"The Sanctuaries, based in Washington, D.C., is more explicitly focused on responding to young people’s desire for spiritual connection. It was established three years ago by Erik Martinez Resly, a Unitarian minister who is also an artist, community organizer and skateboarder. He initiated The Sanctuaries to promote spiritual growth through the arts by bringing together millennials across lines of religion, race and gender orientation."

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Resly made a conscious decision not to house The Sanctuaries in a fixed location. “D.C. is pretty segregated demographically,” he said. “We want to be as accessible as possible to people of all backgrounds.” The group holds gatherings and events across the city in homes, houses of worship, community spaces, and dance and yoga studios. The events’ names express their variety. They include: Sermon Slams, Spring Walks, Holistic Health Workshops, Black Arts Reading Circle, Hip-Hop for Social Change and Meditation Through Film.

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The 20s and 30s are a time when people are asking big questions,” says Resly, who was influenced by the anthropologist Veena Das’s writings about “ordinary ethics,” which connect philosophical problems with the problems of daily life. “Many people are struggling; they’re unemployed or feel undervalued. We make space for what Cornel West called the ‘raw funky skanky stuff of life.’ 

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Osa Obaseki, a hip-hop artist who leads the group’s performance team, adds: “One of the main needs that we fulfill is creating a space for people to explore our differences in a way that is comfortable and inviting. That really goes a long way. One of the biggest things that I’ve learned is that our differences can really be a source of unity. Before, I looked at differences as more of a challenge; but now I feel like they make things more human and, in a sense, easier.”

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Rekindling Human Contact in the Digital Age

By David Bornstein  (In the " Fixes" opinion column of the New York Times),  May 8, 2015.