Competing Spaces, Contested Places

The makeshift and the contingent: Lefebvre and the production of precarious sacred space

“…Hospitality is also rarely, if ever, unconditional, and gratitude is often expected in return for the host's goodwill (see Ahmed, 2011). The university's frustration when further requests are made without sufficient gratitude is clear, particularly when it views such provision as beyond its remit (Thielmann, 2012).…”

“…Embodiment is central to these practices, demarcating worship space visually and aurally. Thielmann (2012) discusses a similar situation in Germany, where the institution became increasingly frustrated with the requests of students which it did not see as its responsibility to address. As I have discussed elsewhere, there is often frustration with users of these arrangements, who feel they are worshipping in a sacred space made profane by the presence of Christian iconography.…”

“…Access is negotiated with its owners to enable particular functions. However, control over these spaces lie with the owners, not their users, who may be diverse and with different priorities (Thielmann, 2012). Unlike a makeshift space, which includes an active – if impermanent – modification of the space through agency, modification of a contingent space is a negotiated, longer term process.…”

“…Site owners may be reluctant to modify these contingent sacred spaces as they may not have the resources or have higher priorities: they may feel that it is beyond their duties towards equalities; or they may view the arrangement as a short-term solution, and resent any modification which acknowledges its diverted use and may give a perception of a longer term commitment (Jones, 2014; Thielmann, 2012). While Dunn (2001; 2004) notes that exclusion from space undermines full civic participation, these accounts do not stem from explicit Islamaphobic intentions; they illustrate that using contingent sacred spaces creates difficulty for worshippers.…”

“…However, not all such arrangements follow a trajectory to bespoke mosque or church development. Some campaigns fail (Thielmann, 2012), and others linger in a state of temporary fixedness (Binte Abdullah Sani, 2015; Jones, 2014). While such phenomena are not new (Casanova, 2005), the growth of religious diversity in Europe, northern America, and Oceania, and the subsequent claims to space made by their adherents, means that there is a need to understand the properties of these spaces in themselves, rather than as interim measures.…”