ABSTRACT
Sacred spaces in Catholic England were not confined to purpose-built churches, monasteries or independent chapels but spilled out into different parts of a locality, encompassing shrines, religious statues and crosses. Furthermore, spaces during the Middle Ages were not used exclusively for either sacred or secular activities: the church porch was a centre for parish and manorial business as well as liturgical events; not only burials but football games, markets and fairs took place in churchyards; and an urban thoroughfare could temporarily become sacred while a religious procession was in progress. Nonetheless, the parish church was the sacred space which all people in Catholic England regularly encountered as a place of worship.
