Sacred Space Research Articles

Baptists in Sacred Space? Worship, Buildings, and Belonging

ABSTRACT An exploration, with particular reference to one Yorkshire chapel and families associated with it, of Baptists’ need for buildings to fit their worship, fellowship, and polity. The first section introduces theme, builders, architects, benefactors, noting James Cubitt and Thomas Harwood Pattison, men sensitive to aesthetics. The second outlines the development of Wainsgate. The third is about ‘belonging’. Family connections are explored, including the Mitchells and the Fawcetts who provide the focus for the fourth and fifth sections: John Fawcett, Wainsgate's first minister, and great-grandson William Mitchell Fawcett, barrister, friend of T.H. Pattison, contributing with him to Religious Republics (1869), considered in the final section. Fawcett's contribution, might be seen as an essay on belonging. What he analysed in 1869 remains relevant and explains Wainsgate, unique yet representative.

Analysing the sacred landscape in the Iberian Culture: GIS, caves and ritual performance

Sacred spaces, such as Iberian caves, with liminal location and character, had important ritual significance and socio-political meanings for their communities. Through the Geographical Information Systems –GIS– techniques, we can analyse these sacred spaces in context. In this paper, by using a regional study as an example, we show the main analysis undertaken with gis, such as visibility and mobility, considering diverse variables and formulas. This will allow to develop comparative perspectives with other similar Mediterranean contexts. A first approach to the sacred landscape of the Iberian Iron Age territory of Edeta, in Llíria, València, is presented, analysing two ritual caves in context: Cueva del Sapo and Cueva Merinel, located on the southern border of the territory and frequented between the fifth and the second centuries BC. By using diverse models, we propose access routes to them, with the final objective of thinking about the effort and symbolism that a ritual journey linked to these natural sacred locations would imply.

The Historical Books: 1 Chronicles–2 Maccabees

The Historical Books1 Chronicles–2 Maccabees Christopher T. Begg, Fred W. Guyette, Richard A. Taylor, and Thomas Hieke 556. [Levites of Memory in Chronicles; Historical Levites in Late-Persian Yehud] Ehud Ben Zvi, "Levites of Memory in Chronicles: and Some Considerations about Historical Levites in Late-Persian Yehud," Chronicles and the Priestly Literature, 281-304 [see #914]. In his contribution, B.Z. presents his view according to which the Levites in Chronicles are the "complementary other" of the priests as imagined by the Chronicler, rather than [End Page 189] as the latter's conflicting counterpart in reality. Reviewing the biblical and postbiblical sources about the Levites, he argues that the Levites as sanctuary singers and gatekeepers were never as influential a group as were the priests. B.Z. likewise interprets the Chronicler's depiction of the Levites as an instance of the "normalization" of social memory for purposes of social cohesion on the part of a small group of social literati in late Persianperiod Jerusalem. In other words, the Chronicler's depiction of the Levites reflects the literati's conception of how the Levites should have been viewed in the monarchic period on the basis of the literati's authoritative textual repertoire (including the Pentateuch and Ezekiel). [Adapted from editors' introduction, p. 8—C.T.B.] 557. [Atonement, Sacred Space, and Ritual Time in the Chronicler's Reading of the P Pentateuchal Narrative] Benjamin D. Giffone, "Atonement, Sacred Space and Ritual Time: The Chronicler as Reader of Priestly Pentateuchal Narrative," Chronicles and the Priestly Literature, 221-43 [see #914]. G.'s contribution reads and interprets accounts in Chronicles in light of texts of P and Ezekiel. Thus, e.g., he explains the motif of atonement and the extension of the festival in the Chronicler's account of Hezekiah's Passover (2 Chronicles 29) in relation to Leviticus 8–10 with its continuation in Leviticus 16 as well as Ezekiel 43–45. Similarly, G. interprets the narrative of Uzziah's incense offering in 2 Chr 26:16-23 against the background of Leviticus 10 and Numbers 16, and suggests a solution for the potential overlap between the Day of Atonement and Solomon's dedication of the temple (2 Chronicles 5–8) by reference to the appearance of the glory of Yhwh featured in Ezekiel 40 and 45. G. concludes that, as an early interpreter of Torah, the Chronicler seems to have charted a path that sought to include both the Deuteronomistic and the Priestly traditions (broadly understood) and both Levites and the Zadokite priests in their own specific and necessary cultic roles. [Adapted from editors' introduction, p. 7—C.T.B.] 558. [Chronicles; P; Scribes in the Postexilic Temple] Lester L. Grabbe, "Scribes in the Post Exilic Temple: A Social Perspective," Chronicles and the Priestly Literature, 201-20 [see #914]. G.'s essay approaches the overarching issue of the consonance and dissonance between the Chronicler's work and the Priestly materials of the HB from the perspective of priestly scribal culture. After reviewing scribal models from Egypt and Mesopotamia, G. narrows his focus to the priestly scribes in Yehud. Here, G. draws on a model from Homeric studies of transcribing oral traditions that he views as applicable to the formation of biblical texts. He concludes that P was produced during the Persian period by priestly scribes, whereas Chronicles was written in the early Greek period, a century or two later than P, by an individual or individuals close to the priesthood. With regard to the relationship between the two corpora, G. argues that the Chronicler(s) used a variety of sources in an inclusive fashion, not only the P document, but also a version of Samuel–Kings, oral forms of priestly and temporal traditions, and a utopian vision of a theocratic paradise. [Adapted from editors' introduction, p. 7—C.T.B.] 559. [The Righteousness of the Levites in Chronicles and Ezekiel] Christine Mitchell, "The righteousness of the Levites in Chronicles and Ezekiel," Chronicles and the Priestly Literature, 337-47 [see #914]. In her article, M. compares the notion of "righteousness" in Ezekiel 44 and 2 Chronicles 29 and suggests that these...

