The Ritual Process - class reading

    Liminality - a term that I had never heard before this class. A state of in between. A time of now, not yet. An existence in which a person is humble, obedient, uniform, and unimportant. For some reason, as I read the descriptions of liminality on pages 94-95, I could not help but compare it to two Christian ideas. First, the reality for Christians living between Christ’s two comings, and second, Jesus’ habits of silence and solitude before and during his ministry. I will talk briefly about what it means to be a Christian between Jesus’ comings first. We are quite literally living in a time of now, not yet. Christ has come, and he has defeated death. Eternal life and perfection is promised to those called according to his purpose. But… Sin has not been eradicated. The new heavens and the new Earth have not been created. Satan has not been fully and finally destroyed. Justice is not yet complete. In this way, we are living in an “in between” time. We are in a liminal period. Now I can talk about Jesus’ habits of silence and solitude. In Matthew 4, Jesus goes to the wilderness for forty days and forty nights before beginning his ministry. These forty days in the wilderness (a common allegory for liminality according to Victor Turner on page 95) mark a transition period in Jesus’ life between childhood and manhood. His resistance of temptation from Satan at this time is a rite of passage for him, and after completing it, he begins his ministry. Additionally, in Matthew 14:23, Mark 1:35, and Luke 4:42, Jesus is seen leaving all others behind to spend time with God the Father in prayer. These all take place before and/or after a large miracle. It seems that Jesus, as a man, places himself into times of liminality to continuously debrief and prepare for the difficulties of his ministry. 


February 17, 2022

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