Publication Type

Journal Article

Version

acceptedVersion

Publication Date

3-2019

Abstract

This paper explores the recursive relationship between religious praxisand urban environments. It advances the concept of “religious urbanism” to showhow urban environments play an active role in shaping the praxis of religion,and how religious groups adopt secular logics in response to the pressures ofurban environments. Such logics have given rise to new, more pragmatic forms ofspatial reproduction that lead to the desecularisation of space. Desecularisationinvolves religious groups diminishing the secular properties of space, ratherthan attempting to achieve any lasting notion of sacredness. Drawing on therestrictive religio-spatial context of Singapore, I demonstrate howfast-growing religious groups are forced to compete, commercialise, andcompromise in order to acquire space. Combined, these factors have come to definereligious urbanism in Singapore, and highlight the gulf between the planningand praxis of religion in urban environments.

Keywords

Religious urbanism, space, desecularisation, Singapore, Christianity, competition

Discipline

Asian Studies | Religion | Urban Studies and Planning

Research Areas

Humanities

Publication

Social Compass

Volume

66

Issue

1

First Page

24

Last Page

34

ISSN

0037-7686

Identifier

10.1177/0037768618805871

Publisher

SAGE Publications (UK and US)

Copyright Owner and License

Author

Additional URL

https://doi.org/10.1177/0037768618805871

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