Classrooms as Sacred Space: Structures for Holistic Teaching and Learning Practices in Higher Education

This article explores the notion of the classroom as a sacred space, through the lenses of Indigeneity and Waldorf-inspired practices to examine the ways pedagogical practices create spaces for learning and holistic well-being. Using a series of qualitative ethnographic studies highlighting courses at higher education institutions in Arizona and Minnesota, this article examines student reflections on experiences within the courses and curricula. Student responses point to conceptions of the course “rituals” that fostered emotional and mental wellness and contrasted these to courses in the “real world” that did the opposite. The article concludes with reflections on structures within the classroom and implications for teaching and learning.

The Flowing of the Sacred Space: How Reciprocal Exchanges with Deities Are Affected by Urbanization

Although there is a consensus on religious revival in China, it must be noted that popular religion and institutional religions such as Buddhism and Daoism adopt different strategies to survive the state’s regulations. Many temples that used to facilitate the worship of local deities have to establish some form of intangible cultural heritage or emphasize the deity’s history and folklore to de-religionize. During this process, a temple may earn its lawful place to survive, but risks its communality in the village. Based on studies of rural and urban temples in Henan and Shandong provinces, in this paper, I attempt to understand people’s religiosity and how they conduct the human–deity exchange under social transformation. Popular religion is characterized by the pursuit of efficacy and its embeddedness in rural life. The traditional binary exchange with deities could be used to maintain a relationship with deities as well as offer urgent solutions, while three-party chains of exchange not only constitute a religious gift economy but also offer a religious agent to seek answers. I argue that temples are marginalized and excluded from village life, so people need to find new means by which to continue their religious practices beyond what the state sponsors, and this has led to the flowing of sacred places.

Research on the Interdependence and Interaction between Sacred Space and Religious Personality—Centered on the Political and Religious Image of Wanhui 萬回 (632–712)

As a famous “miraculous monk” dating from the Tang Dynasty, Wanhui (632–712) was favored by four emperors, Gaozong (r. 649–683), Empress Wu (regency: 684–690; reign: 690–705), Zhongzong (r. 683–684, r. 705–710) and Ruizong (r. 684–690, r. 710–712). Relying on his special religious status as a Buddhist palace chaplain, he was alleged to have created religious momentum and to have advocated political opinions to maintain the “legitimacy” of the Li-Tang imperial family, but he was unfailingly able to avoid political persecution. Although there have been some academic publications on Wanhui and the group of “miraculous monks” and “mad monks” in the Tang Dynasty, there are still ambiguities in the understanding of Wanhui’s political and religious image. This article firstly conducts textual research on the interdependence and interaction between the sacred space of the Tang Buddhist palace chapel on the one hand and religious personality as represented by Wanhui on the other. The former gave the latter a rich religious sacredness, mystical charm and strong political support; while the latter, in turn, strengthened the religious and political functions of the unique Buddhist institution in the service of imperial power, manifesting itself in the consolidation and elevation of the former. Secondly, by investigating the reasons for shaping the political and religious images of Wanhui in monastic biography and Buddhist hagiography, this article argues that this was a conscious arrangement due to the political purposes or religious intentions of the compilers. Finally, by exploring how Wanhui exerted various subtle political and religious impacts on the Tang emperors by virtue of his status as a miraculous Buddhist palace chaplain—partly imparted by sacredness of the Buddhist palace chapel—this article attempts to shed new light on several key aspects of the complicated state–saṃgha relationship during this special period of the Tang Dynasty.

