 |
 |
>i think one impt variable involved in looking at crowds -- xn, political, >both -- is the question of just how choreographed or spontaneous they are. >Coronations and royal entries and relic adventus were, at least in theory, >carefully planned and controlled events. (We shd, tf, pay close attention >when they show signs of not going acc to plan -- eg 1112 coronation in Rome.) > >on the other hand, some pilgrimage gatherings, extraordinary rogations and >other mass penitential gatherings, often display forms of behavior that >have a much less controlled dimension, It's also as well to remember that we in the west think of churchgoing as a rather sedate affair, with people sitting demurely on pews. These are a modern invention. It's salutary to attend an Orthodox service in Greece on one of the big festivals, with thousands of people jostling around, coming and going whenever they feel like it. I remember being at a Greek liturgy a year or two ago. Being a westerner, I arrived in time for the start of the service. The church was already fairly full, but the congregation increased tenfold in the next hour or so. People were crowding in, venerating the icon of the saint whose day we were celebrating, ignoring the "official" liturgy, even during the solemn moments of the consecration, so that at one point the priest had to break off his prayer and tell people to calm down. I suspect that may have been not unlike the "medieval" experience of the Mass. Bill. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%