THE VIRGIN MARY IN THE NARRATIVES OF CONTEMPORARY CATHOLIC AND MUSLIM MOTHERS IN POLAND
THE VIRGIN MARY IN THE NARRATIVES OF CONTEMPORARY CATHOLIC AND MUSLIM MOTHERS IN POLAND

Summary/Abstract: In this paper, we demonstrate how the figure of the Virgin Mary func- tions as an important element of the lived religion of contemporary Catholic and Muslim mothers in Poland. Based on the analysis of in-depth interviews and observational data we argue that the figure of Mary is recognized as a religious ideal and a role model by mothers identifying with both religions. We trace sim- ilarities and differences between Catholic and Muslim mothers in their reflexive engagement with ideas, symbols, and prescriptions attached to Mary and discuss how they reinvent the figure and ascribe it with personalised meanings: embrace some of the traditional attributes of Mary, challenge, and contest others, and con- struct new meanings firmly embedded in their daily life mothering experiences.

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