Liminality-Ecumenical Space in the Dumia Umbanua Ritual in Kaima Village, North Minahasa

This article wants to see how far the ritual role of village governance, which in Tonsea language is called Dumia Umbanua, creates a Limanalytic Space based on the ecumenical movement of church denominations in Kaima Village, North Minahasa Regency. The implementation of this ritual adheres to the concept of the Minahasa local beliefs of the past, making requests to stones, trees, waruga (Minahasa ancestral graves), giving offerings in the form of offerings is a form of teaching that is far different from the Christian-Catholic religious teachings that exist in Kaima Village today. So the act of letting go of religious identity and taking part in rituals by church leaders is the topic of this research. The theory used is Limanality from Victor Turner who sees the influence of ritual implementation to bring parallels between church denominations in a village regardless of majority and minority positions and religious identity. By doing this in practice, the churches formed an ecumenical movement by leaving their respective sacred spaces and entering the profane space and even creating a space of liminality which can be interpreted as a form of ecumenical-liminal space through the implementation of the Dumia Umbanua Ritual.

Theology and Topophilia in Sacred Spaces: John Bradburne’s Way of the Water

John Bradburne’s (1921–1979) poetics of sacred space and sacred waters highlights a geo-specific correlation between theology and topophilia. There is a world of water enclosed within the sacred woods and mountains, rocks, grottoes, and caves where this lay Franciscan servant of God prayed and had his ecstatic visions. The topophilia and cosmology of the Canticle of the Creatures of Saint Francis underlie Bradburne’s poetic inspiration, as waters flow in profusion from fountains, lakes, rivers, wells, and pools. The scope of the present research is to chart Bradburne’s Franciscan and Marian devotion and the dynamics determining the sacralisation of spaces and lustral waters. Thus, the action of Bradburne bathing patients in the Mutemwa leper colony near Mutoko, together with the pool of water on Mount Chigona where Bradburne bathed, contextualised a space of purification, contemplation, and harmony, while the civil war raged around Mashonaland in Zimbabwe. The element of water seems to map out Bradburne’s mystic life, from his birthplace near the Lake District and Devon to Lourdes and Assisi, to India, the waters of Galilee, and the Libyan oasis—and, eventually, to the pool on Mount Chigona. Since Bradburne’s death, the Mount has become a site of pilgrimage and devotion.

Relocating a Sacred Space: From Mount Zion to the New Jerusalem in the Mystic Poetry of Rastafari

Biblical scriptures, holy chants and prayers, stories of conquest and destruction, pilgrimages and diaspora narratives have provided a range of perspectives related to the city of Jerusalem. Different cultures and faiths have interpreted its symbolic value and claimed belonging, conquest, ownership, and possession. Amongst these are the Rastafari, members of a spiritual movement that originated in Jamaica, who claim Davidic roots and aim for repatriation to their Promised Land, the New Jerusalem. In their vision, the sacred space of the city of Jerusalem has been relocated to Ethiopia, the land where the Ark of the Covenant has been supposedly moved to, along with the throne of Solomon. The scope of this article is to contextualise how the dynamics of Rastafari mystical poetry have redefined a physical and metaphysical space and the significance of this space as expressed through the biblical archetype of Zion/Jerusalem. The contribution focuses on the comparative textual analysis of multimedia repertoires related to the symbolic and geographical (re)location of the sacred space of Zion/Jerusalem, highlighting how the interpretation of sacred texts and historical events has impacted the spiritual geography and cross-cultural Rastafari iconography at a global level.

