Steven Kepnes
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195313819
- eISBN:
- 9780199785650
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195313819.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Judaism
Jewish liturgy helps develop new forms of discourse and theology to respond to the two central events of the contemporary Jewish era: the Shoah and the establishment of the State of Israel. Peter ...
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Jewish liturgy helps develop new forms of discourse and theology to respond to the two central events of the contemporary Jewish era: the Shoah and the establishment of the State of Israel. Peter Ochs argues that modern philosophical logic is limited and must be augmented with a “logic of scripture.” This chapter argues for the power of the “logic of liturgy.” To address the Shoah, the chapter focuses on the liturgical theodicy of the Passover Seder and the synagogue sermon. The State of Israel revives issues of sacred space for Judaism. Part two of the chapter explores the notion of liturgical space as a response to idolatrous and messianic claims by some Zionists for the present State of Israel. Liturgy preserves the messianic character of Israel as a future and not a present reality.Less
Jewish liturgy helps develop new forms of discourse and theology to respond to the two central events of the contemporary Jewish era: the Shoah and the establishment of the State of Israel. Peter Ochs argues that modern philosophical logic is limited and must be augmented with a “logic of scripture.” This chapter argues for the power of the “logic of liturgy.” To address the Shoah, the chapter focuses on the liturgical theodicy of the Passover Seder and the synagogue sermon. The State of Israel revives issues of sacred space for Judaism. Part two of the chapter explores the notion of liturgical space as a response to idolatrous and messianic claims by some Zionists for the present State of Israel. Liturgy preserves the messianic character of Israel as a future and not a present reality.
Joanne Punzo Waghorne
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- January 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195156638
- eISBN:
- 9780199785292
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195156638.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Hinduism
Three general reconfigurations of sacred space — sometimes interlocking, sometimes in tension — emerge from the new style and sensibilities of contemporary global Hindu temples with implications for ...
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Three general reconfigurations of sacred space — sometimes interlocking, sometimes in tension — emerge from the new style and sensibilities of contemporary global Hindu temples with implications for the general history of religions. The first is the emergence of a new sense of the sacred sphere, of temple space within an urban environment dominated by the ownership of houses and not land or even natural phenomenon. Second, even the architecture of both space and the polity of new temples reflects democratic models of civic organizations, which leads to new space for lectures and education. Third, complex middle-class religious sensibilities emerge within the temples, which affect the style and polity of the temple and even the faces of the deities, often creating a new visual theology. How will these living sacred spaces of the temple matter for historians of religions? Will this kind of public, and in many ways empirical, sacrality once again challenge the field to reconsider material sacrality?Less
Three general reconfigurations of sacred space — sometimes interlocking, sometimes in tension — emerge from the new style and sensibilities of contemporary global Hindu temples with implications for the general history of religions. The first is the emergence of a new sense of the sacred sphere, of temple space within an urban environment dominated by the ownership of houses and not land or even natural phenomenon. Second, even the architecture of both space and the polity of new temples reflects democratic models of civic organizations, which leads to new space for lectures and education. Third, complex middle-class religious sensibilities emerge within the temples, which affect the style and polity of the temple and even the faces of the deities, often creating a new visual theology. How will these living sacred spaces of the temple matter for historians of religions? Will this kind of public, and in many ways empirical, sacrality once again challenge the field to reconsider material sacrality?
Richard Lyman Bushman
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195369786
- eISBN:
- 9780199871292
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195369786.003.007
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter proposes a simple fundamental in its account for Joseph Smith's religious appeal: he met a human need for the sacred. So, of course, do all religions, but Smith was different, the ...
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This chapter proposes a simple fundamental in its account for Joseph Smith's religious appeal: he met a human need for the sacred. So, of course, do all religions, but Smith was different, the chapter argues, in constructing the LDS faith around two potent loci: new sacred words and new sacred places. His additions to scripture blend audacity and self-effacing, summarily annihilating the principle of sola scriptura, even as the personality delivering its coup de grace for Mormons is subsumed in the voice of God. As for place, Smith literalized the concept of Zion and introduced into Christian worship the concept and physical reality of the temple. In the process, he became the first American religious figure to exploit the power of sacred space.Less
This chapter proposes a simple fundamental in its account for Joseph Smith's religious appeal: he met a human need for the sacred. So, of course, do all religions, but Smith was different, the chapter argues, in constructing the LDS faith around two potent loci: new sacred words and new sacred places. His additions to scripture blend audacity and self-effacing, summarily annihilating the principle of sola scriptura, even as the personality delivering its coup de grace for Mormons is subsumed in the voice of God. As for place, Smith literalized the concept of Zion and introduced into Christian worship the concept and physical reality of the temple. In the process, he became the first American religious figure to exploit the power of sacred space.
Gordon Graham
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199265961
- eISBN:
- 9780191708756
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199265961.003.0006
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Aesthetics
This chapter draws a distinction between holy places and sacred spaces, and examines the ability of architecture as an art to create a secular equivalent of the latter — ‘enchanted space’ as an ...
