While a vast improvement, the new altar and reredos simply don't fit this building. The building would be best used for something else.
Hopefully, that is the plan, to build a new church with architecture that will compliment the new reredos altar. In the meantime, the current church is a great storage facility creating excitement and anticipation of the day it will be placed in a new magnificent church building.
Our Lady of Grace in South Houston, Texas:
Before:
After:
The second photo is like wearing a tuxedo or evening gown to a monster truck pull.
8 comments:
In my Diocese, this would be considered high Baroque, Rococo even. High praise for the loving hearts responsible for this beautiful transformation.
They need to dump that odd box in front of the high altar
Those newer style churches so often have had one horrid touch.
And I scanned past the BEFORE photo without really looking, and while looking at the AFTER photos and noting the glossy pews and huge blank white expanses of wall perforated by AC vents, then looking at aisle, thought it was missing one final touch...
Checked the BEFORE photo, and yep, mauve carpet.
It does seem sort of out of place, like a Ferrari on my carport. However, the starkness of the walls gives a blank canvas to future improvements that might be wonderful.
Yes, my assumption is that this is only the beginning and God bless their continuing to build a place worthy of His presence. One can only do so much with a plain modern building and likely limited budget. Even the BEFORE was not THAT bad (except again mauve!) given an economy warehouse with which to work. Budget no doubt constrained window size and number, as well.
Yes, a parish where nearly every Mass is listed as en Español and likely them maxed out to do even that much. Them stuck with a modern angular slab sided concrete/stucco looking thing exterior with obligatory off center monolith of a tower. Undoubtedly the architect designed and bishop approved this modern "Mission" inspired rendition, and the previous parishoners who gushed over it while everybody else bailed out.
I can't be critical. It's beautiful. Doesn't match the building but, if this is what it takes to put some soul back into these supremely ugly churches, who cares. The budget to have a thematically harmonized building likely isn't there and given how many Catholics have stopped attending, probably won't be there indefinitely.
Strangely no ambo!?
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