ISSN 2084–1418
The paper edition of the Anthropology of History Yearbook is the definitive version
2013, No. 2 (5), Genealogies of Culture
Adam Romejko
The Mimetic Stranger in Biblical Accounts of the Denial of Saint Peter
PDF version
Keywords: Gospel, René Girard, Jesus, speech, stranger, mimetic theory, the denial of Saint Peter, community, shame
Abstract: The paper is a mimetic analysis of the reality of a stranger in the context of biblical accounts of the denial of Saint Peter. As the community of Jesus and his disciples has fallen apart, Peter is looking for a new one. He thinks he has found friends in the courtyard of the high priest’s house. Belonging to the community does not last long. Peter is treated as an uninvited foreigner and intruder. Peter attempts to defend himself. His behaviour is characterised by the mimetic mechanism. He rejects his Master because he hopes to find new friends in this way. Peter’s behaviour is far from unique. Rather, it should be treated as the model (pattern) which is repeated by all those who seek shelter and acceptance in a new community. Everyone who has experience losing a community and is looking for a new one (whether it is a „new pupil” in a class or an immigrant in a foreign country) will recreate Peter’s experience to a certain extent.
About Author:
ROMEJKO ADAM – priest, political scientist, Assistant Professor in the Institute of Political Science in the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Gdańsk.
