Sacred Space Essay

As the modern age has brought in a wave of secularism, one would expect the draw of sacred spaces to also dwindle. This has not appeared to be the case. Though many times we see a sacred space as being tied exclusively to religion, these are in fact any place that people or society have set aside. The word “sacred” tend to stir up images of centuries-old churches and monuments, but what each person holds as sacred can differ greatly. In modern society many issues have arisen between those who make claim to an area that they considered sacred and those who disagree with this distinction. All religions have places that they have set aside as sacred to their spirituality. From the Vatican City, to the church around the corner, there are an unamangame amount of places that are tied to religious groups. …show more content…
Not everyone agrees on a place being set aside for a particular group of people, and this has lead to untold clashes throughout time. The dilemma of the division of the middle east is one that is still ongoing, with many major religions taking claim to the same areas as being sacred to their particular religious group. Many sites considered sacred by one group are also finding themselves having to defend the sites against those who do not understand why the area should be set aside. For example, many see the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as a type of sacred site, that of natural value and should not be altered. For others, this is a distinction that prevents the economic use of the land. Unfortunately spaces like this can not always be shared, for the use by another group would seem to change the place to that of being perhaps less sacred. “If embodied practices can consecrate, they can also desecrate a sacred space. Throughout the history of religions, the production of sacred space has depended upon control over