Landscapes of the Sacred - Axioms for the Study of Sacred Place (Chapter 1)

From this chapter the author discusses the four guiding axioms that help American students understand what a sacred place is. The first axiom is a "Sacred place is not chosen, it chooses" (Banes, 19). The second axiom exclaims that a "Sacred place is ordinary place, ritually made extraordinary" (Banes, 19). The third guiding axiom is a "Sacred place can be tred upon without being entered" (Banes, 19). And finally the fourth guiding axiom states that "The impulse of sacred place is both-centripetal and centrifugal, local and universal" (Banes, 19). This chapter explains how sacred places are story places. The author describes how there can be different ways to interact with the place as well.

Lane, Belden C. Landscapes of the Sacred: Geography and Narrative in American Spirituality. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2002.

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