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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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Rural rides
— the rituals of wayfaring | | Author(s) | Martin Whiteford |
| Journal title | Housing, Care and Support, vol 13, no 2, May 2010 |
| Pages | pp 6-13 |
| Source | Website: http://www.pierprofessional.com doi: 10.5042/hcs.2010.0474 |
| Keywords | Homelessness ; Transient persons ; Older men ; Isolation ; Pastoral care ; Qualitative Studies. |
| Annotation | This article looks at the often complex and enduring relationships between wayfarers (itinerant homeless men) and religious and therapeutic communities, with an eye to examining some of the ways in which such 'outsider' organisations embody forms of support and care that in many important respects deviate from traditional night-shelters and mainstream day-centres. It aims to achieve this task in four steps. First, the defining characteristics (endurance, mobility, rurality, work) of wayfaring are described. Then the author considers how vow-based communities enable wayfarers, seeking a rest on their journey's way, to experience (albeit temporarily) feelings of acceptance and expressions of hospitality. Next, some of these themes are illustrated with a discussion that draws on ethnographic research undertaken at Pilsdon Manor, a Christian community in rural West Dorset that offers a refuge to people in crisis, and which has been materially and spiritually sustained by 50 years of close engagement with wayfarers. Lastly, the article points to topics that might be elaborated on in future research on the culture of wayfaring and alternative homeless service providers. (KJ/RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-101018201 A |
| Classmark | K4A: TH: BC: TP: OW: 3DP |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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