Seeking the sacred
People value the churches, chapels and shrines in the heart of their communities - not just on this side of the Tamar, but across the country. Save the Parish Cornwall's Andrew Lane reflects on the need for sacred places in life. It is my habit to listen on Youtube to people like Rupert Sheldrake and other similar thinkers. As you may know Sheldrake is a leading scientist , thinker, philosopher an engaging speaker and man of fascinating insight. In a recent piece he said how his first action when visiting somewhere new to him is to find the spiritual centre of the community . In his time in India this might have been a Hindu or Buddhist temple, in simpler cultures it might be a sacred tree , mountain or hilltop and in England, where he finally found his way back to Anglicanism, it is a church or cathedral. He points out that throughout history human societies have always had sacred places, it is almost the first thing that new settlements have been drawn to ...