Table Of Content

FINDING THE SACRED IN THE CITY: MAPPING THE SACRED SPACES OF LOS ANGELES A Dissertation presented to the Faculty of Claremont School of Theology In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Ph.D in Practical Theology By Cindy S. Lee May 2017 Copyright © 2017. By Cindy S. Lee NT S C HOOL OF T O H M E O E L R O A G L Y C 1885 This dissertation completed by CINDY S. LEE has been presented to and accepted by the faculty of Claremont School of Theology in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Faculty Committee Dr. Andrew Dreitcer, Chairperson Dr. Sheryl A. Kujawa-Holbrook Dr. Frank Rogers, Jr. Dean of the Faculty Sheryl A. Kujawa-Holbrook May 2017 Abstract FINDING THE SACRED IN THE CITY: MAPPING THE SACRED SPACES OF LOS ANGELES by Cindy S. Lee Claremont School of Theology May 2017 The urban context creates a new way of living and engaging with the places in which we live. As the world’s population continues to migrate to urban areas our relationship to place shifts. Urbanization particularly creates the phenomenon of desensitized built environments, feelings of displacement, and social exclusions. In response to these unique conditions of urban living, communities in the city need to reimagine and recreate urban places with meaningful sense experiences, a sense of identity, and invitations to belong. This paper proposes that sacred spaces in the city are one way to revitalize our connection to the city. Even more, religious congregations have a responsibility to steward their spaces to create meaningful experiences of place for urban dwellers. Through the urban planning methodologies of mapping, walking, and direct observations this study looks at sacred spaces in two Los Angeles neighborhoods. By using urban planning methodologies this study presents a new way to look at religious congregations. The results of this study reveal that urban neighborhoods are equipped with a variety of traditional and informal sacred spaces. We need, however, spiritual practices of place in the city to truly engage with the sacred in the city and to incorporate the sacred into our everyday lives. Table of Contents Abstract .............................................................................................................................. iv Table of Contents ................................................................................................................ v List of Maps ...................................................................................................................... vii List of Figures .................................................................................................................. viii Chapter 1 Why Study Urban Sacred Spaces ....................................................................... 1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 Definitions ....................................................................................................................... 3 Statement of the Problem .............................................................................................. 12 Purpose .......................................................................................................................... 24 Chapter 2 Building Religion ............................................................................................. 28 Lived Religion .............................................................................................................. 28 Theology of Sacred Spaces ........................................................................................... 38 Typologies of Sacred Spaces ........................................................................................ 51 Chapter 3 How to Study Space ......................................................................................... 59 Mapping ........................................................................................................................ 61 Interviews: Cognitive Mapping and Walking ............................................................... 61 Direct Observations ...................................................................................................... 65 Digital Map ................................................................................................................... 67 Ethical Concerns in Sensory Methodology ................................................................... 68 Chapter 4 About L.A. ........................................................................................................ 71 The Neighborhoods ....................................................................................................... 72 Research Participants .................................................................................................... 79 Chapter 5 Finding and Practicing Sacred Place ................................................................ 82 Urban Religion in Los Angeles ..................................................................................... 85 Types of Informal Sacred Spaces ................................................................................. 99 Characteristics of Urban Sacred Spaces ..................................................................... 112 Spiritual Practices for the City .................................................................................... 121 Hindrances .................................................................................................................. 133 Participating in Place .................................................................................................. 135 Chapter 6 Reengaging Sacred Spaces ............................................................................. 139 Religion in Los Angeles .............................................................................................. 139 Reengaging and Reimagining Space .......................................................................... 142 Stewarding Space ........................................................................................................ 142 Liturgical spaces ......................................................................................................... 