By Kate Soifer, SCU '22
Religious offerings, devotions, and votives can be found in the most public and intimate settings, changing based on the individuals interaction with their own experience of religion. I draw on theory from Knott, Krech, and Meyer (2016), which focuses on the diversity of urban religion, visually exploring humanity's perpetual interaction with religious icons and material objects in communal spaces over time. In this photo essay I will illustrate the public religious offerings that exist nearby many secular spaces, situating these material objects within a seemingly endless bond between humanity and religion.
In their piece, Knott et al. (2016) focus on material expressions of lived religion and offerings in urban environments. Though the offering shown in the photo above and below is a religious medallion, its significance extends beyond simple theological meanings. It also carries the hopes, prayers, and other messages of the person who placed it on the statue.
"Significant material artifacts do not only enshrine values and meanings, but also engender sensations, feelings and experiences that are difficult to put into words and yet are central to constructing society" (Knott et al. 2016, 128).
This statue, identified on the SCU self-guided tour map as the Sacred Heart Statue, is holding two roses from the surrounding rose garden located behind the Mission. The statue sits atop what was formally the old Mission well, but is now the heart of the garden in front of Nobili Hall and the Adobe Lodge on campus.
"For a long time the study of religion was characterized by a bias towards meaning making, and tended to neglect the role of objects, the body and the senses in the binding and bonding of believers and in the genesis of a sense of divine presence among them" (Knott et al. 2016, 128).
Individuals make and claim space through material expressions of religion in urban spaces, regions which are often "highly sought after and in short supply". The authors push for a refocusing of urban religious study into a practice that recognizes and appreciates the iconic quality attached to material religious objects. They define "iconic quality" as the unique human-object relationship in which a material place, building, or item imparts a hallowed experience to individuals in the presence of the object (Knott et al. 2016, 127-129).
This barrel, located off-campus at Santa Clara's Forge Garden, had a cross etched into the wood. Though there was no material offering made at the Forge, by permanently carving this symbol into the barrel someone intentionally manipulated the item into an iconic object. Moreover, a garden might not be considered to be an inherently religious space, but this cross connects the area to the fundamental religiosity found in natural environments. There is a sacred quality to the Forge that allows many who enter it to experience a greater connection to themselves, imbuing it with an iconic quality.
This maroon bracelet with pearl beads is wrapped around the thumb of a statue of St. Ignatius of Loyola, located in a park across from Kenna Hall. This material offering placed on St. Ignatius is another instance of Knott et al.'s notion of an iconic quality found in the statue and the symbolic power attached to this object for worshippers.
[Image courtesy of Kate Soifer, SCU '22.]
The making of this collection of images took place over a period of roughly two and a half years, resulting in a variety of pictures of the same subjects throughout the seasons. Many of these statues receive repeated offerings of similar material objects, something that can be observed below in the four images of St. Clare. The pictures of the purple flower and dandelion chain necklace placed on the figure of St. Clare were taken months apart, indicating a repeated devotion and offering to her. This statue of St. Clare is located in a garden beside the de Sassiet art museum on campus.
Additionally, I have observed that offerings tend to take the form of organic items located in the surrounding space of the iconic object, like the flowers used for St. Clare above which came from the garden where the statue is located. Natural objects and spaces often have a blessed quality to them, something also observed in the cross carved into the barrel from the Forge Garden. There are many reasons so many of the offerings have been plant-based, one of which could be the spiritual presence of nature. These offerings are made by individuals seeking to express devotion, which suggests that the items left must be worthy of the iconic object they are intended for. Therefore, I suggest a recognition of the sanctified status of nature as an explanation for possibly influencing an individual's offering choice.
Another possible explanation could be the location of these iconic objects in the environment. Many of these statues are already located in areas of nature (like the St. Clare and Sacred Heart statues above, and the grotto containing a male figure with a child below), so this offering choice may be reflective of an easier option for individuals looking to make a spontaneous offering. Though the motivation behind an individual's offering choice is unknown, they do spotlight the strong relationship between humanity, the environment, and spirituality.
This image was taken at St. Clare Parish, located a block away from Santa Clara University's campus on Lexington Street. The grotto housing the statue is located between the parish and the basketball court for St. Clare elementary school. In front of the statue are a pair of individual prayer tables for praying to her. When passing by the grotto, it is rare to see the offering table ever empty.
"Icons depict something which is not present (or even does not exist); they bring it to appearance (or even into existence) through bearing a resemblance with the depicted" (Knott et al. 2016, 130).
As the patron saint of the city, it is common to see religious objects and statues dedicated to St. Clare throughout the area. Similarly to the St. Clare statue at the garden in SCU, this statue shows the saint gazing off into the distance with her hands clasped together. This position works to create a merciful and forgiving expression on St. Clare, which might resonate with individuals giving offerings to the statues and contribute to the iconic quality of the object. Through the making of offerings to a merciful icon like St. Clare, individuals might hope to cultivate forgiveness or seek mercy from the saint.
"Religion sets out to make the unavailable available, the invisible visible, the untouchable touchable, the unheard hearable, and so on" (Knott et al. 130-1).
Though this project was begun before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, it continued during the initial quarantine and subsequent lockdowns. In that time, these offerings continued to be made on campus, expressing the enduring quality of religion in times of deep struggle.
Knott et al. urge for an expansion on the category of icon, suggesting that "artificial or natural objects" be considered religiously iconic in quality if they cause "religious communication, including action and experience that is attributed with religious meaning.” In doing so, studies of material religion in urban spaces can become more inclusive of the diverse iconic objects that individuals view as sacred (Knott et al. 2016, 132).
I have examined the interactive relationship humanity shares with physical religion in urban spaces using the examples of material offerings around Santa Clara University and beyond. Through formal and informal interactions with sacred spaces, sites, and objects, engagement with religion itself persists. The images shared here show the sacred quality of these mundane objects and support a necessary change to contemporary definitions of "icon.” Furthermore, these examples show a recurring aspect of the natural environment in these physical offerings. This is a crucial focus of the photo essay, especially as humanity continues to grapple with the climate crisis and religion's role in the discussion. By spotlighting the intersection of religion, humanity, and the environment in urban spaces, we can bridge the division between the three concepts that has developed in the past centuries.
Sources
Knott, K., Krech, V., & Meyer, B. (2016). Iconic religion in urban spaces. The Journal of Objects, Art, and Belief, 12, pp. 123-136. https://doi.org/10.1080/17432200.2016.1172759.
Mission Santa Clara de Assisi: Self Guided Walking Tour (2022). http://www.scu.edu: Santa Clara University. https://www.scu.edu/media/offices/mission-church/historial-reference-materials/Self-guided-Walking-Tour.pdf.