When I Was a Child

Children's Interpretations of First Communion

Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, Reference, Ritual & Practices, Christianity, Denominations, Catholic, Catholicism, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science
Cover of the book When I Was a Child by Susan B. Ridgely, The University of North Carolina Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Susan B. Ridgely ISBN: 9780807876763
Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press Publication: May 18, 2006
Imprint: The University of North Carolina Press Language: English
Author: Susan B. Ridgely
ISBN: 9780807876763
Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press
Publication: May 18, 2006
Imprint: The University of North Carolina Press
Language: English

First Communion is generally understood as a rite of passage in which seven- and eight-year-old Catholic children transform from baptized participants in the Church to members of the body of Christ, the universal Catholic Church. This official Church account, however, ignores what the rite actually may mean to its participants. In When I Was a Child, Susan Ridgely Bales demonstrates that the accepted understanding of a religious ritual can shift dramatically when one considers the often neglected perspective of child participants.

Bales followed Faith Formation classes and interviewed communicants, parents, and priests in an African American parish and in a parish containing both white and Latino congregations. By letting the children speak for themselves through their words, drawings, and actions, When I Was a Child stresses the importance of rehearsal, the centrality of sensory experiences, and the impact of expectations in the communicants' interpretations of the Eucharist. In the first sustained ethnographic study of how children interpret and help shape their own faith, Bales finds that children's perspectives give new contours to the traditional understanding of a common religious ritual. Ultimately, she argues that scholars of religion should consider age as distinct a factor as race, class, and gender in their analyses.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

First Communion is generally understood as a rite of passage in which seven- and eight-year-old Catholic children transform from baptized participants in the Church to members of the body of Christ, the universal Catholic Church. This official Church account, however, ignores what the rite actually may mean to its participants. In When I Was a Child, Susan Ridgely Bales demonstrates that the accepted understanding of a religious ritual can shift dramatically when one considers the often neglected perspective of child participants.

Bales followed Faith Formation classes and interviewed communicants, parents, and priests in an African American parish and in a parish containing both white and Latino congregations. By letting the children speak for themselves through their words, drawings, and actions, When I Was a Child stresses the importance of rehearsal, the centrality of sensory experiences, and the impact of expectations in the communicants' interpretations of the Eucharist. In the first sustained ethnographic study of how children interpret and help shape their own faith, Bales finds that children's perspectives give new contours to the traditional understanding of a common religious ritual. Ultimately, she argues that scholars of religion should consider age as distinct a factor as race, class, and gender in their analyses.

More books from The University of North Carolina Press

Cover of the book Sex and the Civil War by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book Hiking and Traveling the Blue Ridge Parkway, Revised and Expanded Edition by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book Gathering to Save a Nation by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book Radium Girls by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book Makers by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book Manifest Destiny's Underworld by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book Eisenhower and Latin America by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book Facing a Holocaust by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book The Battle of Belmont by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book Mysteries of Sex by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book All the Agents and Saints by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book Women's History and Ancient History by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book Modern Poetry and the Tradition by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book The Historian's Eye by Susan B. Ridgely
Cover of the book American Science in an Age of Anxiety by Susan B. Ridgely
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy