Why do churches have steeples?
score:15
Interesting question. I managed to find an article, The History of Church Steeples, that actually addresses this.
One reason: It was simply an architectural style that happens to inspire us to look heavenward.
These early church architects designed grand cathedrals and churches that had intricate, soaring steeples. The vertical lines of the steeple helped to visually enhance the lines of the church, directing the viewers' eyes vertically to the heavens. Obviously, this verticality complements part of the mission of the church, to keep us in a heavenly frame of mind, but from an architectural standpoint, this vertical lift gives the architecture a more graceful and pleasing look. The shorter the building, the more squat the appearance; the taller the building, the more graceful it becomes. The early church believed that the church could communicate the truth of the Bible in pictures and symbols to those who were illiterate, such as using the picture in the stained glass to tell stories, as well as the steeple, which helped by pointing upwards devotedly to Heaven. Therefore, the steeple has a dual role in that it helps the congregant in his or her spiritual mindset, and the steeple also helps the architect with a design feature that enhances the overall harmony of the architecture.
In short, there's no doctrinal significance, or symbolic other than the pointing to the Heavens. It's simply a beautiful style that, once done, was imitated throughout the ages until it became expected.
Upvote:1
The church has always been recognised as a patron of art as it has needed to use art for teaching and inspiring . Stained glass windows often contained depiction of scriptural teachings, and allegorical interpretation lent itself particularly well to this form. Common folk found pictorial depiction easier to understand.
Thus the Samaritan would be depicted as Christ, the wounded man as man under sin's oppression.
The other way art could be used was for inspiration . Cathedrals have been called prayers in stone, depicting the heavenward soaring of men's words.
People entering a place of worship were inspired to believe they were seeing and hearing men praising God through architecture and music. God was the recipient of this worship, and men's energies were used to create forms in a way that reflected this. Conscious effort was made in the soaring interiors and ethereal singing to convey the idea that God was present in all His Majesty.
Compare this with contemporary architecture and music, where the end products have the consumer in view. Churches are patronised because they have comfortable seating, climate control and theatre acoustics, the better to hear words that comfort and beats that stir the feet to tap.
Upvote:4
for the sound of bells to carry over the tops of buildings, the bells had to be higher than surrounding buildings. Bells were used not only before church service, but also to notify people of emergencies, such as fires. The buildings were regularly used as a town meeting place, as well, not like today where they are often locked except on Sunday mornings.
Upvote:5
Because steeples have bells in them
See, they know they need to pray the Angelus because the bell is ringing.
More post
- 📝 What is the origin of the belief that Satan tortures the unsaved in Hell?
- 📝 According to the Catholic Church, what marks a document as Scripture?
- 📝 Why was the Angel Michael fighting the Devil for Moses' body?
- 📝 How to choose an edition/translation of the bible?
- 📝 What was the Jewish understanding of baptism?
- 📝 Why did the Roman soldiers compete to possess Jesus' clothes?
- 📝 Who could have written the Pastoral Epistles?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for the personhood of the Holy Spirit?
- 📝 Why did the pope say gender is a property of essence?
- 📝 When are lay men and women permitted to proclaim the Gospel in a Catholic church?
- 📝 What is an overview of Christian viewpoints on the afterlife of aborted babies?
- 📝 Did St. Paulinus of Nola sell himself into slavery to redeem one slave?
- 📝 On which parts in the gospels is Weatherhead's argument about Mary, mother of Jesus, founded?
- 📝 If the one born in Bethlehem was ‘a creature’ (as says Arius) and yet did not sin, then why was the first humanity (Adam) not so created?
- 📝 Where did the layout of protestant worship come from?
- 📝 What is the difference between Evangelical and Protestant?
- 📝 What place does Lilith have in Christianity?
- 📝 Is righteousness a prerequisite for salvation?
- 📝 What happens to people who have never heard about Jesus?
- 📝 Why did Jesus ask His disciples to forgive the debt of their debtors (if they want their debt to be forgiven), if Jesus's atonement is universal?
- 📝 What are the distinguishing characteristics of the Restoration (Stone-Campbell) movement and its various denominations
- 📝 Has the prohibition against construction and veneration of statues and images been abrogated?
- 📝 Can the cloud of witnesses mentioned in Hebrews 12:1 speak to us today?
- 📝 Is God Grateful?
- 📝 Is the Unitarian Universalist Association really creedless?
- 📝 What is the Christian take on reincarnation?
- 📝 Did Paul hear Jesus teach in person?
- 📝 If we had to make distinction, which is greater, faith or hope? [Catholic Perspective]
- 📝 How can God be loving and just whilest creating people for His wrath? I cannot wrap my head around Calvinism!
- 📝 Why was the gift of the Holy Ghost not operative during Christ's mortal ministry according to LDS doctrine?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Why do Catholic churches have a red lamp burning inside?
- 📝 Why do churches have steeples?
- 📝 Why do churches often have altars?
- 📝 Why have some conservative Reformed churches objected to the Belhar Confession?
- 📝 Why do some Christian churches have classes about other churches?
- 📝 Why is it that so many Churches have a problem with Halloween but not with the other pagan holidays?
- 📝 Why don't many churches obey Paul's command that women must be silent in church?
- 📝 Why do many churches use grape juice in communion?
- 📝 Why (how) does Jesus' coat have no seam?
- 📝 Why did Jesus have to leave for the Holy Spirit to come?
- 📝 Why do Kingdom Halls have no windows?
- 📝 Why does Catholicism have priests but Protestantism does not?
- 📝 Why does God have a chosen people?
- 📝 Why does the Messiah have to be God?
- 📝 Why does God command us to have children?
- 📝 How do churches that have indefinitely suspended in-person services understand Hebrews 10:25?
- 📝 Why did the Western and Eastern churches react to their respective states so differently?
- 📝 In light of the fact that Donatism is heresy, why do most churches require a priest to bless the elements?
- 📝 Why does a beheaded saint have the halo above the stump?
- 📝 Why do people die but angels do not, but both have sinned?
- 📝 Why have Ministers and Preachers stopped preaching on Hell?
- 📝 Why do Syrian Orthodox churches use only paintings and not sculptures, unlike Catholic churches?
- 📝 From the perspective of Roman Catholicism, what do Orthodox churches have to do to become "Eastern Catholic Churches"?
- 📝 According to Reformed theology, why does God tell people to repent if they don't have the choice to do so, as in Exodus 10:3?
- 📝 What did Jesus quote Psalm 22: "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?"
- 📝 Why did the Catholic Church decide to have a Bible?
- 📝 Why does Jesus have to be fully God and fully man? Is it not sufficient to be the son of God and fully man?
- 📝 Why did God not want man to have the knowledge of good and evil?
- 📝 Why do Christians have different books in their Bible?
- 📝 If we will have free will and be sinless in Heaven at the same time, then why did God not create a world with sinless free creatures to begin with?