Wesley Carey: Lane's 3 approaches

Lane provides and details 3 different approaches in understanding sacred place; the ontological approach, the cultural approach, and the phenomenological approach. The ontological approach examines the supernatural forces that play a role in sacred places, which best represents the views of believers. The cultural approach rejects the idea that places are inherently sacred, and look at the events and tensions surrounding a place to understand its sacredness. This approach mainly defines a sacred place as a contested a place, or a place people are willing to fight for. The phenomenological approach recognizes the place itself as a participant in peoples' experience of it. This approach looks at the array of features and constituents of the place to set it apart as sacred.

Lane explains that  each approach has its own benefits and setbacks. While each approach may be great for looking at certain aspects of sacred place, it may fall short in other areas. By utilizing all three approaches in conjunction, we can gain a deeper and fuller understanding of sacred place