Anna Fedele
Biographic Data
| ID | 456587 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Anna Fedele |
| GIVEN NAMES | Anna |
| FAMILY NAME | Fedele |
| SIGNATURE | FEDELE A |
| AFFILIATIONS | Centro em Rede de Investigação em Antropologia, ISCTE – Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (CRIA-IUL), Portugal |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-9517-1587 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 18 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 48 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 15 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 3 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2006 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Exploring the entanglements of contemporary spirituality, Catholicism, and environmentalism in South Tyrol, Italy
This paper explores the entanglements of religion, spirituality, and environmental sustainability in the alpine province of South Tyrol (Italy), where the presence of Catholicism is strong. Referring to ethnographic data gathered through informal and formal interviews with Catholics, spiritual practitioners, and environmental activists, I will engage in ongoing debates about the greening of religion, the ecologization of spirituality, and the spi…
“God wants spiritual fruits not religious nuts”
Based on long-term fieldwork at the Marian shrine of Fátima in Portugal, this chapter explores the ways in which Catholic pilgrims describe themselves as spiritual but not religious (SBNR). It explores how the pilgrims’ spirituality relates to religion but also to secularism. Drawing on Nancy Ammerman’s analysis of the spiritual but not religious in the United States (2013) the chapter analyses what pilgrims mean when they say that they are spiri…
Secular Societies, Spiritual Selves
Secular Societies, Spiritual Selves? is the first volume to address the gendered intersections of religion, spirituality and the secular through an ethnographic approach. The book examines how 'spirituality' has emerged as a relatively 'silent' category with which people often signal that they are looking for a way to navigate between the categories of the religious and the secular, and considers how this is related to gendered ways of being and …
La spiritualité comme terrain d’entente entre la religion et le sécularisme
This article is based on ethnographic research about the intersections of contemporary forms of spirituality and Catholicism in Italy, Spain, France and Portugal and analyses what social actors mean when they say that they are ‘spiritual but not religious’ (SBNR). We need to go beyond this self-description and try to understand why spirituality is increasingly being constructed in opposition to religion and what our informants mean, when they say…
When homebirth “goes wrong”
The article is based on research about holistic mothering in contemporary Portugal. Holistic mothering is an umbrella term, used here to describe different mothering choices based on the assumption that pregnancy, birthing and early mothering are important spiritual experiences for the mother and the child, but also for the father. In Portugal, many holistic mothers choose homebirth and avoid what they perceive as excessive medicalization during …
Birthing matters in Portugal
In this introduction to the collection “Birthing matters in Portugal,” the contributions of anthropology to the understanding of childbirth as social practice are outlined. Portugal is a country with one of the highest rates of medical intervention in childbirth in Europe, and widespread and diverse opposition to current medicalised approaches to birthing care in Portugal are becoming increasingly visible, yet the “alternative” practice of homebi…
Holistic Mothers’ or ‘Bad Mothers’? Challenging Biomedical Models of the Body in Portugal
This paper is based on early fieldwork findings on ‘holistic mothering’ in contemporary Portugal. I use holistic mothering as an umbrella term to cover different mothering choices, which are rooted in the assumption that pregnancy, childbirth and early childhood are important spiritual occasions for both mother and child. Considering that little social scientific literature exists about the religious dimension of alternative mothering choices, I …
Militant lactivism? Attachment parenting and intensive motherhood in the UK and France. Fertility, Reproduction and Sexuality Series by Faircloth, Charlotte
Incertitudes et religions vernaculaires/Uncertainty in vernacular religions
Créativité et incertitude dans les nouveaux rituels contemporains
