Perception of Sacred Space

Discrimination of space into sacred and profane is as old as mankind. This study suggests a typology for categorizing sacred Space at three broad levels: mysticoreligious, homelands and historical. Each is further divided on the basis of the extent of the group which shares the consensus view of sanctity. Recognizable levels include international, national, regional, community, neighborhood and individual sacred space. The Mormon culture was used as a basis to test the validity of the proposed typology through use of two questionnaires administered to Mormons. The first questionnaire was an open-ended survey to determine all important regions which were recognized as sacred. The second questionnaire was then prepared which required respondents to rank 15 sacred sites or regions in terms of their sanctity. An analysis of the responses indicates that those sites which are perceived as most sacred are mystico-religious sites where Mormons believe contact occurs between divine powers and man. The next level of sanctity was applied to homelands. The recognized homelands include Utah and Jackson County, Missouri which the Mormons view as a promised land. The third and lowest level of sacred space includes sites of historical importance to Mormons.     

New Approaches to Sacred Space

Stephen Murray : A Gothic Sermon: Making a Contract with the Mother of God, Saint Mary of Amiens. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2004. Jaime Lara : City, Temple, Stage: Eschatological Architecture and Liturgical Theatrics in New Spain. Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press, 2004. Robert Nelson : Hagia Sophia 1850–1950: Holy Wisdom, Holy Monument. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2004. Robert W. Moss : Historic Sacred Places of Philadelphia. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2005.     

Textiles and the Making of Sacred Space

This paper develops a perspective on fabric and its use in religious settings, working from a comparative survey of critical literature arising, primarily, from anthropological writings on cloth and clothing in conjunction with insights gained from ethnographic research among Eastern Orthodox Christians. While the character of Orthodox Christianity and the broad nature of comparative religion shape how the argument is presented, the primary focus of the paper is not on the religious contexts, but rather the particular items of fabric in use, and, more generally, the exact qualities of fabric that allow for its use in such diverse contexts. Rather than taking an argument of historical specificity, the paper is grounded in a material culture approach to fabric, suggesting that a cross-cultural appraisal of fabric that spans different historical periods allows critical insight into the modes of operation within human experience. The central argument of the paper is that, because of the material qualities inherent in fabric, it can be used in such a manner as to make present the sacred.     

A Sacred Space for Women: Hymnody in Emma Hale Smith's Theology

Emma Smith oversaw the compilation of the first Mormon hymnal in 1835 and then prepared a second hymnal in 1841. This article contextualises and discusses Smith's significant assignment, and considers how a woman's hymn selections influenced early Mormonism. It also considers what Smith's hymnals reveal about her own life story and what her life story reveals about her hymn selections. While Smith's first hymnal highlights the emphasis she placed on immediately establishing a city of Zion in preparation for the millennial reign of a triumphal Christ, her second hymnal underscores the need to develop and foster a personal relationship with a merciful Saviour. Smith's 1835 hymnal emphasises being a Zion people immediately, whereas her 1841 hymnal, compiled in the context of intense personal and collective trials and religious persecution, highlights the importance of striving to become a more Zion‐like people over time. The different doctrinal emphases reflects their respective Mormon cultures at the time of compilation, and captures how the church responded to and grappled with its failure to establish Zion immediately. As a compiler of hymns, Smith clearly plays a significant role in Mormon history, while also demonstrating how women could impact their particular religious communities.     

Sacred Space in the Worldview and Art of the Tungus-manchu Ethnic Minority Sakhalin Island

The article contributes to research into concepts of sacredness held by the Tungus-Manchu ethnic minority living on Sakhalin Island. The study focuses on the Rukutama staff found by a hunter in 1972 on the Angurovka River, an old arm of the Rukutama River. The staff displays the spatial features of Sakhalin Island in great detail, all of which were included into the life cycle of the island's inhabitants. Sacred knowledge was transmitted over centuries via generations of shamans using the language of sacred compositions, “visual folklore.” Visual art is central to the study of the ethnic history and culture of the modern inhabitants of Sakhalin Island.     

Classifications of Sacred Space: A New Understanding of Mass Rock Sites in Ireland

As locations of a distinctively Catholic faith, Mass Rocks are important historical, ritual and counter-cultural sites that present a tangible connection to Ireland’s rich heritage for contemporary society. Recent authors have begun to fill a gap in published literature yet few go beyond traditional assumptions. This paper offers a more contemporary approach to the study of Mass Rocks based on extensive field research in county Cork. It argues for the introduction of new and innovative classifications that expand the accepted archaeological definition and proposes a set of criteria for the more robust verification of potential sites.     

