Sacred spaces. We all view them differently... Nancy Gibbs/Time Magazine( All quotes from Time).
In your travels, you probably have heard about the Park51 Mosque being built two blocks from the twin towers and I imagine whatever your belief, it is a strong one.
How do we attach meaning to spaces and what happens when those attachments collide or interpretations conflict or change over time?
There are two main camps of thought, All I needed to know about Islam I learned on 9/11 and It is their constitutional right to practice their faith ,with many variations in between.
What makes sacred space is the overlay of experience whether the experience is of war, wonder or revelation
The other question to consider is, just because you can, doesn't mean you should.. If the site was moved, what would be a acceptable amount of blocks away from the hallowed ground we all know as 9/11? What about the hallowed ground in your live? What would push your buttons and have you protesting for a group of people to go elsewhere? For me, it was the home for ex convicts in our neighborhood a few years ago. I was livid for a long time. There was never any real trouble and the home was rented back to a private party earlier this year. Was I happy and delighted? Of course I was but I would have to be an idiot to not admit, would the new people be an improvement. I know nothing about them and as territorial as I have been, we could be in way worse trouble.
Sacred spaces invoke the absolute and the divine, they will never be the same to all people and so their management demands particular humility.
All I can tell you is if another prison house moved into the neighborhood, my reaction would not be as severe or intense. There are enough places to throw myself on my invisible sword for. Nancy Gibbs said it best,
It is not just these spaces are worthy of special respect, so is the way we engage one another over their fate. Amen sister...
