c3 THEORY

theory (723/03)

As discussed in greater detail in the Thesis section of this proposal program, my architectural issues include sustainable design, castle construction, and spirituality. This section will delve into the theoretical and general propositions behind these issues.

Sustainable design and environmental awareness have been melded into the world of religion for many years now. This trend includes Internet sites such as www.webofcreation.org that contain writings and information from many sources throughout the United States and the rest of the world. One article entitled Creation and Celebration Connections by Jennifer Edinger states that “our care of creation is an act of worship. Our worship also becomes an act of caring for creation.” (Creation in this example means the earth). She goes on further to state that “there is a relationship between our care of creation and our worship…The challenge is to be intentional in making the connections between our caring and our worship, and to find liturgical ways to express that relationship in a way that does not detract from the work of praising God. Worship can be a time to increase our awareness of the world around us, to increase our appreciation of the sacredness of creation, and to deepen our desire to treat it with dignity and respect.” Sources such as these form a clear connection between the issues of sustainable design and spirituality.

Sustainable design involves all aspects of construction; these areas have been investigated in greater depth in the Thesis section preceding this discussion. Current general theories or principles of sustainable and ecological design can be summarized by EDI / Van der Ryn Architects’ 5 Principles of Ecological Design. These principles include:
(1) SOLUTIONS GROW FROM PLACE. This means that designers must be knowledgeable of the space, including scale, and should inhabit without destroying. This point is called “place as form-giver.”
(2) MAKE NATURE VISIBLE. The natural cycles and processes should bring the designed environment “back to life.” Effective design will inform us of our place within nature. This principle is called “light as form-giver.”
(3) DESIGN WITH NATURE. Living processes should be respected and worked with by engaging them to regenerate instead of depleting them. Making this processes and cycles visible brings the environment “back to life.”
(4) ECOLOGICAL ACCOUNTING INFORMS DESIGN. “Trace the environmental impacts of design and use this information to determine the ecologically sound design possibilities.”
(5) EVERYONE IS A DESIGNER. Every voice should be heard and listened to during the design process. “As people work together to heal their places, they also heal themselves.”

Spirituality for my specific project is based on the core values associated with the Christianity Protestant denomination of The Wesleyan Church. I first thought to name the facility with a generic “Christian” or “Place of Worship” phrase, but thought that it would be more realistic to call out a specific denomination in order to relate specific beliefs to the teachings and building usages. The following core values can be found on the website http://www.wesleyan.org/about/corevalues.htm:
The following are terms descriptive of who Wesleyans are and why they do what they do. They describe the "soul" of the Church. They are the core values, because they are at the center, as primary motivations for all Wesleyans do.
 BIBLICAL AUTHORITY: The Bible is the highest source of written authority for God’s plan for His people; it reveals how to live out that plan, individually and corporately. Beliefs, practices and priorities are to be anchored in clear biblical teachings.
 CHRISTLIKENESS: Jesus Christ is the defining feature of God’s will for all humankind. In Christ is found the highest and most practical meaning and clearest example for holy living or godliness. Christ is both example and strength as Wesleyans pursue integrity, excellence, faith, hope and love.
 DISCIPLE-MAKING: Making disciples is a clear mandate from Christ. This requires a strong focus on evangelism and training in spiritual growth and holy living. Done effectively, this will produce and promote growth and health in and among the churches.
 LOCAL CHURCH CENTERED: The denomination exists to serve local congregations. Local churches are the most fundamental and strategic points of evangelism and discipleship. The challenge of the denomination is to keep finding the best ways to serve and strengthen congregations.
 SERVANT LEADERSHIP: Wesleyans respect leadership that is placed over them, while realizing that the authority and effectiveness of spiritual leadership is not primarily bestowed, but earned and manifested by a loving and willing heart of obedience that serves God and mankind gladly. Wesleyans desire to be leaders in serving.
 UNITY IN DIVERSITY: There is intrinsic value in every person. Unity becomes all the more important and beautiful in light of the wide ranges of difference in personality, culture, race, talents, and perspectives. Loving each other eliminates devaluation and deprivation of life to one another.
 CULTURAL RELEVANCE: Wesleyans are called to keep serving the present age. The Church respects and builds on its past without becoming its slave. Wesleyans are "culture informed" for the sake of reaching people for Christ, but not "culture captives," in the sense of surrendering core values, beliefs and behaviors.
These values will be further analyzed and integrated into the design and purpose of my church complex, as well as attempting to form an inviting relationship with the neighborhood of my site.
U.S. Census Bureau statistics from 2000 for my site area (Census Tract 5181, Wayne County, Michigan) revealed the following information: There are 39 housing units – 33 of which are occupied and 6 are vacant. Of the occupied houses, 7 are owner-occupied and 26 are renter-occupied. Of the 6 vacant houses only 2 are for sale. Race distribution of the 33 occupied housing units is 32 are black and the other 1 is Hispanic. The breakdown of ages of the householders: 2 (age 15-24), 3 (age 25-34), 11 (age 35-44), 2 (age 45-54), 7 (age 55-64), 3 (age 65-74), 2 (age 75-84), and 3 (age 85 and over). This section of Detroit is predominantly occupied by an African American community. “Thematic Maps” of various data can be viewed on the Internet through http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ThematicMapFramesetServlet?_lang=en and several of these maps are referenced in the Site Analysis section of my program.
The issue of castle construction has intrigued me for several years now. The great sense of history surrounds these buildings of centuries ago, and even the word castle puts a very specific image in most people’s minds. Castle’s weren’t just fortresses, they were homes as well. I intend to research castles and find out if sustainability issues of the facility can offset the higher initial costs of construction. The typical large sites of castles are an old trend that I’d like to maintain. The following images from the French “castle” Vaux-le-Vicomte are of the classical gardens:


REFERENCES:
American FactFinder. (2000). Retrieved July 22, 2003, from the U.S. Census Bureau Web site: http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ThematicMapFramesetServlet?_lang=en.
Core Values. (2003). Retrieved July 22, 2003, from The Official Website of The Wesleyan Church: http://www.wesleyan.org/about/corevalues.htm.
Five Principles of Ecological Design. (n.d.). Retrieved July 16, 2003, from The Ecological Design Institute and Van der Ryn Architects Web site: http://www.ecodesign.org/edi/ecodesign.html.
Krause, T. B. (1994). Care of the Earth: An Environmental Resource Manual for Church Leaders. Retrieved June 18, 2003, from the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago Web site: http://www.webofcreation.org/start/manuals/krause.
Scully, Vincent. (1991). Architecture: The Natural and the Manmade. London: Harvill.