146 Our relationship with place ......................................................................................... 151 Contributions ............................................................................................................... 155 For Further Study ........................................................................................................ 156 v Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 157 Appendix A: Interview Questions .................................................................................. 161 Appendix B: Direct Observation Chart ........................................................................... 162 Appendix C: Informed Consent Form ............................................................................ 163 Bibliography ................................................................................................................... 166 vi List of Maps MAP 1: TWO NEIGHBORHOODS IN LOS ANGELES ...................................................................................................... 72 MAP 2: DISTRICTS IN DOWNTOWN, LOS ANGELES ................................................................................................... 75 MAP 3: WESTLAKE/ECHO PARK/PICO UNION ............................................................................................................ 77 MAP 4: MAP OF SACRED SPACES IN CHINATOWN AND AROUND OLVERA STREET .................................. 88 MAP 5: MAP OF SACRED SPACES IN DOWNTOWN, LOS ANGELES ...................................................................... 91 MAP 6: STOREFRONT CHURCHES IN WESTLAKE ....................................................................................................... 93 MAP 7: SACRED SPACES IN WESTLAKE/PICO UNION .............................................................................................. 94 MAP 8: MAP OF SACRED SPACES IN ECHO PARK ..................................................................................................... 102 vii List of Figures FIGURE 1: RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS .............................................................................................................................. 79 FIGURE 2: PARTICIPANT NETWORKS .............................................................................................................................. 81 FIGURE 3: TYPES OF FORMAL SACRED SPACES FOUND IN LA ............................................................................. 85 FIGURE 4: TYPES OF INFORMAL SACRED SPACES IN LOS ANGELES ................................................................. 99 viii Chapter 1 Why Study Urban Sacred Spaces Introduction The presence of sacred architecture throughout human history, from the very simple to extremely elaborate, demonstrates two common patterns about humanity. First, sacred spaces express a human longing to connect to divine and supernatural possibilities. Sacred spaces are visual representations of an inward curiosity to experience, communicate, or understand otherworldly realities that we otherwise cannot see. Some historic sacred sites are even believed to manifest supernatural powers or carry a divine presence. The second pattern that the prevalence of sacred spaces reveals is that human beings desire to experience the supernatural in concrete and tangible ways. Although supernatural beings are not confined to human places, as finite beings humans are limited by place. So we invest in places by building homes, towns, and cities. In the same way, human cultures design and build sacred spaces to represent and experience the supernatural in tangible, material, and physical ways. Through altars, chapels, and temples devotees recreate an otherworldly reality in real time and real place. Consequently, religion is an extensive network of material and bodily rituals, symbols, myths, and architecture. This research begins with the assumption that human beings are still drawn to sacred spaces. Even as modern societies change and fewer people today claim religious affiliations, at the very least sacred spaces hold great value as peaceful, historical, or beautiful places. Therefore, people can be drawn to sacred spaces for the purpose of engaging the supernatural or they are drawn to these spaces by a sense of awe and appreciation for the aesthetics. 1 This paper is located in this tension of the continued appreciation for sacred spaces and the changing place of religion in contemporary society. Undeniably, there is a noticeable shift in the role of sacred spaces in our towns and cities today particularly in Western nations but gradually in other cultures and cities around the globe as well. The most noticeable trend is the decline and closures of traditional congregations. Whereas in previous centuries towns and cities often evolved around a central sacred space, religious spaces today have lost their primary place in the city. In the past sacred spaces were just as much the community’s main social spaces as they were devotional spaces. In this century, however, sacred spaces have greatly lost their role as primary thirdspace for the community. As neighborhoods shift in demographics religious congregations in the neighborhood often do not keep up with the changes. The rhythms of sacred spaces today no longer match the rhythms of the neighborhood around it. Instead, many churches and temples in the city are gated and closed during the week. In some cases the departure of a congregation ends in the demolition of a sacred space and in other cases the space is passed on to another congregation or repurposed for a new use. These shifts in the role of sacred architecture demonstrate that sacred spaces today need to find new purposes, different rhythms, and alternative forms. Therefore, this paper seeks to understand the role of sacred space in this century using two Los Angeles neighborhoods as a case study. This research will explore the forms sacred spaces are taking today in a major city like Los Angeles in order to understand the trends in urban religion today and to describe the new functions of sacred spaces in civic society and culture. Unlike a traditional ethnographic approach to congregational studies the main subject of this study is space rather than congregations. Therefore this study will not 2