Historical development
Origins of the ecclesial building
The simplest church building comprises a single meeting space, constructed from locally available materials and using the same construction procedures as homes in the area. These churches are generally rectangular, but in African countries where round houses are the norm, vernacular churches can also be circular. A simple church can be built with mud bricks, bahareque, split logs or waste materials. It can be roofed with straw, banana leaves, corrugated iron or tiles. However, Christian communities from the century onward sought to construct buildings that were both permanent and aesthetically pleasing. This generated a tradition in which congregations and local leaders have invested considerable amounts of time, money, and personal prestige in the construction and decoration of churches.
Within any parish, the local church is often the oldest building and is larger than any pre-century structure, except perhaps a barn. It is often built from the most durable material available, often stone or faced brick. The requirements of the liturgy have generally demanded that the church extend beyond a single meeting room to two main spaces, one for the congregation and another in which the priest performs the rituals of the mass. Corridors, a tower, chapels and sacristies, and sometimes transepts and mortuary chapels, are often added to the two-hall structure. The additional chambers may be part of the original plan, but in the case of many ancient churches, the building has been expanded little by little, its various parts attesting to its long history.
In the first three centuries of its history, the practice of Christianity was persecuted and very few churches were built "Church (building)"). At first, Christians carried out their rituals together with Jews in synagogues and in private homes. After the separation of Jews and Christians, the latter continued to worship in some homes, known as house churches. These were often the homes of the wealthiest members of the faith. Saint Paul, in his first epistle to the Corinthians, wrote: "The churches of Asia send greetings. Aquila and Prisca, together with the church in their house, greet you warmly in the Lord."[9].
Some domestic buildings were adapted to function as churches. One of the first adapted residences is the church house at Dura Europos in Syria, built shortly after 200 AD. C., where two rooms were converted into one, by removing a wall, and a dais was installed"). To the right of the entrance, a small room was converted into a baptistery.[10].
Some churches were built specifically as assemblies, such as the one in front of Emperor Diocletian's palace at Nicomedia. Its destruction was recorded like this:.
From the 19th to the early 20th century, most Christian communities worshiped in one of their homes, often in secret. Some Roman churches, such as the Basilica of Saint Clement Lateran in Rome, were built directly above the houses where the first Christians professed their faith. Other early Roman churches were built on sites where a martyr had been executed or at the entrance to the catacombs where Christians were buried.
With the victory of the Roman emperor Constantine in the battle of the Milvian Bridge in the year 312 AD. C., Christianity became a religion that was first legitimate and then privileged within the Roman Empire. The faith, already spread throughout the Mediterranean, began to be expressed in buildings. Christian architecture developed to correspond to civic and imperial forms, so basilicas, large rectangular meeting rooms, became widespread in the east and west as the model for churches, with a central nave accompanied by side aisles and sometimes galleries and clerestories. While civic basilicas had an apse at each end, the Christian basilica usually had a single apse where the bishop and presbyters sat on a dais behind the altar. While pagan basilicas focused on a statue of the emperor, Christian basilicas focused on the rite of the Eucharist as the symbol of the eternal, loving and forgiving God.
The first very large Christian churches, notably the Basilica of Saint Mary Major, the Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran and the Mausoleum of Saint Constance, were built in Rome at the beginning of the 12th century.[12].
The church building as it is known today emerged from a number of characteristics typical of the ancient Roman period:
• - The domestic churches.
• - The atrium.
• - The basilica.
• - The bema.
• - The mausoleum: a building with a centralized plan.
• - The cruciform plan: Latin or Greek cross.
When ancient communities began to build churches, they relied on a particular feature of the houses that preceded them, the "atrium", or courtyard with a colonnade around it. Most of these atriums have disappeared. A good example remains in the Basilica of Saint Clement Lateran in Rome and another was built in the Romanesque period in the Basilica of Saint Ambrose (Milan) "Basilica of Saint Ambrose (Milan)"). The descendants of these atriums can be seen in the large cloisters that can be found next to many cathedrals, and in the enormous colonnaded squares in the Basilicas of St. Peter in Rome and St. Mark in Venice, or in the Camposanto of the Cathedral of Pisa.
