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BillyT926
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Yeah I am well aware of that. It still doesn’t mean I like them
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BillyT926
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The thing I like the least about the Roman Rite is its emphasis on sobriety and noble simplicity. That’s why I’ve always loved Mediterranean Catholicism and Eastern Catholicism.
Monastic Catholic sobriety has never done it for me.
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CutlerB
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I understand why one would consider spartan churches suitable for monasteries, yet here in Europe one finds some of the most exquisite churches to be active or former abbeys. Ottobeuren Abbey is one example, as is St. Emmeram’s Abbey in Regensburg. My first post here included pictures of the latter from when I visited. Another one is attached to this post. Both of these examples are Benedictine monasteries.
Would it not also be equally understandable though, for monasteries to have really wonderful churches, such as these examples? My reasoning would be thus: Churches are for God, dedicated to Him directly or through one of His Saints, they do not glorify those who worship in them. Since being austere is part of a monk’s life, doesn’t a beautiful church emphasise precisely that? When we are in the world, we are poor. But when we are in heaven (of which the church is a symbol), we behold God’s glory.
Check out some other monasteries both active and former:
- Kloster Bronnbach
- Kloster Wald (Baden-Württemberg)
- Erzabtei Beuron
- Abtei Neresheim
- Comburg (Großcomburg)
- Kloster St. Peter auf dem Schwarzwald
- Kloster Wiblingen
- Kloster Zwiefalten
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OraLabora
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Well, there was a time when Benedictine monasteries were very wealthy. That’s why the Cistercian order(s) were started, to return to the basics of the Rule of St. Benedict. That has also been the trend in more recent Benedictine constructions.
Keep in mind that the Rule says monks should be satisfied with the poverty of the location.
Many of those older monasteries housed hundreds of men. The monasteries where I live have about 25 active monks. The community I belong to (first and second photos) has about 25 active monks on site, three in other monasteries (one on mission in Africa, one in the abbey that founded us in France, and one studying in Paris due to return this year), plus a handful more in assisted care facilities. The Trappist monastery in my pictures is only about 20 men. The cost of making really ornate churches is considerably higher these days. Even the plain church in the first two pics required millions of dollars in fundraising.
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OraLabora
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I’m the opposite. Fortunately unlike Protestantism where differences of opinions cause the founding of a new denomination and further division, the Church has lots of room for all forms of authentic (i.e. not heretical) spirituality.
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BillyT926
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exactamenteI’m the opposite. Fortunately unlike Protestantism where differences of opinions cause the founding of a new denomination and further division, the Church has lots of room for all forms of authentic (i.e. not heretical) spirituality.
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Brandon_Cal
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OraLabora,
I love every one of the photos you’ve posted. Those are exactly what I had in mind with respect to “looking like a church”. It doesn’t need to be ornate, or “busy” with artifacts. And I still cannot state exactly what makes those churches “look like churches”, but I recognize it when I see it. Maybe it’s the lighting? Maybe it’s the height? I dunno.
I love every one of the photos you’ve posted. Those are exactly what I had in mind with respect to “looking like a church”. It doesn’t need to be ornate, or “busy” with artifacts. And I still cannot state exactly what makes those churches “look like churches”, but I recognize it when I see it. Maybe it’s the lighting? Maybe it’s the height? I dunno.
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CyrilSebastian
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Exterior and interior photography of St. Peter Cathedral Church in Erie, Pennsylvania
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[www.frederickdunn.com/stpetercathedralchurch.html](www.frederickdunn.com/stpetercathedralchurch.html)
St. Peter Cathedral is the head church of the Diocese of Erie in Erie, Pennsylvania.
The style is Gothic in the French Victorian tradition.
The cathedral was built between 1873 and 1893.
Some of my cousins are members.
I have attended Mass at St. Peter Cathedral.
:harp::harp::harp:
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YoungTradCath
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I think this structure is very pleasing to the eye. It is simple, spartan, yes, and fully within the Benedictine tradition in that regard, but the structure itself has visual interest with the columns, that one piece of art in the apse (which I very much like), and that very beautiful, unique altar in that color that is not used elsewhere in the building. It is a very attractive chapel.
