Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Mapping Pilgrims’ Experience Of Walking The Saint James Way Through The Lens Of Self-Regulation, Clara Vieira, Jennifer Cunha, Ana Rita Nunes, Luísa Mota Ribeiro, Pedro Rosário

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

The Way of St. James is a very well-known and ancient pilgrimage, with various routes leading pilgrims to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Spain, where the remains of Saint James are buried. Over the last few years, the experience of the pilgrimage and the growing number of pilgrims walking the Saint James Way have been attracting researchers’ attention. However, studies attempting to understand the pilgrims’ experience using a self-regulation lens are limited. Self-regulation may be defined as efforts made to manage individuals’ thoughts, emotions, and behaviours in the pursuit of long-term goals. Therefore, rooted in the self-regulation framework, …

Pilgrimage Sites As Magnets Of Interfaith Tolerance: The Case Of Kemaliq Lingsar In Indonesia, Suhadah Suhadah, Deddy Mulyana, Pawit M. Yusup, Nuryah A. Sjafirah

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

This study aims to reveal the practices of tolerance between the adherents of Islam and Hinduism when they were engaged in worship at Kemaliq Lingsar, a sacred religious site which is used as a pilgrimage site where both parties pray and perform religious tourism and rituals. Drawing on the interpretive approach, this study found the wisdom of the two religious communities in Lingsar Village, West Lombok Regency, Indonesia. This area exhibits unique strategies for sharing the same pilgrimage site: two communities performing their respective rituals in turn and in unison in the same space with complete understanding. This tolerance practiced …

Cultural Tourism, Religion And Religious Heritage In Castile And León, Spain, Miguel González-González, Óscar Fernández-Álvarez

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Tourism is a driving force of the economy for many countries around the world. The large number of architectural and intangible World Heritage Sites have consolidated those countries in their strong positions as cultural tourism destinations. Within cultural tourism, religious tourism is particularly prominent. This work focuses on Spain and specifically on some of its regions which lack beaches but possess a wealth of religious cultural heritage, such as Castile and León, which have viewed such heritage as an asset to attract a different kind of tourist. The objectives of this study are to highlight the value of religious heritage …

Hospitality On The Camino De Santiago: Clues From Interviews With Hospitaleros During The Pandemic, Berenika Seryczynska, Piotr Roszak, Tomasz Duda

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

The practice of making the pilgrimage along the Camino de Santiago (the Way of Saint James), one of the three most important medieval pilgrimage routes in Europe, has undergone various transformations related to religious, cultural and political considerations. In 2019, the Pilgrim’s Reception Office in Santiago de Compostela recorded 327,378 pilgrims from all over the world. The aim of this research was to understand the impact of the pandemic on hospitaleros – the individuals who host pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago – and perform a comparative analysis against the hotel industry. In particular, it was noted that in a …

Bus Line 163: A Public Pilgrim Bus To Rachel’S Tomb In Jerusalem, Mustafa Diktaş

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Buses are networks for both physical and social mobility. They permit people to become part of temporary communities of individuals whose goal is to travel along linear routes, which connect multiple stops and reach certain destinations. Through an ethnographic case study of Bus No. 163, which is designated for Jewish pilgrims traveling to Rachel’s tomb in Jerusalem, this paper focuses on the interactions between travelers that took place on this bus during December 2019 and February 2020. The interactions of people on Bus No 163 helps us better understand this liminal phase of pilgrimage. The findings of the research, as …

Museums And Shrines: Reflecting On Relationships And Challenges, Lorenzo Bagnoli, Rita Capurro

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

The aim of this paper is to introduce a method for analysing a specific kind of contemporary tourism positioned between two different traditional customs: visiting museums and going to pilgrimage sites. The case studies provided are focused on Italian shrine museums where it is difficult to ascertain whether visitors are cultural tourists or pilgrims or a combination of both. Regardless, the tourist flows and networks created by Italian shrine museums can provide promising elements for local development. Four case studies that are representative of different regions in Northern Italy and have specific features in common have been chosen: shrines dedicated …