Long‐Distance Pilgrimage and the Counter Reformation in France: Sacred Journeys to the Mont Saint‐Michel 1520 to 1750

In the Counter Reformation, a great upsurge in pilgrimage activity occurred across Europe. Much of this pilgrimage was to local shrines, often newly created. Another destination was Rome. Less well known is the post‐Reformation refashioning of ancient, long‐distance pilgrimages. This article examines the origins and nature of such revived pilgrimage, using the example of the Mont Saint‐Michel in northern France. In the Catholic Reformation, the traditional, distant centres of pilgrimage contributed to the devotional culture of individuals and groups who wanted to go beyond the local, to experience a challenge as part of their spiritual and social growth. At the Mont, revival of the shrine came from the universality of the cult of St Michael, his role in the struggle against heresy, and veneration tied increasingly to that of Christ through the Eucharist. While pilgrims continued to travel in search of, or in thanksgiving for, healing and other graces, there was also greater emphasis on spiritual healing and intimacy with God. Also, for many young men, they proved themselves and their Catholicity by undertaking this heroic journey. Through the pilgrimage to the Mont, reformed Catholicism spread many of its ideas and values around the cities and communities of northern France.     

Sacred Wells in Wales

GUIDE D'ÉTUDE DIRECTE DES COMPORTEMENTS CULTURELS. By M. MAGET. Paris, 1953. Pp. xxxv, 260 ; 16 plates and drawings Reviewed by E. Ettlinger.

TOBIAS TOMAMICHEL, Bosco GURIN, DAS WALSERDORF IM TESSIN. Schweizerische Gesellschaft für Volkskunde (G. Krebs Verlagsbuchhandlung). Basle, 1953. Pp. 155, illustrated. Reviewed by E. Ettlinger.

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CELTIC FOLKLORE, Stornoway and Oban, October 5th–13th, 1953. Reviewed by E. Ettlinger.

MY GYPSY DAYS : RECOLLECTIONS OF A ROMANI RAWNIE. By DORA E. YATES. Pp. 192, 9 plates. 8vo. London, Phoenix House, 1953. Price 16s. Reviewed by E. O. Winstedt.

WORD FOR WORD. AN ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF BEER. Vol. X I in the Whitbread Library. 1953. 5s. Reviewed by Leslie F. Newman.

RADNORSHIRE. By W. H. HAWSE. E. J. Thurston, Hereford. Price l6s. 6d. Reviewed by Lilian H. Hayward.

CURIOUS CUSTOMS OF SEX AND MARRIAGE. An Inquiry Relating to all Races and Nations from Antiquity to the Present Day. By GEORGE RYLEY SCOTT, F.Ph.S. (Eng.) F.Z.S., F.R.A.I., Torchstream Books, London, 1953. Reviewed by B. Z. S.     

Sacred Narratives in Secular Contexts

Although sacred narratives are thought to have lost their numinous aura for secular receivers (readers/listeners), their presence is evident whenever mythology, usually taken to reflect a mode of thinking typical of primeval cultures, and its associated themes are used in fictional works. This study aims at elucidating sacred narratives for people who do not subscribe to their sacredness. It attempts to show (1) that myths reflect a fictional mode of thinking; (2) that meaningful myths map the unconscious drives of secular readers/listeners, enabling them to confront them in terms of their own culture; and (3) that fictional thinking thus operates as a psychical laboratory. I illustrate these claims through myths that feature animosity between parents and children, such as the stories of Oedipus, Isaac, and Jesus.     

The Sacred Marriage

DAVID OF SASSOUN: THE ARMENIAN FOLK EPIC IN FOUR CYCLES. Translated by ARTIN K. SHALIAN Ohio University Press, 1964, pp. 377. $10.00. Reviewed by E. O. James.

VOICES IN THE VALLEY. FRANK R. KRAMER. University of Wisconsin Press. 300 pp. $5. Reviewed by A. W. Smith.

DIE ROLLE DES HUNDES IN AFRICANISCHEN KULTUREN. By BARBARA FRANK. Studien zur Kulturkunde Vol. 17. Wiesbaden Franz SteinerVerlag, 1965. Pp.(6), 256. 5 Maps. Reviewed by E. Ettlinger.

