The field of 'art and religion' is fast becoming one of the most dynamic areas of religious studies. Uniquely, "The Art of the Sacred" explores the relationship between religion and the visual arts - and vice versa - within Christianity and other major religious traditions. It identifies and describes the main historical, theological, sociological and aesthetic dimensions of 'religious' art, with particular attention to 'popular' as well as 'high' culture, and within societies of the developing world. It also attempts to locate, and predict, the forms and functions of such art in a changing contemporary context of obligation, modernity, secularism and fundamentalism. The author concentrates on four chief dimensions where religious art and religious belief converge: the iconographic; the didactic; the institutional; and the aesthetic. This clear, well-organised and imaginative treatment of the subject should prove especially attractive to students of religion and visual culture, as well as to artists and art historians.

This book is the only one that describes exclusively the architecture, history, and art associated with 23 of Baltimore's churches and synagogues dating from 1785 to 1887. Within these houses of worship, designed by leading architects of the day, are outstanding examples of windows, statuary, paintings, mosaics, carvings and religious artifacts. Robert Cary Long, Jr., Benjamin LaTrobe and Stanford White are a few of the architects. Louis Comfort Tiffany, John LaFarge, Constantine Brumidi and Hans Schuler represent some of the artisans. A majority of the buildings are National Historic Landmarks or are on the national Register of Historic Places. Churches parallel the development of the city. The book tells why each church or synagogue was founded, the particular ethnic or social group it served and how it adapted over the years to Baltimore's changing demographics. Each building has a special story to tell. Only those religious structures which still have active congregations or are used for religious ceremonies are included. These buildings are city treasures in terms of their history, architecture and artisans' contributions to the interiors. The structures are concentrated in downtown Baltimore and include a variety of neighborhoods. The book can be used as a guide to explore these Baltimore gems.

"This book offers a new theoretical framework for exploring contemporary pilgrimage, exploring examples ranging from the Hajj to the Camino, and arguing that pilgrimage activity should be understood not solely as going to, staying at, and leaving a sacred place, but also as occurring in apparently mundane or domestic times, places, and practices"--