The psychoanalytic study of religious custom and belief: ritual fasting, self-mutilation, and the "deus otiosus."

Article Abstract:

The religious practices of fasting and self-mutilation, and the concept of "deus otiosus," a god that disappears after creation, can be explained with psychoanalytical concepts based on the infant-parent relationship. Fasting and mutilation are ways by which an infant may gain attention from a parent. The belief that a god is absent from the world may originate in cultures where the father abandons the family to seek other mates.

Psychological aspects, Research, Psychoanalysis, Fasting, Self-mutilation, Self mutilation, Psychology and religion, Psychoanalysis and religion

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La quinceanera: towards an ethnographic analysis of a life-cycle ritual

Article Abstract:

The Hispanic ceremony celebrating a teenage girl's coming of age, or la quinceanera, can be seen as a story that continues to survive by making small adjustments to the times. There are variations on this ceremony that can be seen as closely apart as the north and south banks of the Rio Grande River, reflecting the Anglo influence in Texas and the Spanish colonial dominance in northern Mexico.

Teenage girls, Hispanic Americans, Adulthood

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Signaling the creator: Indian football as ritual performance among the Yuchi and their neighbors

Article Abstract:

The social and religious significance of sport is examined, using the Native American football ritual as an example. Topics include sport as a means of gaining the benevolent attention of deities and ancestors, of attracting and befriending others, and as healthful exercise that enhances psychological wellbeing.

United States, Social aspects, Native Americans, Native North Americans, Football, Sports, Religious aspects, Manners and customs

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