Sanctuary: A Gripping Cultural History of Ancient Rituals and Modern Migration Politics

Sanctuary is an ancient right. But what does it mean today? Drawing on a lifetime of engagement with literature, myth, history and tradition from different cultures, Marina Warner's Sanctuary is an ambitious attempt to grapple with the sharpest questions that we are facing in today's world of global turmoil. Sanctuary is an ancient right- a haven, a place of refuge and freedom from harm.In the classical world, it offered immunity to fugitives from justice; in medieval Europe it extended a reprieve to all who sought sanctuary in a church or holy site.It was a sacrilege to lay hands on a sanctuary-seeker: sanctuary was sacred. But what are the principles that govern this ancient tradition?Could a revived practice of sanctuary today offer security, a home for those who seek it?What could ‘sanctuary’ offer to those who have been displaced? Or does the idea support excluding those of a certain race or creed? Increasingly, in keeping with the general growth of nationalism and individualism,