Final answer:
Believing the church is sacred while your profession is secular reflects a worldview distinguishing the spiritual from the nonreligious. This viewpoint ties into sociological distinctions between the sacred and profane and fuels debates about the role of religion in public life and government.
Step-by-step explanation:
If you view the church as sacred and your profession as secular, you are embracing a perspective that distinguishes between the spiritual or religious domains and the nonreligious or secular aspects of life. This view reflects a dualistic approach to understanding the world, where things can be categorized as either sacred or profane, a distinction made famous by French sociologist Émile Durkheim. Durkheim's definition of religion as a 'unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things' underscores that the sacred is what is set apart from the ordinary and inspires a sense of awe or divinity. This perspective on the sacred versus the secular is closely related to the debate surrounding the relationship between church and state, particularly regarding the right to freely exercise one's religious beliefs versus the government's role in maintaining a separation of church and state. When religion comes up in a state or public event, it challenges us to consider where we stand on these issues and to recognize that even though some view themselves as neither religious nor spiritual, they still hold worldviews that structure their perception of life. Additionally, the way that religion and spirituality manifest within societies and landscapes, such as through sacred architecture or spaces, is a reflection of diverse groups' interpretations of religious text and tradition.
Therefore, the kind of view that sees the church as sacred and a profession as secular is one that aligns with a dualistic worldview, separating the divine from the everyday, and aligns with the foundational debates in sociology and anthropology of religion. It also dovetails with historical and contemporary conversations about the role of religion in public life and the secular governance of society.