Abstract
According to statistics, there are more than 35,000 Presbyterian churches in Korea. Due to this high number, people can surmise that there are various types of church architecture. However, surprisingly, it is easy to find commonalities. The majority of the churches were built for practical purposes and are more like educational spaces or performance venues than religious venues. The Korean Presbyterian Church architecture emphasizes both the practical aspect and public aspect rather than the aesthetic and theological aspect. The worship space filled with pews in the shape of a rectangle has an impact on this style of worship which centers around sitting, listening and appreciating rather than diversifying worship ceremonies. These influences led to the false notion that worship was successfully achieved by listening to a sermon similar to lectures in an educational institution. Under these circumstances, members were unable to experience holistic faith formation through various worship ceremonies, and experienced a worship pattern of listening, taking notes, and studying every week. This repeated passivity was engraved in the body and mind of the saints, leading to the failure of the church to actively participate in its role in society. In this article, I will insist that the spatial arrangement and the creation of the worship environment from an aesthetic point of view can enrich worship and eventually add integrity to the Christian faith formation.
Keywords
Introduction
Church architecture has historically influenced the worship of the church and the formation of the faith of the congregation through the arrangement of liturgical space, objects, and art, and in the ways a congregation experiences the sights and sounds of the space. In this article, I shall explore this connection in the context of the Korean Presbyterian Church.
Historically, the Korean Presbyterian Church has emphasized preaching and catechetical education. 1 Inheriting the Reformed theology of the sixteenth-century reformers and the theological and practical teachings of the early American missionaries in Korea, the Korean Presbyterian Church has pursued soundness of doctrine, passion for evangelism, and worship centered on the Word—regarding these three aspects as the highest values of congregational life. 2 Worship itself has centered on preaching; studying and memorizing the Bible and doctrines hold paramount value.
In contrast, however, interest in liturgical practice and the sacraments has been relatively weak in the Korean Presbyterian Church. Congregations have been virtually indifferent to elements of worship beyond listening to the Word proclaimed. Consideration of various liturgical actions and rituals in worship and attentiveness to the worship space in which these rituals occur have held little importance in comparison to preaching and correct doctrine.
There are more than 20,000 Presbyterian churches in Korea. 3 Visitors to many of these Presbyterian churches will observe many commonalities in their architectural style. For example, the vast majority of Presbyterian churches in Korea were built and equipped for preaching and public address. Rather than feeling like “a religious place,” the structures feel more like an educational space or a performance hall. 4 It is more difficult to sense the holiness and piety that often accompany sacred spaces such as cathedrals or religious temples.
This arrangement of the space also adds to the sense that the Korean Presbyterian Church serves an educational rather than a religious purpose. Typically, the space is filled with fixed pews in a narrow rectangular or trapezoid arrangement, which confines worship to a passive form of sitting, listening, and appreciating rather than allowing for movement and a diversity of liturgical responses and rituals. The influence of the fixed pew arrangement leads to the false notion that worship is effectively achieved by listening to a sermon. In this context, worship feels more like an academic lecture than a celebration of and participation in God's holy presence. In such arrangements, congregants are less likely to experience a holistic faith formation 5 through various expressions of worship while emphasizing human intellect which might frown upon human emotion and volition. It also might limit participants’ understanding of spirituality to listening to a sermon and Bible study. Thus, there is a growing disconnect of the mind or intellect from an emotional or behavioral response that can nurture spiritual passivity. Such spiritual passivity in worship then also diminishes the capacity to apply what is learned in church into one's daily life. If what is learned at church is isolated from the rest of one's life, then it follows that the church as an institution will also play less of an active role in society. 6 In short, the spiritual passivity supported by the worship space translates into a passivity beyond the walls of the church as well. Because the people in the pews are accustomed to listening to the sermon, without integrating the learning into their values and behaviors, there is no application to the rest of life. Churchgoers are not enculturated to make connections between faith and social responsibility and may simply wait and hope that God will solve social problems. 7
In this article, I will show how church architecture affects both the form of public worship and the process of faith formation of believers. Above all, I shall assert the following: A space of worship contains a theological message; the message is constantly delivered to the minds, hearts, and bodies especially through the visual, tactile, and kinesthetic components of Christian worship; a person not only listens to the message, but also learns through various modes such as the visual, tactile, and kinesthetic. 8 Above all, the beauty or aesthetic qualities of the space can connect more deeply to the spiritual sensibilities engraved in human nature when there is deliberate attention to the design of the space. Conversely, the spiritual awareness contained in the hearts of people, created in the image of God, is aroused through a worshipful space that is sensory-rich.