The architecture of the early church did not take its form from Roman temples, since the latter did not have large internal spaces where the faithful could gather for worship. It was the Roman basilica, used for meetings, markets and courts of law, the building that provided a model for the great Christian church and which gave its name to the Christian basilica.[13].
Both Roman basilicas and Roman baths had at their core a large domed building with a high ceiling, reinforced on either side by a series of lower chambers or a wide porticoed passage. An important feature of the Roman basilica was that at each end it had a projecting exedra, or apse, a semicircular space roofed with a half dome. This was where the magistrates sat to hold trials. It passed into the church architecture of the Roman world and was adapted in different ways as a feature of the architecture of cathedrals and great churches.[12].
The first great churches, such as the Cathedral of Saint John Lateran in Rome, consisted of a basilica with one end topped by an apse, and with a courtyard at the other end. As the Christian liturgy developed, processions became a rite of great importance. The processional door was the one that led to the center from the far end of the building, while the door most used by the public could be on one side of the building, as was the case in the original Roman basilicas that operated as judicial headquarters. This is the most common case among most cathedrals and churches.[14].
As the number of clerics increased, the small apse that contained the altar on which the hosts and wine were consecrated in the rite of the Eucharist was no longer sufficient. A raised dais called a "bema" was part of many large basilica churches. In the case of St. Peter's Basilica and St. Paul's Basilica Outside the Walls in Rome, this bema extended laterally beyond the main meeting hall, forming two arms so that the building took the shape of a T with a projecting apse. From this beginning, the plan of the churches developed into the so-called Latin cross model, which is the shape of most Western cathedrals and large churches. The arms of the cross form the transept.[15].
• - Atrium of the Basilica of Saint Clement Lateran, Rome, with reused ancient Roman columns.
• - Interior of the Basilica of San Apollinaris in Classe.
• - The "bema" of the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, Rome.
• - Mausoleum of Saint Constance, Rome, built by Constantine I (c. 350) as the tomb of his daughter.
One of the influences on the church architecture was the mausoleum. In ancient Rome, it was a funerary building for a nobleman, consisting of a square or circular domed structure that housed a sarcophagus. Emperor Constantine I built a mausoleum for his daughter Constance that has a circular central space, surrounded by an ambulatory or lower passage separated by a colonnade. The mausoleum of Saint Constance became a funerary monument and a place of worship. It is one of the first ecclesial buildings with a central layout, instead of the much more common longitudinal configuration. Constantine was also responsible for the construction of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, a circular, mausoleum-like building, which in turn influenced the design of several buildings, including the one built in Rome to house the remains of Saint Stephen the protomartyr, the temple of Santo Stefano Rotondo, and the Church of San Vital in Ravenna.
Ancient circular or polygonal churches are relatively rare. A small number, such as the Temple Church (London) in London, were built during the Crusades in imitation of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. There are also isolated examples in England, France and Spain. In Denmark, these Romanesque style churches are much more numerous. In some parts of Eastern Europe there are also round tower-shaped churches from the Romanesque period, but they are generally vernacular in architecture and small in scale. However, other temples, such as the round church of St. Martin in Visegrad in the Czech Republic, are finely detailed.[16].
The circular or polygonal shape was conferred on those buildings within church complexes that performed a function in which it was desirable for parishioners to be placed facing a central point, rather than an axially located point. In Italy, the circular or polygonal shape was used throughout the medieval period for baptisteries, while in England it was adapted for chapter houses. In France, the polygonal plan with successive aisles was used for apses, while in Spain, the same shape was often used for chapels.
Aside from St. Constance and St. Stephen, there was another significant place of worship in Rome that was also circular, the great Pantheon of Agrippa, a monumental building in ancient Rome decorated with numerous niches filled with statues. This building also became a Christian church, and its style would influence the development of later cathedral architecture.
Most cathedrals and large churches have a cruciform plan. In churches of Western European tradition, the plan is usually elongated, in the shape of the so-called Latin cross, with a long nave (architecture) "Nave (architecture)") crossed by a shorter transept. The transept may project considerably, as at York Minster, or not project beyond the aisles as at Amiens Cathedral.
