ABSTRACT
According to anthropologists Charles Stewart and Rosalind Shaw, syn cretism is a process that involves mixing and synthesis of different religious forms (Stewart and Shaw 1994). However, many understand syncretism as a confusing and ambiguous concept often associated with “contamination” of the recognized “pure” traditions (Luzbetak 1988). Others view syncretism as an ethnocentric label applied to local religious practices and ideas. Still others regard syncretic processes as positive expressions of resistance to cultural dom inance (Gort et al. 1989). Whether one assigns a positive or negative moral value to “syncretism” depends on the standpoint of the observer. Liberation theologian Leonardo Boff observes how those people who are privileged and stand on the dominant side of a culture tend to view syncretism as a threat purely to be avoided at all times. If, however, the observer stands in a non dominant social and cultural situation, then syncretism is seen as a normal and natural process (Boff 1985, 89).
