Religious Pilgrimage in the Global South From Christianity to African Spirituality in South Africa

Religious Pilgrimage in the Global South From Christianity to African Spirituality in South Africa

Unathi Sonwabile Henama, Bianca Mkhize-Simelane, Lebogang Matholwane Mathole, Madiseng Messiah Phori, Lehlohonolo Gibson Mokoena
Copyright: © 2023 |Pages: 11
DOI: 10.4018/979-8-3693-1414-2.ch001
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Abstract

The growth of tourism in South Africa after the end of apartheid can be associated with the growth of various forms of special interest tourism such as religious tourism. Religious pilgrimages produce positive spin offs for many destinations in South Africa that may not be regarded as traditional tourism destinations. Religious tourism is very robust in South Africa due to the existence of major African Initiated Churches (AICs) such as the Zion Christian Church, located in Moria City, outside Limpopo Province. There are, however, major religious tourism trips motivated by African Spirituality to destinations such as Isinuka in the Eastern Cape Province. The presence of the religious tourists in these small towns are closely related to low-density tourism in rural hinterlands leading to the geographic spread of tourists. The investigated pilgrimage events in the Global South give the reader a tapestry from mega pilgrimage events such as those undertaken by the Zion and Shembe Church and smaller scale pilgrimage occurring at Isinuka and Robben Island's Kramat.
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Special Interest Tourism

The motivation for traveling differs for different people, which is often based on the psycho-sociological factors according to Stone & Petrick (2013). Different forms of tourism can be distinguished, and the main two categories of tourism are alternative and mass tourism. Mass tourism is often associated with environmental issues as it involves large crowds to a specific destination, and alternative tourism, on the other hand, is associated with natural, social, and community values as noted by Ivanovic et al. (2009). The concept of alternative tourism is sometimes referred to as special interest tourism (SIT) or niche tourism. Special interest tourism can be traced as early as the 1980s in tourism literature as noted by Ma, Kirilenko & Stepchenkova (2020). The best way to conceptualise special interest tourism is the understanding that people often develop new interests in specific destinations as noted by Swarbrook & Horner (1999). These new interests give birth to new market segments within the tourism umbrella. Special interest tourism can create a competitive advance for a destination such as with gorilla treks in Rwanda, the Hajj in Saudi Arabia and snow tourism in winter destinations. For this reason, initially, the concept of special interest tourism was used to outline market segments in tourism as noted by Jin and Sparks (2017). Over the years, special interest tourism has developed into a wide range of tourism categories, such as adventure tourism, culinary as can be associated with the growth of individual interests being packaged for tourism consumption by tourism companies. One of the most untapped forms of niche tourism is religious tourism, a market with a large number of tourists traveling to pilgrimage sites, and it is an economic contributor in many localities.

Religious Tourism

Religious tourism also known as pilgrimage tourism has been a popular form of travel for centuries. It involves traveling to holy sites and places of worship to engage in religious activities, including prayer, meditation, and worship as noted by Apleni & Henama (2017). Nkwanyana et al. (2022) noted when one travels for leisure is a tourist, while a traveller seeking a religious or spiritual experience is essentially a pilgrim. Pilgrims would be classified under religious tourism because religious travel is associated with tourism consumption and it benefits the tourism value chain. Religious tourism is a rapidly growing segment of the tourism industry, attracting millions of visitors every year to various sacred sites and pilgrimage destinations around the world as noted by Goodall & Sharpley (2013). In recent years, religious tourism has experienced a surge in popularity, and it is projected to continue to grow in the future according to Chang (2017). It has shown significant growth over the years as various religions spread or are being conceived Griffin & Raj (2017), Nyikana (2017) Saayman, Saayman & Gyekye (2013). This leads to individuals visiting holy places, sanctuaries, tomb sites of historical spiritual people or forefathers as well as to learn the history and proper traditions of their respective spiritual beliefs Apleni & Henama (2017), Duran-Sanchez, Álvarez-García, Río-Rama & Cristiana Oliveira (2018).

Fadare & Benson (2015) assert that religious tourism, particularly in Africa, has transitioned from a niche to complete industry. According to Huang and Pearce (2019), by location, sacred places tend to be away from commercial or residential areas; this way, people are able to escape from the demanding daily lives to find restoration. One such sacred place is in Moria, Limpopo which attracts a large number of Zion Christian Church (ZCC) worshippers and non-religious groups seeking healing, not only from South Africa but also neighboring countries. Such journeys entail undertaking a spiritual journey that is generally motivated by faith (Nicolaides and Grobler, 2017). The popularity of such pilgrimage is also because churches are gradually becoming a duality of places to worship and attractions according to Raj and Griffin (2015). As noted by Nyikana (2017) despite the fact that religious tourism has been in existence for centuries, there is still a dearth of academic focus on this tourism niche area especially in the developing context.

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