In-Person and Online Talk: “Sacred Sites as Portals”
**Events may have been canceled or postponed. Please contact the venue to confirm the event.
Date & Time
Sat, Sep 06 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Address (map)
1407 Chapala Street, Santa Barbara, CA
Venue (website)
Institute of World Culture
Sacred Sites as Portals
Saturday, September 6, 2025 from 2:00 – 4:00 pm (PDT)
Concord Hall, 1407 Chapala Street, Santa Barbara
In person and live webcast* – a free event –
Speaker: Christopher Brown, Assoc. Professor of English, Santa Barbara City College
The magical wardrobe to Narnia, the Gate to the Upside Down in Stranger Things, the alien wormhole in Stargate—portals to alternate dimensions are a familiar trope in the worlds of science fiction and fantasy. But spiritual traditions from around the globe attest to the actual existence of sacred portals that transport visitors to distant times, places, and realities. This presentation will examine the writer Patrice Chaplin’s account of a Cabalistic initiatory tradition that leads seekers on a journey through portal sites in Northern Spain and Southern France, as well as Chumash oral narratives that identify “doorways” to other worlds in lake, mountain, and coastal regions of greater Santa Barbara.
Christopher Brown is Associate Professor of English at Santa Barbara City College. He holds a PhD in Rhetoric and Composition and an MA in English Literature, and has published and presented research on the foundational role of belief in the teaching and practice of critical thinking. Over the past two years, he has traveled to pilgrimage sites in Israel, Spain, and France. His current research focuses on sacred sites and spiritual traditions in Santa Barbara and surrounding regions.
- Link for live webcast & video library: https://www.youtube.com/@iwcinsantabarbara/streams
• In-person @ Concord Hall, Institute of World Culture, 1407 Chapala Street, Santa Barbara, CA
• More information: https://iwcinsb.org, 805-966-3941 (messages only)