The Digital Approach of The Architecture Narrative to The Relation of Gereja Ayam Sacred Space and Social Space in Pasar Baru Neighborhood

As the main focus of religious celebrations, a religious building becomes a magnet for the social celebrants. The architectural composition of a religious structure is undoubtedly a crucial factor in determining the quality of public space in its surroundings. This study aims to explore the relationship between the sacred space of Gereja Ayam and the social space of Pasar Baru. This research employs the digital approach to the narrative storytelling of the Pasar Baru area and the Gereja Ayam as the case study, with the primary state of the art being the social space positioning of the Gereja Ayam sacred space on creating the sustainable urban environment of the Pasar Baru neighborhood. The main research question was how the Gereja Ayam as a sacred space created a close relationship with the Pasar Baru neighborhood. The research would help the digital concept of creating an integrated communal space as part of the Pasar Baru revitalization plan.

New manifestations and meanings of Orthodox Lity - preservation of identity and sacralization of space and time in the Belgrade’s (and broader Serbian) context

In the text, we primarily deal with the observation of the latest manifestations of the Orthodox lity procession ritual and ways of sacralising the space on the example of Belgrade. Accordingly, attention is also paid to the symbolism of different spatial landmarks, which is emphasized at the level of several semantic layers. Recent events have once again actualized the importance of the Lity procession ritual - deeply rooted in both folk tradition and religion - as well as its manifestations, both in the Republic of Serbia and in the wider Serbian ethnic area. The basic and most visible function of Lity is the consecration and marking of space, but also of time, with special significance for a certain ethnic-social context, community or place. However, Lity also have a pronounced cohesive and identity function, as was particularly clearly demonstrated in the example of the defense of holy sites, i.e. of basic religious rights, precisely through Lity in Montenegro. Consequently, Lity proved to be one of the most effective weapons against attempts to deconstruct the Serbian identity. In accordance with the relevant indicators, in our work, with a multidisciplinary approach, various structural and semantic dimensions and possibilities of Lity are considered. This primarily refers to the level of the Belgrade area, but in a more general sense it is also directly related to field and other research on related issues, which were carried out in a much wider area during the previous decades.

Consideration of the Position and Effects of Sacred Places in Urban Morphology in the Context of the Kaaba and its Surroundings

This research aims to explain the effects of holy places on urban morphology, based on the meaning of holy places arising from the needs of different beliefs, through different examples in the world. The effects of holy places on urban morphology will be explained through examples of holy places worldwide. Finally, the existence of the holy places in the city, whose positions and beliefs in the world are discussed, are supported by the necessary maps and drawings, and their differences and similarities are emphasized. In light of these data, the effects of the changes in the structure and urban space on the urban morphology from the first construction of the Kaaba in the city of Mecca in the Hejaz region of Saudi Arabia to the present are examined. From the literature on urban morphology, "factors shaping urban morphology" have been revealed. The change in the urban morphology of the Kaaba and its surroundings is discussed through these factors. The study is expected to contribute to the literature by considering the concepts of sacred space and morphology through a concrete sacred space.

Иерусалим Новый: пространственная икона в Белгородской области в XXI веке

The article discusses modern projects for creating architectural and landscape cop-ies of the Holy Land in Russia known as New Jerusalems. The author draws attention to the recent revival of such projects in the 21st century. This paper describes one project of this kind in the village of Sukharevo, Belgorod region, entitled ‘The City of Salvation New Jerusalem’. The author aims to analyze the process of re-creating the Holy Land toponymy in the layout of this New Jerusalem and to determine its intertextual connections with other similar pro-jects. The research relies on the methodological approach of hierotopy proposed by academi-cian A. M. Lidov. In particular, the article uses the concept of a spatial icon, which is understood as “an image evoked at the perception of a sacred space”. The research also draws upon the methodology of cultural-semiotic transfer developed by S. S. Avanesov. The author considers the hierotopic project in Sukharevo as a complex and multi-layered sacred space based on the uni-versal cultural and historical matrix of Jerusalem. In conclusion, the author emphasizes that the New Jerusalem in Sukharevo is one of the most interesting and important examples of the re-creations of the Holy Land in today’s Russia. The article also discusses visual and semiotic intertextual links of this project with other “New” and “Russian” Jerusalems, which ensures its confessional identity, as well as its adequate recognition and perception by pilgrims.

