What is a church: definition, features

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

Within the Christian religion, there are several denominations, one of them is Catholicism. This form of religion is associated with the answer to the question of what a church is.

Universal Church

The Catholic Church unites more than a billion and a quarter of believers. Having arisen on the territory of the Western part of the Roman Empire, the religious organization gathered under its wing, together with the Roman, the Eastern Catholic Churches, its head on earth is the Pope of Rome, and in heaven is Jesus Christ. Translated from Greek, "catholic" means "universal." The construction of religious buildings for worship began in the era of Constantine the Great, when Christianity became the state religion.

In Russia there are more than fifty Catholic temple buildings erected at different times in a number of cities in our large country. Among them there are cathedrals - the main church houses of the city, as well as temples, churches, churches. What are liturgical buildings and what role they play in the religious life of a particular denomination, you can best find out by visiting them. Architecture, interior design have symbolism. They are made in accordance withideas of believers about the purpose of earthly and afterlife.

The basis of the structure is a basilica - a rectangular building with a transverse nave topped with a dome. The building resembles a Latin cross.

St. Petersburg has the most Catholic churches, as the city is traditionally considered a multi-confessional city. European engineers who helped Peter build the northern capital, merchants who came here, artisans needed churches of their religion. Today, buildings of fabulous beauty are architectural monuments.

What is a church

Polish Catholic Church is called the church. It originated from the Latin word castellum, which means "strengthening". It so happened that this word is used to refer to a church building in the Czech, Slovak, and Belarusian languages. Confessional features force their adherents to distinguish between the Orthodox, Greek Catholic, Lutheran and other faiths. This was reflected in the fact that in the Czech Republic all Christian churches are called churches, and in Poland and Slovakia only those churches that adhere to a strictly Catholic faith are called that way.

In the Russian language, there is a tradition to call churches only Polish Catholic churches. And if we asked the Russian publicists of the 19th century what a church is, we would get the answer: all Roman Catholic church buildings.

Unearthly sounds

Catholic liturgy is associated with the organ - keyboard-windan instrument capable of making majestic solemn sounds, reminding a person of the greatness of divine creation and the frailty of earthly existence. Historians claim that in 666, Pope Vitalius by his decree approved the use of this instrument in worship. In Byzantium in the 8th century, the organ was an indispensable attribute of religious services. Much later, thanks to the art of the masters of Italy and Germany, the instrument became a participant in liturgies in European cathedrals and churches. Composers composed works intended for organ performance.

The specificity of the instrument lies in the fact that its sound is connected with the acoustics of the room, so it is best to listen to organ melodies in temples, where the space directed towards the dome gives an incomparable charm to the sound of organ pipes. Once in the Polish church at the time of the liturgy, you can enjoy the splendor of sacred organ works. Hymns, psalms, masses, sequences, accompanied by the singing of the choir, inspire the soul, strengthen faith, harmonize thoughts.

Unique concerts

Secular organ music concerts are practiced in many churches in the Czech Republic. These are the Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Vysehrad, the Church of St. Elijah in Prague, the Mirror Chapel in the Clementinum architectural complex, where the great Mozart once played music. According to fans, the best organ evenings are held in the church of St. Francis of Assisi. The organ located in the church is considered one of the oldest in Prague.

Fascinatingorgan sound also fills the Catholic churches of St. Petersburg. These are, for example, the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Church of St. Stanislav, the Church of the Mother of God. Organ masses are also held in the Evangelical Lutheran parishes of the city on the Neva.