Many of the early churches of Byzantium adopted a longitudinal arrangement. In Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, the building is structured around a central dome, surrounded on one axis by two tall semi-domes and on the other by the rectangular transept arms, of lower height. The general layout is a square. This great church influenced the construction of many later churches, even in the 19th century. A square plan in which the arms of the nave, chancel and transept are of equal length to form a Greek cross, with the crossing usually surmounted by a dome, became the most common form in Orthodox worship, with many churches in Eastern Europe and Russia being built in this way. Churches of the form of the Greek cross often have a narthex or vestibule extending across the front of the church. This type of plan would also later play an important role in the development of church architecture in Western Europe, especially in the plan designed by Bramante for St. Peter's Basilica.[12][15].
• - Comparison of plants.
• - Early Christian: Church House in Dura, Syria. Domestic rooms around a courtyard were adapted as a meeting place and baptistery.
• - Byzantine: Chora Church, Istanbul. A vaulted church with an apsidal chancel, galleries on each side and a narthex. A modified inscribed cross church plan.
• - Romanesque: Church of Eschau"), France. Cruciform plan with apse and aisles, west portal and side entrance.
• - Gothic: Marienkirche (Rostock)&action=edit&redlink=1 "Marienkirche (Rostock) (not yet written)").
• - Renaissance: Temple of Santa María de la Consolación (Todi) "Temple of Santa María de la Consolación (Todi)"), Italy.
Divergence of Eastern and Western Church Architecture
The division of the Roman Empire in the century AD. C., resulted in Christian ritual evolving in distinctly different ways in the eastern and western parts of the empire. The final break became evident with the Great Schism of 1054.
Eastern Christianity and Western Christianity began to differ from each other from an early date. While the basilica was the most common form in the west, a more compact style became predominant in the east. These churches were originally "martyria", built as mausoleums to house the tombs of saints who had died during the persecutions that only fully ended with the conversion of Emperor Constantine. An important surviving example is the Mausoleum of Gala Placidia in Ravenna, Italy, which has preserved its decorative mosaics. It dates back to the 19th century and may have been used briefly as an oratory before becoming a mausoleum.
These buildings copied pagan tombs and were square, cruciform with slightly projecting or polygonal arms. They were roofed by domes with the intention of symbolizing the sky. The projecting arms were sometimes roofed with domes or semi-domes that were lower and abutted the central core of the building. Byzantine churches, although organized centrally around a vaulted space, usually maintained a clearly defined axis to the apse chancel, which generally extended beyond the other apses. This projection allowed the erection of an iconostasis, a screen on which the icons are hung and which hides the altar from the faithful except at those points in the liturgy in which its doors are opened.
The architecture of Constantinople (Istanbul) in the century produced churches that effectively combined the centered and basilical plans, with semidomes forming the axis and porticoed galleries on each side. The Hagia Sophia (now a museum) was the most significant example and had a huge influence on both later Christian temples and Islamic architecture, such as the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem and the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus. Many later Eastern Orthodox churches, particularly the larger ones, combine a central plan with a vaulted eastern end and a nave with aisles on the west.
A variant form of the centralized church developed in Russia, which came to prominence in the 19th century. Here the dome was replaced by a much thinner and taller hipped or conical roof, which perhaps originated from the need to prevent snow from remaining on the roofs. One of the best examples of these pavilion roofs is St. Basil's Cathedral on Moscow's Red Square.
• - Church of the Intercession of the Nerl River (1165), medieval church part of the White Monuments of Vladimir and Suzdal (World Heritage Site).
• - Church of St. John Kaneo (ca. 13th century), in Ohrid, North Macedonia, is a typical Byzantine Orthodox church with a cross-shaped dome.
Romanesque church architecture
After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 19th century, the Christian West would live a period of about 500 years in which the fragmentation of the old empire, a deep subsistence crisis, the continuous wars between feudal lords and the rise of Islamic expansion from the southern shore of the Mediterranean, meant that the vast majority of Christian temples of this period were modest constructions adapted from older buildings, giving rise to what is known as Visigothic architecture, with some examples of churches. preserved in France, Spain[17] and Portugal.
However, from the century onwards the expansion of the monastic orders began, resuming the initial impulse of the Benedictine order that had run some important monasteries throughout Europe since the century. The order of Cluny (year 910) and the order of the Cistercian (year 1098), almost literally seeded the continent with thriving monasteries, with which they brought an architectural style specific to how to understand and build the churches of their monasteries, as well as in the image of the abbey churches, the numerous temples that the reborn towns, villages and cities required for worship.[18].