Noah’s Ark and the Flood in Judaism and Islam: A Bi-optic Perspective of Salvation and Sacred Space

This article analyses Noah’s ark and the flood events from the sacred texts and traditions of Judaism and Islam in an integrative manner. After juxtaposing the Flood Narrative in the Tanakh and the Noahic sūrahs of the Qur’an, key cognate lexemes are examined and their ideological trajectories traced. It is argued, particularly, that, in addition to the evident message of salvation in the Flood texts and traditions, there is a discernible ideological motif of sacred space in both religions, specifically the ark of Noah equivalent to or associated with a temple structure. Further, the Noah’s ark tradition seeps into various ancillary religious practices, both in various eras of Judaism and in Sunnism and Shiism. Thus, the convergences and divergences between Judaism and Islam, the Hebrew Bible and Qur’an concerning the reception history of a common patriarch (Noah) and shared spaces (ark, temple/mosque) is richly variegated from a bi-optic hermeneutical perspective.

The World as a Hospitable Space

In this study I intend to prove that there is a close connection between ethical purposes of Environmental Philosophy as World Philosophy and the idea of sacred nature as part of the “world” in a phenomenological sense, which includes sacred space as defined in the philosophy of religion. The main points that intersect here are: the idea of sacred space; the perception of virtue in a sacred world; the beauty of creation: nature, life, human sensibility. The theoretical background of this study contains points of view that express phenomenological, hermeneutic, theological, and aesthetic conceptions belonging to authors and exegetes such as Mircea Eliade, William E. Paden, David Cave, Ion Ianoși, Douglas Allen, Arnold Berleant, and Vincent Blok. I believe that the neglect of the environment-as-a-condition-of-life (the consequences of which can already be seen in ecological imbalances) is caused by, among other factors, the desacralization of human attitudes towards nature and the world of life. Few people still have a feeling of sacred nature or the aesthetic emotion of perceiving beauty in natural forms. The relationship with the environment and nature is reduced to its exploitation as a source of economic profit or as a way for spending free time, a source of personal comfort devoid of any spiritual significance. Surely we cannot go back to archaic religions or medieval Christianity, but we can reintegrate into our moral values something of those cultures’ admiration and respect for the beauty/sublimity of nature and the world as expressions of divine creation, as something sacred. Philosophical debates related to this retrieval and their dissemination could be part of solving the ecological problems of the contemporary world.

Catholic Church Interiors in Fin-de-Siècle Literature

The works of such late-Victorian writers as Lionel Johnson, Ernest Dowson, Theodore Wratislaw, John Oliver Hobbes and Oscar Wilde represent Catholic churches as retreats set apart from the ugliness and mediocrity of Victorian England—religious versions of Des Esseintes’s Fontenay-aux-Roses house in À rebours—filled with incense, organ music, and coloured light filtering through medieval stained-glass windows. In Dowson’s correspondence or in his poem ‘Benedictio Domini’, in Johnson’s ‘Our Lady of France’, in Wratislaw’s ‘Palm Sunday’ and ‘Songs to Elizabeth’, in some of Wilde’s stories, the opposition between inside and outside expresses figuratively the fundamental incompatibility between an ideal of beauty, embodied in the aesthetic experience of the church, and the coarseness of the outside world. This article explores how such a polarised vision reflects contemporary debates about the interior organisation and decoration of churches. Drawing on William Whyte’s analyses of changing attitudes towards church architecture in the 19th century in Unlocking the Church: The Lost Secrets of Victorian Sacred Space (OUP 2017), it shows how literary representations of church interiors in fin-de-siècle literature reflect the shift from the Protestant aniconic, congregation-centred approach to church design, in favour of an architecture of affect and sensation, where space and ornamentation lead the worshipper to experience the divine through a sensory overload. It focuses on two aspects of church architecture and decoration that are foregrounded in fin-de-siècle poetry and fiction—and were highly polemical in the late Victorian context because of their association with the Ritualist controversy and with ‘Romishness’: the eastward position, i.e. the celebration of the Eucharist on a stone altar fixed to the back of the chancel rather than on a wooden communion table facing the congregation; and altar candles, which were condemned in anti-ritualist pamphlets as both pagan and ‘popish’. Through these two examples, this article argues that fin-de-siècle literary representations of church interiors reflect a major change in the perception of sacred space, from the ‘auditory church’ (Whyte) of the 18th century, where function (essentially focused on the proclamation of the word of God) dictated the organisation of space and even the furnishings, to the ‘visual church’, saturated with symbolism, where the eye, rather than the ear, becomes the central organ of religious experience.

