Patronage in a Holy Place: Preliminary research notes on a ‘parallel structure’ in a Yugoslav pilgrimage centre*

This paper is based on literature, documents from the Franciscan archives in Duvno and Medjugorje, participant observation and interviewing (mainly in Croatian) at intervals between 1984 and 1989. In the last few years, many Yugoslav papers an'd magazines have been published about Medjugorje. Glas koncila, Vjesnik, Svcta Baština, Politika, Panorama, Subotan, Život, Problem!, Sociologija sela, Danas, Aktualnosti Kršćanske Sadašnjosti, Slobodna Dalmacija, Nedeljni Vjesnik, Večernji list, to mention but a few, have published on the pilgrimage centre, the visions and the tourist traffic. Their information is interesting though rather one‐sided. Moreover, none of them deals systematically with what may be called ‘back stage’ subjects. These seem to be left to other, detached‐and‐involved persons. Most of my lay informants in Medjugorje and a few priests prefer to remain anonymous. I have used fictitious names for all the persons in the case. I am grateful to my informants in Bosnia‐Hercegovina and in various Yugoslav communities abroad for their multifarious help. For constructive criticism I am indebted to F. G. Bailey, Vlado Borg, Jadranska Gvozdanovic, Petarjelećanin, F. Komarica, Leonard Oreć, Fred Spier, Ed Koster, Daan Meijers, M. Estellie Smith, Chris McKevitt and Kitty Verrips. Errors of interpretation are, of course, entirely mine. Sheila Gogol edited my English writing. I would like to emphasize here that I do not make any statement whatsoever as to the ‘truth’ or ‘authenticity’ of the apparitions. Nor do I in any way address the question of the integrity of the individuals involved. Problems of this nature do not lie within the framework of social science research. Finally, the reader must realize that the Croatian language in the area under study is full of Turkicisms.

Eric Wolf has argued that the study of patron‐client relations and other ‘parallel structures’ may be useful for furthering our understanding of complex societies. As for political patronage, Wolfs suggestion has been taken to heart. As far as religion is concerned, his suggestion has barely met with any response at all. Data obtained from a Yugoslav peasant community seem to indicate that Wolf s proposition is applicable to the religious field as well. In Medjugorje, a pilgrimage centre in Bosnia‐Hercegovina, a patronage network has evolved around a small group of young local seers. The relations with the ‘official’, clergy‐run Marian devotion are rather strained. This article explores the dynamics of that parallel structure of the institutional Church, and discusses if and in what respects this visionary‐centered patronage network differs from patron‐client configurations in the political field.

Notes

This paper is based on literature, documents from the Franciscan archives in Duvno and Medjugorje, participant observation and interviewing (mainly in Croatian) at intervals between 1984 and 1989. In the last few years, many Yugoslav papers an'd magazines have been published about Medjugorje. Glas koncila, Vjesnik, Svcta Baština, Politika, Panorama, Subotan, Život, Problem!, Sociologija sela, Danas, Aktualnosti Kršćanske Sadašnjosti, Slobodna Dalmacija, Nedeljni Vjesnik, Večernji list, to mention but a few, have published on the pilgrimage centre, the visions and the tourist traffic. Their information is interesting though rather one‐sided. Moreover, none of them deals systematically with what may be called ‘back stage’ subjects. These seem to be left to other, detached‐and‐involved persons. Most of my lay informants in Medjugorje and a few priests prefer to remain anonymous. I have used fictitious names for all the persons in the case. I am grateful to my informants in Bosnia‐Hercegovina and in various Yugoslav communities abroad for their multifarious help. For constructive criticism I am indebted to F. G. Bailey, Vlado Borg, Jadranska Gvozdanovic, Petarjelećanin, F. Komarica, Leonard Oreć, Fred Spier, Ed Koster, Daan Meijers, M. Estellie Smith, Chris McKevitt and Kitty Verrips. Errors of interpretation are, of course, entirely mine. Sheila Gogol edited my English writing. I would like to emphasize here that I do not make any statement whatsoever as to the ‘truth’ or ‘authenticity’ of the apparitions. Nor do I in any way address the question of the integrity of the individuals involved. Problems of this nature do not lie within the framework of social science research. Finally, the reader must realize that the Croatian language in the area under study is full of Turkicisms.