Sacred Spaces

Mr. Pablo Cuadra

Religion Class
 What is a Cathedral?
• A cathedral is the official church
of a diocesan bishop or
Archbishop.

• It is in this church that the bishop

presides, teaches, and conducts
worship for the Christian
community of the local church or
diocese.

• The cathedral is the chief church

of the diocese. All the official
liturgical functions of a diocese are
celebrated at the Cathedral.

• The cathedral is the church where

the “cathedra” –the chair or throne
of the bishop is found. This seat is
a symbol of the apostolic authority
of the bishop. St. Mary’s Cathedral, Miami, Fl
 What is a Basilica?
• The word basilica means royal
house.

• The word basilica is a honorific

title given to a church with
important canonical status and
privileges, usually due to its history.

• One of the privileges bestowed

upon major Basilicas is the
celebration of the Jubilee Year and
the granting of plenary
indulgences to the pilgrims that
come to visit them.

• There are two types of basilicas:

Major basilicas and minor
basilicas.
St. Peter’s Basilica
 Did you know?
• “In architecture, the term basilica signifies a kingly, and
secondarily a beautiful, hall. The name indicates the Eastern
origin of the building, but it is in the West, above all in Rome,
that the finest examples of the basilica are found. Between 184
and 121 B.C. there were built in the Forum at Rome the
basilicas of Porcia, Fulvia, Sempronia, and Opimia; after 46
B.C. the great Basilica Julia of Caesar and Augustus was
erected. These buildings were designed to beautify the Forum
and to be of use both for market purposes and for the
administration of justice. They were open to the public and
were well lighted.”
Advent Catholic encyclopedia
 What are the four major or
Patriarchal basilicas?
• Patriarchal basilicas are
churches associated with the
great patriarchates of the
world. The four patriarchal
basilicas are:
• St. John Lateran is the
cathedral of the Pope and
therefore associated with him
as Bishop of Rome and as
Patriarch of the West
• St. Peter's Basilica, the
Patriarch of Constantinople
• St. Paul’s Basilica, the
Patriarch of Alexandria
• St. Mary Major, the Patriarch
of Antioch

St. John Lateran

 Did you know?
• A patriarchate is the see of a patriarch—a
high ranking bishop (usually Eastern
Catholic) in charge of the bishops, clergy
and people of several regions or countries.
• The word patriarch means Father.
 What are the major characteristics
of a major Basilica?
• Major basilicas have a special
"holy door" and a papal throne
and an altar at which none may
say Mass except by the pope's
permission.
• The four major Basilicas act as
the Pope’s chapels.
• The day of their consecration is
remember as a feast day in the
Latin Church.
• The four Roman basilicas alone
have the right to prefix their
basilica name with the adjective
"sacrosancta." (venerable or
most holy).

St. Mary Major

 Did you know?
• Major Basilicas are also entitled to
display and to use in liturgical
processions two insignia: the
basilican bell (tintinnabulum) and
the basilican umbrella, or pavilion
(conopceum, ombrellone,
padiglione).

• Originally, the basilican bell was

probably used to signal the arrival
of the pope at the basilica for
solemn functions or the start of a
papal procession. It consists of a
small bell with a ringing-cord
attached to its tongue, mounted in
an ornamental frame on the top of
a carrying-pole.
St. Paul’s Basilica “Outside the Walls”

Fr. Rober F. McNamara “Legend claims that when St Paul was

decapitated, his head bounced three times
and fountains miraculously sprang out
when it touched the ground.”
 What is a minor Basilica?
• A minor basilica is an
important church that is
outside the rank of the
four major basilicas.

• It has some of the

privileges granted to the
major basilicas.

National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

Washington, DC
 What are some of the
characteristics of minor basilicas?
• The three privileges
granted to minor basilicas
are:
• A. the use of the basilican
bell
• B. the use of the basilican
pavilion.
• C. the right of the secular
canons of the basilica to
wear a cappa of purple
wool and ermine.
National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
 Did you know?
• Only Popes can
declare a church a
minor basilica upon
the recommendation
of the congregation
for sacred rites.
 What are some distinctive traits
about a minor Basilica church?
• A. The church in question is ancient, at least in a
relative sense.

• B. The architecture must at least be truly "basilica," that

is, "regal" in character.

• C. It must be a permanent church, and solemnly

consecrated.

• D. It must be large, spacious, and rich in its

appointments.

• E. From a devotional standpoint, it must be in some way

or other a notable religious center. If it is a shrine by
reason of its possession of the body of a saint, so much
the better.

• F. If it is not distinguished for its relics, it should at least

be distinguished for its paintings, images, etc.

• G. The staff of the church should be large enough to

permit the frequent and splendid performance of solemn
rites.

• H. It should be self-supporting.

Cathedral-Basilica, St. Augustine, Fl

 Famous Minor Basilicas in North
America and Europe
• Ste. Anne de Beaupré in
Québec.
• Sacré Coeur in Montmartre,
Paris.
• National Shrine of the
Immaculate Conception in
Washington, D.C.
• Our Lady of Guadalupe in
Mexico city.

Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe

 Did you Know?
• The Basilica of our Lady of
Guadalupe is considered as
the second most important
sanctuary of Catholicism (this
based upon the number of
pilgrims it hosts per year) just
after the Vatican City.
 What is an oratory?
• Oratory signifies a place of prayer.
The word oratory comes from the
Latin word for prayer.

• It also means a structure other

than a parish church, set aside by
ecclesiastical authority for prayer
and the celebration of Mass.

• Oratories seem to have originated

from the chapels erected over the
tombs of the early martyrs where
the faithful resorted to pray.

• In the modern sense, an oratory

is a place other than a parish
church where it is canonically
permissible to celebrate the
Liturgy.
 Where can oratories be found?
• Monasteries
• Prisons
• Hospitals
• Private Homes
 Types of Oratories
• Public– open to all

• Semi-Public– restricted to the

use of a religious community,
seminary hospital or prison.

• Private—only granted by
permission of the Holy See.
 What is a chapel?
• A chapel is a holy place or area of worship,
sometimes small and attached to a larger
institution such as a large church, a college, a
hospital, a palace, a prison or a cemetery,
sometimes large and unattached to another
building.

• Canonically speaking the chapel is an

oratory.

• The word chapel means cape.

• Technically, anyone can set up a chapel.

• The bishop’s permission is necessary to

celebrate the mass inside any chapel or
oratory.
 Types of Chapel
• Side Chapels - a chapel within a cathedral or larger church.

• Lady Chapels - these are really a form of side chapel, but have been
included separately as they are extremely prevalent in the Catholic church.
They are dedicated to the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
•
• Ambassador's Chapels - originally created to allow ambassadors from
Catholic countries to worship whilst on duty in Protestant countries.
•
• Bishop's Chapels - in Catholic Canon Law, Bishops have the right to have
a chapel in their own home, even when traveling (such personal chapels are
granted only as a favor to other priests)

• Chapels of Ease - constructed in large parishes to allow parishioners easy

access to a church or chapel.

• Summer chapels - A small church in a resort area that functions only

during the summer when vacationers are present.

• Wayside chapels - Small chapels in the countryside

 Prayer
And may the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord make His face to shine upon you
and be gracious unto you.
And may God grant unto you His peace
In your going out and in your coming in,
In your lying down and in your rising up,
In your labor and in your leisure,
In your laughter and in your tears,
Until you come to stand before Jesus
In that day in which there is no sunset and no
dawning.
Amen.
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