The Power of Religious Objects in Transnational Migration

Since the economic crisis in Spain hit most migrant households as the most vulnerable, religious institutions such as the Catholic Church, are becoming increasingly important. Their houses act as reference points by which the faith community is kept together. Tangible assistance is offered and transnational communication structures and family bonds are sustained. Being assisted by local Saints, the Catholic Church serves as a place of remembrance to produce and reproduce senses of belongings that date back to the early colonial era. Social relations of migrants are manifested in a space which symbolizes the power and glory of the former Colonial regime.

Giving the example of the congregation of San Lorenzo in an immigration neighborhood in Madrid, it is shown, which role and agency religious artifacts play in re-producing collective identities and allocating social and financial resources. By focusing on the object itself (not necessarily its symbolic representation) the functions and cultural meanings of the figure in different historic contexts become apparent. The religious staging around the object of the Saint show spatially and chronologically comprehensive chains of interaction which reflect deep seated power relations between the immigrant and the host communities.