Turning towards home

Abstract

Utilizing accounts compiled by other researchers and information obtained through field research, I explore the ways in which ritual serves particular religions and the individuals involved. Beginning with a broad understanding of ritual presented by Catherine Bell, subsequent chapters explore rituals by practitioners of Cuban Santería, Brazilian Candomblé, Haitian Vodou, and Shi’a Islam. The initiation rituals of African Derived Religions are approached from an outsider perspective while the Ashura rituals of Shi’a Islam take a far more personal approach.