Adoremus Bulletin
By Denis McNamara
When I give presentations in parishes or teach in the classroom, I am often asked many intelligent questions by students, building committee members, architects, pastors, and parishioners. These questions have given me great insight into the needs and desires of the People of God. The questions that follow are among those most frequently asked, and shorter summary answers are provided here for the reader's convenience.
Didn't the Second Vatican Council do away with traditional, beautiful churches? What about "noble simplicity"?The documents of the Second Vatican Council relating to art and architecture are in complete continuity with the Church's great tradition, even as they set certain guidelines for the liturgical renewal. The document on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, asked that sacred art be composed of "signs and symbols of heavenly realities" that were meant to be expressive of "God's boundless beauty" (SC 122). It also asked that all sacred arts be "in accordance with faith, piety, and cherished traditional laws" (SC 122). It is interesting to note that the Council never used the phrase "noble simplicity" to refer to liturgical art and architecture. It actually asked that churches strive for "noble beauty" (SC 124). The term "noble simplicity" was mentioned in the Council's documents in relation to the rites (SC 34). So, beauty is in fact the goal of new church architecture, according to the documents of the Second Vatican Council.
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