Fenced by your careful fathers,
ringed by your leaden seas,
Long did ye wake in quiet
and long lie down at ease
Till ye said 'Strife, what is it'
of the sword 'It is far from our ken';
Till ye made a sport of your shrunken hosts
and a toy of your armed men.
-
do ye wait for the splattered shrapnel, er ye learn how a gun is laid
Catholic architecture is typically far more ornate and impressive because it is designed to inspire awe and physically reflect the majesty of heaven, whereas Protestant spaces generally favour a simpler aesthetic focused on scripture and the sermon.
Protestant opposition to idolatry is rooted in the literal interpretation of the Second Commandment (Exodus 20:4-5), which strictly forbids the making and veneration of graven images. What this basically means is that by making the place too ornate or filling it with ornaments, etc, you're essentially worshipping objects as opposed to God.
But, of course, this also worked to reduce the artistic touch of the nation as a whole.
This is why the entirety of somewhere like Canterbury Cathedral (pictured here) is so much more impressive than protestant churches. Even St Paul's, which is a C of E (protestant) Cathedral, was built in the style of a grand European Catholic cathedral, specifically the Italian Renaissance and Baroque styles. Even Christopher Wren (who designed and built St Paul's between 1675 and 1710), a protestant, acknowledged the superiority of Catholic design.
Catholic cathedrals and churches were supposed to be symbols of power that made peasants and knights alike feel as though they were in the presence of God (a higher power).
Keep in mind that I am not speaking from a spiritual place but one of architecture and how it affects the mind of the public. From my perspective, we can do this across the board, be it for religious purposes or not.
Whatever side of the fence you sit on, you have to admit how incredibly impressive this architecture is and, therefore, acknowledge how much better the modern world would look if we repeated similar styles today.
Once again, I am not trying to irritate or offend anyone as much as state the facts of the situation. Had it been about Christianity or not, I'd still love this building for what it is.
If you agree, give this post a share to help others come to the same conclusion and always remember that just because it's new doesn't mean it's better. 🤝
📢 We are calling for a new legislative framework to ensure a competence-led approach to regulation.
👉 Read our paper to find out more about our proposals: https://t.co/dFPoepZNUq
Competence-led is the antithesis of DEI & to promote both simultaneously highlights a lack of self awareness to the level of retardation. For a retarded institute to campaign to exclude the incompetent is really something to behold.
Each institute member lives this cognitive dissonance every day by endorsing ideological rhetoric & claiming sole competence.
I’ve watched small encroachments force conscientious architects out over the years and make each one that remains a little more drone like.