都會區中年女性天主教友的認同研究

The Religious Identity of the Middle-age Female Catholic Believers in Metropolitan Area

本文將以位女性受訪者的敘述材料作為分析對象，以認同理論分析她們的認同現象。主題聚焦於宗教信仰的認同，本文試圖論證，信徒的宗教認同是經由個體與不同群體、乃至不同文化之間，持續交互辯證的發展歷程。本文企圖把女性信徒的宗教認同以族群文化認同、母職（motherhood）身分認同、自我的宗教認同三個層面來討論。本文發現，自我建立主體性過程，站立於社會多元世界觀和不同規範的邊界之前思索時，經由對神聖象徵符號的宇宙秩序的理解和體驗，自我得以尋求一個更高觀點的理解和實踐。

This paper applies the theory of self-identification to analyze the similarities found in the narratives of four Catholic female informants regarding their self-identify. It hence focuses on religious identity which it views as the outcome of the believer's dialectical interactions with others, with the community and with culture. The discussion further depicts three kinds of identification: with one's cultural/ethnic group, with the role of motherhood, and with one's religious affiliation. Finally, the paper retains that given the boundary context wherein the process takes place, given the complex and different worldviews and norms at play, building up a religious self-identity requires a higher perspective rooted in and sustained by an understood, realized and reflected upon experience of the symbols of the Holy and the cosmic order.