Another in my series on Romanesque architecture. Why is Padre gung ho on Romanesque? Because the new Our Lady of the Rosary Church is going to be built in a Romanesque style. What is so great about Romansque? Well, it's a beautiful transitional stage of architecture which grew from the more solid and monolithic Byzantine style predominant in the East. It is more of the Western Church in the early Middle Ages, and begins to have the height and light of Gothic while still retaining the austere simplicity of the Byzantine.
Father, I look forward to seeing the architectural drawings of your new church when available. My parish church as a boy in Des Moines, Iowa is an excellent example of Lombardy Romanesque built in the 1920s. It is now a minor basilica and on the list of national historical buildings. I wish I had the ability to link here to a picture of it but maybe you will have the chance to "google" St. John's Basilica. Or I could email it to you.
ReplyDeleteI've tried to find pictures of St Johns in Des Moines, but can't find a good picture gallery. The parish there should put one up.
ReplyDeleteFather, I found a site that has dozens of great professional shots of the basilica interior. The link is:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.catholicphotographer.com/Cross-Country-Pilgrimage-1/St-John-Basilica-Jul-3-2009/8783034_JxjLV#581419556_tq8HE
I hope this works for you. God bless,
Arnold
My favorite church in all Christendom is the Basilica of Ste Mary Magdalen in Vezelay France.
ReplyDeleteThe nave is done in Romanesque style with exquisitely carved capitals. However, the darker nave is contrasted to the choir built in the later gothic style. Its brilliance only makes the roman barrel-valuted nave even more beautiful!
The fact that the Communaute des Beatitudes - a congregation of men and women vowed religious have taken up residence there with their beautifully sung liturgies only makes the church of the Madgalen that much more beautiful.
Deacon Ed, I agree with you about the Church of the Madelaine at Vezelay. Many in France consider it the most beautiful in the whole country, which is saying a lot. I believe that the religious group that has taken up residence there is the Community of Jerusalem. They have been growing and have taken over the monastery of St. Michel, a church in Aix-en-Provence and more recently, given charge of the famous church at the top of the Spanish Steps in Rome, Trinita de Monte (sp?). I attended a number of their beautiful liturgies at their first and main church, St. Gervais in Paris.
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