If pro-abortionists were really interested in making abortion “safe, rare, and legal” as they claim, then they would welcome anything that helped make it rare. Of course, for most pro-abortionists, especially the activists, it’s really about getting every pregnancy possible to end in abortion.
Thus, it doesn’t surprise me to hear that NARAL Pro-Choice America (nilled and includes plenty of bashing of the President and Christians for daring to suggest that perhaps not having sex outside of marriage is the best way to avoid disease and unplanned pregnancy.
Tired of Bush & Co. spending your tax dollars on abstinence-only-until-marriage initiatives that promote dangerous misinformation? Throw your hands up and say it loud: ‘Screw Abstinence!’”
Actually, what I’m really tired of is my tax dollars being spent on Planned Parenthood and other pro-abortion groups under the guise of family planning. When their business is abortion, then that’s what family planning is.
While the national NARAL office isn’t sponsoring the eventbettnet.com/?p=5599
Ave Maria University revealed the new design for its massive campus chapel today. It’s no longer the glassed-in hothouse of the originally proposed design, but is a soaring stone building, more than 100 feet tall, that looks vaguely like a bishop’s miter.
It will face east, has stone facades, a rose window and a relief of the Annunciation over the doors. The previous walls of glass remain in smaller, less prominent form in that the roof ridge is a continuous skylight. The building itself is also smaller, seating fewer people. The original was supposed to seat 3,000, I believe, but this one is planned for 1,100. More pictures of the model and renderings are available on their web site.
In fact, it looks like the same essential design, but they just made it stone instead of glass. So is that bad or good? It’s not my cup of tea, but it’s not hideous either. With all the awful blimp hangars and blockhouses built as Catholic churches in the past 40 years, anything even close to traditional architecture is a breath of fresh air.
I don’t think church architecture must remain stuck in the Gothic, Baroque, or Renaissance styles, but they must be rooted in history. I think this building does have its roots there while reflecting the personality of those responsible for building it. You may like or dislike it, but it doesn’t make it a bad church. As for the earlier design… that was just a bad church, sorry. I’m not sorry to see all that glass replaced with stone.
I wonder if Michael Rose, the chief critic of the earlier design, will like this one any better.
It would have been nice to pick up architectural cues from the Spanish, this will be in Florida afterall.
We need to remember that our people did not come over on the Mayflower, they came over to America on the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria (and various ramshackle barges from Ireland, Italy and Germany.)
All those white Catholic college kids need to see the Cubans, Haitians and Puerto Ricans in Florida and make the connection.
Word has it that Peter Jackson rejected this design for the Mordor gatehouse (deemed not that hideous) so it went up for grabs.
It’s an improvement, sort of. Then again, looking at the town drawings, the style of architecture appears out of place with its surroundings. If you want to be “rooted” somewhere…
looks vaguely like a bishop the church or in the front. Oh wait, there might be one window in the back of the church (facing front).”
The parking question is by design – see point #2 above. The idea is not to give in to the tyranny of the combustion engine any more than they have to. David Alexander’s comments illustrate much of the mindset at work here. But we’ll see how the final reality plays out.
It is hard to make out much about the altar area and to be frank I expect this is an ongoing question. I would not read much into the interior details. Will there be a real baldachino? I don’t know. But given Fr. Fessio’s strong preference for ad orientem, I would expect to see his input reflected in some way in the final sanctuary layout. I would be surprised if there were not altar rails and an altar placed far enough back to permit easy and dignified ad orientem, though most likely out enough to permit ad populam as well.
There will be the large circular stained glass window at the entrance. That’s all I am aware of.
I am not aware of any side chapels but I would not rule it out. These issues will be addressed – I suspect – as we get closer to completion. For my part I hope there will be some consideration given to it.
4. “All those white Catholic college kids need to see the Cubans, Haitians and Puerto Ricans in Florida and make the connection. “
There’s a real effort underway to do just this. The university is working hard to get qualified high school students from the nearby poor migrant worker town of Immokalee to attend. A vigorous Habitat for Humanity project is being supported there as well – and there are other cooperative ventures being developed.
Hope all that helps shed some light.