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This chapter draws a distinction between holy places and sacred spaces, and examines the ability of architecture as an art to create a secular equivalent of the latter — ‘enchanted space’ as an alternative to sacred space. It gives special attention to the idea that the fittingness of a building is related to its appropriation for a specific use.Less
This chapter draws a distinction between holy places and sacred spaces, and examines the ability of architecture as an art to create a secular equivalent of the latter — ‘enchanted space’ as an alternative to sacred space. It gives special attention to the idea that the fittingness of a building is related to its appropriation for a specific use.
Ron E. Hassner
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195342048
- eISBN:
- 9780199852017
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195342048.003.0002
- Subject:
- Political Science, International Relations and Politics
This chapter examines the key problems that counterinsurgency operations pose in sacred places. It first delineates the concept of a “sacred space” and explains the key features that grant such ...
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This chapter examines the key problems that counterinsurgency operations pose in sacred places. It first delineates the concept of a “sacred space” and explains the key features that grant such spaces a sacral quality. It then examines how insurgent groups can usefully occupy and exploit sacred places. It argues that insurgents can mingle with pilgrims and worshippers and can also use the sacredness of shrines, mosques, and temples as sanctuaries from counterinsurgent forces who may be understandably loath to offend local religious sensibilities by using force against such locales. The chapter outlines possible strategies and potential pitfalls for security forces when they are seeking to flush out insurgents who have taken refuge in sacred arenas. Finally, it looks at some of the lessons derived from the Israeli siege of the Church of Nativity in Bethlehem, where several Palestinian militants retreated in 2002.Less
This chapter examines the key problems that counterinsurgency operations pose in sacred places. It first delineates the concept of a “sacred space” and explains the key features that grant such spaces a sacral quality. It then examines how insurgent groups can usefully occupy and exploit sacred places. It argues that insurgents can mingle with pilgrims and worshippers and can also use the sacredness of shrines, mosques, and temples as sanctuaries from counterinsurgent forces who may be understandably loath to offend local religious sensibilities by using force against such locales. The chapter outlines possible strategies and potential pitfalls for security forces when they are seeking to flush out insurgents who have taken refuge in sacred arenas. Finally, it looks at some of the lessons derived from the Israeli siege of the Church of Nativity in Bethlehem, where several Palestinian militants retreated in 2002.
Zain Abdullah
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195314250
- eISBN:
- 9780199871797
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195314250.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Islam
For more than twenty years, West African Muslims from the Muridiyya order, a Sufi brotherhood based in Senegal, have organized the annual Cheikh Amadou Bamba Day parade in New York City. It is a ...
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For more than twenty years, West African Muslims from the Muridiyya order, a Sufi brotherhood based in Senegal, have organized the annual Cheikh Amadou Bamba Day parade in New York City. It is a religious procession that allows them to redefine their African identities, cope with the stigma of Blackness, and counteract accusations of Islamic terrorism. But the march is not merely an event for members, because its banners often challenge common notions of Black history, and African American paraders follow a slightly different course. This chapter explores the way Murids, followers of Muridiyya, and other West African Muslims such as the Malinke and the Fulani create religious activities, networks, stores, and institutions that transform Harlem into a sacred city. It is a sacred space, however, that includes the long-standing Nation of Islam and other African American Muslim orientations.Less
For more than twenty years, West African Muslims from the Muridiyya order, a Sufi brotherhood based in Senegal, have organized the annual Cheikh Amadou Bamba Day parade in New York City. It is a religious procession that allows them to redefine their African identities, cope with the stigma of Blackness, and counteract accusations of Islamic terrorism. But the march is not merely an event for members, because its banners often challenge common notions of Black history, and African American paraders follow a slightly different course. This chapter explores the way Murids, followers of Muridiyya, and other West African Muslims such as the Malinke and the Fulani create religious activities, networks, stores, and institutions that transform Harlem into a sacred city. It is a sacred space, however, that includes the long-standing Nation of Islam and other African American Muslim orientations.
Josef W. Meri
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199250783
- eISBN:
- 9780191697968
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199250783.003.0002
- Subject:
- Religion, Islam, Judaism
This chapter discusses sacred topography, providing a background to pilgrimage sites and the manner in which Jews and Muslims employed Scripture to refer to sacred places. It examines how Jews and ...
