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Throughout the history of the built environment there has been no more significant endeavor than the construction of houses of worship, which were once the focal point around which civilizations and city-states developed. This book is the first to examine this topic across continents and from the perspective of multiple faiths. It addresses how sacred buildings are viewed in the context of contemporary architecture and religious practice.

This new paperback, is the first publication to consider the many effects of natural illumination in contemporary buildings. This comprehensive and thoughtful survey begins with a brief introduction to the history of architecture, seen through the advances and experimentation put forward by architects over the centuries.

How does spirituality enter the education of an architect? Should it? What do we mean by 'spirituality' in the first place? Isn't architectural education a training ground for professional practice and, therefore, technically and secularly oriented? Is there even room to add something as esoteric if not controversial as spirituality to an already packed university curriculum? The humanistic and artistic roots of architecture certainly invite us to consider dimensions well beyond the instrumental, including spirituality. But how would we teach such a thing? And why, if spirituality is indeed relevant to learning architecture, have we heard so little about it? Spirituality in Architectural Education addresses these and many other important philosophical, disciplinary, pedagogic, and practical questions. Grounded on the twelve-year-old Walton Critic Program at the Catholic University of America School of Architecture and Planning, this book offers solid arguments and insightful reflections on the role that "big questions" and spiritual sensibility ought to play in the architectural academy today. Using 11 design studios as stopping grounds, the volume takes the reader into a journey full of meaningful interrogations, pedagogic techniques, challenging realizations, and beautiful designs. Essays from renowned architects Craig W. Hartman, Juhani Pallasmaa, Alberto Campo Baeza, Claudio Silvestrin, Eliana Bórmida, Michael J. Crosbie, Prem Chandavarkar, Rick Joy, Susan Jones, and Daniel Libeskind open new vistas on the impact of spirituality in architectural education and practice. All this work is contextualized within the ongoing discussion of the role of spirituality and religion in higher education at large. The result is an unprecedented volume that starts a long-awaited conversation that will advance architectural schooling. ACSA Distinguished Professor Julio Bermudez, with recognized expertise on spirituality in architecture, will be the guide in this fascinating and contemplative journey.

“Compassionate, poignant, and practical. . . . Transcending Loss will be a great blessing on your lifetime journey of recovery.”—Harold Bloomfield, MD, psychiatrist and author of How to Survive the Loss of Love and How to Heal Depression Death doesn’t end a relationship, it simply forges a new type of relationship—one based not on physical presence but on memory, spirit, and love. There are many wonderful books available that address acute grief and how to cope with it. But they often focus on crisis management and imply that there is an "end" to mourning, and fail to acknowledge grief’s ongoing impact and how it changes through the years. “This is a book about death and grief, yes, but more important, it is a book about love and hope. I have learned from my experience and interviews with courageous people about pain, struggle, resiliency, and meaning. Their stories show over time, you can learn to transcend even in spite of the pain.”—from the introduction by Ashley Davis Bush, LCSW

Architecture has long been understood as a cultural discipline able to articulate the human condition and lift the human spirit, yet the spirituality of architecture is rarely directly addressed in academic scholarship. The seventeen chapters provide a diverse range of perspectives, grouped according to topical themes: Being in the World; Sacred, Secular, and the Contemporary Condition; Symbolic Engagements; Sacred Landscapes; and Spirituality and the Designed Environment. Even though the authors’ approach the subject from a range of disciplines and theoretical positions, all share interests in the need to rediscover, redefine, or reclaim the sacred in everyday experience, scholarly analysis, and design.

"New Spiritual Architecture looks at ways in which contemporary architects are approaching religious or meditative space. The book focuses on churches, chapels, temples, synagogues and mosques that have been built in the last few years and that represent a late-twentieth/early-twenty-first century aesthetic. These buildings demonstrate how new ideas and developments in urban, domestic and public architecture are being used to inform design that is intended for inspiration, worship or meditation. The text discusses the ways in which architects manipulate light and space and considers the placement of these buildings in their surroundings. Following a brief introduction, the book explores the following five themes: New Traditions, Interventions, Retreats, Grand Icons, and Modest Magnificence. It includes 200 full-color illustrations and 100 line drawings."--BOOK JACKET.