Germinal Ritual. Ceramic Feathers and Social Transformation in Canadian Churches

Abstract

The concept of germinal ritual provides a way to describe the potential for religious practices to seed social flourishing — or to fail to do so. Germinal ritual describes ritual acts that are small beginnings, that yield varied outcomes dependent on context, that coexist with contradictory rituals, and that depend on human agency while operating beyond human awareness. This article develops a theory of germinal ritual based on an ethnographic case study of a diffuse art installation interpreted in dialogue with three sources: ritual theory, the parables of Jesus, and metaphors inspired by botanical science. The case study explores how germinal ritual practices in Christian congregations may or may not contribute to a journey of truth and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples in Canada. This theory of germinal ritual recognizes the value of ritual as one meaningful step toward social change, and also its limitations as one ambiguous step in a much larger transformative process.