Kyle Shipe: Lane's Axioms

When we first started discussing the topic of sacred place I honestly did not know anything about it. The only way in my mind to define the sacred was holy. And when it came to defining holy the only way I knew to describe that was consecrated to God. By studying Lane's four axioms it allowed me to be able to appreciate what sacred and holy really meant, especially when it is applied to place. Lane's first was sacred place is not chosen it chooses. After reading about The Clearing In the Woods I understood what Lane meant by this and it is must be applicable for something to be sacred. His second principle was sacred place sacred place is ordinary place, made ritually extraordinary. By Lane keeping the ritual of silence in his journey throughout the woods it helped him experience the sacred place. Lane's third axiom is sacred place can be tread upon without being entered. This made sense to me as I thought that if it was a place that everyone entered and it was "sacred" then it really wouldn't be sacred at all. Lane's final axiom is sacred place is both local and universal. Sacred place cannot be "contained" as that is one of the very elements that make it sacred. Overall Lane's axioms really helped me to grasp exactly what defines a sacred place.