From a construction point of view, Romanesque churches (with an abundant presence of local variables) presented the classic Latin cross shape (that is, with unequal arms). The main nave was usually topped by a raised façade at one end (with a belfry, a bell tower or two towers) and an apse on the opposite side. The transept usually contained a secondary doorway, with the entrance to the temple for parishioners, and the presence of porticoed atriums and cloisters attached to the church were common, especially in cathedral or monastic complexes.
Romanesque constructions systematically used heavy load-bearing walls (normally made of ashlar or masonry, although there are also notable buildings based on brick or adobe, particularly in Spain, such as the Iglesia de San Tirso (Sahagún) "Church of San Tirso (Sahagún)")[19] and they used the semicircular arch, with which they formed barrel vaults. To prevent the lateral thrust of the arches from compromising the verticality of the walls on which they rested, heavy buttresses were usually placed.
The first Romanesque churches, spread by the Cluniac order, became authentic stories in stone, pouring into their rich figurative decoration (especially sculptural, but also pictorial) scenes related to biblical passages and the lives of martyrs and saints. As time went by, these artistic representations gave way to a more secular theme, in which scenes from everyday life and even fantastic or mythological beings began to appear. Around the year 1100, a renewed vision of monasticism imposed a more austere and spiritual vision at the hands of the Cistercian order. This meant the drastic disappearance of secular sculptures from the decoration of the new temples, replaced by elements of vegetal or geometric inspiration.[20][21].
Gothic church architecture
The Gothic era, first referred to by the Italian historiographer Giorgio Vasari,[22] began in northeastern France and slowly spread throughout Europe. Perhaps it was most characteristically expressed in the rayonnant (radiant) style, which originated in the 19th century, characterized by its elaborate geometric shapes, in order to make the temples as amazing and striking as possible. Gothic churches were often highly decorated, with geometric features applied to increasingly complex structural forms.[23] As the Gothic period neared its end, its influence had spread to various types of buildings, such as guild halls, fish markets, and public and government buildings.
Gothic era architecture, originating in 19th century France, is a style in which curves, arches, and complex geometry are greatly emphasized. These intricate structures, often of immense size, required a great deal of planning, effort and resources; involving a large number of master builders and workers; and often took hundreds of years to complete, which was considered a tribute to God.
The characteristics of a Gothic style church are largely in congruence with the ideology that the more impressive a church is, the better it reflects the majesty of God. This was achieved through ingenious mathematics and engineering at a time when complex shapes, especially in enormous cathedrals, were not found in other types of structures. Through this newly acquired ability to design complex shapes, churches used pointed arches, flying buttresses and pinnacles to support them, as well as luminous curved windows with polychrome stained glass and high cross vaults. Although it may seem paradoxical, the critical factor in the design of a Gothic church was its width, which in turn meant increasing its height.[23]
The Gothic architecture of the churches showed a special emphasis on integrating other artistic manifestations. Like the structure of the building, emphasis was placed on complex geometric shapes. An example of this trend is stained glass (which can still be found in modern churches), artistic and functional elements at the same time, which allow colored light to immerse the church in a heavenly atmosphere.
Renaissance church architecture
The end of the Gothic period, especially in Italy, overlapped with the beginning of the Renaissance style. A clear example is the Cathedral of Santa María del Fiore in Florence (Italy), a monumental complex made up of a bell tower, a baptistery and a church crowned by a huge dome with an octagonal base. The temple had begun in the sober late Gothic style typical of Tuscany, far from the decorative exuberance and structural lightness of French Gothic. To build the huge dome of the temple, Filippo Brunelleschi was turned to,[27] who was inspired by Agrippa's Pantheon to approach such a unique construction.
Another genius of the Renaissance, Michelangelo, completed the dome of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, a project started by Bramante. This type of domes, inspired by imperial Rome, would become a reference for numerous later temples. In fact, the Renaissance conception of its grandiose structure,[28] is embedded in the Baroque conception of most of its decorative elements, leaving the building framed by the spectacular colonnade and the set of sculptures designed by Lorenzo Bernini. St. Peter's Basilica is framed within the baroque conception of the liturgy, in which the images and exuberant ornamentation of the temple aim to enhance a feeling of elevation in the faithful.
