The many lives of Bertha, Georges and Jean: a transgender mystic in interwar Belgium

Abstract: This article addresses the religious career of a transgender mystic who died as Père Jean in 1967. While it might sound contradictory, for scholars working on women, mysticism and charisma, sources on Jean’s life offer exceptional insights. When Jean made the news in the 1920s, he headlined as Bertha Mrazek/Georges Marasco and was still perceived as a woman. Bertha’s cross-dressing, miraculous cure and law suit started discussions about what it meant to be a charismatic woman in post-war Belgium. Rather than focusing on the sensational aspects, the emphasis here is on Jean’s reinvent... Mehr ...

Verfasser: Van Osselaer, Tine
Dokumenttyp: Artikel
Erscheinungsdatum: 2020
Schlagwörter: Religious studies / History
Sprache: Englisch
Permalink: https://search.fid-benelux.de/Record/base-27378049
Datenquelle: BASE; Originalkatalog
Powered By: BASE
Link(s) : https://hdl.handle.net/10067/1652550151162165141

Abstract: This article addresses the religious career of a transgender mystic who died as Père Jean in 1967. While it might sound contradictory, for scholars working on women, mysticism and charisma, sources on Jean’s life offer exceptional insights. When Jean made the news in the 1920s, he headlined as Bertha Mrazek/Georges Marasco and was still perceived as a woman. Bertha’s cross-dressing, miraculous cure and law suit started discussions about what it meant to be a charismatic woman in post-war Belgium. Rather than focusing on the sensational aspects, the emphasis here is on Jean’s reinventions, the historicity of his appeal to others, and the importance of ideals of gender and sanctity as well as the historical context in the reception of this transgender mystic.