DIASPORA (migration & change) and SOCIO-RELIGIOUS PRACTICES by Viviana Gomez-Sanchez

This paper seeks to explain the concepts of Diaspora and practical examples of groups of religious diaspora. This study also aims to understand how groups of diaspora across the globe create ways to transform their socio-religious practices or to maintain them when living in the host country. Most of the theoretical views of Diaspora are related to terms such migration, transnationalism, globalization and identity. These terms will be expanded on later, in relation to the matter, to then illustrate them with existing cases of diasporic communities and their practices.

First of all, what is the importance of studies of Diasporas? According to Vertovec (2000), research in this area: 1) gives an insight into religious transformations; 2) shows how diasporas could potentially affect the development for religion in the homeland; and 3) it is also important because of the great incidence of diasporas in the modern world - as multi-ethnicity is widespread in the 21st Century. Due to the significance of research on Diaspora, it is crucial to describe and understand the theoretical viewpoints. Initially, it is important to place diaspora in a religious context throughout this paper. Thus, some statements on how religion is learned and how individuals become part of different religious institutions and belief-systems in their homeland will be provided to then relate migration, change and socio-religious practices of diasporic communities.

In his study, Zucherkman (2003) analysed the concepts of religion in a sociological perspective. He stated that “religious identity and conviction are not generally so much a matter of choice or faith or soul-searching as a matter of who and what one’s parents, friends, neighbours, and community practice and profess stated that behaviours, customs, set of beliefs: most of things we know, feel and do are socially internalised” .Thus, religion is acquired by people in their surroundings. People learn and practice their religious experiences and cultural beliefs in formal and informal behaviours. Most of these experiences are expected to happen in a person’s life in the same way that these experiences were socially learned (Zuckerman, 2003). We could now start drawing some of the concepts of Diaspora and describe these types of communities within different host countries. Vertovec (2000) and other authors have come across several definitions and have placed diaspora in different contexts. Overall, for a number of scholars, the definition of diaspora is related to free movement, particularly the concept belonging to ancient Jews living with Greeks and galut, involving unintentional movement due to an occupation of the territory that was considered home (Marienstras, 1989).

If concepts and conventional meanings of Diaspora are related to Jewish or another group’s historical experiences, Vertovec (2000) stressed clearly that when we mention that something has taken place in the diaspora, we should specify whether we are talking about a process of becoming spread out, a community living in foreign places, or referring to a place or geographical space in which separated groups live. Vertovec also scrutinized the nature of diaspora as discussed by Shaye & Frerichs (1993). They stated that the essence of diaspora in the earliest times its continued pertinence to the present (Shaye & Frerichs, 1993). They refer to ‘the nature of diaspora’ as a mass migration or displaced or flight from one location to another place or places. It could also be seen as an event in the history of several groups and individuals of ancient times (Shaye & Frerichs, 1993). Furthermore, there are other issues to be examined including the matter of whether the dispersed people preserve a sense of self-identity and also a gauge of communal unity. Finally, they also questioned how these particular people adapt to the environment without losing their group-identity background (Shaye & Frerichs, 1993). Most of recent approaches to this matter have represented Diaspora as a ‘social form’ in which there are concerns about the level and nature of social, political and economic relationships between the ones dispersed (Vertovec, 2000). Also diaspora has been depicted as a ‘type of consciousnesses’, relating “aspects of collective memory, desires and awareness” across the host country and the homeland (Vertovec, 2000:7). Also, diaspora has been represented as a mode of ‘cultural reproduction’ involving “the global flow of cultural object images and meanings” (Vertovec, 2000:7).

By outlining the key concepts stated by Vertovec (2000) and other scholars about the notion of Diaspora it is important to recognize that there is an intuitive connection between migration and minority status, transnationalism, and diaspora. It should be defined what each of these categories are referring to, as well as considering how they seem to be related to socio-religious transformations. First, with migration and minority status it is depicted that migrants and minorities are involved in a transference and reconstitution of cultural and social bonds. Second, transnationalism is referred to as an incomplete exchange of money, resources and information as well as constant communication between members of a diaspora with others in the homeland and also with other people inside the globalised cultural community. Finally, diaspora, according to Vertovec (2000), refers to strong feelings and mental pictures (an imagined connection) between a ‘post migration population’ and the homeland as well as with other people elsewhere who share similar cultural bases.

By mentioning the connection between those three categories, we will now move to some examples of transnationalism and of socio-religious transformations. This example will come in the form of a Peruvian migrant who now resides in Australia, providing personal experiences in a host. These personal accounts will then be compared with other cases related to diaspora, change and migration of Peruvians in the US, other parts of South America, and Europe. This comparison will also demonstrate how social status plays an important part of the new identity of a diasporic community in different parts of the world, particularly for Peruvian diaspora. Firstly, an example of Peruvian diaspora in the US and other parts of South America, Europe and Japan will be illustrated to comprehend religious diaspora. The case will be focused on how one of the most representative religious practices from that country is negotiated between the diasporic connection to the homeland and their new identity as immigrants in the host country. It has been suggested by studies (Paerregaard, 2008) that the globalization of this religious practice is part of a strategy made by Peruvian migrants in order to be recognised in the host country as well as develop legal and political rights as immigrants.