Chronologically straddling two enduring styles, Gothic and Baroque, the Renaissance left a mark, although outstanding, relatively small in the number of churches characterized by this style. In this sense, the Sacra Capilla del Salvador (Úbeda, Spain), designed by Diego de Siloé and Andrés de Vandelvira in 1559, is a particularly notable building due to its stylistic unity.
The Reformation and its influence on church architecture
At the turn of the century, the Protestant Reformation brought a period of radical change to church design. On Christmas Day 1521, Andreas Karlstadt celebrated the first Reformed mass. At the beginning of January 1522, the Wittenberg town council authorized the removal of images from the churches and confirmed the changes introduced by Karlstadt at Christmas. According to the ideals of the Protestant Reformation, the spoken word, the sermon, should be a central act in the church service. This meant that the pulpit became the focal point of the church interior and that temples had to be designed to allow everyone to hear and see the minister.[31] Pulpits have always been a feature of Western churches, and the birth of Protestantism led to major changes in the way Christianity was practiced, giving great prominence to the spoken word.
During the Reformation period, emphasis was placed on "full and active participation." The focus of the Protestant churches was on the preaching of the Word, rather than a priestly emphasis. Old Catholic churches were therefore redecorated when they were renovated: paintings and statues of saints were removed, and sometimes the altar table was placed in front of the pulpit, as in Strasbourg Cathedral in 1524. The pews were turned towards the pulpit, and wooden galleries were built to allow more worshipers to follow the sermon.
The first newly built Protestant church was the court chapel of Neuburg Castle in 1543, followed by the court chapel of Hartenfels Castle in Torgau, consecrated by Martin Luther on October 5, 1544.
Images and statues were sometimes removed during disorderly riots and uncontrolled mob actions (in the Netherlands, these actions were called beeldenstorm). Medieval temples were stripped of their decorative elements, such as the Grossmünster church in Zürich in 1524, a position reinforced by the Calvinist Reformation, which began in 1535 for its main church, the Geneva Cathedral. In the Peace of Augsburg of 1555, which ended a period of armed conflict between Catholic and Protestant forces within the Holy Roman Empire, the rulers of the German-speaking states and the Habsburg Emperor Charles I of Spain, agreed to accept the principle of Cuius regio, eius religio, meaning that the religion of the ruler was to dictate the religion of the governed.
In the Netherlands, the Reformed Church of Willemstad&action=edit&redlink=1 "Willemstad (North Brabant) (not yet drafted)") (North Brabant), was built in 1607 as the first Protestant church building in the Netherlands. It is a domed, octagonal church, designed to reinforce Calvinism's focus on the importance of the sermon. The Westerkerk in Amsterdam was built between 1620 and 1631 in the Renaissance style and remains the largest church in the Netherlands designed according to Protestant criteria.
The church of the Counter-Reformation and the baroque
Following the Protestant schism, the Catholic Church led by the Society of Jesus embarked on a renewal movement known as the Counter-Reformation, aimed at recovering the Catholic faith in the Lutheran states of Europe. It is possible that this liturgical movement deliberately relied on the baroque style, which in some way represented a superlative reaffirmation in the ornamentation of the churches, contrary to the Lutheran spirit that had promoted the systematic suppression of decorative elements in the old Catholic temples.
Baroque churches in general introduced a new sense of space, creating a complex geometry that enhanced the three-dimensional character of the exterior and interior of the temples. To achieve this, resources were used such as the adoption of elliptical domes; boldly curved facades were designed; Natural overhead lighting was provided to the naves; and the ceilings of the vaults were decorated with fresco paintings, including marked foreshortenings. All these elements allowed in some way to blur the physical limits of the building.[34] The interior environment was completed by a profuse ornamentation of golden stucco elements in the form of garlands with plant motifs, and a dramatic hagiographic iconography (both sculptural and pictorial), intended to exalt the spirit of the faithful, adopting for the same purpose a path diametrically opposed to the criteria set by the Lutheran church.
