Conflict and strife on the way to Gethsemane.

Marian rituals have been the apex of Christian believers' journey for centuries. Although its research importance in many disciplines, Marian devotion and rituals in Israel have been largely neglected. This article outlines several social and religious aspects of ‘the public dimension of the ritual’. These aspects include several lines of conflict and strife taking place between a myriad array of socio-ethnic groups: between the Greek Orthodox and the Palestinian Greek Orthodox communities; between the Palestinian Greek Orthodox communities and clergymen; between Palestinian believers and pilgrims; and between the Greek Orthodox and Jews/Muslim believers. This research is based upon a combination of two principal qualitative methodologies: participant observations which took place over a period of three years and in-depth interviews with believers and clergymen. The fieldwork is focused around a procession taking place in the Old City of Jerusalem at the end of August, celebrating Mary's death and resurrection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]