This paper is based on fieldwork among Portuguese, Italians, Catalans and Spaniards influenced by the transnational Goddess spirituality movement. Through an analysis of ritual narratives the author analyses the role of doubt and uncertainty in contemporary rituals created within Goddess spirituality. She will show that contemporary crafted rituals offer a privileged window on the uncertainty intrinsic in ritual because participants feel less con…
Energy and transformation in alternative pilgrimages to Catholic shrines
In recent years an increasing number of travelers have visited sites considered ‘power places’, with the intention of tapping into their energy and the experiential transformation and healing associated with such sites. This article is based on fieldwork among pilgrims influenced by the international Goddess movement, visiting Catholic shrines in Southern Europe; the analysis reflects an ethnographic perspective on how these pilgrims conceptualiz…
Gender and Power in Contemporary Spirituality
peer reviewed
Debate
2012: The Environmental Prophecy That Could Not Fail - Anne Fedele; The Revelation of Climate Change - Peter Rudiak-Gould; Facing the Apocalypse: Environmental Crisis and Religion - Terry Leahy; Challenging the Skeptics: False Prophecy and Climate Activism Stefan Skrimshire
Looking for Mary Magdalene
Anne Fedele provides a detailed ethnography of alternative pilgrimages to Catholic shrines in contemporary France that are dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalene or house black Madonna statues. Based on more than three years of fieldwork it describes the way in which pilgrims with a Christian background from Italy, Spain, Britain and the United States interpret Catholic figures, symbols and sites according to spiritual theories and practices derived f…
Encounters of body and soul in contemporary religious practices
I want to feel the Camino in my legsA: trajectories of walking on the Camino de Santiago Keith Egan Chapter 2. Holding the saint in one's arms. Miracles and exchange in Apiao, southern Chile Giovanna Bacchiddu Chapter 3. Embodying devotion, embodying passion. The Italian tradition of 'La Festa dei Gigli' in Nola Katia Ballacchino PART II: CORPOREALITY, BELIEF AND HUMAN MOBILITY Chapter 4. The Body and the World: Missionary Performances and the Ex…
Book and Film Reviews
BENTLEY, Alex (ed.), The Edge of Reason? Science and Religion in Modern Society, 222 pp., foreword. London: Continuum, 2008. Paperback, £13.99. ISBN: 9781847062185. BERGER, Peter, Grace DAVIE, and Effi e FOKAS, Religious America, Secular Europe? A Theme and Variations, 176 pp., bibliography, index. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2008. Paperback, £16.99. ISBN: 978075466011. LEVEY, Geoffrey Brahm and Tariq MODOOD (eds.), Secularism, Religion and Multicultural…
From Christian religion to feminist spirituality
In recent years, the pilgrimage shrine of La Sainte-Baume has attracted an increasing number of non-Catholic pilgrims influenced by the ‘New Age’ and the Neopagan movement. These pilgrims consider Mary Magdalene as a sort of female counterpart of Jesus and the mountain of La Sainte-Baume, where according to a Christian legend she spent the last part of her life, as a ‘power place’ charged with ‘healing energy’. Based on 3 years of field work amon…
Learning to honour their body and blood
Este artículo describe las creencias y algunas prácticas rituales de un grupo de peregrinas que visitan lugares en Francia y Cataluña que asocian con la figura de María Magdalena. Se presta atención especial al proceso de aprendizaje de las formas de relacionar sus propios cuerpos (y en particular el ciclo menstrual) con la peregrinación. Tomando elementos del neopaganismo, esas mujeres reinterpretan el significado de los lugares y símbolos crist…
Looking for Mary Magdalene
Anne Fedele provides a detailed ethnography of alternative pilgrimages to Catholic shrines in contemporary France that are dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalene or house black Madonna statues. Based on more than three years of fieldwork it describes the way in which pilgrims with a Christian background from Italy, Spain, Britain and the United States interpret Catholic figures, symbols and sites according to spiritual theories and practices derived f…
Energy and transformation in alternative pilgrimages to Catholic shrines
In recent years an increasing number of travelers have visited sites considered ‘power places’, with the intention of tapping into their energy and the experiential transformation and healing associated with such sites. This article is based on fieldwork among pilgrims influenced by the international Goddess movement, visiting Catholic shrines in Southern Europe; the analysis reflects an ethnographic perspective on how these pilgrims conceptualiz…