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This chapter discusses sacred topography, providing a background to pilgrimage sites and the manner in which Jews and Muslims employed Scripture to refer to sacred places. It examines how Jews and Muslims understood sacred space through similar means. It explains how sacred topography, as depicted in Scripture and shaped by the physical environment and sensory and ritual means, informs and transforms the process of rediscovering sacred space. Baraka lies at the foundation of Jewish and Muslim conceptions and perceptions of the sacred. The consecration of sacred space as well as popular stories and traditions described the way in which devotees venerated saints at shrines and interacted with each other.Less
This chapter discusses sacred topography, providing a background to pilgrimage sites and the manner in which Jews and Muslims employed Scripture to refer to sacred places. It examines how Jews and Muslims understood sacred space through similar means. It explains how sacred topography, as depicted in Scripture and shaped by the physical environment and sensory and ritual means, informs and transforms the process of rediscovering sacred space. Baraka lies at the foundation of Jewish and Muslim conceptions and perceptions of the sacred. The consecration of sacred space as well as popular stories and traditions described the way in which devotees venerated saints at shrines and interacted with each other.
Nile Green
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780198077961
- eISBN:
- 9780199080991
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198077961.003.0019
- Subject:
- History, Indian History
This chapter surveys the widespread phenomenon of the migrant Sufi saint in South Asian history. It examines how non-Indian origins were important to the success of Sufis and how these holy migrants ...
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This chapter surveys the widespread phenomenon of the migrant Sufi saint in South Asian history. It examines how non-Indian origins were important to the success of Sufis and how these holy migrants were often connected to larger communities of migrants. After the general survey section, the chapter turns to two case studies that show how migration could be both real and imagined, with the prestige of non-Indian origins leading to exaggerations or changes in the biographies of particular Muslim saints.Less
This chapter surveys the widespread phenomenon of the migrant Sufi saint in South Asian history. It examines how non-Indian origins were important to the success of Sufis and how these holy migrants were often connected to larger communities of migrants. After the general survey section, the chapter turns to two case studies that show how migration could be both real and imagined, with the prestige of non-Indian origins leading to exaggerations or changes in the biographies of particular Muslim saints.
Mark R. Wynn
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- May 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780199560387
- eISBN:
- 9780191721175
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199560387.003.0007
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion
This chapter continues the discussion of Chapter 6, by examining the human significance of a number of built and natural environments, unrelated to pilgrimage practice. Again, the three models of the ...
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This chapter continues the discussion of Chapter 6, by examining the human significance of a number of built and natural environments, unrelated to pilgrimage practice. Again, the three models of the differentiated religious significance of place and the various accounts of the formal qualities of knowledge of place developed in earlier chapters are put to use. The chapter draws on the literature on the phenomenology of sacred space, and the work of Wendell Berry, Erazim Kohák, and Christopher Day, among others. It maintains that religiously significant knowledge of place is not to be understood in purely ‘subjective’ or in purely ‘objective’ terms, and that we should avoid an over-sharp distinction between the meaning of ‘sacred’ and of ‘profane’ space.Less
This chapter continues the discussion of Chapter 6, by examining the human significance of a number of built and natural environments, unrelated to pilgrimage practice. Again, the three models of the differentiated religious significance of place and the various accounts of the formal qualities of knowledge of place developed in earlier chapters are put to use. The chapter draws on the literature on the phenomenology of sacred space, and the work of Wendell Berry, Erazim Kohák, and Christopher Day, among others. It maintains that religiously significant knowledge of place is not to be understood in purely ‘subjective’ or in purely ‘objective’ terms, and that we should avoid an over-sharp distinction between the meaning of ‘sacred’ and of ‘profane’ space.
Nora Bensahel
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195342048
- eISBN:
- 9780199852017
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195342048.003.0009
- Subject:
- Political Science, International Relations and Politics
This chapter concludes the book with an instructive analysis across the various case studies. It draws out a number of operational lessons to be learned from the cases, including an assessment of the ...
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This chapter concludes the book with an instructive analysis across the various case studies. It draws out a number of operational lessons to be learned from the cases, including an assessment of the degree of sacredness of a site, the level of support that insurgents enjoy within the local population, and the relative strengths of direct and indirect strategies. It argues that counterinsurgency operations rarely succeed or fail solely because of the sacredness of the site on which they take place. Rather, counterinsurgency is inherently difficult, and the presented cases demonstrate the numerous other factors that affect success, including differences in terrain and geography, tactical choices, the legitimacy of the national government, and the training and capabilities of both the insurgents and the counterinsurgency forces. However, the cases in this volume demonstrate that counterinsurgency in sacred spaces presents a number of special concerns that operational planners must address to ensure success.Less
This chapter concludes the book with an instructive analysis across the various case studies. It draws out a number of operational lessons to be learned from the cases, including an assessment of the degree of sacredness of a site, the level of support that insurgents enjoy within the local population, and the relative strengths of direct and indirect strategies. It argues that counterinsurgency operations rarely succeed or fail solely because of the sacredness of the site on which they take place. Rather, counterinsurgency is inherently difficult, and the presented cases demonstrate the numerous other factors that affect success, including differences in terrain and geography, tactical choices, the legitimacy of the national government, and the training and capabilities of both the insurgents and the counterinsurgency forces. However, the cases in this volume demonstrate that counterinsurgency in sacred spaces presents a number of special concerns that operational planners must address to ensure success.
