Sacred Vertigo
Pilgrimage and Tourism in Rocamadour, France
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£77.00
Built into a huge cliff in central France, the town of Rocamadour is a visual marvel and a place of contradictions. Pilgrims come to venerate its ancient Black Madonna but are outnumbered by secular tourists. Weibel provides an intimate look at the transformation of Rocamadour from a significant religious center to a tourist attraction; the efforts by clergy to restore Rocamadour’s spiritual character; the supernatural reinterpretations of the shrine by non-Catholics; and the desperate decision by the Diocese to participate in tourism itself, with disastrous results.
Chapter 1Looking Backward: An Overview of Rocamadour’s History
Chapter 2Whose Shrine is it Anyway?: Competing Local Interpretations of Rocamadour
Chapter 3 Primed for Action and Reaction: The Influence of Visitors’ Preconceptions
Chapter 4 Echoes and Energy: Rocamadour’s Numinous Nature
Chapter 5On Shaky Ground: The Shifting Identities of a Shrine