GLI USI FUNEREI SARDI SECONDO LE VOCI DEL ‘DIZIONARIO DEGLI STATI SARDI’ COMPILATE DA VITTORIO ÁNGIUS. By ENRICA DELITALA. Offprint from Studi Sardi, XVIII for 1962–3, Gallizzi, Sassari, 1964. Pp. 65: map. Reviewed by Francis Celoria.

CONTES TRADITIONNELS DES TEILLEURS DE LIN DU TRÉGOR (BASSEBRETAGNE). By Geneviève Massignon. A. et J. Picard et Cie, 1965. Reviewed by Violet Alford.

HISTORY, TIME AND DEITY. By S. G. F. BRANDON. Manchester University Press, 1965. Pp. 240. 35s. net. Reviewed by E. O. James.

THE CAMBRIDGE ANCIENT HISTORY. Primitive Man in Egypt, Western Asia and Europe. By DOROTHY A. E. GARROD and J. G. D. CLARK. Cambridge University Press, 1965. Pp. 61.8s. 6d. net. Reviewed by E. O. James.

UNSERE ORTSNAMEN IM ABC ERKLART. By WILDHELM STURMFELS and HEINZ BISCHOF. 3rd, revised, edition. Dummlers, Bonn, 1961. Pp. 359, including Introduction, Indices and Bibliography. Reviewed by John McN. Dodgson.

THE NORTHMEN TALK. A Choice of Tales from Iceland. Translated by JACQUELINE SIMPSON. Foreword by Eric Linklater. J. M. Dent and Sons, Phoenix House and the University of Wisconsin Press, 1965. Pp. i–xxix, 290. 30s. net. Reviewed by H. R. Ellis Davidson.

ORAL TRADITION, A Study in Historical Methodology. By JAN VANSINA, translated by H. M. WRIGHT. Routledge &; Kegan Paul Ltd. 30s. Reviewed by K. M. Briggs.

GENTLE PLACES AND SIMPLE THINGS. By KEVIN DANAHER. Cork, The Mercier Press. 1964. Pp. 125. 5s. Reviewed by Theo Brown.

A FENMAN'S STORY. By W. H. BARRETT. Routledge &; Kegan Paul Ltd. May 1965. 21s. Reviewed by Beatrice Blackwood.

ONCE UPON A TIME; Fifty Hungarian Folk-Tales. By GYULA ILLYES. Translated by Barna Balogh and Susan Kun. Corvina Press. 1964. Reviewed by K. M. Briggs.

ULSTER DIALECTS; AN INTRODUCTORY SYMPOSIUM. Published by the Ulster Folk Museum, 1964. Pp. XIII, 201. 20s. Reviewed by Estyn Evans.

A BOOK OF MYTHS. Selected and retold by ROGER LANCELYN GREEN. Illustrated by Joan Liddell-Monroe. Dent, Children's Illustrated Classics. 16s. Reviewed by K. M. Briggs.

WEST COUNTRY FRIENDLY SOCIETIES. An Account of Village Benefit Clubs and their Brass Pole Heads. By MARGARET D. FULLER. The Oakwood Press for the Museum of English Rural Life, the University of Reading, 1964. Pp. xii, 73: Plates LII + map. 63s. Reviewed by Theo Brown.

STRUTTURA E ORIGINE MORFOLOGICA DEI MUTOS E DEI MUTTETOS SARDI. By A. M. CIRESE. Sardinia, Università degli Studi de Cagliari, 1964. Pp. 193. Reviewed by Francis Celoria.

DUTCH TILES. By DINGEMAN KORF. London, Merlin Press, 1963. Pp. 136. GLASS AND CRYSTAL, I, from the earliest times to 1850. By ELKA SCHRIJVER. Merlin Press, 1963. Pp. 134. Reviewed by W. Bonser.     

The Pilgrimage Town of Lourdes

Pilgrims from 111 different countries cause the character of spatial phenomena in Lourdes, France. The influence of the pilgrimage is first reflected in demographic developments and then in the economic structure, which has been transformed from the agricultural to the service sector. The pilgrims' activities are also responsible for the distribution of different buildings such as various places of worship, hotels, restaurants and shops selling devotional articles.