Holistic Mothers’ or ‘Bad Mothers’? Challenging Biomedical Models of the Body in Portugal
This paper is based on early fieldwork findings on ‘holistic mothering’ in contemporary Portugal. I use holistic mothering as an umbrella term to cover different mothering choices, which are rooted in the assumption that pregnancy, childbirth and early childhood are important spiritual occasions for both mother and child. Considering that little social scientific literature exists about the religious dimension of alternative mothering choices, I …
From Christian religion to feminist spirituality
In recent years, the pilgrimage shrine of La Sainte-Baume has attracted an increasing number of non-Catholic pilgrims influenced by the ‘New Age’ and the Neopagan movement. These pilgrims consider Mary Magdalene as a sort of female counterpart of Jesus and the mountain of La Sainte-Baume, where according to a Christian legend she spent the last part of her life, as a ‘power place’ charged with ‘healing energy’. Based on 3 years of field work amon…
Debate
2012: The Environmental Prophecy That Could Not Fail - Anne Fedele; The Revelation of Climate Change - Peter Rudiak-Gould; Facing the Apocalypse: Environmental Crisis and Religion - Terry Leahy; Challenging the Skeptics: False Prophecy and Climate Activism Stefan Skrimshire
Learning to honour their body and blood
Este artículo describe las creencias y algunas prácticas rituales de un grupo de peregrinas que visitan lugares en Francia y Cataluña que asocian con la figura de María Magdalena. Se presta atención especial al proceso de aprendizaje de las formas de relacionar sus propios cuerpos (y en particular el ciclo menstrual) con la peregrinación. Tomando elementos del neopaganismo, esas mujeres reinterpretan el significado de los lugares y símbolos crist…
From Christian religion to feminist spirituality
In recent years, the pilgrimage shrine of La Sainte-Baume has attracted an increasing number of non-Catholic pilgrims influenced by the ‘New Age’ and the Neopagan movement. These pilgrims consider Mary Magdalene as a sort of female counterpart of Jesus and the mountain of La Sainte-Baume, where according to a Christian legend she spent the last part of her life, as a ‘power place’ charged with ‘healing energy’. Based on 3 years of field work amon…
Book and Film Reviews
BENTLEY, Alex (ed.), The Edge of Reason? Science and Religion in Modern Society, 222 pp., foreword. London: Continuum, 2008. Paperback, £13.99. ISBN: 9781847062185. BERGER, Peter, Grace DAVIE, and Effi e FOKAS, Religious America, Secular Europe? A Theme and Variations, 176 pp., bibliography, index. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2008. Paperback, £16.99. ISBN: 978075466011. LEVEY, Geoffrey Brahm and Tariq MODOOD (eds.), Secularism, Religion and Multicultural…
Encounters of body and soul in contemporary religious practices
I want to feel the Camino in my legsA: trajectories of walking on the Camino de Santiago Keith Egan Chapter 2. Holding the saint in one's arms. Miracles and exchange in Apiao, southern Chile Giovanna Bacchiddu Chapter 3. Embodying devotion, embodying passion. The Italian tradition of 'La Festa dei Gigli' in Nola Katia Ballacchino PART II: CORPOREALITY, BELIEF AND HUMAN MOBILITY Chapter 4. The Body and the World: Missionary Performances and the Ex…
Looking for Mary Magdalene
Anne Fedele provides a detailed ethnography of alternative pilgrimages to Catholic shrines in contemporary France that are dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalene or house black Madonna statues. Based on more than three years of fieldwork it describes the way in which pilgrims with a Christian background from Italy, Spain, Britain and the United States interpret Catholic figures, symbols and sites according to spiritual theories and practices derived f…
Gender and Power in Contemporary Spirituality
peer reviewed
Debate
2012: The Environmental Prophecy That Could Not Fail - Anne Fedele; The Revelation of Climate Change - Peter Rudiak-Gould; Facing the Apocalypse: Environmental Crisis and Religion - Terry Leahy; Challenging the Skeptics: False Prophecy and Climate Activism Stefan Skrimshire
Militant lactivism? Attachment parenting and intensive motherhood in the UK and France. Fertility, Reproduction and Sexuality Series by Faircloth, Charlotte
Incertitudes et religions vernaculaires/Uncertainty in vernacular religions
Créativité et incertitude dans les nouveaux rituels contemporains