Going Beyond A Pilgrimage: The Feast Day Of Saint George In Lod-Israel, Mustafa Diktaş

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Religion and spirituality are common motivations for travel, with many major tourist destinations having developed largely because of their connections to sacred people, places and events. Pilgrimages are one of the most important forms domestic tourism in Israel and the Palestinian Territories. On November 16 of every year, the church of St. George in Lod is filled with hundreds of worshippers who arrive for the Feast of St. George / Khidr, the day commemorating the translation of his relics to the church at the heart of Lod. Pilgrims travel from Nazareth and Bethlehem and as far away as Jordan to …

The Covid-19 Pandemic And Religious Travel: Present And Future Trends, Daniel H. Olsen, Dallen Timothy

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 has had dramatic effects on both the health and economic stability of countries around the world. While several scholars and media commentators have suggested that the pandemic would be a good time to reset an unsustainable tourism system, left out of these discussions has been the impacts on religion and religious travel. The purpose of this paper is to review the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on religion and religious travel, including the tensions that have arisen between religious communities, governments and health officials. The paper then discusses potential futures regarding religious travel in a …

Padre Pio, Pandemic Saint: The Effects Of The Spanish Flu And Covid-19 On Pilgrimage And Devotion To The World’S Most Popular Saint, Michael A. Di Giovine

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

In the Catholic world, pilgrimages and other devotional rituals are often undertaken to foster healing and well-being. Thus, shrines dedicated to saints are particularly relevant in times of pandemic. Pilgrimage to the shrines associated with 20th century Italian stigmatic, St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, known as one of the Catholic world’s most popular saints, is particularly informed by this notion, as Pio is understood as a healing saint thanks to the spiritual and corporal works of mercy that marked his ministry during his lifetime, as well as belief in the miraculous nature of his relics. Pio’s hometown of Pietrelcina and …

Mount Banahaw’S Enigma Of Power: A Personal Reflection On Signs And Symbols At The Santa Lucia Complex, Katherine B. Arceta

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

In the Philippines, Mount Banahaw in Quezon province is a pilgrimage site for locals and believers alike. Considered a holy mountain or even a ‘new’ Jerusalem in a mystical sense, people flock to its forested sacred sites or puwestos. The objectives of this study are (1) to identify signs and symbols within the sacred space of Mount Banahaw; (2) to explain how signs and symbols within the mountain are able to convey various religious meanings to the worshippers and; (3) to understand how pilgrims derive and interpret the meanings associated with these signs and symbols. The author retraces a pilgrim’s …

“This Trip Is Very Meaningful To Me, So I Want To Remember It Forever”: Pilgrim Tattoos In Santiago De Compostela, Christian Kurrat, Patrick Heiser

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Pilgrim tattoos have come into fashion: in Santiago de Compostela, the destination of all Ways of St. James, tattoo studios are springing up and in social networks, corresponding photographs can be found more and more often. In this paper we present the results of a survey of pilgrims who have been tattooed after their pilgrimage (N=256). It turns out that certain symbols and body parts are particularly popular among pilgrim tattoos. The tattooing practice of pilgrims also depends strongly on age, nationality and previous tattoos. The central features of the pilgrimage itself, on the other hand, have only a weak …

The Imprint Of The Pilgrimage An Ethnography Of A Tattoo Studio In Jerusalem, Mustafa Diktaş

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Several major religions exhibit complex attitudes towards self-mutilation and adornment. Judaism, Islam, and Christianity forbid marking the body and associate it with sin. Still, many people apparently have continued to feel a need for confirmation of their religion and their religious journeys by marking their bodies. This ethnographic study focuses on the recent situation in pilgrimage tattooing, utilising the local and daily processes of a tattoo shop called Razzouk Tattoo located in the Christian quarter of the old city of Jerusalem. The aim of this paper is not only to give a panoptic view of the tattoo studio but also …

