Secularism and the Crisis of Minority Identity in Postcolonial Literature by McNamara Roger;

Author:McNamara, Roger;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: undefined
Publisher: Lexington Books/Fortress Academic
Published: 2012-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

Faith and Ritual as Alternatives

to a Secularized Parsi Identity

Like other post-secular texts, Family Matters turns to religion as part of the solution to the crisis created by secularized Zoroastrianism. On the one hand, the novel’s content demonstrates the dangers of religion, as it can easily encourage extremism. On the other hand, the most aesthetically powerful passages are those that celebrate religion for its ability to transcend secularized identities and to promote non-coercive forms of community. The difference within religion can be explored through the phrases of “religion-as-ideology” and “religion-as-faith” coined by Nandy. Religion is “ideological” when it protects “nonreligious, usually political or socioeconomic interests” and uses doctrines and rituals to re-inscribe these interests. By contrast, religion-as-faith is not prescriptive. Even though it may accept doctrine and practice ritual, its objective is to use both for the well-being of the individual and the group.[33] In Family Matters, Coomy practices religion-as-ideology because she prioritizes rituals over her responsibility to her family.[34] By contrast, Roxana embodies faith because doctrine and rituals give her a sense of peace and she practices them only after caring for her family.[35] But Mistry (like Nandy) recognizes that “ideology” and “faith” can overlap. Yezad turns to religion-as-faith for emotional strength when he cannot deal with the stress of supporting his family. However, toward the end of the novel, especially after Mr. Kapur’s murder, Yezad’s faith turns to ideology because he tries to solve all his problems within religious strictures.

Though Yezad devolves as a character, it could be argued that faith need not turn to ideology, as is evident from Roxana. Yet, Roxana’s faith prevents her from arguing effectively against Yezad’s extremism. In the epilogue, Jehangir-as-narrator is saddened that his mother cannot ask Yezad to stop praying because this would be “blasphemous”; instead, she blames the Orthodox Parsis for his extremism.[36] Roxana’s inability to challenge unhealthy rituals is reinforced when Yezad expects her to isolate herself when she is menstruating (she is considered impure). Upset, Roxana only asserts that both their families never practiced this regulation.[37] However, she cannot directly criticize the practice itself, implying that religion-as-faith is caught within the logic of following religious precepts, even if they are demeaning.

Thus, Family Matters problematizes Nandy’s attempts to posit faith as an alternative to ideology. Not only can the former turn into the latter (as in the case of Yezad), but faith also lacks the intellectual rigor to critique secularized values. The novel also raises concerns about Chatterjee and Scott’s arguments for “a politics of settlements.” Yezad and Roxana’s interaction above reveals that religious communities can be patriarchal, quell dissent, and use faith to support inequality. Therefore, a politics of settlements that would officially recognize the rights of religious communities runs the risk of reinforcing hierarchies.

However, despite religion (ideology or faith) being criticized in Family Matters, it continues to have a positive presence in the novel’s aesthetics. This ambivalence toward religion is also evident in Mistry’s interview on the novel’s publication. Mistry confesses that he is “not a practicing Parsi [sic] but the ceremonies are quite beautiful.

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