Religious Voices in Self-Narratives : Making Sense of Life in Times of Transition

In present-day pluralistic and individualized societies, the question of how individuals appropriate religious traditions has become particularly relevant. In this volume, psychologists, anthropologists, and historians examine the presence of religious voices in narrative constructions of the self. The focus is on the multiple ways religious stories and practices feature in self-narratives about major life transitions. The contributions explore the ways in which such voices inform the accommodation and interpretation of these transitions. In addition to being inspired by Dan McAdams’ approach to life stories as ‘personal myths’ that inform us about the quests of individuals for a satisfactory balance between agency and communion, most of the contributors have found the theory of ‘the dialogical self’ developed by Hubert Hermans particularly useful. Thus the contributions explore the ways in which identity formation is shaped by internal dialogues between personal and collective voices in the context of the specific constellations of power in which these voices are embedded. The volume is divided into three parts addressing theoretical and methodological considerations, religious resources in narratives on life transitions, and religious positioning in diaspora. Introduction: Religious voices in self-narratives / Marjo Buitelaar and Hetty Zock Part I. The narrative construction of religious selves Religious voices in the dialogical self: Towards a conceptual-analytical framework on the basis of Hubert Herman's dialogical self theory / Hetty Zock Religious voices in autobiography and biography: Analyzing life stories using elements of the theories of McAdams and Hermans / Froukje Pitstra Narration, identity, and human development: Cognitive-developmental and discursive approaches to understanding religious voices in self-narratives / James M. Day Religious voices and identity in the life-narratives of young adult Moroccans / Gary S. Gregg Part II. Using religion in times of transition Religious narratives, identity, and well-being in American adolescents / Robyn Fivush Religious traditions as means of innovation: The use of symbolic resources in the life course / Tania Zittoun 'It can't be as beautiful in heaven as it is here': Religious turbulence in Christoph Schlingensief's cancer diary Religion as a mediating agent in a migrant's life story: Multiple I-positions in the self-narratives of a German maidservant who became a Dutch housewife / Barbara Henkes Part III. Religious positioning in diaspora Daughter lost and found: Coming to terms with religious conversion by marriage / Ellis Jonker Religious identity on the peripheries:The dialogical self in a global world / Sunil Bhatia Constructing a Muslim self in a post-migration context: Continuity and discontinuity with parental voices. Introduction: Religious Voices in Self-Narratives 9 Part I: The Narrative Construction of Religious Selves 17 Religious Voices in the Dialogical Self: Towards a Conceptual-Analytical Framework on the Basis of Hubert Hermans’s Dialogical Self Theory 19 Religious Voices in Autobiography and Biography: Analyzing Life Stories Using Elements of the Theories of McAdams and Hermans 45 Narration, Identity, and Human Development: Cognitive-Developmental and Discursive Approaches to Understanding Religious Voices in Self-Narratives 61 Religious Voices and Identity in the Life-Narratives of Young Adult Moroccans 91 Part II: Using Religion in Times of Transition 111 Religious Narratives, Identity, and Well-Being in American Adolescents 113 Religious Traditions as Means of Innovation: The Use of Symbolic Resources in the Life Course 137 ‘It Can’t Be as Beautiful in Heaven as It Is Here’: Religious Turbulence in Christoph Schlingensief’s Cancer Diary 157 Religion as a Mediating Agent in a Migrant’s Life Story: Multiple I-Positions in the Self-Narratives of a German Maidservant Who Became a Dutch Housewife 179 Part III: Religious Positioning in Diaspora 195 Daughter Lost and Found: Coming to Terms with Religious Conversion by Marriage 197 Religious Identity on the Peripheries: The Dialogical Self in a Global World 223 Constructing a Muslim Self in a Post-Migration Context: Continuity and Discontinuity with Parental Voices 249 List of authors 283 Index 287 In present-day pluralistic and individualized societies, the question of how individuals appropriate religious traditions has become particularly relevant. This title examines the presence of religious voices in narrative constructions of the self. Biographical note: Hetty Zock and Marjo Buitelaar, University of Groningen, The Netherlands