This Book gives an overview and genealogy of Revivalism. It explores the role of the Revival Iconography in the building of a culture of shared understanding among Revivalists and by extension African Jamaicans The Revival network was traced through a study of the people, setting and programs of one church and observations made at other churches allowing for some degree of comparison. The Watt Town setting with Bands coming together from communities all over Jamaica engaging in the same practices was proposed as a symbolic homeland where people celebrate their Africanness and sustain the collective memory of Revivalists.
The Revival Iconography is explored through its many modes; visual, sound and movement. Seals, symbols and color symbolism are presented as a representation of the repertoire of images that make up the Revival Iconography. Insights as to how the Iconography articulates the Revival cosmology in the rituals and ceremonies are explored. The spaces created by the seals are treated as performance and liminal space for the enactment of cultural performances. Embodied techniques like music gestures and possession dance are examined for the cues that facilitate the expression of Revival philosophy and aesthetic preferences.
The Author makes the point that it is the iconography that makes it possible for Revivalists to interpret events and rituals in very much the same way across Jamaica. Hence it functions as symbolic language and culture carrier central to the practice and production of shared meanings that gives Revivalists a sense of identity. The Revival iconography stores information that makes it possible for Revivalists to reconnect with African Metaphysics thus reclaiming the African self.
