Digital Commons Network^™

Forging Alternatively Sacred Spaces In Singapore's Integrated Religious Marketplace, Orlando Woods

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This paper expands the notion of sacred space within the geographies of religion by arguing that spaces of religious praxis need to be understood in relation to the broader spatial logics within which they are embedded. Given that the spatial logics of urban environments tend to be secular and neoliberal in nature, it considers how religious groups respond to the realities of the marketplaces in which they operate by forging “alternatively sacred” spaces. These spaces augment the appeal of religious groups in non-religious ways, thus making them more competitive players in a religious marketplace. Specifically, it explores how independent churches …