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CATEGORIES:Lecture,Reception,Academic Calendar
DESCRIPTION:In Ireland today\, those involved in after death care—particula
 rly\, undertakers (a.k.a. funeral directors)\, embalmers\, clergy\, and hum
 anist and civil celebrants—spend considerable time in the presence of both 
 the deceased and the bereaved. Among those who facilitate funeral home visi
 tations\, home wakes\, removals\, funerals\, and burials or cremations\, st
 ories about spirits of the dead making themselves known (and other potentia
 lly supernatural experiences) are a significant portion of shared occupatio
 nal lore that is informed by long-established beliefs and practices. These 
 stories (termed ‘memorates’ by folklorists)\, combined with ethnographic ob
 servations of how death care workers perform their jobs\, reveal a range of
  belief\, disbelief\, and hedged positions on the existence of spirits\, an
  afterlife\, and more mysterious aspects of reality in a supposedly disench
 anted world.\n\n \n\nBurns Library will host a complimentary reception begi
 nning at 5:00pm\, with Prof. Cashman's lecture to follow at 6:00pm. All are
  welcome. \n\n \n\nRay Cashman is Provost Professor of Folklore at Indiana 
 University Bloomington. He is the author of two prize-winning books: Storyt
 elling on the Northern Irish Border: Characters and Community (2008) and Pa
 cky Jim: Folklore and Worldview on the Irish Border (2016) as well as numer
 ous articles and essays. Elected a fellow and board member of the American 
 Folklore Society\, Cashman has served as editor of the Journal of Folklore 
 Research and series editor for two book series published by Indiana Univers
 ity Press. For further background on Professor Cashman and his Burns Visiti
 ng Scholar residency\, please visit the Burns Visiting Scholar in Irish Stu
 dies web page.
DTEND:20260408T220000Z
DTSTAMP:20260314T172209Z
DTSTART:20260408T210000Z
GEO:42.336704;-71.171364
LOCATION:Burns Library
SEQUENCE:0
SUMMARY:Ray Cashman\, Burns Scholar Spring 2026: “Exploring Belief in Spiri
 ts of the Dead among Contemporary Irish Death Care Workers”
UID:tag:localist.com\,2008:EventInstance_51932812205701
URL:https://events.bc.edu/event/ray-cashman-burns-scholar-spring-2026-explo
 ring-belief-in-spirits-of-the-dead-among-contemporary-irish-death-care-work
 ers
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