Bromage, Erica Catherine Ann (2011)
M.Phil. thesis, University of Birmingham.
Emilé Durkheim’s Sacred and Profane dichotomy is often dismissed by those who claim that it cannot be found in a modern-day context. I demonstrate why this assumption is false, by exploring what happens at the boundary between sacred and profane during the activities of ‘Healing on the Streets’; a charismatic evangelical group performing Christian healing as mission. I employ the Ethnographic methods of participant observation and interviewing in order to understand how the group’s activities are shaped by their understanding of space and place, how they seek to manage the boundary in different places and to discover the deeper meaning of the sacred and profane within a Christian context. Ultimately I conclude that the dichotomy remains relevant to the study of religion since it finds expression in the activities of ‘Healing on the Streets’.
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