Columbian Household

The pictures above are from my best friend’s house. His family is from Colombia and they moved to Philadelphia when he has very young. His mom is a good practicing Catholic, which is very evident from looking around their household. Their house contains many different religious objects. To me it looks like a church in many aspects.  A home is a space of relaxation, rejuvenation, and traditions. Adding religious objects to your home does not distract from the house it adds more to it if you believe in it. When you add things to your home that are meaningful to you it becomes a sacred space. The home is a place of rejuvenation after a long day's work. Church is also rejuvenation for the soul but someone might only find time to go to church once a week whereas they are in their homes everyday. The religious objects help my best friend’s mom feel loved and remember the devotion she has in a higher up being. It’s a constant reminder that even though the days are hard there is something and someone bigger than her watching over her.

To someone who does not live in their house and who is not religious the objects may distract from what they believe is the sacredness of a home. The idea of distracting from the space or not depends on someone’s beliefs. Someone who is not religious who comes to visit their home may feel uncomfortable with all the religious objects around the house. But on the other hand they could see the religious objects are beautiful pieces of artwork. Objects do not have an inherent religious meaning to them. They are acquired through the idea humans put on them or by the rituals we use them for.