Morningstar Axioms for the Study of Sacred Place

[Landscapes of the Sacred]

The author references his experience with the Clearing in the Woods to guide students in understanding axioms; principles that underlie the way landscape fits into the religious imagination. Lane states, "Each time, on arriving at the river, I want to find God immediately- I want direct access, I want power and preternatural wonder...I stalk God. And usually, after at least twenty hours into the trip, I'll finally realize there's going to be nothing there but trees and clouds and distant river after all... Yet it is at this precise moment, where I give up looking for the burning bush, that my retreat usually begins" (Lane, 1998).

The conception of tunnel vision amidst an all encompassing God is a profound notion. When I escape from the day into nature, I eagerly search for God. I thirst for Him, thinking that just a glimpse of Him will endure me through all the tasks I have in my hands. Lane explains it spot on when he states that we simply "expect too much from and of the place." I seek after immediate healing and truth from God. The certainty behind this concept is that God chooses to reveal himself where He wills. We have no control over the Almighty's power. The moment we release and empty ourselves to Him, is the moment we acknowledge His presence being there all along. The moment we sit in the silence of His presence is the moment that we begin to hear Him.


Reference: Lane, B.C. (1998). Landscapes of the Sacred: Geography and Narrative in American Spirituality. Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press.

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