Welcome to what promises to be a mind-blowing experience in Paris!

We will be exploring the notion of sacred space as it is embodied and experienced in French history and contemporary culture. Why are certain spaces considered to be sacred? How are such spaces designed and constructed? What activities take place in such spaces and for what reasons? Does a sacred space have to be an actual physical place, a cathedral or synagogue or mosque, or could it also be a social space where meaningful experiences are shared, like a café or sports arena or dinner table?

Visits to sites such as Notre Dame Cathedral, the Louvre Museum, and the royal palace of Versailles, as well as group meals for fellowship and discussion and free time to explore on your own, will equip you to broaden and deepen your understanding of sacred space. What’s more, you might well come to a deeper appreciation of how this notion actually applies to your own life, whether or not you adhere to a particular religion. What, after all, is your sacred space?

I hope you will join us for this once in a lifetime adventure!

Cheers,
LD

BIOGRAPHY
LD Russell TeachingLD Russell, Senior Lecturer Emeritus, taught in the Department of Religious Studies at Elon University for 30 years, specializing in religion and popular culture. Russell is a member in good standing of the American Academy of Religion, the Southeastern Commission for the Study of Religion, and the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi.  In 2014 he was awarded the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Good Samaritan Award, in 2016 he received the Gerald Francis Faculty Member of the Year Award from the Elon University Student Government Association, in 2018 he received the Kathleen Connolly-Weinert Leader of the Year Award from the National Board of Theta Alpha Kappa, and in 2022 he was presented with the Daniels-Danieley Award for Excellence in Teaching. In honor of his dedicated service to the institution, he was granted emeritus status upon his retirement in 2023.

Russell received his B.A. in English from Furman University, his M.Div. from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, and his M.A. in Religion from Wake Forest University. He also completed doctoral course work at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His book, Godspeed: Racing Is My Religion, was published in 2007 by Continuum Books, a subsidiary of T&T Clark International.  His article, “Hip Hop: The Soundtrack of Revolution,” was published in The Journal of Teaching and Education, Vol. 1, No. 6, December, 2012. For several years he was a contributing writer for The Independent Weekly. Two of his short stories have appeared in Old Hickory Review and another in Blind Iguana Press. His story, “The Whining,” earned second prize in the 1993 North Carolina Writers’ Network Fiction Competition, and his essay, “The Reflecting Eye,” won the grand prize in the 2001 North Carolina Writers’ Network Writers’ Competition. He is currently working on a book manuscript, tentatively titled Into the Mystic, exploring the various cultural manifestations of religion in the history of rock & roll.