Church; A Place Where Mystery Happens - #7

People make buildings for all kinds of reasons. Some are functional. This is where we bank, or shop for groceries, or get prescriptions filled. These buildings are not built to be beautiful. Entrepreneurs build them for sales. Other buildings pay attention to beauty. A building with a lovely landscape and an inviting entrance embraces us and charmingly welcome us. Some schools, museums, libraries, and historical sites attract our eye through the way they use light, color, furniture and genuine material appointments.

In all these instances someone else has built the building and they hope that the public will like it.

We rarely get a chance to build a building. If we are truly wealthy, we may be able to build our dream house according to our specifications and taste. Or, when buying a home or condominium or renting an apartment or house, we try to get something that is affordable and lovely. We Christians sometimes get a chance to build, renovate, or restore one of our buildings - a school, a hospital, a chapel, a parish or diocesan center, a church. We need to shape our buildings well.

What does it mean to shape our buildings well? It means that we design our buildings with two principles in mind: practicality and inspiration. I want to address the practical first. The most immediate criterion for a church building is that it must be accessible for the public. Accessibility is a way of showing hospitality. Churches are not domestic spaces. They are public places. People that pray in large public buildings often have special needs. Our buildings should be able to serve those with special needs. Therefore, when we build or renovate or restore a building, we need to plan for maximum accessibility. I think we have to make the following areas as accessible as possible. The main entrance and the exits need to serve those in wheelchairs by means of ramps and railings. Places such as the baptismal area, the reconciliation chapels, the shrine and devotional area, the main church where the Eucharist is celebrated need to be flexible enough for a variety of people. We need to provide a good quality bathrooms and a room for medical emergencies. We can plan for ample and functional places where children hear the word of God, where the catechumens meet, and where wakes are held. We have all been to churches where a certain section has been created for people using wheelchairs. This seems to be a good idea but, in reality, it segregates and limits some people from choosing where they might like to be. Similarly, we have all been to churches where everything is accessible except the sanctuary or the ambo where scriptures are proclaimed. Accessibility is the first criterion for Christian hospitality.

Second, we need to make possible for people to see and to hear easily and readily. This requires that public spaces be arranged so that people are close enough to the action to see and participate in the doing of sacred rituals.. It also requires good lighting and sound systems that are people-friendly. Our buildings minister when they help us do the liturgy.