Chapter Ten - The Word and the world

Summary

Some years ago, at a college dinner, I found myself sitting next to a distinguished scientist. On hearing that I was an anthropologist, he asked: ‘And what is your tribe?’ In reply, I explained that I did not study a tribe. I pointed out that my research was based on a group of Protestant, charismatic Christians located in Sweden; that I studied their rituals, language and material culture. My companion listened carefully before commenting, in a polite if conclusive manner: ‘So you do have a tribe.’

Of course, he had a point. Parts of this book have been based on the study of a specific social group – a Christian ministry located in Uppsala – with its own conventions of behaviour, cultural ideals and social boundaries. Affiliation to the Word of Life has, at first glance, the look of membership in a totalising and self-enclosed institution. Work, leisure and religious worship can all be carried out within the same set of buildings. God provides a ‘plan’ for each person's life, complete with ‘spiritual career’. On closer inspection, however, the lives of most adherents entail much more complex and precariously balanced negotiations between conflicting forms of identity and belonging. Involvement in the group is often regarded with scorn or suspicion by neighbours, colleagues and even family members. Many believers combine support of the Word of Life with attachments to more conventional congregations.