Brittany Wissen -- Communitas in Pilgrims

Communitas, as explained by Turner in Image and Pilgrimage in Christian Culture, is “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” (250). Communitas, in general, is unstructured, flat, and non-hierarchical. Usually, the group involved is very diverse, brought together by nothing more than similar situations. This type of bond is most often formed in harsh situations when one must rely on another. Pilgrimages, again, are a great example of this. Because everyone is striving for the same goal, they share interest, and therefore oftentimes work together to achieve that goal.

source:

Turner, Victor and Edith L. B. Image and Pilgrimage in Christian Culture. New York: Columbia University Press, 1978.