An environment for Catholic worship

Abstract

The central question of this paper is to establish if there necessarily is a conflict between the liturgical norms of Vatican II and the regeneration of the environment of art and devotion within a traditional design Catholic church building. A review of the norms with highlighted references to the Church's concern for its tradition and a case study of St. Mary of the Angels church in Wellington are contrasted. Areas of difficulty are resolved and presented in a series of schemes with further specific recommendations for the church studied. The investigation of the norms, their application to St. Mary of the Angels and the study of similar size regenerated New Zealand Catholic churches of traditional designs shows that there need be no conflict.