Victor Turner The Ritual Process Analysis

In “The Ritual Process,” Victor Turner employs the term “liminoid” to define modern rites that transport individuals out of the ordinary realm and into a realm of “anti-structure” where they are “betwixt and between” societal statuses. (94) New Age practices are liminoid in the sense that they are thought of as doorways to sacred transitioning, during which energy is ordered and self-actualization takes place. In the realm of the liminoid, the self is liberated, “de-identification is effected…ego-attachments are dropped, and a new future is enabled” (Heelas 20). Individuals “attempt to separate aspects of them that belong to the artifices of society and culture from that which belongs to the depths of human nature,” (Heelas 28) and the “socialized …show more content…
New Age practises work to liberate individuals from social conditioning and to transform their ethereal selves from chaos to cosmos, from what is ‘wrong’ to what is ‘right.’ By working from the “inside out,” (Heelas 23) individuals can live peaceful existences despite the sufferings that run rampant in modern society. Among these sufferings Reverend Smith lists “rising suicide rates, acts of terrorism, and scarcity.” Heelas coins the New Age movement one “of and for modernity.” (158) Arguably, some appeal of the New Age movement most certainly lies in its promise to free individuals from the pains of the modern world by ordering the ethereal or immaterial. The means of transforming oneself into a conscious, self-actualized being may vary, but all are readily available on the “spiritual supermarket.” (Aupers, Houtman 135) Auper and Houtman describe this “spiritual supermarket” as one in which “consumers construct strictly personal packages of meaning, based on individual tastes and preferences.” …show more content…
He asserts that although “there may appear to be great differences in the path, the destination is the same”-the destination being a sense of cosmic order and “vibratory coherence.” Although the path to freedom may not be important, Reverend Smith believes it is fundamental to “re-educate” the populace, and admits that he structures his sermons more like classroom lectures for this purpose. He argues that individuals must be liberated from corrupt teachings perpetuated by “societal institutions,” “money culture” and “toxic myths.” Glorifying the notion of anti-structure and anti-society, he frequently mentions classes, workshops and retreats offered by the church that are distinctly liminoid in nature, and are meant to aid individual liberation and transformation. Reverend Smith holds the popular New Age assumption that contemporary Western society is a corrupt cage that individuals must transcend. He affirms that “we must reject the status quo” in order to access inner wisdom. Once the “true nature” of society is revealed, he asserts, one must “raise their consciousness” through various rituals of ethereal ordering such as reiki practises and crystal