Tradition as Play? Orthodoxy, Aesthetics and Irony in Catholic Traditionalism

Abstract

This article examines the daily life of one Catholic traditionalist community in St. Petersburg, the followers of the Society of St. Pius X. As the Catholic Church has undergone a revision of traditional Catholic aesthetics since the Second Vatican Council (primarily in the liturgical context), traditionalists have sought to restore an orthodox vision of aesthetics. This goal is realized in the autonomous organization of the Tridentine Mass and the reflections on the decline of liturgical piety. The traditionalists’ search for connections between orthodoxy and the realm of beauty also extends to the areas of everyday life, where they meticulously construct an aesthetically verified traditional image. This scrupulousness often gives grounds for observers to compare traditionalism with a play, which is reflected by the Society’s followers in the ironic modality. Drawing on the work of anthropologists Simon Coleman, John Elsner, and Tanya Luhrmann, the author shows the epistemological entanglements between seriousness and irony, orthodoxy and creativity in the contemporary Catholic Traditionalist movement.