Les célébrants de rites de passage séculiers au Québec : à la recherche du sens perdu
This master thesis aims at making a contribution to ritual studies and the anthropology of secularism. The ethnographic research I present is based in Quebec and centers on new specialists of secular rites of passage, who are ritual makers that practice outside of organized religion. My central objective is to understand how these self-described celebrants creatively contribute to the practice of rites of passage, without relying purely on institutional support or regulation. The focus of this thesis is on birth and wedding ceremonies. I present how these celebrants use ritual innovation and creativity to offer meaningful rites in a social context marked by diversity with respect to different religious sensitivities. Indeed, secular celebrants direct their services toward people who are distanced from institutionalized religion and therefore must satisfy their values, beliefs and worldviews, in addition to elder members of the community that may still adhere to catholic traditions. The results of this qualitative research are based on a sample of ten secular celebrants operating in Quebec and displaying a variety of approaches to ritual making. The primary mode of data gathering is through semi-directed interviews and observational interactions with ritual practitioners. This study demonstrates that the social and spiritual dimensions of the wedding and birth celebrations drive the ritual celebrants, rather than purely economical motivations. Even though ritual makers may develop their practice independently from one another, the most innovative celebrants share traits and participate in a larger emerging ritual paradigm observed by Catherine Bell (2009). This paradigm is characterized by a vision where rites of passage are considered a universal means for the empowerment of the self and the community; rites of passage become a transformational as well as reflexive process for the core ritual participants; the social function of ritual is emphasized toward an ideal of authenticity whereas religious beliefs take a secondary importance; the ritual leader loses authority in favour of the participants; the experiential and participatory component of ritual are strongly invested.
Innovation Cultural Anthropology Secular society Rites of passage Secular ritual Birth ritual Wedding Celebrants Ritual makers Creativity