Sharing the Church : Gendered Seating in Syriac Orthodox Congregations in Sweden
Westergren, Andreas LU
and Cetrez, Önver
(2025)
In Journal of Contemporary Religion
- Abstract (Swedish)
- Despite being such an important factor for individual identity, the Orthodox churches have not been sufficiently studied. In addition, the study of gender in these churches often seems formed by the impression that they do not change. This article therefore explores a seeming static feature, the gendered seating in three Syriac Orthodox parishes in Sweden from the point of view of space and agency: who and what is creating the present order of seating? On the basis of interviews and field observations, these parish churches were considered as material, imagined and lived space. We have observed a lot of fluidity: the church is a space in which several people take an active interest, both women and men, elderly and young, and lay people... (More)
- Despite being such an important factor for individual identity, the Orthodox churches have not been sufficiently studied. In addition, the study of gender in these churches often seems formed by the impression that they do not change. This article therefore explores a seeming static feature, the gendered seating in three Syriac Orthodox parishes in Sweden from the point of view of space and agency: who and what is creating the present order of seating? On the basis of interviews and field observations, these parish churches were considered as material, imagined and lived space. We have observed a lot of fluidity: the church is a space in which several people take an active interest, both women and men, elderly and young, and lay people along with priests, who are all trying to distinguish tradition from customs no longer valid. If earlier studies have tended to view this Church as a stable, immovable factor while people change, our stance from the floor rather supports the impression of the ‘church’ as a changing, social space, also with regard to gender. The church space is a hybrid one, situated between old customs and new. (Less)
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- author
- Westergren, Andreas
LU
and Cetrez, Önver
- organization
- publishing date
- 2025
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- in press
- subject
- in
- Journal of Contemporary Religion
- publisher
- Routledge
- ISSN
- 1353-7903
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- aae2a3b8-c0f2-42d8-9afe-ce8acd311ece
- date added to LUP
- 2025-10-01 14:57:14
- date last changed
- 2025-10-09 11:06:46
@article{aae2a3b8-c0f2-42d8-9afe-ce8acd311ece,
abstract = {{Despite being such an important factor for individual identity, the Orthodox churches have not been sufficiently studied. In addition, the study of gender in these churches often seems formed by the impression that they do not change. This article therefore explores a seeming static feature, the gendered seating in three Syriac Orthodox parishes in Sweden from the point of view of space and agency: who and what is creating the present order of seating? On the basis of interviews and field observations, these parish churches were considered as material, imagined and lived space. We have observed a lot of fluidity: the church is a space in which several people take an active interest, both women and men, elderly and young, and lay people along with priests, who are all trying to distinguish tradition from customs no longer valid. If earlier studies have tended to view this Church as a stable, immovable factor while people change, our stance from the floor rather supports the impression of the ‘church’ as a changing, social space, also with regard to gender. The church space is a hybrid one, situated between old customs and new.}},
author = {{Westergren, Andreas and Cetrez, Önver}},
issn = {{1353-7903}},
language = {{eng}},
publisher = {{Routledge}},
series = {{Journal of Contemporary Religion}},
title = {{Sharing the Church : Gendered Seating in Syriac Orthodox Congregations in Sweden}},
year = {{2025}},
}