Suffering, Solidarity, and Ritual (w/ Susan Bigelow Reynolds)
Added 2023-03-20 15:03:16 +0000 UTCThis conversation is the first of two that Matt recorded to be released during Lent, the forty-day season when Christians prepare for Easter Sunday by fasting and giving of their time and treasure to those in need. This episodes features Catholic theologian and Emory University professor Dr. Susan Bigelow Reynolds discussing her new book, People Get Ready: Ritual, Solidarity, and Lived Ecclesiology in Catholic Roxbury. In the book, she draws on years of ethnographic research about St. Mary of the Angels, a small, urban parish near Boston's Egleston Square, to understand how that religious community "constructed rituals of solidarity as a practical foundation for building radical solidarity in the face of racial and economic injustice."
Sources:
Susan Bigelow Reynolds, People Get Ready: Ritual, Solidarity, and Lived Ecclesiology in Catholic Roxbury (2023)
Susan Bigelow Reynolds, "Ways of the Cross," Commonweal, March 14, 2023
Comments
Loved the episode. As someone flirting with returning to the church, these conversations make that possibility more real for me. I'm curious how you came to navigate the land mines in becoming catholic and returning to the church. My biggest hesitation on returning to the church is the very real probability that in trying to find a church home I will have to wade through all the negative, reactionary aspects. How do you carve out a space to practice your faith without exposing yourself to those negative qualities of reaction, bigotry, etc?
Alex Macmillan
2023-05-20 12:54:52 +0000 UTCJust to give an opposite point of view, this seemed a little too throwback and promoting of liberation theology which clearly failed. Religion is used to further the agenda of the right wing. Women have lost their rights to bodily autonomy thanks to Catholics and Evangelicals and maybe it's not a big deal to some men, go figure.
Char Truce
2023-03-29 20:26:08 +0000 UTCIn the Philippines they take the Via Crucis somewhat more seriously: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crucifixion_in_the_Philippines I was raised Catholic but am nonpracticing. My daughter has been singing in a Catholic choir recently and when I attend mass with her I want to love it. Then the pastor gives his homily and my eyes roll. I feel if it were just ritual and community without any talk about what “we believe” it would be much easier for me. My two cents. Thanks for this episode, look forward to the next one.
Mark K
2023-03-25 22:53:58 +0000 UTCChiming in as yet one more former Catholic who found this deeply moving.
Caroline Cleaves
2023-03-25 16:05:47 +0000 UTCAs a liberal Catholic teaching at a Jesuit uni, these conversations are greatly appreciated!
Vincent
2023-03-24 01:12:33 +0000 UTCOk but for real, can we get some religious Jewish content on the pod?
Avi Schwartz
2023-03-23 22:24:42 +0000 UTCI'm someone who has identified as a Christian since my teens and have bounced back and forth between Catholic Churches (how I was raised) and Protestant denominations. Even as I identify as Christian, I've been jaded and disillusioned by the abuse scandals of the Catholic Church and the toxicity of the white evangelical community. For me this episode was like water in the desert. Thanks so much for this episode.
Scot Sedley
2023-03-23 16:38:03 +0000 UTCIf this is what Matt is doing for lent, I can’t wait to see what Sam does for Rosh Hashannah!
Adam Schwartz
2023-03-21 23:41:29 +0000 UTCI feel almost Catholic again. What a lovely conversation.
ABCD1234
2023-03-21 05:34:51 +0000 UTCI was also so touched by this discussion! It made me think about the use of retelling the Book of Esther for Purim as a way for a synagogue to define contemporary heroes and enemies with humor and earnestness. And often used a call to action for the community through fundraising and/or other community action ♥️
Nora
2023-03-21 03:52:46 +0000 UTCA beautiful conversation that really touched this Protestant’s heart. I especially loved Susan’s line that “Ritual is an excuse to perform the deepest things we believe.” I have been looking for a way to describe my feelings around the tradition and rituals of Christianity for awhile and this perfectly captures it. Excellent stuff.
Quinn Brunk
2023-03-21 03:42:39 +0000 UTCMe tearing up and having to blow my nose was edited out, thankfully. Glad it resonated with you (Matt)
Know Your Enemy
2023-03-20 22:15:41 +0000 UTCThe way of the cross discussion moved me to tears, in part because it reminded me of my old church in Spokane. Don't tell Sam, but this podcast may just make me a Christian again.
Jacob Schmidt
2023-03-20 21:56:04 +0000 UTCGreat episode, saying this as someone who does not have this kind of tradition, and so does have to "grieve from scratch," sort of. See also Durkheim's argument that it is the ritual community of Catholicism, rather than doctrine, which explains the lower frequency of suicide among Catholics. Of course, the kind of solidarity will depend heavily on the broader context, but Prof. Bigelow Reynolds clearly has a deep understanding of that for the study parish.
Peter Hovde
2023-03-20 20:01:55 +0000 UTCWhat a great conversation! Thank you, Matt and Susan, for publicly writing and speaking as Catholics who give me hope for what the Church can be.
Tommy Sullivan
2023-03-20 16:41:18 +0000 UTCFunnily enough, I just discovered Commonweal yesterday. They have some very interesting perspectives from the religious left.
John Smith
2023-03-20 15:21:50 +0000 UTC