(Re)Inscribing Meaning: Embodied Religious-Spiritual Practices At Croagh Patrick And Our Lady’S Island, Ireland, Richard Scriven, Eoin O'Mahony

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Responding to calls for critical interrogations of pilgrimages, our paper examines how different religious meanings are (re)inscribed in spaces through the performance of annual events in a post-secular context. This focus reveals how pilgrims’ embodied practices are fundamental to continuing definitions of these locations as sacred places. Using accounts of the Croagh Patrick and Our Lady’s Island pilgrimages in Ireland, we trace the movement of people in these spaces focusing on how meanings are forged, refracted, and challenged through the performances. These mass embodiments assert traditional understandings of Christian worship and looser spiritual interpretations, while simultaneously involving secular concerns. The …

A Naturalistic Inquiry Of Pilgrims’ Experience At A Religious Heritage Site: The Case Of A Shaktipitha In India, Harveen Bhandari, Amit Mittal

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Religion in the Indian context is an inseparable element that dominates Indian lives, culture and psyche wherein significant number of people undertake pilgrimages every year. Pilgrims travel to different religious sites spread throughout the country and an intimate bonding exists between people and religious sites that invariably constitute their heritage. The worship of deities is a significant and popular ancient custom in the history of Indian culture. Pilgrims to any religious heritage site participate in different activities and their involvement in these activities builds their spiritual experience. So, the purpose of this research was to investigate the pilgrims experience at …

Spatial Changes Of Pilgrimage Centers In Pilgrimage Studies – Review And Contribution To Future Research, Justyna Liro, Izabela Sołjan, Elżbieta Bilska-Wodecka

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Pilgrimages and pilgrimage centres are a subject of research often undertaken from the perspective of geographic sciences. Geographical research on pilgrimage movement and sanctuaries is important due to its focus on the spatial aspect. This article analyses the current state of research on pilgrimage centres. The main trends of the current studies include: the phenomenon of pilgrimage in terms of religion, society, culture and tourism; as well as its impact, including on the development of the settlement and; studies of pilgrimage centres, in particular their impact on space in various spatial and temporal scales, as well as; the conclusions drawn …

Women's Words About Pilgrims To Santiago De Compostela, 1890 - 1920, Maryjane Dunn

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Many scholarly articles claim that the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela was moribund at the turn of the last century based on statistical surveys of the Cathedral and Hospital Real registers, but these numbers only represent a fraction of the persons who devoutly visited Santiago Cathedral. In reality, the late nineteenth and early twentieth century pilgrimage as described by five turn-of-the-nineteenth-century female authors.- Emilia Pardo Bazán, Katherine Lee Bates, Georgiana Goddard King, Annette Meakin, and Catherine Gasquoine Hartley - is itself in a liminal state, between the traditional pilgrims to Santiago de Compostela and the newer tourist-pilgrim. The writings by …

The Economic Impact Of Pilgrimage: An Economic Impact Analysis Of Pilgrimage Expenditures In Galicia, Elisabeth J.E Graave, Jeroen Klijs, Wim Heijman

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

In this article, we calculate the economic impact of pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in the NUTS 2 region Galicia (Spain) in 2010. This economic impact is relevant to policymakers and other stakeholders dealing with religious tourism in Galicia. The analysis is based on the Input-Output model. Location Quotient formulas are used to derive the regional Input-Output table from the national Input-Output table of Spain. Both the Simple Location Quotient formula and Flegg’s Location Quotient formula are applied. Furthermore, a sensitivity analysis is carried out. We found that pilgrimage expenditures in 2010 created between €59.750 million and €99.575 million in …

