ABSTRACT
If one were to picture in one’s mind the relationship between religions and societies in terms of spatial metaphors, a scenic city situated in a broad val ley could represent the public realm. Citizens, for their part, could approach the city as drivers of automobiles, here standing for religious identities. In such an imaginary setting, French motorists could gaze upon the valley from a distant overlook, but would be required to park there and descend the mountainside on foot to stroll the sidewalks of the city as individual pedes trians. In contrast, Canadians could enter the city behind the wheel, but eventually they would need to park their cars in the nearest one of a small number of clearly designated lots positioned for practical convenience in different neighborhoods.