Homage in the Multi-Confessional Legal Space (Crown of Aragon, 14th Century)

This article studies the phenomenon of vassal relations in a situation where the supreme power belongs to a Christian King, and Muslims become his subjects. The research is focused in the formulas and texts from documents in which the establishment of such relations was recorded. The specificity of the medieval Iberian experience in political administration was the need to create a legal space that would be common to both Christians and Muslims. Within the common legal space, all sides would act legitimately and recognize the legitimacy of the final agreements and relations. Thus, both the Latin strategy of government and the Islamic legal culture in the Iberian Peninsula found a way to interact. The article demonstrates how the medieval tradition of creating a shared sacred space was present in everything related to the establishment of vassal relations and taking homage between the Christian sovereign and his Muslim subjects. In this case, a common legal space was built by legal procedures, which included both the oath and the drawing up of a written act.

Military Leaders and Sacred Space in Classical Greek Warfare. Temples, Sanctuaries and Conflict in Antiquity

Military Leaders and Sacred Space in Classical Greek Warfare. Temples, Sanctuaries and Conflict in Antiquity

Метафизический смысл образа стены в произведениях Ф.М. Достоевского

The article deals with the symbolic meanings that the image of the wall has in F.M. Dostoevsky’s works. It is shown that in the story “White Nights” the walls of the room of the protagonist have two opposite functions: on the one hand, they act as boundaries of the inner, subjective space of the personality in which it can freely develop spiritually, and, on the other hand, they limit freedom, do not allowing a person to master, to make the whole endless objective world his own. Particular attention is paid to the story “Notes from the Underground”, where the main character constantly refers to the image of a “stone wall” as a visual sign of the limited freedom of a person, its constraint by the laws of the external, objective world. As a result of the generalization of all the options for using the image of the wall, its deepest philosophical meaning was revealed – the designation of the inner sacred space in which a person finds his God and thereby acquires the ability to influence the outside world, regardless of its laws, i.e. overcoming all its “stone walls”. This meaning is most clearly realized in novel “The Brothers Karamazov”, where Alyosha Karamazov finds his faith in the monastery walls and then goes out into the world to change it in accordance with his idea of perfection. The authors demonstrate the possibility of comparing the three forms of relationship of Dostoevsky's heroes to the opposition of the inner and outer space of their lives, defined by the walls of the dwelling, with the three stages of personality development in the philosophy of S. Kierkegaard – aesthetic (taking all boundaries for granted), ethical (rebellion against laws and boundaries) and religious (overcoming boundaries in an act of faith).

THE MEMAYU RITUAL TRADITION ROUTE AS A SACRED SPACE OF CULTURAL LANDSCAPE CASE STUDY: KANOMAN PALACE, CIREBON, INDONESIA

Memayu is part of the Muludan tradition, commemorating the birth of Prophet Muhammad SAW in the Cirebon Palace, Indonesia. The unique thing about this ritual is that many palace disciples from villages outside Cirebon City are involved in its event. Disciples, also known as wargi, get engaged from the preparation stage in their respective villages to implement traditions in the palace. Part of wargi's ritual activities are full of meaning, and routes from the villages to the palace are sacred paths. The perception and belief of wargi form this meaning space as traditional actors, based on understanding the memayu sacred value. Based on that, the article aims to describe the activities of the memayu ritual tradition held in Kanoman Palace and explore the form of space that occurs and the meaning contained in these ritual tradition spaces. The research method of this research is descriptive qualitative. The results showed that the villagers who were the palace disciples, position, and route to the palace created an imaginary sacred spatial pattern. The spatial pattern created in this memayu is physical evidence of an imaginary sacred space of the Cirebon cultural landscape whose elements are symbolically purified and believed to bring blessings to the palace wargi. Besides that, the aspects of ritual traditions of memayu, such as the palace, routes from villages to the palace, and the sacred objects used as a ceremonial compliment, contain Outstanding Universal Value (OUV). All of that is a part of the picture of the Cirebon cultural landscape.