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TimothyH
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It is very light, and open, in spite of not being a large space. Yet the windows are not visible to distract. I can pray there.
-Tim-
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CatholicLife
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I prefer ‘traditional’ church architecture but I find some modern churches to be quite beautiful.
The Church of St John Bosco in Brasilia.
The Church of St John Bosco in Brasilia.
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corsair
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OraLabora
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What doesn’t show in the first two pictures I posted is that in spite of being “modern” the architecture is a fairly standard Church layout. The soaring height no doubt contributes; but there are traditional church elements as well: a reredos, sanctuary and choir (a traditional monastic arrangement, as is the tabernacle in a separate side chapel), stations of the Cross along the two triforiums, a narthex, of course the nave, a “choir loft” which in fact has more pews, a rose window. There’s the use of noble and solid materials: granite, marble, brick and steel, giving a sense of permanence.
The church is extremely well lit but the windows don’t allow much peering outside for distraction; the natural light is a natural enhancement for the Divine Office. Without looking at the clock, you can “feel” what hour is going to be recited, at least on sunny days. Statues are kept to a minimum: on one side, the Blessed Virgin and Child, on the other, St Benedict and St. Scholastica, his twin sister.
In short it’s very difficult to imagine that one is anywhere else than a church. The other modern one with the huge glass window looking out onto a hillside, I’m less sure of. While I love the architecture of the entire monastery, a fellow oblate who has been said he finds being able to see outside very distracting at Mass especially since it’s directly behind the altar. Perhaps they need a reredos that blocks the view but lets in lots of natural light. The monks used to be in a large monastery that was too large for them so they moved. This is their former church:
i179.photobucket.com/albums/w312/OraLabora/Italy%202009/Oka.jpg
“Old”, does not necessarily translate to “nice” (I’m not too fond of it; the church dates the early 20th century, replaced after a fire destroyed the monastery), although pictures of it in the right light do show that like many monastery churches, it plays very nicely with natural light.
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CyrilSebastian
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Cousin Laurence likes the stained glass window of Jesus on the Cross in St. Peter Cathedral located in Erie, Pennsylvania.
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CyrilSebastian
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Matthias Church
Saint Matthias Church {Matyas-templom} is located in Budapest, Hungary.
Grandaunt Margit and Granduncle Janos have attended Mass in Matyas-templom.
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[360cities.net/image/matthias-church-budapest](http://www.360cities.net/image/matthias-church-budapest)...Grandaunt Margit and Granduncle Janos have attended Mass in Matyas-templom.
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pianistclare
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Wow!
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CyrilSebastian
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Eglise Sainte-Etienne-du-Mont
pbase.com/frelaix/st_etienne_du_mont
Saint-Etienne-du-Mont Church is a Catholic church in Paris, France.
Granduncle Etienne and Grandaunt Amelie have attended Mass at Eglise Sainte-Etienne-du-Mont.
pbase.com/frelaix/st_etienne_du_mont
Saint-Etienne-du-Mont Church is a Catholic church in Paris, France.
Granduncle Etienne and Grandaunt Amelie have attended Mass at Eglise Sainte-Etienne-du-Mont.
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GangGreen
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Traditional every day. There are plenty of beautiful old churches in the US, so it doesn’t even have to be medieval. I can even take the more basic stone churches that you see in a lot of places. Whether it’s decked out in gold and beauty or just basic with some statues, a crucifix, an altar and tabernacle. It’s mainly the look and the layout of the place. Most churches that were designed with the old Mass in mind tend to have a better layout and overall look than the newer churches designed for the OF. I’m not sure if I’ve ever walked into a church built before 1960 that I’ve thought was hideous or just didn’t look/feel right. The modern churches just don’t do it for me at all.
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CyrilSebastian
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Some of the stained glass windows of St. Peter Cathedral in Erie, Pennsylvania depict the Annunciation, the Birth of Jesus, the Crucifixion, the Resurrection, and the Ascension.
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pianistclare
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