Paerregaard (2008), who studied a specific Peruvian religious icon called El Señor de los Milagros (The Lord of Miracles), explained what the rituals and meanings are for Peruvians in their homeland. Peruvians based this icon in a procession which happened every October; this procession gathers a multitude of people united by a common desire. The hope is that the Lord will protect against disease and other accidents as well as will give them the courage and strength during their everyday lives. Most Peruvian followers have El Señor de los Milagros as a lucky charm which gives them company everywhere they go or live (Paerregaard, 2008). According to Paerregaard (2008), although there are many other religious rituals followed by Peruvians, he focused on this one due to its popularity. He also stated that three dimensions of belief in this icon have facilitated its global dispersion; these are: a) migratory dimension, b) syncretistic dimension, and c) transnational dimension (Paerregaard, 2008). These three dimensions were also mentioned by Vertovec (2000) which have also been explained (see above). In particular, the first and the third dimension demonstrate on one hand, Peruvians were forced to adapt their religious practice to the new places of settlement and change the conventional form of the institution. On the other hand, the Christian identity of the icon (El Señor de los Milagros) allowed Peruvians to “draw their existing transnational institution- the Catholic Church” (Paerregaard, 2008:1074). Furthermore, Peruvians believe that their icon has become a symbol not only for Peruanos but also for the Latin American identity as a whole. This is mainly because most Latinos come from the same religious background as well as when becoming inmigrants in a new place they also share similar difficulties in the host country.

The main idea of Paerregaard’s study (2008) on Peruvian diaspora and this particular religious sect is about the globalisation and fragmentation of this ritual. The efforts of taking this icon to a procession on the streets in many parts of the world could be seen as the “diasporic imaginary” as it has also been previously explained by Vertovec (2000). Peruvians “often picture their struggle to introduce the icon to their new places of settlement as a modern odyssey, similar to their migratory experiences” (Paerregaard, 2008:). Peruvians religious diaspora in this case has not only endeavoured to have a place in public spaces in the host countries but also tried to gain recognition as an ethnic minority (Paerregaard, 2008). In general, this particular icon depicts a vector point between ‘Lima, Peru’ and the world. This diasporic group use this to create meaning when they moved to a new social space that they do not control (Paerregaard, 2008).

The following is an account made by one female Peruvian migrant studying at the University of Queensland. Her statement summarises her experiences and what diaspora and socio-religious transformations means to her. It is important to note that her views on social-class are quite different to other Peruvian diaspora previously mentioned in this paper.

Fiorella Rosales Ugarte
I have lived in Brisbane, Australia for the past two years; I have met Peruvians with different social-economical statuses during this time. The majority of them are undergraduate and postgraduate students of major universities in Brisbane. When talking about their religious beliefs and backgrounds, most of them consider themselves as Christian-Catholics. This is not much different to the Peruvian migrants I know living in the US and other parts of South America and Europe. However, I believe social-status plays an important part within the new identities and socio-religious transformations. Even in Lima, when we talk about El senor de lo Milagros, most of the followers are among the poor, urban Peruvians. In contrast to the Peruvians in Brisbane, this icon might not have any religious or emotional impact when it comes to creating their new identities. Actually, upper social-economic classes in Brisbane seem to never encounter any struggles when we talk about desire of recognition as an ethnic minority. Those Peruvians of upper social-economic status living in Brisbane focused their religious beliefs and practices on social events between people with the same status.


She also mentioned that practices and rituals during holy week or even attendance to Sunday mass are activities that allow them meet with others like them to have that feeling of belonging to the home country. But there is no other type of religious transformation or change even when they are not in the homeland anymore. It is important to highlight that perhaps this contrast between Peruvians living in other parts of the world and the ones residing in Australia is not only for a socio-economical matter but also for a population number of migrants in each of the regions. Both groups of Peruvian diaspora from different areas in the world share the same religious background, however socio-economical statuses differ between them and therefore their socio-religious views in the host country tend to be different when it comes to hope for recognition of ethnicity or other social needs. The concepts of diaspora in relation to socio-religious practices, migration, globalisation and transnationalism have been seen through cases of Peruvian diaspora. But throughout this paper the importance of the study of religious diaspora has been reinforced since religious doctrines have not changed in some cases of diaspora. This is also the case for multi-ethnicity, as shown by the case of the Peruvian icon having an important role for both Peruvians and other South Americans.

To conclude, one of the concepts Vertovec (2000) highlighted is related to the example of the Peruvian diaspora within a different country. It is important to stress that in the case of religious diaspora, strong feelings and mental pictures between the migrants, the homeland, and other people sharing the same cultural background are put into practice by Peruvians. This connection is visible through the El Señor de los Milagros icon as well as those strong feelings that allow Peruvian migrants to keep this icon and other mental pictures from their homeland and bring them to their host country on top of sharing their religious experiences with non-Peruvians who also belong to a Christian-catholic background.