This paper is based on fieldwork among Portuguese, Italians, Catalans and Spaniards influenced by the transnational Goddess spirituality movement. Through an analysis of ritual narratives the author analyses the role of doubt and uncertainty in contemporary rituals created within Goddess spirituality. She will show that contemporary crafted rituals offer a privileged window on the uncertainty intrinsic in ritual because participants feel less con…
Energy and transformation in alternative pilgrimages to Catholic shrines
In recent years an increasing number of travelers have visited sites considered ‘power places’, with the intention of tapping into their energy and the experiential transformation and healing associated with such sites. This article is based on fieldwork among pilgrims influenced by the international Goddess movement, visiting Catholic shrines in Southern Europe; the analysis reflects an ethnographic perspective on how these pilgrims conceptualiz…
Holistic Mothers’ or ‘Bad Mothers’? Challenging Biomedical Models of the Body in Portugal
This paper is based on early fieldwork findings on ‘holistic mothering’ in contemporary Portugal. I use holistic mothering as an umbrella term to cover different mothering choices, which are rooted in the assumption that pregnancy, childbirth and early childhood are important spiritual occasions for both mother and child. Considering that little social scientific literature exists about the religious dimension of alternative mothering choices, I …
When homebirth “goes wrong”
The article is based on research about holistic mothering in contemporary Portugal. Holistic mothering is an umbrella term, used here to describe different mothering choices based on the assumption that pregnancy, birthing and early mothering are important spiritual experiences for the mother and the child, but also for the father. In Portugal, many holistic mothers choose homebirth and avoid what they perceive as excessive medicalization during …
Birthing matters in Portugal
In this introduction to the collection “Birthing matters in Portugal,” the contributions of anthropology to the understanding of childbirth as social practice are outlined. Portugal is a country with one of the highest rates of medical intervention in childbirth in Europe, and widespread and diverse opposition to current medicalised approaches to birthing care in Portugal are becoming increasingly visible, yet the “alternative” practice of homebi…
“God wants spiritual fruits not religious nuts”
Based on long-term fieldwork at the Marian shrine of Fátima in Portugal, this chapter explores the ways in which Catholic pilgrims describe themselves as spiritual but not religious (SBNR). It explores how the pilgrims’ spirituality relates to religion but also to secularism. Drawing on Nancy Ammerman’s analysis of the spiritual but not religious in the United States (2013) the chapter analyses what pilgrims mean when they say that they are spiri…
Secular Societies, Spiritual Selves
Secular Societies, Spiritual Selves? is the first volume to address the gendered intersections of religion, spirituality and the secular through an ethnographic approach. The book examines how 'spirituality' has emerged as a relatively 'silent' category with which people often signal that they are looking for a way to navigate between the categories of the religious and the secular, and considers how this is related to gendered ways of being and …
La spiritualité comme terrain d’entente entre la religion et le sécularisme
This article is based on ethnographic research about the intersections of contemporary forms of spirituality and Catholicism in Italy, Spain, France and Portugal and analyses what social actors mean when they say that they are ‘spiritual but not religious’ (SBNR). We need to go beyond this self-description and try to understand why spirituality is increasingly being constructed in opposition to religion and what our informants mean, when they say…
Exploring the entanglements of contemporary spirituality, Catholicism, and environmentalism in South Tyrol, Italy
This paper explores the entanglements of religion, spirituality, and environmental sustainability in the alpine province of South Tyrol (Italy), where the presence of Catholicism is strong. Referring to ethnographic data gathered through informal and formal interviews with Catholics, spiritual practitioners, and environmental activists, I will engage in ongoing debates about the greening of religion, the ecologization of spirituality, and the spi…
Sociology (14 works) · Philosophy (10 works) · Anthropology (7 works) · History (7 works) · Religion and Society Interactions (7 works) · Spirituality (7 works) · Art (6 works) · Religious Tourism and Spaces (6 works) · Law (5 works) · Political science (5 works)