GUIDELINE FOR CHURCH DESIGN

Excerpts from the books of Michael S. Rose and Steven J. Schloeder

A. VERTICAL STRUCTURE

a. Soaring heights, outside and inside, to evoke the heavenly and eternal.
b. Catholic Church Architecture should create an atmosphere of Catholic prayer and
worship.

B. ICONOGRAPHIC ARCHITECTURE

a. Structure should look like a Church (or a chapel ), a symbol of heavenly things.
b. Easy to recognize as a sacred place of Divine worship.
c. A structure of God’s dwelling.
d. Building itself should serve as a sign of the Eternal, an icon of the Divine
Presence.
e. It should accentuate the landscape as reminder of the City of God.
f. It should be a visible Church, not simply a gathering place.

C. PERMANENCE

a. Structure should be permanent, durable, should withstand the violence of man

and brutality of nature.

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FOR THE PHILIPPINES

1. Required to withstand the strongest typhoon on record so churches can be used as

area of refuge.
2. Use ga. 24 prepainted long span roofing. Ordinary corrugation is best. Avoid ribbed
type, easily deformed and prone to leaks especially if maintenance people walk on the
roof.
3. Install rivets at every corrugation and space them at shorter distance compared to
ordinary roofing. This helps to prevent roofs being thrown away by strong winds.
4. New Churches should be built on higher ground to avoid floods.
5. Churches are now required to be designed to withstand strongest typhoon of record as
well as earthquake so that churches can be used as disaster refuge area.
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Manila established an Engineering Department to
assess structural integrity of existing Church buildings.
6. Provide concrete gutters to protect roofing from being blown away. Will also eliminate
costly gutter maintenance. This will also provide access to service roof.
7. Use concrete roof if affordable.
8. Provide more toilet units and bigger water storage, if used as area of refuge
9. Old Churches
a. Spanish period churches of adobe or bricks – consult s Stone
Conservator, ex. Prof. Maita Reyes, how to treat stones
b. Repair without changing old style or material. Example, don’t put new
paint over old painted ceiling with artwork.
Ex. Calaca Church in Batangas
c. Don’t plaster new cement on old adobe stones. Ask Consultant to
recommend. Ex. a mix of crushed adobe, slaked lime, low sulphate
cement . Adjust mix to consistency of old adobe stones. Same with
grouts on old bricks – get samples of old grout and have examined by
experts and try to replicate
d. To patch up large holes or deteriorated pieces of old adobe stones,
brush off powdery adobe, wet the stone, use above mix to patch up

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 ( make samples first to color match). To achieve old rough texture of
adobe, use a rough piece of chipped concrete, about 4 in x 5 in,
comfortable shape to handle and use this to create the rough texture on
new adobe plaster mix. Test surface when it has somewhat hardened
but has not yet set to hardness. Use a circular motion of gently rubbing
the surfaces of new adobe plaster. Do not use “piketa” finish with a small
ax. This system is prone to delamination of new plaster from old adobe.

10. Provide access to all parts of the Church. Every light bulb should be easy to replace no
matter how high it is located. Windows shall be accessible for cleaning and repair. Roof
tops, roof gutters and belfry should be accessible. Provide catwalks, ledges, built in
stairs, built in ladders, safety hooks for maintenance.
11. Rectangular shapes – most practical and least costly. Other shapes are prone to roof
leaks, difficult and costly to build, maintain and repair.
12. Provide more toilets and bigger water storage for use of people taking refuge in the
church. If possible also an outside covered space where outdoor cooking can be done
during times of calamities.

Prepared by:

SUSANA S. CASTILLO

Architect

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