We sometimes think of sacred ground as a very grand or unusual place, marked by ornate gates and much symbolism. But sacred ground can be quite unassuming and ordinary.
Katie, the heroine of THE HALLOWED ONES, has always lived on sacred ground. She’s grown up in a peaceful Amish settlement, living with her parents and sister in the house where she was born. She knows every other person in the settlement. Crime is unheard-of. Though she has many responsibilities, Katie has always been free to wander about the rural settlement, to feel the cool grass under her fingers and the warm sun on her face. She feels safe here, though she yearns to test her boundaries and taste the world outside her fence.
The Amish church is the key to the sacredness of her community. Church services in her world take place at each house on a rotating basis – there is no physical church building. Pews are unloaded into each backyard every other Sunday, and worship is wound into everyday lives and places.
