Energy and transformation in alternative pilgrimages to Catholic shrines: deconstructing the tourist/pilgrim divide

Abstract

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 conceptualize their journeys. Their approach to sacred sites is by no means unique but rather the expression of an engagement both with pilgrimage and tourism, one in which both the notions and experiences of energy and transformation play key roles. I will argue that in the context of these sacred journeys, the use of an energy language to make sense of travel experiences and the emphasis on personal transformation allow the pilgrims to deconstruct oppositions implicitly associated with the tourism / pilgrimage dichotomy (Badone, 2004, p.185).

Determinantes Socioeconómicos das Peregrinações: Uma Abordagem Var do Caso Português de Fátima

“…An interesting issue for the debate on Catholic religious tourism is the development of other ways of defending and interpreting pilgrimage. Fedele (2014) addresses aspects of a new denomination of pilgrims "the energy ones". For the local economy in the short-run, it is essential to receive pilgrims, but for Shrine, the loss of identity may not be beneficial in the long-run.…”

Shopping with Allah: Muslim pilgrimage, gender and consumption in a globalised world

“…In this sense, tourists can be perceived as (secular) pilgrims (Smith 1989: 4). Peter Burns (1999: 75-77) compares a touristic journey with a 'rite de passage', and thereby introduces a spiritual aspect to the concept of tourism (see Cassar and Munro 2016;Fedele 2014;Fleischer 2000). He discusses tourism as a 'modern form of religion or pilgrimage' because, on the one hand, going on holiday is a kind of ritual that confirms one's personal social status (Burns 1999: 94f).…”

Calibrating Evolution of Transformative Tourism: A Bibliometric Analysis

“…Storytelling has the role of reinforcing the meaning of a transformative experience, thus often being used as a tool in the case of emphasizing the process of reflection [137,138], which is why some service providers take advantage of this fact, as a part of encouraging the circular economy [139] and by inducing reflection through questions and discourse art within transformative rituals [140]. Other reflective processes can be materialised into expressive drawings [69], interviews taken by academics that usually appear at the end of the trip [141], travel blogs [107], and through souvenirs as they offer consumers the opportunity to recreate the tourist experience long after its completion [142].…”