Culture and Devotion at the Service of Mission: A Study of Catholic Women’s Domestic Religious Practices in Macau

Home altars have long been a part of many religious traditions. In each culture, the home altar offers an important sanctuary, providing a sacred space for prayers and meditation, often accompanied by distinct rituals. This private, personal, yet communal space is non-hierarchical, relational, and v...

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Main Author: Chan, Marinda Keng-Fan
Format: Theses
Language:English
Published: 2021
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/culture-devotion-at-service-mission-study/docview/2851080935/se-2?accountid=143153
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author Chan, Marinda Keng-Fan
author_autocomplete Chan, Marinda Keng-Fan
author_browse Chan, Marinda Keng-Fan
author_facet Chan, Marinda Keng-Fan
Chan, Marinda Keng-Fan
author_sort Chan, Marinda Keng-Fan
building ProQuest
description Home altars have long been a part of many religious traditions. In each culture, the home altar offers an important sanctuary, providing a sacred space for prayers and meditation, often accompanied by distinct rituals. This private, personal, yet communal space is non-hierarchical, relational, and very often taken care of by women. This study explores how Catholic women perceive and practice their faith within their households in Macau. I argue that domestic religious practices allow women to reconstruct ethnic and religious identities, creating sacred spaces that help them navigate social change while at the same time serving as a powerful means of evangelizing. This dissertation explores the relationship among women, mission, and spirituality examined through domestic devotional practices. By interviewing twenty-one women from three major Catholic ethnic groups in Macau -- Chinese, Filipino and Macanese -- we learn how their altar-making and veneration creates hope and trust and see how the altar acts as a spiritual oasis personally and communally. Women’s roles are not only confined to their homes; they can contribute meaningfully both to society and the church through their participation in the most diverse professional disciplines and ecclesial leadership roles. Yet the home remains a source of creative power, providing the inspiration and strength for women to bring forth their mission to the wider community. Through the narratives of our interviewees from this study, we see how home altar veneration and their related devotional practices act as vehicles for women’s missioning. Women’s special sensitivity and empathy for others promote and nourish the growth and development of the whole human person -- for themselves, for their families, and for those who work with them. Their participatory and personally-oriented approach is the unique gift that women bring to the Church in Asia.
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spelling Culture and Devotion at the Service of Mission: A Study of Catholic Women’s Domestic Religious Practices in Macau
Home altars have long been a part of many religious traditions. In each culture, the home altar offers an important sanctuary, providing a sacred space for prayers and meditation, often accompanied by distinct rituals. This private, personal, yet communal space is non-hierarchical, relational, and very often taken care of by women. This study explores how Catholic women perceive and practice their faith within their households in Macau. I argue that domestic religious practices allow women to reconstruct ethnic and religious identities, creating sacred spaces that help them navigate social change while at the same time serving as a powerful means of evangelizing. This dissertation explores the relationship among women, mission, and spirituality examined through domestic devotional practices. By interviewing twenty-one women from three major Catholic ethnic groups in Macau -- Chinese, Filipino and Macanese -- we learn how their altar-making and veneration creates hope and trust and see how the altar acts as a spiritual oasis personally and communally. Women’s roles are not only confined to their homes; they can contribute meaningfully both to society and the church through their participation in the most diverse professional disciplines and ecclesial leadership roles. Yet the home remains a source of creative power, providing the inspiration and strength for women to bring forth their mission to the wider community. Through the narratives of our interviewees from this study, we see how home altar veneration and their related devotional practices act as vehicles for women’s missioning. Women’s special sensitivity and empathy for others promote and nourish the growth and development of the whole human person -- for themselves, for their families, and for those who work with them. Their participatory and personally-oriented approach is the unique gift that women bring to the Church in Asia.
Berkeley, California
Theses
ProQuest
2021
Chan, Marinda Keng-Fan
spellingShingle Culture and Devotion at the Service of Mission: A Study of Catholic Women’s Domestic Religious Practices in Macau
Chan, Marinda Keng-Fan
ProQuest
title Culture and Devotion at the Service of Mission: A Study of Catholic Women’s Domestic Religious Practices in Macau
title_autocomplete Culture and Devotion at the Service of Mission: A Study of Catholic Women’s Domestic Religious Practices in Macau
title_full Culture and Devotion at the Service of Mission: A Study of Catholic Women’s Domestic Religious Practices in Macau
title_fullStr Culture and Devotion at the Service of Mission: A Study of Catholic Women’s Domestic Religious Practices in Macau
title_full_unstemmed Culture and Devotion at the Service of Mission: A Study of Catholic Women’s Domestic Religious Practices in Macau
title_short Culture and Devotion at the Service of Mission: A Study of Catholic Women’s Domestic Religious Practices in Macau
title_sort culture and devotion at the service of mission: a study of catholic women’s domestic religious practices in macau
topic ProQuest
topic_autocomplete ProQuest
topic_facet ProQuest
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