Church architecture mirrors and shapes how we understand our relationships with each other and with God. The design of ritual and worship spaces are a function of theology. I felt this strongly during the Synod on Synodality.

We gathered in the cavernous Paul VI Hall. Imagine an aircraft hangar with three Dreamliners comfortably parked and room to spare for a few Cessnas. The space is usually used to accommodate the Pope’s weekly general audience. The official Synod Hall is a compact theatre with rows of upholstered red leather seats that slope towards a majestic dais occupied by the Pope’s chair, flanked by chairs reserved for aides. The colour of the skull caps in the front stalls would reflect the wearers’ seniority in the hierarchy. Priests or Religious among the delegates took their places in the rear stalls.