Analyzing the Current Situation
To help describe the current situation in Korean Presbyterian churches, I provide three examples of their worship and church architectural styles. Each example represents a type or composite of similar congregations and is not intended to portray any one congregation.
Church Type A
Church type A (see Figure 1) was built about forty years ago. Because of its long rectangular shape, this church has a somewhat high stage to allow the congregation a better view of the preacher from their pews. A pulpit is at the center of the stage and a large screen behind it highlights the preacher's face. On each side of the stage, chairs are placed for the preachers, moderator, and leader of prayer. On the left side of the stage, a choir stand is positioned diagonally, and on the right side, instruments for the band (e.g., drums) are located. However, neither a communion table nor a baptismal font is present, nor any symbols such as the cross. The church has a rectangular nave worship space. The main hall is lined with pews, and the congregation is often so tightly packed that it can be difficult to find a place to sit or to move about. During the service, worshipers typically sit and listen to the sermon (which occupies about half of the service) and the singing of the praise team and choir. During the sermon, most people take notes. This gives a feeling that worship is a time to study the Bible rather than a time to worship and celebrate.
Type A.
Church type B (see Figure 2) was built twenty years ago. The main hall is designed in a trapezoidal shape—a quadrilateral with two parallel sides and two non-parallel sides. From the entrance, the non-parallel sides narrow toward the chancel which allow a better view of the stage. On each side of the pulpit, large screens are located to display not only the face of the preacher but also the lyrics of hymns and complementary visuals for the sermon. On each side of the stage are spaces for the choir, the worship team, and various instruments, such as piano, electric organ, synthesizer, electric and bass guitar, and drums, all of which emphasize the important role music plays in the worship in this type of church. Over the course of time, the interior of the main hall of the church has deteriorated. For example, young people who prefer a brighter atmosphere demanded improvements because of the dim lighting in the hall. An outdated sound system from twenty years ago and enormous speakers favored by the churches in the past were replaced. Also, video projectors and screens were replaced with current models, leading to the church committee also deciding to remodel the main hall. For the renovated hall, there were seemingly no theological or practical considerations. Compared to the previous setting, the height of the ceiling was increased and the size of the stage in the main hall was expanded to imitate a megachurch style worship environment; especially regarding swapping out the old pews for new comfort-style theater seats. These transitions were done while emphasizing musical performance and maximizing stage effect.
Type B.
Church type C (see Figure 3) is a church that boasts a hundred-year history though it has undergone numerous alterations over time. The main hall of this church exhibits a rectangular shape and is similar in structure to the type A church. The difference is an enormous pipe organ located at a 45-degree angle to the right of the front of the hall. There is also space for a band in front of the pipe organ, and for a choir at a 45-degree angle to the left of the front of the hall. Like other churches, a large screen is located at the center. On the stage, the pulpit stands out, but neither a font nor a communion table is present, nor any chairs. The lighting is like that of most Korean churches, neither too bright nor too dark.
Type C.
Church type C has a history of great controversy over the placement of the cross in the front center of the chapel. Some theologically conservative leaders argued that placing a cross in the middle of the front wall was not fitting for the spirit of Protestantism and could be idolatrous. Over time, however, a large screen has replaced the cross, and the preacher's face fills the screen. Sometimes the church's advertising placards were attached to the left and right sides, and there were large photographs of guests invited to the service displayed on the screen.