The prototype of this type of temple is the Church of the Gesù in Rome, whose construction began in 1568. It was designed in accordance with the new demands formulated during the Council of Trent. The narthex was eliminated, so that the parishioner is immediately projected into the body of the church, composed of a simple central nave, without side naves, so that the congregation is together and concentrated around the main altar. A series of interconnected chapels replace the side naves,[35] and the transepts are reduced to sketches that emphasize the altars on the back walls.[36].
The example of the Gesù did not completely eliminate the traditional basilica church with aisles, but after his example was established, experiments with the plan of baroque, oval or Greek cross churches, were largely limited to minor churches and chapels.
The baroque style had a great presence until the beginning of the century in southern Europe, especially in France, Italy and Spain; and through the latter, in most of the great temples of Latin America (such as the Cathedral of Mexico or the Cathedral of Lima).[37].
As already noted, St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, despite its Renaissance origins, ended up becoming one of the paradigms of the conception of a baroque temple, which in turn served as inspiration for another great church of a later period: St. Paul's Cathedral in London, designed by Christopher Wren,[38] a reference in turn to a good number of baroque churches in the Anglo-Saxon world.
Neoclassical period
The proliferation of baroque temples in which almost extravagant extremes had been reached in decoration, as had already happened on previous occasions, provoked a reaction movement advocating a return to much simpler forms, inspired through the Renaissance in classical antiquity.
A characteristic example of this style is the Madeleine church in Paris,[39] whose exterior exactly reproduces the appearance of a Greek temple, although its interior layout corresponds to that of a conventional church,[40] including four circular skylights integrated into the roof that imitate small domes, and an apse behind the altar, whose arrangement cannot be observed from the outside of the building. Another notable French church from this period is the Pantheon in Paris (initially designed as a temple dedicated to Saint Genevieve.
Italy preferred to recreate its ancient models well into the century and at the beginning of the century. The model of Agrippa's Pantheon in Rome is repeated in a large number of temples, such as that of the church of the Great Mother of Dio (1818-1831) in Turin, of Ferdinando Bonsignore and San Francisco de Paula (1816-1846) in Naples, which reproduce the octostyle portico and the cylindrical volume of the Pantheon.
Other notable churches are the Pamplona Cathedral "Catedral de Pamplona (España)") (Spain), or the Metropolitan Cathedral of Buenos Aires (Argentina).
• - Metropolitan Cathedral of Buenos Aires (1752-1852).
• - Madeleine Church (1763-1842), Paris (France).
• - Pantheon of Paris (1764-1790), by Jacques-Germain Soufflot.
• - St. Hedwig's Cathedral "St. Hedwig's Cathedral (Berlin)") (1747-1773; destroyed in World War II and rebuilt in 1952-1963), Berlin, work of Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorf").
• - Neoclassical façade of the Pamplona Cathedral "Cathedral of Pamplona (Spain)") (Spain, 1783-1798), work of Ventura Rodríguez.
• - The Basilica of Saint Francis of Paula (1816-1846) in Piazza del Plebiscito, in Naples.
• - Saint Isaac's Cathedral (1818-1858), work of August de Montferrand in Saint Petersburg.
• - Church of Saint Vincent de Paul "Church of Saint Vincent de Paul (Paris)") (1824-1844), Paris, work of Jacques Hittorff.
• - St. Nicholas Church "St. Nicholas Church (Potsdam)") (1830-1837), Potsdam, work of Karl Friedrich Schinkel.
neo-gothic architecture
At the end of the century, there was a new change of trend in the conception of architecture in general, perhaps exhausted by the academic rigor that the neoclassical period had entailed. The romantic period marked a revitalization of the historicist spirit, linked to the medieval origin of the different peoples of Europe. This circumstance meant a recovery of the traditional Gothic style, whose rise spanned a good part of the century (it became one of the hallmarks of the Victorian era)[41] and which, with different intensity, has remained present to this day.
The neo-Gothic style has encompassed different interpretations of the original Gothic style, from copies literally inspired by existing churches (systematically incorporating elements such as flying buttresses, pinnacles or gargoyles), to more or less free interpretations that are limited to the use of pointed arches and the elimination of heavy load-bearing walls.
