What is Sacred?
Years ago in college, I worked in the box office of a small theatre in San Francisco that booked an extended run of the show Stomp. I remember the first time I saw the show and watched in complete awe as the performers turned ordinary items into musical instruments. That night, on my walk to the train station, everything began to seem like music: cars whooshing by, homeless people shaking cans of coins, bars dumping glass in bins, the trolley ringing its bell.
It was exhilarating and it was disorienting. On the one hand I heard rhythm and music everywhere I went. On the other hand, everything I thought I had known was suddenly different.
That feeling went away and I stopped hearing the music everywhere I went. It’s been decades since that night, but I remember it clearly. It came to me again when I was introduced to a podcast, Harry Potter and Sacred Text. Three friends from the Harvard Divinity School started this podcast to explore sacred reading practices using popular fiction.
It sounds silly and I certainly thought it would be. What was shocking was how serious the podcast turned out to be and how much depth and wisdom it provided. Examining the text closely, analyzing specific themes and words, and engaging in centuries-old practices, the hosts uncovered wisdom in each other and from within. And hearing their insights, I was having insights of my own.
Suddenly, I was back on the streets of San Francisco, hearing music everywhere I went. Except, now I wondered, “What is sacred?” We take for granted that certain texts are sacred to certain faith and cultural traditions. But Harry Potter? I mean… I’m a fan. A big one. But sacred?
So if Harry Potter can provide sacred wisdom, can Vogue? What about a television show? Is Stranger Things sacred? Everywhere I looked, I wondered, “Is that sacred, too?” And if all of these things were sacred – my stomach clenched as I thought this – “Is anything really sacred at all?”
Just as before, the exhilaration and the disorientation faded. But it would take a few years for me to figure out the answer to this question, Is anything really sacred at all?
I was privileged to participate in Harry Potter text reading with one of the podcast hosts at two separate conferences. In both circumstances, I watched the participants find meaning and depth in the text and gain new insights into their own lives. I’ve also used this technique in a few settings. It works every time. Harry Potter – no matter if the group has any familiarity with it at all – proves to be sacred again and again.
For a while, I began to wonder if this popular series was truly a sacred text. And since then, I’ve come to realize what makes it sacred. It’s a formula that looks like this:
A text that was created with the intention to share some underlying truth
+
A practice developed with rigorous experimentation to uncover truths
+
A pair or group of human beings who bring authenticity and curiosity
Sacred = Text + Practice + Humans
And there you have it. Harry Potter is sacred. To many, Vogue is probably sacred. Why? Because we are sacred. Is anything really sacred at all? Yes. What is sacred is us.