Let us compare the three types of church halls. Church type A represents the architectural style of small churches which account for most churches in Korea. Small congregations of less than 100 people typically utilize other buildings not originally built to function as church space. Since it is a small space—no seats for the choir—this makes it difficult to do much with the space other than arrange chairs as in a tight auditorium or classroom style. The configuration of chairs is conducive to hearing a sermon, but the setting comes across as more of a lecture than a spiritually inspired message. Sometimes the space can be so crowded that it is difficult to move out of one's place. Congregations able to afford their own building, however, can arrange the space in ways more conducive to worship. Church type C is a form that many churches with their own church buildings take, allowing ample space for a choir and a praise band. The rectangular shape, however, makes it difficult for those seated in the back to see what is happening in the front of the chapel, compounded by some pillars creating a blind spot for both sight and sound. Therefore, churches interested in architecture tend to build a type B. The trapezoid-shaped seating arrangement compensates for the shortcomings of the other two types, helping participants to see what is happening up front in the worship space from any seat. Types A, B, and C all share a common limitation in placing the worship leaders (preacher, choir, liturgist, etc.) at the front of the space. None of the setups allow the worshipers to see each other's faces. When everyone is facing forward there is an implicit bias to focus on the action “on stage” and, therefore, worshipers miss out on the experience of God through fellowship with one another and the opportunity to develop unity in the Body is diminished.
Characteristics of Korean Presbyterian Church Worship and Chapels
The characteristics of Korean Presbyterian church worship and chapels in the above cases are as follows.
The architecture supports a liturgical focus on the Word preached and musical performance. Most Korean Presbyterian churches do not have their own buildings and rent commercial buildings. Given that they are renting the spaces, according to terms and conditions in their contract, there exists congregations who can or cannot remodel the inside setting.
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Even churches with their own buildings often focus on practicality and publicity.
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It is common for the sanctuary of small churches to have the atmosphere of a school classroom, and the sanctuary of medium-large churches to have the atmosphere of a theater-like performance on stage. Worship held in such an environment is inevitably sermon-centered; it can also be described as clergy-centered. This environment and atmosphere make the congregation into passive spectators rather than actively engaged in worship. The worship services of many Presbyterian churches in Korea are often dominated by Bible study centered on information delivery. Devoted believers can often be seen writing notes during sermons, recording notes on their cell phones, or using a keyboard connected to an iPad or tablet. Conservative theological tendencies, which make up the majority of Presbyterian churches in Korea, tend to be very wary of religious symbols (even the cross) and rituals.
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These tendencies have led to the construction of worship spaces that eliminate anything that interferes with listening to the Word or evidences any theological or historical interest in baptismal fonts and tables for the Lord's Supper.
In the end, these Presbyterian chapels do not feel like the religious spaces familiar to those of other faith traditions who give greater attention to their religious aesthetics and what it means to gather for worship as a community of believers.
The Korean Presbyterian Church insists that the worship place itself is not a holy place like the temple in the Old Testament. 12 However, the place where people gather for public worship is also not the same as the general space of the world. 13 An ordinary space like a lecture hall could become a sacred space when one or more persons experience something transformative or holy among them. Also, are not the participants “sacred” human beings made in the image of God? 14 Excessive vigilance in keeping symbols, rituals, and liturgical elements out of the worship space has the risk of misinterpreting church worship as a place solely for education and learning to the exclusion of religious ceremony or sacred rituals.
Above all, the lack of theological and liturgical consideration due to the spatial arrangement results in overcrowding, such that movement cannot be performed properly amid the high volume of people. If there exist deep considerations about practicing liturgy, it would be practical to consider the liturgical space; however, if focused on the liturgy of the word, liturgical consideration of the space would be unnecessary. In the end, it is difficult for the congregation to actively participate in worship through various liturgical actions other than sitting.
As a result, there are very few elements of worship in which believers can participate in the order of worship. This results in training the congregation to worship passively. During the 60–90 minute worship service, believers are trained to sit without dozing and to endure rather than to enjoy worship. This kind of passive training is likely to form an attitude in the minds of the believers of observing the changes in the world rather than leading them to active participation in society. 15
Liturgical space, theology, and practice of worship have a close relationship. People may build churches and design spaces with theological and pastoral intentions to set a tone for worship, but in spaces where there is no deliberate theological or pastoral intention, the space may convey a lack of theological meaning to the worshipers who participate in the space. 16
This raises a question of whether the chicken or the egg comes first, which is to admit that it is not easy to determine whether the intention of the designers is more important to the participants’ experience of worship than the formative power produced by the act of worship itself. At the very least, however, it can be said that the meaning given by the design and arrangement of the worship space bears some relationship to the formation of theological meaning in the heart and mind of the worshiper.
