الإصدار 5 - العدد 14 (2026-05-20)

Performing Salvation: The Transformation of Religious Ritual from Mystery Cycles to Eliot’s Modernist Martyr Play

1- Prof.Dr: Ansam Riyadh Abdullah Almaaroof

2- Researcher: Yasmeen AbdulRaheem Saeed AlSaji

1- Tikrit University - College of Education for Women- English Department

2- Ministry of Education - Open Educational College -Samarra Centre

Performing Salvation is an exploration of how the form and structure of religious rituals change over time and how this effect is reflected in the works of T. S. Eliot. The first half of this study examines how religious rituals evolved from being a communal activity and a part of collective identity in the communal and Civic performance culture of medieval Mystery Cycles, to Eliot's development of his own individual and subjective approach to religious ritual in h478 is play Murder in the Cathedral. The second half discusses how Eliot redeems the individual martyrdom of Thomas Becket by interpreting his death in terms of the psychological process of developing a personal relationship with God through the actions taken by Jesus Christ during his earthly life, through his Passion, and through the resurrection, and through the resurrection after three days of death. By examining both the Christian and Greek traditions, the study will demonstrate how Eliot’s approach to religious ritual provides an understanding of modern-day Christians who have moved away from communal worship, to a more personal and individual form of worship, allowing individuals to once again become agents of their faith. As a result, there remains an unresolved question of how concepts of salvation, martyrdom, and sacred performance are redefined across time in response to changing cultural, intellectual, and spiritual conditions.