In addition to new churches, such as the church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul (Oostende) "Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul (Oostende)") (Belgium), the Basilica of Saint Clotilde in Paris, the Liverpool Cathedral or the Cathedral of Saint Patrick in New York,[42] the recovery of the Gothic style made it possible to conclude with modern techniques emblematic churches that had been in construction for centuries, such as the Cologne Cathedral[43] or the Cathedral of Milan.[44].
Another notable neo-Gothic example is the Salt Lake City Temple (1888), main church of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints") in Utah, United States.
From the liturgical point of view, the neo-Gothic churches recovered most of the accessory spaces that had been eliminated from the baroque conception of the temples.
The same spirit that drove the recovery of the Gothic style led to the reappearance of different local architectural styles, such as the neo-Mudejar styles (with which the restoration of the church of San Pedro (Teruel) "Iglesia de San Pedro (Teruel)") was undertaken[45] and neo-Herrerian in Spain; or the neo-Tudor style in the United Kingdom.
modernist architecture
The approach of modernist architecture implied a total break with the forms of the past (both neoclassical academicism and the conceptions of perspective proposed in the Renaissance and the Baroque). The new movement translated into a range of forms directly inspired by nature, which moved away from rigidly geometric concepts, such as mirror symmetry or certain scale relationships, and in which rounded and soft shapes began to acquire a new prominence, driven by the recently acquired mastery of new construction materials, such as steel or reinforced concrete.
However, this new architectural form did not have a great influence on the new Christian temples, still anchored in models of the past (such as baroque or neoclassical) or in updated revisions of other past styles (especially under the influence of the neo-Gothic style). The modernist style, whose first creations came to light in Belgium thanks to the architect Victor Horta,[46] was perhaps too disruptive for the conventional tastes of the ecclesiastical hierarchy of the time, and left few, but very relevant, samples of its influence on religious architecture. It would be the Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí, who had already carried out some commissions for religious buildings such as the Episcopal Palace of Astorga (of clear neo-Gothic inspiration), who managed to leave his unmistakable personal stamp on the Expiatory Temple of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, whose expressive language he had already experimented on a smaller scale in the Crypt of Colonia Güell.[47].
From a liturgical point of view, Gaudí took up the model of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, placing the altar under a baldachin.[48].
modern architecture
The idea that worship was a collective ritual and that the congregation should not be excluded from the vision or from participating in it did not derive from the liturgical movement. Simple single-room plans are almost the essence of modernity in architecture. In France and Germany, between the First and Second World Wars, some of the main developments took place. The church of Le Raincy "Church of Our Lady (Le Raincy)") near Paris, the work of Auguste Perret is cited as the starting point of the process, not only for its layout but also for the material used, reinforced concrete. (architect) (not yet written)"), its architect, had a great influence on the construction of later churches, not only on the European continent but also in the United States. Schloss Rothenfels was a large rectangular space, with solid white walls, deep windows and a stone pavement. It had no decoration. The only furniture consisted of a hundred movable stools in the shape of black cubes. For worship, an altar was set up and worshipers surrounded it on three sides.
Corpus Christi in Aachen[50] was Schwartz's first parish church and adheres to the same principles, which are very reminiscent of the artistic movement of the Bauhaus School. Externally it is a flat cube; The interior has white walls and colorless windows. It is a langbau, that is, a narrow rectangle at the end of which is the altar. It was to be, Schwartz said, a church not 'Christocentric' but 'theocentric'.[51] There were simple benches in front of the altar, which behind it had a large wall simply painted white, symbolizing the region of the invisible Father. The influence of this simplicity spread to Switzerland with architects such as Fritz Metzger and Dominikus Böhm.
After World War II, Metzger continued to develop his ideas, especially with the church of St. Francis in Basel-Richen. Another notable building is the Notre Dame du Haut Chapel in Ronchamp, designed by Le Corbusier (1954).[52] Similar principles of simplicity and continuity of style can be found in the United States, particularly in the Catholic Abbey Church of St.
One theological principle that resulted in a change was the decree Sacrosanctum Concilium of the Second Vatican Council, issued in December 1963. It encouraged the 'active participation' (Latin: actuosa participatio)[54] of the faithful in the celebration of the liturgy and required that new churches must be built with these criteria. Later, the rubrics and instructions encouraged the use of an independent altar that would allow the priest to officiate facing the parishioners, and not with his back turned as until then. The effect of these changes can be seen in churches such as the Metropolitan Catholic cathedrals of Liverpool "Cathedral of Christ the King (Liverpool)") and Brasilia, both circular buildings with a separate altar.[55].
