Un-Holy By Design

Church design plays a major role in shaping the tone and mood of worship during the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. There are some ground rules for Church Design; the Church must not only appeal to the lesser horizontal element of Mass (our union with the faithful) but it must reflect the superior vertical element of Mass (our union with God.) This is why we see spires, domes, and towers as popular elements in Church Design.


In these two examples we see many things reflected. The stone reminds us of the solidity of our faith-unchanged and unchanging. It also reminds us of the permanence of the Church--not just this particular church, but of the Catholic Church as a whole. We see that both Churches have vertical elements which remind us of our unity with God. Let's compare that with some New Age designs.
















We see with the design on top that while it posses vertical elements, it defiantly lacks in indicating the permanence of the Church or the solidity of the Faith. The Cathedral on bottom, is the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, in Los Angeles, California. It lacks in almost every measure of Church design. It lacks indicating marks of a Church. It does not present a solidity or permanence nor does it appeal to the vertical dimension of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. As criticism on Della Chiesa says:

...But how does Our Lady of the Angels measure up as a Roman Catholic cathedral? After all, the 11-story edifice is not a government building, a museum or a bank. It is meant to be a sacred structure charged with transmitting the truths of the Catholic faith to current and future generations. It is meant to evangelize, to inspire and to beckon. It is meant, above all, to be a house of God wrought in the fashion of heavenly things. Unfortunately, Cardinal Roger Mahony's new center of Catholicism for Los Angeles does little of that...

Now let's inspect inside a few Churches.


Can you see the difference? Neither Church or I demand that every Cathedral be built in the traditional Gothic design. It is perfectly fine to use Eastern Catholic architecture; however, it is not ok to use architecture which inhibits the implimentation of Church Policy designed at ensuring a revrent celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. If you aren't Catholic, or if you are a Catholic who would easily dispose with tradition ask yourself...which design is more in line with Catholic Theology? The Mass is a sacred offereing...a Holy Sacrifice. We are not in an auditorium, Mass is not a show--we come primarily to worship God--not each other. Stop anyone who suggests that you "reck-ovating" your Church.