For those of us who eagerly followed the recent coverage of the
Gypsy and Traveller community there is certainly no getting away from the
emphasis put on the 'Rites
of Passage'. From the beginning of a life with a Christening, then on to Holy
Communion, next not forgetting the all-important wedding and finally to the
unfortunate end with a funeral. All sound familiar?
Yes, it seems the most important events in the Gypsy and
Traveller calendar are traditional Christian rituals. Recognised as Sacraments
by Roman Catholics it is widely acknowledged that these events are vital to a
Christian life. You only have to look at the number of couples who still choose
to get married in church, even though we supposedly live in an ever growing
secular world, to appreciate their importance. They not only express
religiosity but reinforce certain ideologies. For example, MARRIAGE = belief
that God intends men and women to live together in an authorised union. This obedience
to Christian practices shows how central religion is to the average Gypsy and
Traveller and presents a faith not unlike our own. Or does it?
Sure, they may follow the ‘Rites of passage’ but it’s how
they carry them out and their supposed motives that raises eyebrows and more
importantly brings me to the question ‘Is this religious?’
EXTRAVAGANCE – Where is God in all that tack?
For those of you who've never seen
images of a Gypsy or Traveller wedding or Holy Communion here’s a taster…
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| The dresses... |
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| The cake... |
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| Holy Communion attire |
As you can see OTT doesn’t do it
justice it’s more like OTT and AWTH (‘Over The Top’ and ‘Away With The
Fairies’). The Daily Mail
describes it perfectly writing ‘Meringue-esque
dresses are the norm, with sky-high tiaras, and a wedding carriage that would
make Cinderella jealous’.
But, why the need for all the tack
if the point is purely to uphold God’s teachings? I was shocked by a recent
article that revealed the price of a Gypsy or Traveller wedding can total
around £140,000!! Surely a Church wedding and a few drinks and nibbles after
would do the job? All this ‘bling’ does seem to lead one to believe that
nowadays the motives behind these ‘rites’ are less to do with religion and more
about flashing the cash and having a good party. Can we therefore still call
these rituals part of Gypsies’ and Traveller’s religion? I mean sure they are
still events with religious orientation but if all the extravagance is diluting
the Christian message then shouldn’t they be classed more as a social than
spiritual event?
Then again, who are ‘WE’ to
talk?
I mean, where’s the difference
between these weddings?…
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| Katie Price and Peter Andre's wedding |
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| A big fat Gypsy wedding |
I know some of you will be saying
“Yes, but you can’t compare the charade which was Katie Price and Peter Andre’s
wedding with an average non-gypsy wedding”. True, but there’s no denying that the
average wedding has grown in extravagance and certainly cost and you don’t
usually see anyone questioning whether these weddings can still be classed as
religious. And we definitely wouldn’t snub the religiosity of the ULTIMATE
extravagant weddings – a
Hindu or Sikh wedding!! So can we really criticise Gypsies and Travellers?
Maybe we should give them some credit
and just attribute their lavishness to them being human and not to their fading
Christian priorities. I mean you only have to compare their non-existent divorce
rates with our rising one to acknowledge that they do take these rituals
seriously seeing marriage as sacred and lifelong.
Whatever the answer these ‘Rites
of Passage' are certainly important in understanding the religious make-up of
the Gypsy and Traveller community as they represent core Christian obedience in
the Gypsy and Traveller community and not just a desire for a good party.
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