Authorship
Tradition in Continuity is the Sacred Architecture Blog of Integration Design Group, PC.
The blog is maintained by firm principal Adam Hermanson.
Please direct all inquiries to admin(at)integrationdesigngroup.com.
Thank you!
Category Archives: Liturgy and Liturgical Resources
A Brief Look Back (and Forward) at Liturgical Reform
Fr. Douglas Martis writing in Tidings, the Newsletter of the Liturgical Institute offers an excellent synopsis of the past half century, and what we have learned through the reform of the Roman Rite.
“We have rediscovered that church architecture is not simply a “skin for liturgical action,” not a “space” solely for the purpose of gathering the community, but rather a formative place of presence
charged with sacramental meaning…. Sacred art, architecture, music, catechesis, justice, the ars celebrandi and many other things each make a particular contribution to the beauty, meaning and authenticity of liturgical expression.” Continue reading
Posted in Architecture and Design, Liturgy and Liturgical Resources
Tagged Conference, Culture, Liturgy
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The Unveiling – Revelation as Mystagogy
Mystagogy is an introduction into the Mystery of Christ, the holy knowledge of our vocation to a new life in and with Christ, instruction in the practice and development of this life. In this central task of religious education, the proper training in Christian worship, that is the liturgy, takes an important part. Continue reading
Posted in Liturgy and Liturgical Resources, Uncategorized
Tagged Catechesis, Liturgy, mystagogy, Revelation, Scott Hahn, Stratford Caldecott
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Learning to Love the Liturgy
David Bonagura argues that, “two actions in particular, the use of Latin and the priest facing east toward God rather than the people” would assist us in focusing on the Lord in our liturgical celebrations. Continue reading
Posted in Architecture and Design, Liturgy and Liturgical Resources, Uncategorized
Tagged Benedixt XVI, Liturgy
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Archbishop Chaput: Liturgy Needs to be Beautiful
Abp Chaput: “Human beings have an instinct for worship. Our longing for the good, the beautiful, and the true, is really a longing for God. Not the theoretical idea of a Creator, but a relationship with the loving, intimate, personal God – revealed in Christ Jesus. …Catholic life hinges on the worship of God and the experience of his love in glory.”
Conference: The Glory of Catholic Architecture
I was very pleased to attend recently an excellent conference hosted by The Liturgical Institute at the University of Saint Mary of the Lake in Mundelein, Illinois. The conference was entitled The Glory of Catholic Architecture, and the participants – Architects, Artists, Clergy, and Laity – were encouraged to appreciate and articulate the order and hierarchy that are beautifully arrayed in Creation, yet still awaiting the return of the Redeemer. This “awaiting” is of course at the heart of our active participation in the Liturgy… Continue reading
von Balthasar, the Pilgrim, and the Center Aisle
For there is no longer any question of man’s… agonizing longing for transcendence. It is a question rather of man being led by the God who goes before toward a genuinely human fulfillment – to a land “flowing with milk and honey”.
Posted in Architecture and Design, Liturgy and Liturgical Resources, The Bookshelf
Tagged Balthasar, Books, church buidlings, Liturgy, sacramental signs, Sacred Architecture
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The Sacramental Worldview, Wonder, & Worship
When we allow ourselves to wonder at the abundant generosity of the created order – including the reality of its having been created for our good, as a means to our salvation, and for God’s glory – we can appreciate more fully that all Creation is being gathered up by Christ and is offered back to the Father in and through the Spirit. Thus, Creation is, through Christ’s redemptive sacrifice, involved in the very life and love of the Trinity. Continue reading
Posted in Culture, Liturgy and Liturgical Resources
Tagged Beauty, Incarnation, Sacramental Worldview, Signs and Symbols, Wonder
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Repost: The Transfiguration and the Wellspring of Worship
“When you pass through those doors, you are climbing Mount Tabor!” ~ Fr. Peter Mussett Continue reading
Posted in Liturgy and Liturgical Resources, Reflections on the Daily Readings
Tagged Liturgy, Transfiguration
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The Overflowing Richness of the Triduum Liturgy
Readers will appreciate the beautiful reflection on the superabundant theological richness of the Triduum liturgy provided by Shawn Tribe, the editor in chief of the New Liturgical Movement blog. http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/2012/04/liturgical-meditation-on-and-for.html
Posted in Liturgy and Liturgical Resources
Tagged Liturgy, Signs and Symbols, tradition
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The Cross at the Center of the Mass
From David Clayton’s blog, The Way of Beauty, here is an article that provides a wonderful exposition of the liturgical theological symbolism contained within the Mond Crucifixion altarpiece by Raphael. ~ particularly appropriate as we enter into Holy Week and … Continue reading
Posted in Liturgy and Liturgical Resources, Sacred Art & Artists
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Benedict and Liturgical Music
Readers might appreciate this concise but worthy column by Robert Reilly over at The Catholic Thing gathering up some of the rich insights of Pope Benedict regarding sacred music: The Sound of Faith Here’s an excerpt: Where does inspiration come from to create … Continue reading
Posted in Liturgy and Liturgical Resources, The Bookshelf
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The Liturgy & the Culture of Life
“The sacred liturgy and doctrine are intertwined and the experiential dimension of the liturgy is a profound moment for catechesis and conversion.” Continue reading
Audio: The Paradigm of Sacred Space in the Catholic Tradition
Should we hold our church buildings responsible for the ways in which they serve, structure, and support our liturgical celebrations? Should we expect our buildings to convey to us signs and symbols of heavenly realities? Should our churches be designed with the dual purposes of our litrugical celebrations precisely in mind – that is, for the glorification of God and the sanctification of Man?
