Facts About Lake Norman Churches

By Angela Howard


Depending with the denomination a church represents various things. According to the Roman Catholic it is seen as a symbol of the body of Christ. Generally a church is basically a structure used for worshiping and considered sacred by Christians. People come from different cultural backgrounds to meet and worship God thus promoting unity and understanding. This is worth knowing about Lake Norman churches.

A church is dated back in the earliest times. According to the bible people did not build a church before they would gather in temples or synagogues to worship and pray. In Christianity a church is a house of God. Small cathedrals were built between the eleventh and fourteenth century which occurred in western Europe. Not only were they used for worship but also to handle community works.

Communities used then as meeting places among other functions. Changes in the designing of churches started long time ago and have spread into modern times. Among prominent styles is the Romanesque architecture. It was traditional Roman architectural styles that spread into Europe and became popular. Among its unique features is compactness and bulkiness. Other features include several octagonal towers or rough circular arches.

With the Romanesque gone came gothic style. Comparatively Gothic was less compact Romanesque. One thing that remained unchanged in both styles is allegoric and symbolic features. The work was done using buttresses, rib vaults, and arches. Invention of better techniques which improved the system of the structure meant that they could be less compact. More room left after less compaction led to incorporation of bigger windows.

Another style occurred during the renaissance period this was between the fifteenth and sixteenth century. During this period design of a church was greatly influenced. Some of the gothic churches were left unfinished for long period of times when the gothic era vanished. An example of renaissance church are the basilicas. This style is simplified and the main key feature was the classical arrangement of columns.

During the renaissance era another style of architecture took over the Baroque architectural style. Inspired by the growth and increase of the building industry. This design was complex due to the fact easier forms of the renaissance era used to be heavily exaggerated creating the baroque architecture. The church was heavily decorated with ceiling rose and sculpture works. The simple roofs used in renaissance period were substituted by highly decorated domes and capitals. This era allowed most churches to display wealth, influence and authority through their building designs.

The previous eras finally paved way for the current era. Currently most churches are shaped in the form of the cross. This architectural design is availed earlier enough to the construction engineers before they start working. The final shape is normally crisscrossing two rectangles with one made longer than the other. This is simply the symbol of the cross. Once the structure has been built it is subdivided into sanctuary, nave, and altar.

Each division had to be well spaced and designed to suit its purpose. Due to improvements in building technology, these structures seem to have developed in consideration to design. However, there still exists basilicas and cathedrals, which are designs with origins in the old era.




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