Shamans, witches, and pastors: the religious dimension in the healing practices

Abstract

This article presents a socio-anthropological approach, from a comparative and cross-cultural perspective, on the importance of the religion in the process of social construction of what health-disease is, and the effectiveness of religious practices in the procedure of healing. Based on dense ethnographies (in the Geertzian sense) developed by the author in differentiated social and cultural contexts (indigenous, “caboclas”, peasant, and Pentecostal communities), the focus of the analysis is the crucial role of the social, cultural and religious dimension in the conception of health-illness and in the choice of diversified alternative healing practices, with real or symbolic efficacy (as advocated by Lévi-Strauss).