Favourite Place of Worship? (Pictures of churches, etc.)

[Northern Lights]

So, I have just got back from Paris and there are some really beautiful churches and cathedrals there. I'm not religious, but it was difficult to NOT be drawn to the architecture. They were wonderful. Here are some of my favourites that I saw.

Sacre Coeur

http://www.bonjourlafrance.com/franc...re%20coeur.jpg

Notre Dame

http://www.buzzle.com/img/articleIma...7-20210-18.jpg

Pantheon

http://www.parislogue.com/files/2009/02/pantheon1.jpg

Basically, whether you believe in a higher being or not, churches are f*cking awesome.

EDIT: Images are off. Click them.

[dimmerwit]

I think before people chime in it's worth pointing out the ugliest one. It might actually be cool if it wasn't build out of concrete and looked like it hasn't been painted in decades.

Sacre Coeur is my favourite one of those. The French Pantheon looks much better than the Rome one as well.

[Northern Lights]

Haha. I actually quite like the look of that, from the Wiki photograph, although I've never seen it in person!

[dimmerwit]

The problem is not really the design, rather the shocking materials it's built out off. See the photo in this article: http://boingboing.net/2012/04/02/the...buildings.html

It looks like a cross between pure misery and a blast furnace.

[Northern Lights]

Ah. It looks a lot worse close up, yes.

[Operative #19]

That looks more like an evil person's HQ.

Some churches do look really nice.

[Dean]

No mention of Sistine Chapel WTF

Anyway, I would probably say...

http://www.libraries.uc.edu/librarie...s/interior.jpg

[Northern Lights]

I preferred the Fiftine-

NO. NOT THAT. DON'T SAY IT.

[Milo Rambaldi]

I've never been to Europe, and I try to avoid churches like the plague, but when the family when up to Montreal for the day, we visited St. Joseph's Oratory:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ph_Oratory.jpg

[Apollo]

Originally Posted by Northern Lights

Notre Dame

http://www.buzzle.com/img/articleIma...7-20210-18.jpg

Notre Dame de Paris is nice, but not really all that impressive.

Notre Dame de Chartres, though...that's a thing of beauty! http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._cathedral.jpg

Also hard to leave out St. Basils Cathedral, or indeed most of the Orthodox churches: http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/False..._cathedral.jpg

I know they're supposed to have some religious significance behind their design (specifically referring to the dome roof things...yeah...), but as I don't subscribe to any religion, I'm not sure what that would be. Still amazing architecture.

[Northern Lights]

Originally Posted by Apollo

I know they're supposed to have some religious significance behind their design (specifically referring to the dome roof things...yeah...), but as I don't subscribe to any religion, I'm not sure what that would be. Still amazing architecture.

My thoughts exactly. I did sit in a few for a while. Time gets away from you. It's incredibly peaceful, even as an atheist.

[Apollo]

Agreed, I've been in a few older churches with friends who had some things to do there, and just sitting and looking is fantastically peaceful.

I was also forced to sit through one of my friends' kids christmas play here in AZ at their church, and it was one of the modern American "churches" that's essentially just a stadium with fancy lighting. That pretty much proved a few points about religion for me, but that aside, yeah, modern churches are less inviting and less peaceful to sit and wait in (and they have people constantly trying to sell you their religion...or at least this one did...). Older churches, though, those are very peaceful places to just sit.

[Argh]

St. Louis Cathedral

[Northern Lights]

Looks like Disneyland.