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Volume 31, Number 3 |
Richardton, ND 58652 |
October 2003 |
One Guy's Unbiased Reaction
To the Renovated Church : Part II
by Terrence Kardong., O.S.B.
Infrastructure
To shift our gaze away from the most visible to the least visible, we might consider the hidden infrastructure of the building. In a sense, it was the need to redo this that drove the entire project. We could hardly go much further into the future with wiring and plumbing from 1910! Nor could we allow the main floor to become much creakier. In the worst case scenario, one fine day it could have simply collapsed.
Well, the floor problem has been fully solved. Where there was once worn boards covered by rugs, there is now solid concrete slab covered by brick. While the place once had the feel of an antiquated, if cosy, attic, it now feels like a sturdy, reliable public venue. Actually, the brickwork is itself quite artistic, with floor patterns matching the contours of the space. For example, the new baptismal font (not yet installed) is the focus of a large wheel of brick.
In the sanctuary area, the floor is still wooden, but a similar improvement has been effected. The old parquet floor had seen better days, and has been replaced by a gleaming floor of laminated hickory. The warm glow of this friendly new surface is very pleasant to contemplate for the monks who trudge back and forth to their choir stalls four times a day. While we might think that the looks of the floor is of secondary importance in a church building, that is by no means the case here.
One of the most important features in the new infrastructure is the ventilation. A stroll through the basement or attic will reveal a maze of ductwork and blowers to move air through the building. To add such a system to a monumental building like this one was no small feat. All of it had to be hidden in floors and ceilings that were not designed for that purpose. That meant that openings had to be cut through thick rock or brick walls, ducts had to be run through cramped attics and so forth.
So far we have only been able to gauge the improvement in the heating, not the cooling. Although we enjoyed a mild winter hereabouts, it was noticeable that the temperature in the building is evener than heretofore. Of course, the insulation of the attic helps in this regard, but the recirculation of warm air down from the high domes also helps. As for cooling, we do not think air conditioning is necessary for this climate, but we hope the ventilation system will make life more pleasant during July and August.
Woodwork
Perhaps the most dramatic improvement in the new scheme lies in the woodwork. It is simply spectacular. We always had some excellent woodwork in the choir stalls and pews, and the architects had the good sense to see that this could be extended to the rest of the liturgical furniture. That meant that the new altar, pulpit, tabernacle and railings would be built to match the old furniture. This task was entrusted to Minot Sash and Door, and they accomplished it very well indeed.
First, the choir stalls and pews had to be refinished, for ninety years had taken their toll on this beautiful woodwork. It was a very heavy job to dismantle all this furniture and transport it to and back from Minot, but the results are obvious. Modern methods of varnish removal now make it possible to reveal the grain of this wood much better than previously. This is particularly true in the case of the choir stalls, where the precious quartersawn oak boards are now seen in all their magnificence.
But the new furniture is even nicer than the old, if that is possible. The designers and the cabinet makers combined to produce pieces that incorporate various motifs from the older elements in the building, the result being a harmonious whole never seen here before. The new altar is especially fine with its monumental squareness articulated by its magnificent architectonic legs. The feeling here is one of great gravitas, without excess heaviness.
The same is true for the pulpit, but here the solution is perhaps less successful. Given the shape of the building, it is hard to find a place for the rostrum where the preacher will not be hidden by the pillars from part of the congregation. Some people might prefer to not see the preacher, but most preachers will be frustrated by their inability to maintain some eye contact. For many years we gave the pulpit equal prominence with the altar in this church, but that was also a less than ideal solution.
One of the best examples of a creative reuse of old materials can be seen in the
wrought-
The craftsmen who reworked this wrought iron have assured us that it would be prohibitively expensive to create such screens today. That is also quite true of the woodwork in the building. In order to match the oak choir stalls, we had the new altar and pulpit fashioned from solid oak. The craftsmen were grateful for this, since they rarely get to work in solid lumber nowadays.
Another example of the inspired reuse of old materials can be seen in the new tabernacle.
It stands in the newly-
Finally, we should mention the renovated vestibule. By piercing the immense walls between the three lobbies, the architects were able to create a lovely long space where people can easily circulate from one side of the church to the other. And standing at the end of this interesting tunnel is Joe Torre of the New York Yankees. Well, no, what is actually there is a new bronze sculpture of St. Michael, the Archangel, done by the recently deceased Raymond Rogers of Mott. This angel is like much else in this church: sturdy, bold, warm and cheerful.
Closing Considerations
As we have noted all along, the renovation of our church is a big improvement, but it is still a compromise. In most regards, the rearrangement has resulted in a better space for worship. But we must remember that two different groups use the church, so a given element can have different effects.
Of course, some changes help everybody. Take, for example, the raising of the altar platform. This adjustment has the effect of improving the sight lines from all over the building. Unless they are standing behind a pillar, now everyone can at least see the celebrant's face. And the larger platform also gives the monks a better venue for the monastic Mass, where everyone surrounds the altar for the Eucharistic Prayer.
But some changes are more problematic. No doubt the prime example is the new position of the monastic choir stalls, which have been brought much closer together and also forward in the sanctuary. The effect here is to improve communications within the monastic choir, but parishioners may feel that the stalls are too close to the altar. After all, they used to be much less conspicuous.
The monks wanted to have the stalls further away, but could not do so because of the presence of the baldachin and the old high altar. Since the parish committee would not agree to the removal of these items, that left us two alternatives: remain hidden behind the pillars or move out front and center. The result is ideal for neither the Abbey nor the Parish. Indeed, it should be admitted that this church is not, and never has been, ideal for either the Parish or the Abbey. It is too formal for a parish church, and too highly decorated for a monastic church.
Maybe this is the main theme of this essay and the main lesson of this whole renovation project: Life, or at least communal life on earth, is always something of a compromise. For some, that equals betrayal, but in the real world, the world of differing tastes and needs, the world of original sin, it is not possible for one person or group to have full sway in a community. The compromises that we must make to maintain life together can be painful, but they are the price of life in the Church, the body of Jesus Christ.
Our church project has shifted to the outdoors now, with the renewal of the parking
lot and the landscaping. Here we see some thirty-
