The Politics of Sacred Places - (Bloomsbury Studies in Religion, Space and Place) by Nimrod Luz (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

The Politics of Sacred Places is a study of the socio-political dimensions of sacred sites in Israel-Palestine, drawing on over 20 years of in-depth ethnographic research which introduces cutting-edge theories on secularization, struggles for recognition, and diversity issues.

This book focuses on contemporary sacred sites and their socio-political meanings for minorities within a hegemonic and a secularizing state-system. It argues that sacred places provide a space that is less scrutinized by the state and where alternative visions of the socio-political may be produced.

A plethora of sites and case studies are examined, including the rural shrine of Maqam abu al-Hijja in the lower Galilee, the Mosque of Hassan Bek in the heart of Tel Aviv-Jaffa and the most disputed sacred place in the region, the Haram al-Sharif in Jerusalem. These sites are explored through mostly a phenomenological lens and in various contexts, from the individual body to the global.

This book offers a critical-analytical study of the socio-political aspects of sacred sites in contemporary societies within the broader understanding of scale and the spatial turn in the study of religion.

Review Quotes

Blending geography with ethnography, history with contemporary politics, Luz provides an illuminating and engaging portrait of contested holy spaces in Israel-Palestine; but he also presents us with a challenging larger vision as he reflects on scale, spatiality and the sacred in assessing possibilities for constructing alternative imaginings of the socio-political away from the scrutiny of the state.
Simon Coleman, author of Powers of Pilgrimage: Religion in a World of Motion

This book is theoretically grounded, empirically original, and spans multiple domains of interest. It engages with ideas, and will be of interest to scholars, from across the humanities and social sciences. Each chapter does an excellent job of first introducing key theoretical debates, and how they have evolved over the years, before weaving in the author's own theoretical interventions and empirical material.
Orlando Wood, Associate Professor of Geography, Singapore Management University, Singapore

This is an impressive traverse across theoretical literatures about sacred space, drawing from multi-disciplinary literatures. Nimrod Luz's many years of deep and careful empirical research demonstrates how the sacred intersects deeply and in complex ways with myriad dimensions of political, social and economic life. While applying existing theoretical positions to his specific study contexts, he also interrogates and challenges received wisdom as a consequence, taking account of historical and geographical specificities.
Lily Kong, President, Singapore Management University, Singapore

About the Author

Nimrod Luz is Head of the Research Authority at Kinneret College on the Sea of Galilee, Israel.