Church of Our Lady of Lourdes

Abstract

From the mid-fifties to the end of the sixties, due largely to the “Centro di Studio e Informazione per l’Architettura Sacra” and the journal “Chiesa e Quartiere,” Bologna became a meeting place for Catholic architects and theologians looking for answers and assistance in adapting or even reforming their churches, both as parishes in an urban society, as well as buildings in urban contexts. In the late Middle Ages, the choir and high altar of the priests had led to a separation of the clergy and the laity, shifting emphasis away from the people. In later years, the ritual and ornament of the Baroque had further intimidated believers. The essence of Catholicism, so the reformers asserted, was to be found in early Christianity: the first churches were homes converted into meeting places, as can be seen in Dura Europos on the River Euphrates (see p. 13). The Christians, at that time still persecuted by the Romans, congregated in their home environments to hear the gospel and celebrate Communion.