More on the Meaning of the Sacred
If we think of the meaning of the word sacred, we imagine a space, time or action that possesses the specific quality of being distinct from the ordinary and possessing a special and unique dignity that stands out from the daily flow of reality. It explicitly sets itself apart from the ordinary and is entitled to special forms of respect, honor, reverence, protection or veneration. The characteristic of being “set apart from the ordinary” is essential to the sacred; without it, the sacred doesn’t exist. We clearly associate the sacred with religious practice but there are other spaces, times and actions that are legitimately sacred and which can tell us something about what the sacred really means.
Imagine a visit to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery, a space made sacred by the nature and magnitude of the sacrifice it represents. 
This would clearly be a place deserving of special reverence. It would be jarring to see a person chatting on their cell, tossing a frisbee or shouting out to a buddy. Such ordinary, innocuous behaviors would be rudely out of place for the very reason that they are ordinary and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is a sacred place which by its very nature set apart from the ordinary.
The behavior of the soldiers who guard the tomb embody this sacredness. I expect that when they are off duty they behave in perfectly normal ways, chatting, waving to people, cheering at football games and leading fully normal lives. But they do none of that when they are on guard.
When performing their sacred roles, they don ritual clothes, behave in rigorously ritual ways, perform all the duties of their job, and don’t break out of that role until they are well away from the sacred space and have removed their uniforms and returned to ordinary life. It is clear when they get to behave in normal human ways and when they give themselves over to the performance of their sacred role.
Now let’s consider the sacred in relation to religion. I don’t think that anyone would disagree with the thought that the church should be a sacred place. The priest still wears vestments, we still use all the sacred objects and we still say Mass and go to Communion. But let’s look at how we do it.
When we enter the church, it’s okay to talk softly, see who’s there, and look around and wave. A low rumble of noise precedes the beginning. The priest, deacon, lectors and servers process in with the deacon holding the book of readings over his head. They all take their places, facing the people, no longer separated by an altar rail as we are all now one in the Lord. People are introduced and announcements are made. All very fine and ordinary. The priest says prayers, the lector reads the readings, we stand, we sit, the Gospel is read, the homily given, the gifts offered. More prayers are said and the Eucharist is consecrated. We say the Our Father, led by the priest, and wish each other peace. Again, very fine, we are one in the Lord. The ministers who distribute communion move to their places, we receive communion, the Mass ends, more announcements are read, the priest processes out and stands in the lobby, still vested, greeting the parishioners as they leave.
What could be wrong with such an approach to worship? Absolutely nothing, except that the very focus on the people of God and the priest coming together as one pretty much thoroughly undercuts the essential “otherness” necessary for the construction of a sacred space, time or action.
And when I say sacred, I mean sacred in the way that the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is sacred; I mean the way historically and anthropologically we have always understood the sacred (e.g., Emile Durkheim, Rudolf Otto, Mircea Eliade) as something explicitly set apart from the ordinary and possessing a special and unique dignity which stands out from the daily flow of reality, the way the Buddhist monk decked out on orange stands out from the ordinary, the way Hindu temples and Muslim mosques stand out (take off your shoes!), the way Holy Name Cathedral and the other great Chicago immigrant churches and old European cathedrals stand out from the ordinary, the way the priest used to stand out from the ordinary, as the one ordained and anointed to perform the sacred rituals. Much of this sacredness has been lost and this is not a good thing.
Tags: loss of the sacred