Pilgrimage And Its Dual Functions In Iranian Shiitsm, Zahra Khoshk Jan

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Salvation is the main concern not only for theistic religions but also for atheistic ones, therefore, all of them try to offer doctrines for achieving both salvation and redemption in this world or in another world. Followers of the Twelver Shiism strongly believe in salvation through the Imam. Imamat and Imam, do not just refer to a special person, more than that, they involve a spiritual / worldly doctrine toward a complete and multilateral salvation, and also socio-political leadership. One of the important parts of this doctrine that involves spiritual / worldly salvation is intercession via religious rituals like praying, …

Religious Tourism And Italian Sacred Mounts: Experiences Of Networking And Co-Operation At A Unesco Site, Raffaella Afferni, Carla Ferrario

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

A Sacred Mount is a historical holy site and former pilgrimage attraction. It is a devotional complex located on a mountain, and composed of a series of chapels and shrines in which scenes from the life of Christ, the Virgin Mary or the saints are represented through paintings and sculptures. In 2003 the Sacred Mounts of Piedmont and Lombardy were included in the UNESCO World Heritage List being considered as representative of something that can be understood, in part, through visitor interactions with the areas in which they are located (see Di Giovine, 2009:208).

The visitors to Sacred Mounts are: …

Pilgrimage, Spiritual Tourism And The Shaping Of Transnational ‘Imagined Communities’: The Case Of The Tidjani Ziyara To Fez, Johara Berriane

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

This paper aims at analysing the role of the transnational Tidjani pilgrimage to Fez in shaping a sense of belonging among West African adepts and their identification with Morocco. It is based on the assumption that the Tidjani pilgrimage has contributed to the shaping of a religious ‘imagined community’ (Anderson, 1996) encompassing West Africa and Morocco and to the reinforcement of the position of Fez as its ‘socio-cultural centre’ (Cohen, 1992). This paper explores the different historical and political factors that contributed to the evolution and maintaining of the Tidjani pilgrimage practice and to giving sense to it, and analyses …

A Cross-Cultural Comparison Of Weekend–Trips In Religious Tourism: Insights From Two Cultures, Two Countries (India And Italy), Kiran A. Shinde, Katia Rizello

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

This paper explains peculiarities, significance, and universality of weekend-trips as significant form of religious tourism using a comparative analysis of this phenomenon in two pilgrimage sites from two different cultures (and countries), namely, Vrindavan in India and the Shrine of Santimissi Medici in Italy. The findings derived from a case-study approach and visitors’ survey method confirm that religious tourism falls under the more general category of leisure and that visitors who flock to these places on weekends do not coincide either with general models proposed in the extant literature, nor can they be assimilated to the conventional categories of pilgrims …

The Museumification Of Rumi’S Tomb: Deconstructing Sacred Space At The Mevlana Museum, Rose Aslan

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Tourists and pilgrims from across Turkey and around the world flock to the tomb of Jalal al-Din Rumi (d. 1273), one of the greatest poets and Sufi masters in Islam. Since 1925, the Turkish government has relentlessly struggled to control Islamic influences in society and to channel people’s devotion to the memory of Kemal Ataturk (d. 1938) and his secular ideology. This article argues that by restructuring the layout and presentation of the tomb complex of Rumi, and putting the sacred space through the process of museumification, the Turkish state has attempted to regulate the place in order to control …

The Pilgrimage To The San Nicola Shrine In Bari And Its Impact, Katia Rizzello, Anna Trono

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Pilgrimage is defined as a journey to the Holy but more specifically as an inner journey to one’s deepest religious feelings. This type of journey has assumed new forms and types that bring it closer to modern tourism in general, though it maintains its distinctive characteristics, which will be the object of this paper. These changes in the nature of pilgrimage, which in part reflect the parallel socio-cultural transformation of the average visitor, have brought about a major reorganisation of the places involved and have had a significant socio-economic impact on the territories involved. The concentration of visitors and in …

Introducing The International Journal Of Religious Tourism And Pilgrimage

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Welcome and Introduction to the International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage