Ancient Cathedrals and Contemporary Cities. Visible and Spiritual Reality

The space of a church and above all of a cathedral ⎼ the mother church ⎼ is a spiritual matrix in which christians are generated to the faith; it is a sign of the unity of the Church which shows and symbolizes the lexicon and grammar of the christian life. On the other hand, the cathedral characterizes and influences the development of cities; it is a symbolic and artistic ecclesial point of reference that acts as a generating element of the urban form. The relationship between the liturgy celebrated in the cathedral and the urban morphology is materially visible through a movement having its fulcrum in the liturgical building of the cathedral and which, growing larger, envelops the city and, vice versa, rewinds itself from the city into the cathedral. The text intends to develop these themes also in reference to some design research experiences on the theme of the liturgical adaptation of the cathedrals of Belluno, Cremona, Asti and Sessa Aurunca, conducted by the authors in the context of recent design competitions promoted by the Italian Bishops’Conference. The liturgical adaptation project, aimed at reordering the symbolic and formative space of the liturgy and organizing it hierarchically through the placement of new liturgical poles and their relationship with the ancient building, is an opportunity to strengthen the symbolic and reference value that the cathedrals take on in the contemporary urban context.