Sacrament and Architecture 

Have you noticed how devoid of decoration our modern architecture is? What a contrast to the cathedrals where there were all material things, even cows and angels, sometimes little devils peering around corners! The ancient architecture was always using material things as signs of something spiritual. But today our architecture is flat, nothing but steel and glass, almost like a cracker box. Why? Well, because our architects have no spiritual message to convey. The material is just the material, nothing else, hence no decor, no significance, no meaning, no soul.  I wonder if decor and decoration in architecture has not passed out of the world at the same time politeness has. We certainly are not as polite in this century as we were in other centuries. Possibly the reason is because we no longer believe that persons have souls.  They are just other animals, and hence, they ought to be treated as means to our ends. When you believe that in addition to a body there is a soul, then you begin to have great respect and reverence for personality.