Why are churches so opulent?

In the Old Testament, even as the people were camping in the harsh wilderness the Lord gave detailed instructions regarding the Ark of the Covenant, which required the use of valuable resources (see Exodus 25). The Ark of the Covenant contained the stone tablets with the Law, the priest Aaron’s staff, and manna. The tabernacles in Catholic Churches contain Our Lord Himself, under the appearance of bread—He who is The Lawgiver, the eternal High Priest, and Bread from Heaven. So all the more should they be suitably adorned.

Generations later, King David realizes to his shame that he lives elegantly in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells in a tent (2 Sam. 7:2). From there we learn that God through the prophet Nathan instructs David that his “son” will build a house for his name (2 Sam. 7:13). The literal sense of “son” here is David’s son and successor, King Solomon, who oversees the construction of the Temple, which was a monumental and dare I say opulent undertaking.

In a fuller, typological sense, David’s “son” is Jesus Christ, the anointed one who would destroy that Temple and rebuild it in three days (Jn. 2:19). Jesus explicitly says that He is greater than Solomon (Mt. 12:42).

Let’s hold on to that and move to another scene in the New Testament, in John 12. Mary anoints Jesus with expensive oil. Judas protested, claiming that the money can be used to feed the poor. Leaving aside Judas’ poor motives, Jesus affirms Mary’s act of worship while Jesus was still with her. She put her resources where her love was.

Churches typically reflect the culture in which they are built, and the Church likes that—the Church is universal and “builds” on the artistic and cultural sensibilities of peoples throughout the world. But one constant always and everywhere is that as much as it is good to give to the poor — which itself is an act of worship (Mt. 25) and concerning which the Church has an amazing track record — we always want to give our best to Jesus. So churches should be the best the community has to offer from the standpoint of beauty and craftsmanship.

Two examples that bear this out. St. Francis of Assisi of course was famous for his love of poverty, his simple living, and his profound love for the poor. But when it came to adorning churches, he believed that no expense should be spared in giving God our best.

Pope Benedict XVI, long before ascending to the papacy, made this famous statement in the book-interview called The Ratzinger Report:

The only really effective apologia for Christianity comes down to two arguments, namely the saints the Church has produced and the art which has grown in her womb.

Better witness is borne to the Lord by the splendor of holiness and art which have arisen in the community of believers than by clever excuses which apologetics has come up with to justify the dark sides which, sadly, are so frequent in the Church’s human history.

If the Church is to continue to transform and humanize the world, how can she dispense with beauty in her liturgies, that beauty which is so closely linked with love and with the radiance of the Resurrection?

No. Christians must not be too easily satisfied. They must make their Church into a place where beauty—and hence truth—is at home. Without this the world will become the first circle of hell.

The place of beauty in Christian worship is something Cardinal Ratzinger/Pope Benedict continued to emphasize for the decades that followed.

So in summary, the Church is sacramental—all our senses are engaged in worship as the supernatural is conveyed through the natural. The splendor of our churches is not to show off wealth, but to give glory to God and draw the world to God through the experience of beauty.

Courtesy of Leon Suprenant