Written by Jordan
On this trip we have visited some of the most famous and important churches and synagogues in Europe including St. Paul's Cathedral, St. Bride's Church, Wittenberg Castle Church where Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses, and the Spanish Synagogue and Pinkas Synagogue which both honor the Czech Jews who were killed in the holocaust, and St. Vitas Cathedral.
Even though many people in our present time have decided that they choose to not follow any religion, it's impossible to say that religion wasn't one of the strongest forces in history. The War of the Roses, the Crusades, the Thirty Years War, all the battles ever fought for Israel, and the Holocaust were all driven by greediness, fear and belief that they were doing what was right and glorifying God. With rising fears across Europe about extremist Jihadists, it's easy to see how religion is still a hot topic in international politics.
Comparing some of the churches and synagogues we have visited, it's interesting to note the differences in how they are decorated and what this implies for the religion. St.Bride's Church in London was rather simple. It was decorated nicely, but was by no means grand or amazing. The importance of St.Bride's lies in it's history. It has been a sacred place since Roman times when the first foundation of the first church that stood on the grounds was created. It made it through literally thousands of years and multiple fires and became a place of worship for printers. Then, during WWII, it became a refuge for journalists and printers and regular Londoners to come and pray as they were being bombed. The decoration of the church is mostly an ode to where it's been, and the shrine to writers and journalists who have lost their lives in pursuit of freedom of the press is the main focus of the front left corner, where it's marked, "The pen is mightier than the sword." Simple, peaceful, thoughtful.
We compare St. Bride's to St. Vitas Cathedral inside the Prague Castle. This church is beautifully decorated from top to bottom in all the riches the Catholic Church could afford. All the windows are intricate Bible scenes depicted through colorful stained glass. There are marble statues and it seemed as though everything was dipped in gold. As we walked through St.Vitas, I wondered what God thought about all this. Does having stained glass and Bohemian crystal mean that God is going to listen any more attentively to the prayers that come from St. Vitas than those from St.Bride's or even from my simple Episcopalian church in Tampa, FL? Do the people who made St.Vitas so grandiose think that they love God more because they spent more money on the place where they worship him? All of a sudden I was mad. Jesus was born in a manger, surrounded by animals. He lived a humble life and never needed a castle or a jeweled crown to be the King of the world. It just seemed to me that this couldn't be what it was really about. I'm all for doing everything for the glory of God, but when people were starving in Prague, while people are still starving in Prague, it seems as though the church could have found a better use for it's funds. And knowing that it's a Catholic church, I would assume that some of the money came from indulgences, and to turn around and use that dirty money for statues and gilded alters made me sick by the time we left. Maybe I was reading into it to much, but I think we sometimes get caught up in the way our religion looks, rather than how it feels, and that must be so empty.
On this trip we have visited some of the most famous and important churches and synagogues in Europe including St. Paul's Cathedral, St. Bride's Church, Wittenberg Castle Church where Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses, and the Spanish Synagogue and Pinkas Synagogue which both honor the Czech Jews who were killed in the holocaust, and St. Vitas Cathedral.
Even though many people in our present time have decided that they choose to not follow any religion, it's impossible to say that religion wasn't one of the strongest forces in history. The War of the Roses, the Crusades, the Thirty Years War, all the battles ever fought for Israel, and the Holocaust were all driven by greediness, fear and belief that they were doing what was right and glorifying God. With rising fears across Europe about extremist Jihadists, it's easy to see how religion is still a hot topic in international politics.
Comparing some of the churches and synagogues we have visited, it's interesting to note the differences in how they are decorated and what this implies for the religion. St.Bride's Church in London was rather simple. It was decorated nicely, but was by no means grand or amazing. The importance of St.Bride's lies in it's history. It has been a sacred place since Roman times when the first foundation of the first church that stood on the grounds was created. It made it through literally thousands of years and multiple fires and became a place of worship for printers. Then, during WWII, it became a refuge for journalists and printers and regular Londoners to come and pray as they were being bombed. The decoration of the church is mostly an ode to where it's been, and the shrine to writers and journalists who have lost their lives in pursuit of freedom of the press is the main focus of the front left corner, where it's marked, "The pen is mightier than the sword." Simple, peaceful, thoughtful.
We compare St. Bride's to St. Vitas Cathedral inside the Prague Castle. This church is beautifully decorated from top to bottom in all the riches the Catholic Church could afford. All the windows are intricate Bible scenes depicted through colorful stained glass. There are marble statues and it seemed as though everything was dipped in gold. As we walked through St.Vitas, I wondered what God thought about all this. Does having stained glass and Bohemian crystal mean that God is going to listen any more attentively to the prayers that come from St. Vitas than those from St.Bride's or even from my simple Episcopalian church in Tampa, FL? Do the people who made St.Vitas so grandiose think that they love God more because they spent more money on the place where they worship him? All of a sudden I was mad. Jesus was born in a manger, surrounded by animals. He lived a humble life and never needed a castle or a jeweled crown to be the King of the world. It just seemed to me that this couldn't be what it was really about. I'm all for doing everything for the glory of God, but when people were starving in Prague, while people are still starving in Prague, it seems as though the church could have found a better use for it's funds. And knowing that it's a Catholic church, I would assume that some of the money came from indulgences, and to turn around and use that dirty money for statues and gilded alters made me sick by the time we left. Maybe I was reading into it to much, but I think we sometimes get caught up in the way our religion looks, rather than how it feels, and that must be so empty.