ABSTRACT
This chapter examines underlying organizing conditions leading to the emergence of people's sense of identification with others. We examine its transition in commensality events in Christian religious settings. Social gatherings are increasingly thought to be an effective way to improve the quality of social ties, especially in Western countries. However, little attention has been paid to how identification emerges as a personal experience in connecting with others.
In advancing insights into the sociology of commensality by examining identification, this chapter presents how stable and transient structural elements depend largely on the content of institutions’ social structures. We argue for a focus on the neglected aspect of human transitions, as areas of fluid interpersonal contact in which individuals form various conceptions of entering, considering/exploring, and exiting from communities.
Using the case of Christian settings, which emphasize frequent commensality between members, we suggest that individuals use participation in eating together as an opportunity to explore notions of belonging. Hence, commensality represents a microcosm of people exploring the significance of successive engagements with others, through entering, exploring, and exiting such communities. We argue that this view produces novel insights into commensality. It is assumed that physical participation in eating together automatically extends to sharing immediate associations with others.
