Christian Architecture Points the Mind to the Ineffable

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

One of the most inspiring aspects of life in a seminary is the appreciation one develops for the way that architecture is used in order to give a person the sense of eternity. There are hymns and homilies in architecture that are beyond anything that can be put into words. On the left are the hallways of St. Mary's Seminary and University in Roland Park. The multiple arches suggest the rippling effects in which the transitory gives a foretaste of eternity. At the end of the hall is a statue of Mary "Seat of Wisdom", holding the infant Jesus and bathed in the light from the sunroof above it.

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

Christianity should be understood as a faith in which followers are on a journey. Much of the architecture of Christian suggests a pilgrimage to the fullness of Christ. The open doors, followed by the archways and "Seat of Wisdom" statute bathed in sunlight captures the sense that one approaches Truth, Beauty and Eternity by degrees.

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

Bishop Brute Seminary in Indianapolis, which I visited on the way to the Institute for Priestly Formation (IPF) at Creighton University in Omaha, used to house a cloistered community of Carmelite nuns. The architectural style of the seminary resembles an old-world castle. The building conjures a visual representation of Saint Theresa of Avila's metaphor for a spiritual journey: The Interior Castle.

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

When one learns to "read" the architecture of buildings a new dimension may be added to one's prayer-life. God speaks to us using many different media, including words, music, incense, the visual arts, nature and anything else that moves the soul to transcend its physical and earthly dimensions.

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

The interior of Bishop Brute Seminary is plain and suggestive of turning away from distractions. One finds architecture, in seminaries and churches, that one will not find anywhere else. In these buildings one enters into tradition and, in so doing, encounters today's world with a deeper sense of its underlying reality.

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

The visual arts also aid Christians in grasping the ineffable. This statue of St. Ignatius of Loyola, on the campus of Creighton University in Omaha, captures the movement and vibrancy of Ignatian spirituality, as it applies thought to emotion in order to examine one's deepest longing and desire.