Different principles and practical pressures produced other changes. Parish churches were inevitably built more modestly. Often, scarcity of funds as well as 'market' theology suggested the construction of multi-purpose churches, in which secular and sacred events could take place in the same space at different times. Once again, the emphasis on the unity of liturgical action was counterbalanced by a return to the idea of movement. Three spaces, one for baptism, one for the liturgy of the word and another for the celebration of the Eucharist with a congregation standing around an altar, were promoted by Richard Giles")[56] in England and the United States. The congregation had to move from one place to another. Such configurations were less appropriate for large congregations than for small ones. Thus, in the first case, the arrangement in an arch-shaped proscenium with enormous amphitheaters.[57][58].
Postmodernism
As with other postmodern movements, the postmodern movement in architecture formed in reaction to the ideals of modernism "Modernism (philosophical and cultural movement)") and in response to the perceived vapidity, hostility, and utopia of the modern movement. Although rare in church architecture designs, there are cases that stand out for recovering and renewing historical styles and the "cultural memory" of Christian architecture. Notable architects of this trend include Steven Schloeder"), Duncan Stroik"), and Thomas Gordon Smith.[59].
The functional style "Functionalism (architecture)") and the formalized forms and spaces of the modernist movement "Modernism (philosophical and cultural movement)") are replaced by an unapologetic aesthetic: styles clash, form takes on its own, and new ways of seeing familiar styles and space abound. Perhaps most obviously, architects rediscovered the expressive and symbolic value of architectural elements and forms that had evolved over centuries of evolution, often retaining meaning in literature, poetry and art, but which had been abandoned by the modern movement. For example, Nigerian church buildings in the century evolved from their ancient appearance of foreign monuments to contemporary design that makes temples look like factories.[60].
Later eclectic achievements
Beginning in the second half of the century, coinciding with a new air of openness in the Catholic Church sparked by the Second Vatican Council, a trend was confirmed that was already latently affecting the architecture of churches (especially Catholic ones) since the emergence of the modern and postmodern movements, and which manifested itself in a notable stylistic dispersion of the new churches. The temples built since then have been ascribed to more or less avant-garde trends, linked to the particular personality of each architect or team of architects, in a search for the usefulness, comfort and aesthetics of the construction, and capable of highlighting the religious character of the buildings.
Not all new temples have managed to satisfy these requirements, evoking concepts of buildings that have little to do with the traditional concept of a church. In any case, under an "avant-garde" external appearance (in many cases lacking stylistic references and conditioned by a search for originality at all costs), the functional aspect of the interior of the new temples seems to have been consolidated, in which, except in rare cases, prominence has been given to open spaces bathed in natural light (using stained glass or glass blocks); Simple decorative elements are arranged using the surface texture of the materials (especially exposed brick, colored concrete, wood or metal lattices); and the figurative and sculptural decoration has been reduced to a minimum.[55].
This trend has become almost universal in the new parish churches built after approximately 1950. However, there are some cases of large temples from the end of the century in which the dispersion of their styles is a hallmark, and in the same period the construction of temples linked to radically different architectural traditions can be recorded, such as the Basilica of Our Lady of Peace in Yamoussoukro (Ivory Coast), which unapologetically imitates the architecture of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome; the Palmar de Troya Cathedral[61] (1982-2014) that evokes the baroque-neoclassical style of the Pilar of Zaragoza; or the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels[62] (California), designed by the Spanish architect Rafael Moneo (2002), whose personal style is in some way connected with the rationalist designers of the first half of the century.
Today, the progressive independence of the different local churches and the interest of architects in giving the buildings they build their own personal stamp, make the architecture of the churches move in a magma of dispersed trends, only linked by the requirements that the pastoral function imposes on the interior of the buildings; and a far cry from the almost monolithic stylistic trends that were embraced for centuries in church design and construction.
• - Church of the Holy Sacrament "Church of the Holy Sacrament (Sacramentinos)") (Madrid, 1970).
• - Parish of Santa Mónica (Rivas Vaciamadrid) (Spain).