Mar 15 Sat
Why do we build cathedrals?
The church building represents the universal Church. It is the house of prayer in which the Holy Eucharist is celebrated and reserved, where the faithful gather, and where our Savior is worshiped. This house of prayer should be beautiful and appropriate for prayer and sacred celebrations. The truth and harmony of the elements that constitute this house of prayer should manifest Christ, who is present and acts in this place.
A cathedral is the seat of the bishop of a diocese. As an example, the Cathedral Church of St. Peter and St. Paul in the U.S. capital is a magnificent Neo-Gothic structure, based on 14th-century English models.
Pope Benedict XVI reminded us of what the great cathedrals teach us:
“Archbishop John Hughes, who … was responsible for building this venerable edifice, wished it to rise in pure Gothic style. He wanted this cathedral to remind us that we are heirs of a great spiritual tradition, and to inspire us to bring the best of that heritage to the building up of Christ’s body. I would like to draw your attention to a few aspects of this beautiful structure which I think can serve as a starting point for a reflection on … the Mystical Body.
“The first has to do with the stained-glass windows, which flood the interior with mystic light. From the outside, those windows are dark, heavy, and even dreary. But once one enters the church, they suddenly come alive; reflecting the light passing through them, they reveal all their splendor. Many writers have used the image of stained glass to illustrate the mystery of the Church herself. It is only from the inside, from the experience of faith and ecclesial life, that we see the Church as she truly is: flooded with grace, resplendent in beauty, adorned by the manifold gifts of the Spirit. And we, who try to live the life of grace within the Church’s communion, are called to draw all people into this mystery of light.
“The unity of a Gothic cathedral, we know, is not the static unity of a Greek classical temple, but a unity born of the dynamic tension of diverse forces which impel the architecture upward, pointing us to Heaven. Here, too, we can see a symbol of the Church’s unity, which is the unity – as St. Paul has told us – of a living body composed of many different members, each with its own role and purpose. Here too we see our need to acknowledge and reverence the gifts of each and every member of the body as “manifestations of the Spirit given for the good of all” (1 Cor 12:7).”
The beauty of the Catholic faith — that express the one Truth who is the Thrice-Holy God — is best understood “from inside.” That is why those of us privileged to experience that beauty are called in baptism to invite others “inside,” so that they, too, may bathe in the radiance of the sublime beauty that is the divine presence in the world.
A true cathedral, functioning as such, is a summons to evangelization, and a reminder of our future house in heaven.
Excerpts from George Weigel
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