I understand the tendency to attribute holiness to historical structures due to the hearts of the believers who built them. I don't see where the idea that all church structures, even the most splendid examples are holy in and of themselves. It is what goes on in them 9or out of them) that adds the holiness: Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven. 20"For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst."
Jesus does not require any man-made structure to shine in all His Glory.
Pre-death/resurrection (Old Covenant) the Temple was whole. Upon His death, the curtain was split and the original symbolism was destroyed to be replaced by the New Covenant where men in temples no longer stood between us and God.THE TEMPLE is supposed to be rebuilt when the abomination that stands in its place is overthrown - that is the only structure that will have true consequence in the scheme of His Reign and it hasn't stood since 70 AD or so.
I think we get diverted by too many things that are of the Earth and it takes the focus away from the important stuff - wherever we gather to worship, He is there - what more do we need while we await His return?
I know He preached in numerous temples, but that was where those who needed to be educated (pharisees/priests) about their misguided ideas about their own importance/standing spent their time.
Monuments come and monuments go - He was/is/will be (as His part of the Great I Am) and we have the opportunity to be part of the is/will be crowd with or without these monuments.
While taking over these monuments is part of Islamic aggression, we can't stop it and whenever we rail against such things, we are missing opportunities to carry the message of Him - that message has nothing to do with the buildings we gather in - we don't keep building holy places; we build places where holy interaction and worship can be conveniently undertaken.
Those who take over the religious monuments think their 'god' requires protection and defense by mortal men - our God does not require such pitifully impotent support. He IS, regardless of His detractors or even if all the buildings in the world collapse today.
“Jesus does not require any man-made structure to shine in all His Glory.”
Trebb, I agree wholeheartedly.
I hope you’ll give me a wide berth here because I’m an architect. While God “does not require any made-made structure,” I do, or at least I’m well served in having such places.
You may be correct that some become too diverted by things of this earth, but that is just the opposite of my argument here in support of Christian sacred architecture. To me they are sacramental in that they help manifest that which is, but cannot be seen. I’ve often thought of what it must have been like to be a French pig farmer outside Paris hundreds of years ago. Imagine doing very physical work from sun up to sun down everyday in filthy smelly conditions. Then imagine on a sunny Easter Sunday going to Notre Dame Cathedral for a Mass. The smell of incense, the sound of a choir in perfect harmony and the soaring height of the interior filled with the entire spectrum of stained glass light shining on iconography telling the biblical stories that as an illiterate you are unable to read about. God does not require such things, but man, that would sure help me understand the glory of the risen Lord!
My problem, my big problem, with church-mosque conversions like this is largely a cultural one. I do not want Islam to use such spaces as props for their crypto political passive-aggression. They can build their own buildings if they’re serious about appropriate worship space.
Important stuff like muslims turning our churches into mosques.
I agree. The “value” of this building is a separate issue from whether it’s advisable to establish mosques.
We wouldn’t have the mosques growing up in Random Northern City if the Catholics who built the old churches had stayed there and had children and grandchildren who stayed. They didn’t. A lot of them gave up having children. Others moved South. It’s a whole different environment now.