Design and Architecture of Catholic Churches

CEBU, Philippines — “The style of the church should be marked by noble simplicity; it should be dignified, evincing a noble beauty, not mere costly display, and it should stand as a sign and symbol of heavenly realities,” said Rev. Fr. Brian C. Brigoli during his recent lecture on “Reading a Church on the Theology of Ecclesiastical Design and Architecture” at the azotea of Casa Gorordo Museum (CGM) in Parian.   

Fr. Brigoli, head of the Cebu Archdiocesan Commission on the Cultural Heritage of the Church, shared the theology behind ecclesiastical designs and architecture. He said that the common place of worship in the first century was in a house, referred to as “house-church” or “domus ecclesiae,” then evolving into a hall divided by function rooms for Eucharistic assembly and baptism, in the third century, “dura europos.”

In the fourth century, Emperor Constantine declared Christianity as the official religion of the western world, as Christians had moved from house-churches to basilicas. But the emergence of various architectural styles only began in the Middle Ages.          

The Romanesque style, identified with thick walls and large towers with round arches, began the whole design movements of religious buildings. Fr. Brigoli cited the Sto. Tomas de Villanueva Parish church in Pardo, Cebu as example. Between the 12th and 16th centuries, the Gothic style followed. The Notre Dame Cathedral in France features strong influence of this genre – ribbed vault and flying buttresses – which are also evident at St. Joseph the Patriarch Parish church in Mabolo, Cebu.

A well-proportioned dimension of hemispherical domes became famous from 14th to 17th centuries like the St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. Then came the Baroque period, defined by the use of rich colors and ornaments on large ceilings, frescoes, and central projections. Fr. Brigoli named four prominent Baroque churches in the Philippines: San Agustin in Intramuros, Manila, and another in Paoay, Ilocos Norte, under the same patronage; La Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion in Ilocos Sur; and Sto. Tomas de Villanueva in Miag-ao, Iloilo.

He emphasized that more than the aesthetics, design and layout must abide to the three natural laws of the Church: their verticality – soaring heights that are symbolic of the faithful reaching to God in heaven; their permanence – a perpetual reminder of Christ’s presence, manifested physically through the structure’s durability, massing, and continuity; and the iconography expressed in art, the highest manifestation of the expression of religious truth.

“It points to something other than itself and effects meditation and contemplation. It begets an environment that lifts man’s soul from secular things and brings it into harmony with the heavens. There is the blending of devotion and art, attractiveness and functionality,” Fr. Brigoli explained.

These laws are also interconnected to the elements of church buildings. The piazza, atrium, though not common in Philippine churches, and façade are the prominent exterior divisions. Inside, the nave indicates the symbolism of the boat, the Ark of the Covenant, and the “mother’s womb,” which also include the pews and the holy water font. The sanctuary is composed of the altar of sacrifice, lectern, chair of the presider, tabernacle, candles, altar cross, and “retablo.”

“Church architecture and design affect the way man worships; the way he worships affects what he believes, and what he believes affects not only his personal relationship with God but how he conducts himself in his daily life,” Fr. Brigoli concluded.

By Haidee Emmie K. Palapar

Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc.