Communitas - Nina Salzberg

Turner defines communitas as "a relational quality of full unmediated communication, even communion, between definite and determinate identities, which arises spontaneously in all kinds of groups, situations, and circumstances". Communitas is different than a community in that communitas as a sense of personal connection to other people. In a community you are in relation to people, but not necessarily on a personal level with them. In communities you live near each other but you dont have to interact. In communitas you interact with people on a personal level. You get to know them. For example, on pilgrimages, you have to hike with people you've never met. After a while you get to know who these people really are and why they are there. You get a sense of connection with them. I like this quote from Turner "communitas is an essential and generic human bond". Communitas is a bond, a bond that you cant get from being in a community.