The role of the guide on the practice of pilgrimage

Murray A Groom

Etd

The role of the guide on the practice of pilgrimage

Public Deposited

MLA citation style (9th ed.)

Murray A Groom. The Role of the Guide On the Practice of Pilgrimage. St. Andrew's College. rim.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/51a43dfc-54c0-49f9-ace7-2534f203441f.

APA citation style (7th ed.)

M. A. Groom. The role of the guide on the practice of pilgrimage. https://rim.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/51a43dfc-54c0-49f9-ace7-2534f203441f

Chicago citation style (CMOS 17, author-date)

Murray A Groom. The Role of the Guide On the Practice of Pilgrimage. St. Andrew's College. https://rim.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/51a43dfc-54c0-49f9-ace7-2534f203441f.

Note: These citations are programmatically generated and may be incomplete.

Creator

Murray A Groom

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In Copyright

Abstract

This project was an investigation into the role of the guide on pilgrimage. An incident experienced by the author provoked an examination of the tradition of pilgrimage, which identified a biblical tension between the pilgrimage of freedom in the exodus from Egypt and the cultic pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem. This tension was extrapolated into the life of Jesus of Nazareth, through the history of the western church and up to the present. The two archetypes, represented by tent and Temple, were related one to the other in the image of a mobius strip. A theory of the ritual process was described in three aspects: separation, liminality and aggregation. That paradigm was then applied to identify the ritual components of pilgrimage as departure, communitas and arrival. The work of the ritual elder was considered in the two roles of priest and shaman, which accrue to the ritual leader as personal manifestations of the archetypal tension between liberation and bondage. A parallel was thus developed between the biblical paradigms of freedom and cult, the thresholds of separation and aggregation in ritual, the modes of departure and arrival in pilgrimage and the roles of shaman and priest required of the ritual elder. The research method was a grounded theory study which examined the experience of eight pilgrimage directors through the lens of these paradigms. The results elaborated the process of pilgrimage in preparation, arrival and departure as well as practices adopted by guides in naming and bringing forth the spiritual yearning of pilgrims under their guidance. Trust and safety were juxtaposed with surprise and risk. The work of discernment and the place of ritual in pilgrimage were also explored. The conclusion applied the theory and the findings to the person of the author in the work of parish ministry as well as the vocation of spiritual guidance.

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