The notion of a special intimacy between 'the feminine and the sacred' has received significant attention since the publication of Julia Kristeva and Cathérine Clément's famous ecumenical 'conversation' of the same name which focussed on the relationship between meaning and the body at whose interface the feminine is positioned. Brought to the wider public as the 'sacred feminine', it has also made its mark on popular culture. Taking up the debate and moving beyond anthropology or theology, writers from varied ethnic, geo-cultural and religious perspectives here join with secular cultural analysts to explore the sacred and the feminine in art, architecture, literature, art history, music, philosophy, theology, critical theory and cultural studies. The book addresses key issues in feminist questions of creativity, the imaginary and the sacred as 'otherness', exploring the ways in which visual practices have explored this rich, contested and highly charged territory.

In a richly layered and beautifully illustrated narrative, Raymond Jonas tells the fascinating and surprisingly little-known story of the Sacr -Coeur, or Sacred Heart. The highest point in Paris and a celebrated tourist destination, the white-domed basilica of Sacr -Coeur on Montmartre is a key monument both to French Catholicism and to French national identity. Jonas masterfully reconstructs the history of the devotion responsible for the basilica, beginning with the apparition of the Sacred Heart to Marguerite Marie Alacoque in the seventeenth century, through the French Revolution and its aftermath, to the construction of the monumental church that has loomed over Paris since the end of the nineteenth century. Jonas focuses on key moments in the development of the cult: the founding apparition, its invocation during the plague of Marseilles, its adaptation as a royalist symbol during the French Revolution, and its elevation to a central position in Catholic devotional and political life in the crisis surrounding the Franco-Prussian War. He draws on a wealth of archival sources to produce a learned yet accessible narrative that encompasses a remarkable sweep of French politics, history, architecture, and art.

The Politics of Sacred Places is a study of the socio-political dimensions of sacred sites in Israel–Palestine, drawing on over 20 years of in-depth ethnographic research which introduces cutting-edge theories on secularization, struggles for recognition, and diversity issues. This book focuses on contemporary sacred sites and their socio-political meanings for minorities within a hegemonic and a secularizing state-system. It argues that sacred places provide a space that is less scrutinized by the state and where alternative visions of the socio-political may be produced. A plethora of sites and case studies are examined, including the rural shrine of Maqam abu al-Hijja in the lower Galilee, the Mosque of Hassan Bek in the heart of Tel Aviv-Jaffa and the most disputed sacred place in the region, the Haram al-Sharif in Jerusalem. These sites are explored through mostly a phenomenological lens and in various contexts, from the individual body to the global. This book offers a critical-analytical study of the socio-political aspects of sacred sites in contemporary societies within the broader understanding of scale and the spatial turn in the study of religion.

This is a story of the great Maya city of Lamanai [circa 650 A.D.] its ruins are located in present day southern Orange Walk District, Belize. The story of its ruler who was determined to help defend its sister city Chactemal from invading armies of the Far North cities at all cost necessary. Also of a young peasant boy whose name was Box Balam [Bosh Balam.] he was born and raised in the magnificent Maya City of Lamanai in the west banks of a beautiful lagoon. By the age of fourteen, he had his mind well made up. He would become a member of the famous and widely loved Lamanais Royal Pok-A-Tok team. [ball game] Nothing or nobody would stop him. After the sacred ceremony that initiated him into manhood to better prepare him in becoming a soldier and a member of lamanais royal ball team, he was sent on a mission that almost caused him his life. Boxs friends and mentor had been killed in an ambush attack by spies of the Far North cities, near the city of Altun-Ha. Having been inflicted with a severe wound, Box had fled into the inhospitable and dangerous rainforest but it was his only refuge. He had been wandering lost, sick, and weak in the jungle for days but his determination to survive and return to his beloved city of Lamanai, his people, and the girl he had fallen in love with, was great. Moreover, he was also determined to survive so that one day he could find and eliminate the people responsible for the death of his friends and mentor. For many days he walked through the rain forest, looking out for the enemy, and surviving on wild fruits when he came across two men who A story of adventure, war, courage, treachery, love, and rise to greatness in an ancient civilization.

This book contributes to a better understanding of why historic cities and sacred sites are important, and how cultural roots may influence and improve urban futures. It emphasises the need to include social and cultural dimensions in economic development and offers cases of best practice.

While the early Church exercised proper discernment, and the Canon of the New Testament was soon definitely recognised and universally accepted, the apocryphal writings were not without influence. The sacred legends, the ecclesiastical traditions, all too potent in their effect, are in many cases to be traced to these writings. Much that Rome inculcates is derived from these books, which the Western Church constantly rejected. Included are: The Protevangelium of James The Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew The Gospel of the Nativity of Mary The History of Joseph the Carpenter The Gospel of Thomas The Gospel of Nicodemus The Letter of Pontius Pilate .. and many more ...