Arrangement of space can be an expression of theology, liturgical practice, and ecclesiology. For example, if a church places a baptismal font in a prominent place, then participants might see the baptismal font and be reminded of their own baptism. The font stands as a visual reminder that baptism is the start of Christian faith, and that through their baptism the members of the congregation are formed together into the One Body of Christ. The existence of font and water can have a great effect on the faith formation and spiritual well-being of the congregation. 17 Likewise, placing a table for the Lord's Supper in a prominent place can visually cue the congregation to the spiritual nourishment that comes through Christ's body and blood. When people are gathered around a physical table, they can consider the spiritual table to which all are invited to share in Christ's Body. They come to believe that communion with God includes communion with neighbors. This tacit implication seeps into the worshiper's conscience. Further, they come to experience eucharist as a central value of the church: Word and sacraments form a church. The priority of a congregation's use of a physical table in the worship space discloses its eucharistic ecclesiology. 18
Among Korean Presbyterian churches, many churches do not have a table for the Lord's Supper and the baptismal font is seldom to be found, but the pulpit is always located on the front stage of the chapel. 19 Musical instruments such as piano, organ, and drums are usually set in the front and side of the main hall, and the choir seats are also in front. This spatial composition shows how important music is to Korean Presbyterian worship. Places of worship are being optimized for music performances. The spirit of “worship as performance” is planted in the hearts of the participants. The role of leaders and musicians is emphasized, but the active participation of the congregation is weakened. Instead, the performance and quality of the musicians receive attention. 20
At the same time, baptism and communion, primary means of grace, have little influence on the formation of believers’ faith. If people do not frequently partake in the sacraments and if the primary signs of font and table are absent, people's understanding and appreciation for the sacraments is likely to diminish. Baptism is a key element in establishing Christian identity and the core of Christian faith. Watching and touching the baptismal font and water, members recall the faith and emotion of the baptism they received. 21 As we look at the table of communion, the congregation realizes that fellowship with God must lead to fellowship with other people, which in turn must lead to social action, working for justice. The absence of these visual elements is detrimental to the faith formation of the worshiping community across all ages. God's gifts do not require ritual actions to be effective. We require ritual actions to express our participation in God's grace.
Above all, the worthy intention of emphasizing the Word of God is understandable, but, in the end, worship shaped only by “listening” without including any multi-sensory elements in a limited space results in passivity of the seated saints. To this end, the trained passivity in worship increases the possibility of mass-producing passive believers who are not apprenticed in the art of delivering relevant responses in the face of social issues. Since the 1960s, the absence of messages from the pulpit concerning social participation and reform of the Korean Presbyterian Church led concerned observers to conclude that the Church is not concerned to stimulate action in the life of the worshiping community. 22
In other words, the church building, and the sole emphasis on “listening” to the Word, are shaping the theological thoughts of the congregation. Form is function. The utilitarian approach to design ultimately affects the people who worship in the space. Therefore, while considering practicality and functionality for the public, church architecture needs to express theological and aesthetic values that go beyond them.
The Necessity of Theological and Aesthetical Considerations for Worship Space
The worship space itself is not sacred. However, as the Korean Presbyterian Church is wary of superstitious minds among believers in space itself, it overlooks the distinctiveness of the worship space as a religious gathering space. My concern is not about non-Christian spaces but about the sense that liturgical space is relatively unimportant. When people enter a temple, there is a special feeling that only it gives, so people tend to be mindful about their behavior, often without even realizing it. 23 In many parts of the world, for example, you would never see people expectorate or smoke in the courtyard of a temple. However, as the Korean Presbyterian Church emphasized that temples and holy places no longer exist in this era, it seems that they did not pay proper attention to the value of space which can affect minds, hearts, and bodies, especially through the visual, tactile, and kinesthetic components of Christian worship.
The worship space itself does not guarantee divine presence and holiness. Divine presence depends on the sovereign movement of the Holy Spirit. But Jesus promised, “Where two or three are gathered in my name, I will be with them” (Matt 18:20). Therefore, the place where people gather to worship the triune God becomes a holy place. At the same time, the built environment for worship cannot by itself cause a holy experience. The best it can do is create opportunities for experiencing the holy and perhaps evoke a sense of awe. The worship space has the ability to continuously deliver messages to the people who participate in the space. In other words, the design of a house of worship can influence the worship experience so that participants can sense a divine presence and connection to God. 24
Ultimately, this is connected to the possibility of aesthetic recognition of God. This does not mean religious art can make or guarantee a Christian faith automatically. Human beings, however, have a sense of aesthetics and can experience an awe-inspiring moment when they encounter a religious environment. The doctrinal and intellectual focus emphasized by Protestantism in faith formation is important. Right faith is closely related to right knowledge and right confession. However, the layout of the worship space, the arrangement of objects in the space, the environment of worship, lighting, decoration, and sound can arouse the hearts of the believers and provide them with opportunities for multidimensional learning and spiritual formation.
