Towards a Post-colonial Reflection on Shaman and Shamanism as Conceptual Tools in Biblical Studies

The almost complete absence of any reference to the terms shaman and shamanism in Biblical Studies has its roots in the historical prejudice in Western scholarship against them, and originated from colonial ethnocentrism and Christian notions of superiority. However, the shaman, defined as a practit...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Craffert, Pieter F. (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Brill [2019]
In: Religion & theology
Year: 2019, Volume: 26, Issue: 3/4, Pages: 173-215
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Postcolonialism / Theology / Exegesis / Shamanism / Cultural system
IxTheo Classification:AD Sociology of religion; religious policy
AZ New religious movements
BB Indigenous religions
HA Bible
ZC Politics in general
Further subjects:B shamanic studies
B Shamanism
B Post-colonial
B Shaman
B Altered states of consciousness
Online Access: Volltext (Resolving-System)
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Description
Summary:The almost complete absence of any reference to the terms shaman and shamanism in Biblical Studies has its roots in the historical prejudice in Western scholarship against them, and originated from colonial ethnocentrism and Christian notions of superiority. However, the shaman, defined as a practitioner who based on the alteration of ordinary consciousness serves a community with particular functions, represents a recognisable pattern in numerous cultural settings while the growth in the multidisciplinary study of shamanism in recent decades shows a growth in one of the oldest patterns of religious activities in human history. The study of shamanism does not only provide a body of comparative research but analytical models for explaining the most extraordinary and anomalous aspects found also in biblical texts, namely, prophesy, divination, healing and exorcism as well as heavenly journeys and spirit possession.
ISSN:1574-3012
Contains:Enthalten in: Religion & theology
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1163/15743012-02603004