Paper short abstract:

In this paper I draw on the work of Deleuze and Latour to contrast two kinds of urban religious space in Manila.

Paper long abstract:

This paper contrasts two kinds of religious space or assemblage in contemporary Manila: I begin with the the church-plaza assemblage with its baroque, Spanish colonial-era architectures of walls and carefully regulated flows of bodies and things. I contrast this with the virtual and physical assemblage of the charismatic El Shaddai movement, and its privileging of hyper-mobility and connectivity. Drawing from Deleuze and Latour I suggest that each of these assemblages forms a pattern, and when these patterns are overlaid, one on top of the other, a kaleidoscope effect is generated which reveals a changing sequence of elements as well as the generation of new ones. Importantly, the changes appear to be the property of the assemblages themselves.