As a 70 year old son of a Carpenter born and raised in Toledo, OH (the Glass Capitol of the World) close to Tom Monaghan roots and who purchased 5 of Michael Rose’s (In Tiers of Glory) for distribution with “Upon This Rock ” theme and “neither will the Bishops”. I respect Rose’s “Ugly as Sin” of which I watched the St. Charles Borromeo Church in Kettering, OH (a featured example) being built 400 yards from my front door. However, Michael who has a degree in Architecture from the University of Cincinnati might want to quit taking shots at Tom Monaghan the founder of Legatus & who will probably require that any Nuns who may want to work at Ave Maria will be required to wear a Habit.
My guess is that Bishop Burke who has one of the 1st honorary degrees from Ave Maria (Naples) might endorse what Monaghan & Fr. Fessio are doing. Fr. Fessio has a close contact in Rome who might have issued a stamp of approval.
Now for the wannabe architect contributors please note (from a 70 year old retired from the construction industry) that the Profession of Architecture at one time was a very swishy profession.
Pray for Mahony and that the God awful jail looking structure in LA has some resale value as Roger looks for some help in finding 1.5 billion $‘s.
As a son of a carpenter who worked in the construction industry for 50 + years I pray that the “Gates of the Netherworld Shall not prevaial against it ” and neither shall the Bishops or critics of Tom Monaghan and Fr. Fessio.
There are some very nice touches to the interior—although I too find the proposed altar unpleasing.
Have you noticed the altar rails? Have you noticed the bas-relief saints surrounding the altar? And, contrary to another post, it looks as if the altar’s placement will be conducive to ad-orientam Mass. Even though the tabernacle will not be “on” the altar, as in Tridentine (or “legacy”) altars, it may well be directly east of the altar and clearly visible from it.
I’m clearly not qualified as an architect to comment on the building, but I don’t find it as displeasing as some apparently have. I find the saints (the apostles, I presume?) around the sanctuary walls a particularly good choice; it’s a visible reminder of the Communion of Saints AND, for an ad-orientam Mass, a remembrance of the birth of the Church at Pentecost.
Dear Ox:
Speaking as one Buckeye to another…
I’m not sure that either Mr Monaghan or Fr Fessio were protected by the “gates of heaven shall not prevail against thee” clause. It matters less who Michael Rose is or is not, than the merits of what he has to say.
DLA
Hello Ox,
“However, Michael who has a degree in Architecture from the University of Cincinnati might want to quit taking shots at Tom Monaghan the founder of Legatus & who will probably require that any Nuns who may want to work at Ave Maria will be required to wear a Habit. “
There is wisdom in your words, sir. Thanks for sharing. I have learned there is truth in the old saying that you get more with sugar than with salt.
I am also a Rose fan. And to be honest, I think Fr. Fessio still is in some ways as well.
And you’re right about one thing: All of our nuns down here wear habits. I’m not complaining.
best regards
Richard
P.S. Archbishop Burke also gave the first commencment address here in May.
Outstanding! I don’t know which description I find more spot-on, TimC’s evocation of the Wallace & Gromit mother ship, or Seamole’s concrete whale. The latter does have me thinking of Goldfish crackers.
And the thing does also somewhat resemble the late Scotty’s USS Enterprise shirt logo. Beam us all up?
I second your topheavy, Roz.
It looks like a bishops mitre to me as well. These days the first thing I think of when I think bishop is sexual abuse scandal. Which is not what I want to be thinking about when I go to Mass. Time will cure this problem, we hope.
Apart from that, it’s not great; but it’s also not awful like the last design. It wouldn’t prompt me to withhold contributions to the college like the last one would have.
To Richard
If I can get Michael Rose to follow through on his offer to meet sometime, I would like to contact you to see if you would join us. The night I met Rose in Cincy I asked if he had regular contact with Fr. Wilson, from Brooklyn, who wrote the forward to “Amchurch, Comes Out”. When he agreed to do so he said he never wanted to be a Msgr. anyway. When you add “Goodbye, Good Men” is why I have added NEITHER SHALL THE BISHOPS. Rose said he does see Fr. Wilson when he is in NY.
I too would ask that you keep us posted to the success of Ave Maria. I’m betting on Bishop Burke