In 1967 the sociologist Peter Berger defined secularization as the loss of "the sacred canopy." In other words, in the modern world we suffered the loss of an overarching religious belief system that provided personal and communal meaning. In historian Christian Smith’s recent look at American religion, he says that while we may have lost the sacred canopy, people are now putting up their own "sacred umbrellas."

From a biblical perspective, there are templing "sacred umbrellas" and there are tabernacling "sacred umbrellas": we temple in our homes; we tabernacle in our meeting place. The temple is the most sacred, the most revered residence of God’s Spirit. Today God ought to take up residence in the home with one’s family, friends, neighbors (including global ones through cyberspace). The tabernacle is the temporary, makeshift place where one puts up altars and conducts worship. This is what the local church needs to be seen as, especially in a highly mobile society where the temple goes with you wherever you go, and the tabernacles change.

In the modern world, the rhythms of the spiritual life were tabernacled but not templed. The festivals, sacraments, liturgies, and pilgrimages took up residence in ecclesiastical ghettos. It is now templing time. The interest in shrines, candles, incense, and mantras is an expression of our need to take these rituals back and make them a part of our templed dailiness. In fact, the world is doing better than the church in wooing outsiders with templing experiences, providing spiritual activities (not necessarily good ones) that can be fitted into everyday life.

Yet the needed templing is different from the manner of Victorian representations and realities. Victorians kept busy through a relentless round of empty exhausting, genteel rituals. Postmodern templing is more in the manner of most tribal people, whom anthropologists estimate spend 30 percent of their time "working" and the rest of their time "preparing and performing rituals, dances and ceremonies." Why do they do that? Psychologist James Hillman answers, "They do that so their feeling is in right relation with the world they’re in."

from Leonard Sweet’s SoulSalsa – 17 Surpising Steps For Godly Living in the 21st Century

I thought this concept of "templing" and "tabernacling" was intriguing. Sweet goes on to suggest ways we can create rituals of significance in our "dailiness" (I love that word!) so that we may "sacramentalize our spaces, places, and faces." It made me wonder what rituals and ceremonies I’m creating in my family to invite God into his temple. Got any good ones?  (Pancake breakfast on Sunday, celebrating Christian holy days, new ideas for celebrating birthdays, etc.)  I’m open to suggestions…