John Calvin said that the human heart is like a factory that creates idols. 25 As for the church architecture and use of art in the church, the Presbyterian or Reformed churches recognized the many advantages the heart has, but they were so afraid of human nature and its religious impurity that they created a cognitive and knowledge-centered system for the process of faith formation. The emphasis on “right faith” (orthodoxy) is important; but the richness of worship forms that can help orthodox faith express itself in “right practice” (orthopraxis) is not given enough attention. Worse still, the faith-forming effect of the arrangement of the liturgical furniture or tools in that space was dismissed, and their thoughts remained ignored or suppressed.
Possibility of Aesthetic Perception of God and Multilateral Learning
What is the shape of the ideal worship space? Figure 4 shows the arrangement of space in the chapel of Calvin University in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA. This form has several advantages. The circular shape of the chapel allows the members to clearly see the progress of the worship service, especially the communion and baptism, and helps them focus on the worship while seeing each other's faces. The appearance of the presider who leads the Word and Sacrament and the congregation surrounding it shows the effect of teaching both visibly and implicitly that what builds and strengthens the church is the Word and Sacrament of God. Even at the acoustic level, sound can be heard clearly without blind spots. However, the narthex is emphasized, so the area of the core part (stair common area, hallway) is wide and the main entrance is small. One disadvantage is that there are not many seats, so it is difficult for a large number of people to participate, so it may not fit the Korean mindset that seeks revival and growth.
The floor plan of Calvin University Chapel.
Korean Presbyterians confess that God created the entire universe, and that creation reflects God's glory. 26 That is, as the psalmist says, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the expanse shows the work of his hands” (Ps 19:1). However, Korean Presbyterians teach that only those who have received God's special revelation can have faith. In other words, even if people see God's glory reflected in nature, people cannot know God without God's grace. Of course, Korean Presbyterians think there is a universal religious mind in human beings, but they take Calvin's position that having a religious mind is different from knowing God. 27
In the theological structure of the Presbyterian Church in Korea, which emphasizes the role of God's special revelation and Word, the themes of “nature,” “material,” and “beauty” do not receive much attention. Emphasizing human sinfulness and being overly wary of the danger of idolatry, a dualistic view of spirit and body is unintentionally dominant, and artistic categories such as “image,” “symbol,” and “architecture” as embodiments of the spiritual world has not received proper concern.
Art has a close relationship with the spiritual world. 28 In other words, art has a spiritual dimension. Visual art carries a message and continuously delivers it to the viewer. It makes the invisible visible. Of course, the viewer may or may not receive the message expressed by the original artist. 29 Nevertheless, art provides aesthetic stimulation to the mind of the observer. 30 The experience of beauty in art can cause a lifting of the mind towards God. Like “Calvin's Ladder,” our mind is drawn up toward God through our experience of the beautiful. 31
The language people use is not only a tool for communication, but also a tool for learning. Language, however, is not the only vehicle for communication and learning. People are constantly expressing their thoughts through facial expressions, gestures, movements, and eyes. At the same time, people can learn continually through symbols, symbolic expressions, music, paintings, and bodily movements. 32
Based on this pre-understanding, let us think about church architecture within the category of art. People are influenced by their environment. Being in a certain environment and space means being influenced by it. 33 This is because the environment and architecture as art convey messages. The church building and its internal structure convey the theological thoughts that will serve the worship of the congregation, and those thoughts are constantly speaking to the people in that space, wittingly or unwittingly. 34
I believe that the church building and the artistic expressions within it go beyond simply being an educational tool for the illiterate. They lead us to visualize the invisible truth of faith, that is, to embody it. They not only educate people, but also uplift their minds. In other words, the space of worship at the artistic level takes us to the “ontological dimension of existence by representing the being of things in discontinuity from their ordinary context.” 35 That is to say, a person's artistic experience in a specific space evokes “the fullness of meaning” representing “meaningful whole of life” and contains “the experience of an infinite whole.” 36
Therefore, there is no place in the world where the space itself is holy, but the church's worship space, built under theological and aesthetic considerations, is endowed with a different meaning from the everyday space of the world. 37 Something that cannot be expressed in words forms meaning, and that meaning constantly expresses itself in space. Hans Gadamer asserts that “art is knowledge and the experience of art is a sharing of this knowledge.” 38 Emotions and images given by space penetrate subtly and unconsciously into people's thoughts.
