- published: 16 Oct 2010
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A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a safe haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a safe place for humans, such as a political sanctuary; and non-human sanctuary, such as an animal or plant sanctuary.
A religious sanctuary can be a sacred place (such as a church, temple, or mosque), or a consecrated area of a church or temple around its tabernacle or altar.
In Europe, Christian churches were sometimes built on land considered as a particularly 'holy spot', perhaps where a miracle or martyrdom had allegedly taken place or where a holy person was buried. Examples are St. Peter's Basilica in Rome and St. Albans Cathedral in England, which commemorate the martyrdom of Saint Peter (the first Pope) and Saint Alban (the first Christian martyr in Britain), respectively. The place, and therefore the church built there, was considered to have been sanctified (made holy) by what happened there. In modern times, the Roman Catholic Church has continued this practice by placing in the altar of each church, when it is consecrated for use, a box (the sepulcrum) containing relics of a saint. The relics box is removed when the church is taken out of use as a church. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, the antimension on the altar serves a similar function. It is a cloth icon of Christ's body taken down from the cross, and typically has the relics of a saint sewn into it. In addition, it is signed by the parish's bishop, and represents his authorization and blessing for the Eucharist to be celebrated on that altar.
Actors: Christopher Baker (actor), Ian Sparke (costume designer), Ian Sparke (miscellaneous crew), Tana Smith (actor), Jack Henry (actor), Ryan Makepeace (producer), Ryan Makepeace (writer), Colin Handley (miscellaneous crew), Jason Seear (actor), Danielle Lomas (miscellaneous crew), Josh Kass (actor), Larry McDonald (actor), Christina Hyde (miscellaneous crew), Craig Pedersen (composer), Houston Bialka (actor),
Genres: Adventure, Short,