A Review on "Tourism, Religion, and Spirituality" By Richard Sharpley

 

Religious Tourism: Some Insights from "Tourism, Religion, and 

Spirituality" By Richard Sharpley

The relationship between Religion and Spirituality is one of the key topics in the study of tourism or religious tourism.  There is a long connection between tourism and spirituality from decades. More specifically, travel for spiritual purposes has for centuries been a popular manifestation of human mobility. Pilgrimage and other spiritually-motivated travel is widely considered to be one of the earliest forms of tourism and nowadays, religious tourism, in all its forms, has evolved into a major sector of the global tourism market.

Over the last three decades, however, an alternative perspective on the tourism-spirituality relationship has emerged. Focusing on the meaning or significance of contemporary tourism, it is argued that tourism is a sacred journey, a secular spiritual experience; in other words, tourism has become a secular alternative to the institution of religion, the contemporary tourist a modern, secular pilgrim. Hence, a conceptual divide exists in the relationship between tourism and spirituality, between spiritual (religious) tourism and tourism as spirituality (religion). Moreover, that divide is evidenced in much of the extant research into tourism, religion and spirituality.

This particular article written by Richard Sharpley suggests, however, such a conceptual divide over-simplifies the relationship between tourism and spirituality; not only is the distinction between spiritual / religious tourism and tourism as a secular spiritual experience becoming increasing fuzzy – some traditional religious travel experiences, for example, are taking on the aura of commoditised tourism products, with implications for the experience of participants themselves – but also the relationship can be viewed from different disciplinary and theoretical positions. A humanistic perspective, for example, questions the notion of spirituality itself, whilst varying interpretations of religion / spirituality also cast the relationship in different lights.

Hence, this paper has explored the complexity of the spiritual dimension of tourism. Reviewing the extant literature, it highlights the dimensions of and limits to research into the relationship between tourism and spirituality and, explored the phenomenon from a variety of perspectives, challenges contemporary understandings and points to areas demanding further research.

Introducing different facets of the tourism and spirituality or religious tourism, author have established arguments on the necessity of considering the place of religion in modern societies  to compare the modern socioeconomic institution of tourism with religion. In other words, according to the author it is not possible to explore critically the relationship between tourism and religion without some understanding of the phenomenon called place or religious/ sacred site. He argued that although a number of studies consider religious tourism within the context of particular religions or religious/sacred sites, rarely is the debate about tourism as a modern sacred experience more generally located in the wider framework of religion in society. That is, religion is often, but erroneously, viewed as a “given” within the tourism–religion relationship. Dealing with religiousness and spirituality author have established the theological interpretations behind the religious tourism. He also focused on the spiritual dimensions of tourism and reached to the spirituality of the journey through sacrifice, danger, hardship, transformation, enrichment and the process of being communitas and vice versa.  Before reach to concluding remarks the author have emphasised on the spirituality of tourist places and religious sites which was the major focus of the discussion in the article.

As the author suggests in this paper, the relationship between tourism and religion can be considered from two perspectives. On the one hand, religious tourism, defined as tourism that is motivated either partly or entirely by religious or spiritual purposes, is not only one of the oldest forms of touristic activity but has also evolved into a significant and growing sector of the global tourism market. Consequently, as a consequence of both its economic potential and the need for appropriate environmental and cultural management policies, increasing attention is being paid to the management and promotion of religious tourism and tourists. On the other hand, tourism may be considered as religion—a contemporary spiritual journey. It is seen to be either structurally and functionally the modern equivalent of traditional pilgrimage, the experience of liminality and communitas being common to both phenomena, or more generally a modern spiritual experience that contrasts with the anomic condition of (post)modern societies.

This article has also suggested that, many of the issues surrounding the former (religious tourism) perspective are common to many, if not all, forms of tourism; religious tourism may, in a sense, be utilized as a case study for exploring the challenges of managing and promoting tourism. Conversely, the latter (tourism as religion) perspective is an unique phenomenon, yet one that remains relatively under-researched. That is, although the tourism-as-religion discourse has explored the conceptual links among tourism, pilgrimage, and spirituality, few attempts have been made either to locate the debate within the context of contemporary theological perspectives on religion and spirituality or, more specifically, to undertake empirical research into this issue. Consequently, little account has, to date, been taken of the shifting role of religion/ spirituality in contemporary societies and the subsequent ways in which tourist journeys, sites and places may be experienced by apparently secular or nonreligious tourists.

Drawing on recent research in this area, this article has demonstrated that the distinction between pilgrims, religious/religious heritage tourists and secular/nonreligious tourists is less clear than is suggested in the extant literature. That is, the dynamic, multi-layered nature of religion and spirituality in modern societies may be reflected in a multitude of spiritual tourist experiences that have yet to be revealed or understood.

Therefore, the author have concluded that, there is evidently a need for more extensive empirical research into the spiritual characteristics of contemporary tourism in order to better inform the management and promotion of religious sites and places. Not only would this enable such places to meet the needs of all tourists but also, perhaps, enhance the religious or spiritual message that they convey.

Reference : Jamal, Tazim, and Mike Robinson. 2012. The SAGE handbook of tourism studies.