The answer of course is, Yes. We should rightfully demand much of our sacred architecture; particularly so as we are more and more aware of its intrinsically sacramental role and the abundance of meaningful precedents throughout salvation history of places and spaces and structures that assist God’s people in offering sacrificial worship back to Him. Continue reading
Posted in Architecture and Design, Lectures, Liturgy and Liturgical Resources
Tagged Audio, Liturgy, Sacred Architecture
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St. John Lateran – Mother Church of the Living Stones
“The beauty and harmony of the churches, destined to give praise to God, also draws us human beings, limited and sinful, to convert to form a “cosmos,” a well-ordered structure, in intimate communion with Jesus, who is the true Saint of saints.” Continue reading
Beauty, Tradition, Symbolism… the Language of Worship
As Catholics in the Latin Rite we eagerly anticipate the introduction of the new English translation of the Roman Missal this Advent – on the first Sunday of the new liturgical year. . Admittedly this is a non-architectural topic, but … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture and Design, Culture, Liturgy and Liturgical Resources
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Benedict, the Wellspring, Reform, and Renewal
I have been wondering for a while if I ought to share some thoughts regarding the title chosen for this blog: Tradition in Continuity: Considerations for the Development of Catholic Sacred Architecture. I did not expect that my Bishop would in … Continue reading
Posted in Liturgy and Liturgical Resources, The Bookshelf
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The Communion of Saints – Witness to Worship
Catholic sacred architecture – from its most humble origins in the catacombs of imperial Rome to its most noble cathedrals throughout Christendom – has been intimately connected with the Communion of Saints. Our church buildings are set apart for Christian worship and convey to us the reality of the entire Church – militant, suffering and triumphant – together worshipping the Lord. Continue reading
Posted in Architecture and Design, Culture, Liturgy and Liturgical Resources
Tagged church buidlings, Communion of Saints, Liturgy, Sacred Architecture, Sacred Art
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Beautiful in Construction | The Task of the Church Architect
Here is another excerpt from the text I had mentioned in my previous post. In this passage the author, writing almost sixty years ago, touches briefly on the needs of a church building, and describes the ways in which an … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture and Design, Building a Church, Liturgy and Liturgical Resources, The Bookshelf
Tagged Beauty, Books, church buidlings, Liturgical Elements, Liturgy, Sacred Architecture, Signs and Symbols, tradition
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The Church Building: an Act of Worship, a Prayer in Stone
I recently came across a rather plain looking book in the office of another fellow Catholic architect. The book’s cover caught my eye because it was noticeably older than most of the volumes on the shelf. I was pleased to see its title – Church Building & Furnishing: The Church’s Way, A Study in Liturgical Law. Authored by J. B. O’Connell and published in 1955, its approach and contents are particularly interesting – the presentation of the ways in which a church building participates in the sacred liturgy within and according to the Church’s liturgical law and rubrics. I have included a wonderful excerpt from the introductory chapter regarding the nature of each and every church building as it relates to its specifically liturgical origin and purpose. Continue reading
Posted in Architecture and Design, Building a Church, Liturgy and Liturgical Resources, The Bookshelf
Tagged Beauty, Books, church buidlings, Liturgical Elements, Liturgy, Resources, Sacred Architecture, Sacred Art, tradition
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To Bear the Weight of Mystery
The appropriateness of a work of art or architecture is thus “demonstrated by the work’s ability to bear the weight of mystery, awe, reverence and wonder that the liturgical action expresses.” The section continues: “Art that is used in worship therefore must evoke wonder at its beauty but lead beyond itself to the invisible God.” Continue reading
Posted in Building a Church, Liturgy and Liturgical Resources
Tagged Beauty, Built of Living Stones, Documents, sacramental signs, Sacred Architecture, Sacred Art, Signs and Symbols, tradition
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