Date of Award
1-1-2019
Document Type
Masters Thesis
Degree Name
M.A.
Organizational Unit
College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences, Anthropology
First Advisor
Dean J. Saitta, Ph.D.
Second Advisor
Alejandro Cerón, Ph.D.
Third Advisor
Richard Clemmer-Smith, Ph.D.
Fourth Advisor
Sarah Pessin, Ph.D.
Keywords
Applied anthropology, Community center, Converted churches, Multiculturalism, Multifaith, Urban planning
Abstract
Global patterns of human displacement and migration are diversifying the user base of urban churches. This change produces new settings of cross-cultural encounter and adaptation of social space. This study examines the transition of a Lutheran church into a multifaith and multicultural community center. In Aurora, Colorado, a majority-minority city, the facility offers vital support for immigrants, refugees, and low-income community members while maintaining links with [previous] congregants. Using ethnographic methods, I explore the cultural dimensions of repurposed space for a diverse constituency. Discussed herein are the ways in which the physical space is interpreted, how contention and divergent experiences aid in the construction of shared-space, and the place of commonality in a diverse setting. Using these findings, this paper offers suggestions and strategies for accommodating religious and social diversity in globalizing cities.
Publication Statement
Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
Rights Holder
Kassandra Irene Soppas Neiss
Provenance
Received from ProQuest
File Format
application/pdf
Language
en
File Size
169 p.
Recommended Citation
Neiss, Kassandra Irene Soppas, "Social Belonging and Built Space: Using Contact, Contention, and Common Conditions to Create Multicultural and Multifaith Shared-Space in a Repurposed Aurora, Colorado, Church" (2019). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 1606.
https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/1606
Copyright date
2019
Discipline
Cultural anthropology, Urban planning