You will have noticed that this column in Carmel has been different in recent months as I have been in Europe. As anyone who has been there knows, it is impossible to travel through that part of the world without seeing churches.
European churches that are younger than ours are not easy to come by. Many of them are remarkable structures that have been even more remarkably appointed. As I reflected on the many liturgical spaces that I saw, I kept returning to three key ideas that are relevant to our own work in the Church Renewal Process, which I hope to write about further over the coming weeks:
- All churches undergo renewal over time
- We have a long heritage as a Church of using beauty as a means of lifting people’s hearts and minds to God
- It is important for us to express our particular identity as part of the Carmelite family.
This Tuesday, our architect Jesse Mowbray will present to Fr Paul and the rest of the Church Renewal Committee the three potential design concepts he has prepared for the renewal of the liturgical space. In the weeks that follow, the committee will engage in a process of discernment to settle on a single design concept that it will commend to the Pastoral Council, Carmelite Provincial Council and Bishop Anthony. The concept can then be presented as the proposed design once formal approval is received from Fr Denis (Prior Provincial) and Bishop Anthony.
Liturgy 