AUTHENTIC ARABS, AUTHENTIC CHRISTIANS: ANTIOCHIAN ORTHODOX and the MOBILIZATION of CULTURAL IDENTITY by Matthew W. Stiffler
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AUTHENTIC ARABS, AUTHENTIC CHRISTIANS: ANTIOCHIAN ORTHODOX AND THE MOBILIZATION OF CULTURAL IDENTITY by Matthew W. Stiffler A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (American Culture) in The University of Michigan 2010 Doctoral Committee: Assistant Professor Nadine C. Naber, Chair Associate Professor Scott T. Kurashige Associate Professor Andrew J. Shryock Assistant Professor Andrea Smith, University of California, Riverside © Matthew W. Stiffler All rights reserved 2010 Dedicated to my family and my moo ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This project would not have been possible without the parishioners and clergy of the Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese. I want to first thank Fr. George Shalhoub and the deacons, staff, and parishioners of St. Mary’s Antiochian Orthodox Basilica in Livonia, MI, particularly the members of the festival planning committee and those individuals who allowed me to interview them. With their knowledge and hospitality, Julia Ritter, Pam Ferkett, and the staff at the Heritage and Learning Center’s and museum and library at the Antiochian Village enabled me to tell a more complete story about the archdiocese. With everyone’s help I have tried to present a fair and critical analysis of the role of cultural identity in the archdiocese, but any omissions or errors are solely my responsibility. At the University of Michigan I want to thank my advisors, Nadine Naber and Andrew Shryock, who have guided me through every step of my development as a scholar. I hope my work is an accurate reflection of my training and my admiration for their scholarship. I am thankful for the intellectual community of the Arab American studies program, particularly Evelyn Alsultany. I am grateful to my dissertation committee, Andrea Smith and Scott Kurashige, for their time and feedback. The Program in American Culture has generously supported my studies and has given me the freedom to construct my own interdisciplinary approach. Marlene Moore and the American Culture office staff has kept me on track in addition to keeping the entire graduate program running efficiently. iii I also have to thank my colleagues and fellow graduate students in American Culture, History, and Anthropology, specifically the amazing, incomparable members of Groove Theory, aka fall 2004 cohort. Thoughtful and encouraging feedback on this dissertation has also come from the members of the Best Looking Writing Group (BLWG), Brian, Sharon, and Manan. In the final push to finish my degree (in addition to teaching and applying for jobs), Margot was the best writing/complaining partner I could have asked for. Along those lines, I need to thank the many baristas at Amer’s and Espresso Royale who have kept me caffeinated throughout the years. More than anything, I want this dissertation to be a testament to my parents Bob and Helene, my sister Kristin, and my entire family, who have supported me throughout my twelve years (!) of college. Because of their love and support, no longer will I have to field the question, “so when are you going to finish?” I also need to thank my extended family, the Crooks, who have fed me and given me friendship and advice throughout my graduate career. But in the last two years, the real push to finish this project came from my beautiful girlfriend Jourdan, whose dedication to her own studies and career motivated me to get off of my ass and start writing. Finally, my ethnographic work and archival research was partially funded by research grants from the Rackham School of Graduate Studies and the Program in American Culture. The Institute for Signifying Scriptures, at the Claremont Graduate School, directed by Vincent Wimbush, also provided support for the early stages of my ethnographic work. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION .................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................... iii LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................................................... vii CHAPTER 1 Introduction................................................................................................... 1 The Antiochian Orthodox Church, St. Mary’s Basilica, and an Arab Cultural Identity .................................................................................................................... 3 The Space of the Church and Lived Religion ....................................................... 15 The Cultural and the Multicultural ....................................................................... 21 Methods................................................................................................................. 41 Interventions and Chapter Outlines ...................................................................... 46 CHAPTER 2 Mobilizing Cultural Identity: Christianity, Politicized Action, and Humanitarian Aid.............................................................................................................. 53 Background of Politicized Action and Humanitarian Aid .................................... 56 1976–77................................................................................................................. 60 1977, “Antiochian Holy Year” ............................................................................. 68 Post-9/11 ............................................................................................................... 73 Biblical Case against Israel ................................................................................... 82 CHAPTER 3 Arabian Nights, Self-Orientalism, and Representational Practices ............ 87 Arabian Nights and U.S. Orientalism ................................................................... 90 Antiochian Deployments of the Arabian Nights ................................................... 96 Internal Negotiations ........................................................................................... 112 Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 122 CHAPTER 4 The Antiochian Food Festival: Multiculturalism and the Deployment of Cultural Identity .............................................................................................................. 125 Food and its Festival ........................................................................................... 128 Bicentennial-era Multiculturalism and the Festival ............................................ 131 The Festival as a Playful Space .......................................................................... 138 Theorizing the Festival ....................................................................................... 148 A Publicly Traded Commodity ........................................................................... 152 Antiochian Women: Feeding Orthodoxy ............................................................ 159 v CHAPTER 5 The 2009 Sahara Fest................................................................................ 170 Arabness in the Festival Space ........................................................................... 172 St. Mary’s and Festival ....................................................................................... 177 Gender in the Festival Space............................................................................... 180 The Planning Meetings and My Role as Ethnographer/Worker ......................... 183 Anxieties of Representation ................................................................................ 186 Is it an Arab and American festival? Negotiations of Music and Food .............. 194 Outcomes and Futures......................................................................................... 201 CHAPTER 6 A “New Antioch”: The Holy Land and Authentic Christianity ............... 206 Antiochians and Their Holy Land ....................................................................... 210 Apostolic Succession and abouna ...................................................................... 215 The Rhetorical Holy Land .................................................................................. 219 A Basilica for the Future: Arabness and Christian Authenticity in Livonia ....... 223 Arabic in Church: Cultural Identity and Authenticity ........................................ 227 CHAPTER 7 Epilogue: The Camel as Church Mascot .................................................. 235 WORKS CITED ............................................................................................................. 245 vi LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1-1 Entrance to Antiochian Heritage Museum at the Antiochian Village .............. 7 Figure 1-2 A second view of museum entrance ................................................................. 8 Figure 1-3 St. Mary’s Antiochian Orthodox Basilica, Livonia, MI ................................. 12 Figure 1-4 Flyer for 1972 hafli in Altoona, PA ................................................................ 39 Figure 2-1 Opening page of the 1977 archdiocese convention program book ................ 69 Figure 3-1 Flyer for 2008 hafli at St. George, Little Falls, NJ ......................................... 99 Figure 3-2 Cover of program book from 1983 St. George (Pittsburgh, PA) food fair ... 102 Figure 3-3 Advertisement for