self-articulation as a kind of ecclesiology, a tradition of incarnating a body (specifically Christâs), draws attention to the creative, situated and dialogic process of being and becoming siryÄni, while problematising categories with which social scientists customarily think about groups. Unlike ethno-religion, ecclesiology captures the fraught pursuit of redeemed sociality, connecting Bethlehemâs destabilized local present to universal and eternal hope. In Bethlehem, whatâs more, these dialogues proceed in tantalizing proximity to places and paths, which are haunted by the incarnate (Aramaic-speaking) God whom Syriac Orthodox Christians embody and envoice. Indeed, while this Syrian body is often narrated as an organic, racial fact, nevertheless it is susceptible to a kind of transubstantiation at the margins when an âotherâ participates fully in the life of this body, especially via the church.
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| å ¨é¨æé´ | è¿å»ä¸å¹´ | è¿å»30天 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| æè¦æµè§æ¬¡æ° | 536 | 95 | 17 |
| å ¨ææµè§æ¬¡æ° | 147 | 4 | 0 |
| PDFä¸è½½æ¬¡æ° | 42 | 11 | 0 |
Syrian Identity in Bethlehem: From Ethnoreligion to Ecclesiology
äºIran and the CaucasusSearch for other papers by Mark D. Calder in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
At first sight, the Syriac Orthodox community in Bethlehem appears to be well-described as âethno-religiousâ: while many Palestinian siryÄn emphasise their connection to an ancient Aramean ethnos, this identification also usually entails some relationship to the Syriac Orthodox Church. However, âreligionâ (ethno or otherwise) is arguably too overburdened a category to tell us much about how being siryÄni in Bethlehem compares to being something else. I propose, instead, that thinking of Syrian self-articulation as a kind of ecclesiology, a tradition of incarnating a body (specifically Christâs), draws attention to the creative, situated and dialogic process of being and becoming siryÄni, while problematising categories with which social scientists customarily think about groups. Unlike ethno-religion, ecclesiology captures the fraught pursuit of redeemed sociality, connecting Bethlehemâs destabilized local present to universal and eternal hope. In Bethlehem, whatâs more, these dialogues proceed in tantalizing proximity to places and paths, which are haunted by the incarnate (Aramaic-speaking) God whom Syriac Orthodox Christians embody and envoice. Indeed, while this Syrian body is often narrated as an organic, racial fact, nevertheless it is susceptible to a kind of transubstantiation at the margins when an âotherâ participates fully in the life of this body, especially via the church.
| å ¨é¨æé´ | è¿å»ä¸å¹´ | è¿å»30天 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| æè¦æµè§æ¬¡æ° | 536 | 95 | 17 |
| å ¨ææµè§æ¬¡æ° | 147 | 4 | 0 |
| PDFä¸è½½æ¬¡æ° | 42 | 11 | 0 |