The church architecture, the liturgical space, and the arrangement of liturgical objects do not in themselves guarantee God's presence. For the worship of God, however, the space where God's people gather publicly becomes a special space by the promise of God's presence. To borrow the expression of James Loder, it is a special space where the spirit of God encounters and fellowships with the human spirit. 39 Therefore, the architecture and artistic expression of the church should not be ignored or overlooked but should have a spatial meaning that can enhance meeting and fellowship with God, receptivity to God's appearance, and human approach to God.
Emphasis on the depravity of human nature and excessive vigilance against idolatry led Reformed Protestantism to seek brevity and facility in its artistic stance and church architecture. 40 However, excessive pragmatism and lack of feeling as a religious place can have a negative effect on the faith-forming effect of the place and its arrangement. Therefore, the Korean Presbyterian Church should seek to reestablish an awareness of the theology of art and church architecture. Further, the Church will have to develop a deeper discussion on how architecture influences a biblical and theological expression of worship.
The building of the church, its liturgical space, and the arrangement of the objects in the space are constantly sending messages to the people present in the church. This message affects both the consciousness and unconsciousness of human beings, creating a web of meaning. Participants are influenced by the atmosphere and the feeling created by the space, receive the message that the space carries, and practice various elements of worship. In addition to hearing, other senses such as vision and movement not only help participants learn, but also engrave knowledge in their minds and hearts. Therefore, considering this theological and practical importance, the Korean Presbyterian Church must pay attention to the theological meaning of church architecture and the importance of holistic faith-forming functions.
Theologically, even though the Korean Presbyterian Church pursues the theology of the Presbyterian Church and the Reformed tradition, its worship practices have been much affected by revivalism and the frontier worship style. Therefore, preaching is emphasized as the most important element of worship, and, recently, music has been elevated to the same position as the sacraments. As a result of these influences, the church's worship space often takes the form of a classroom, or a music performance hall. There is a relative lack of interest in the sacraments and liturgical worship, which eventually affects the worship space and arrangement. In such a space of worship, Korean Presbyterian Church members who believe that they have worshiped when they hear a sermon, lacking in action and movement, are interested in individual spiritual blessings and growth, but lack interest in social transformation and responsibility. In other words, the space affects the thoughts and attitudes of congregations.
The Korean Presbyterian Church should renew its attention to worship space because this will reshape the congregation's faith formation in a more holistic and comprehensive way. Listening to words is important, but visible words are also necessary for the formation of faith. Liturgical gestures such as standing up from time to time, raising hands, and clapping are also influential elements in the embodiment and practice of faith. The worship vessels related to the sacraments are an important means of grace along with the Word, and their arrangement can help the believers to form a holistic faith. When people see the baptistery and font, they are reminded of their baptism and can renew their first love to the triune God; when people see the Lord's table, they can be reminded of God serving the spiritual nutrition and the necessity of connection between loving God and loving one's neighbor. Furthermore, the architecture of the church, which creates a home for all of these things, enhances the atmosphere and emotions for those who gather in the space and worship, thus helping the worship of the congregation.
Until now, Korean churches have emphasized practicality and the public good, in church architecture. The need to realize the importance of the aesthetic and theological elements of architecture, however, have been overlooked. In addition, it is necessary to look again at the church architecture from a liturgical point of view that has not yet been developed, and to present guidelines to the pastors and leaders of the local churches through theological and practical discussions. Although the church building itself is not holy, I am an advocate for creating a liturgical space in which the architecture and physical layout is more conducive to worship, and where the physical layout and the furnishings might better facilitate the people's faith formation for carrying out their Christian identity.
