Interpreting Culture in a Scottish Congregation

Every congregation is, in certain respects, like all other congregations, like some other congregations, and like no other congregation. In this interpretation of congregational culture at Riverstane Church, aspects of the particular (like no other congregation) are presented ethnographically. The church building is symbolic of authority, tradition, and status - framing the interaction not only between insiders and outsiders, but also between the congregants themselves. In turn, this interpretation allows scope for discerning aspects of the comparative (like some other congregations). Interpreting Culture in a Scottish Congregation begins by locating the study in terms of hermeneutics, practical theology, and social anthropology. It ends with a pastoral theological reflection on the aspects of the general (like all other congregations).