This is the second article in a two-part piece.

Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey

Hagia Sophia Church or Holy Wisdom is the mother church of all Eastern Christians of the Byzantine built in the 6th century. It is one of the most outstanding buildings that played an important role during the reign of Byzantine Empire as well as its role as a mosque in Ottoman Empire. It is the second oldest church ever constructed in the Bulgarian capital Sofia. In Greek, “Hagia” means “Divine” while “Sophia” means “Wisdom” and “Divide Wisdom” is one of the attributes of Jesus Christ to which his divine wisdom is devoted for this church. It was first called the Great Church or “Megala Ekklessia” as it was the largest church in Constantinople at that time. Socrates, the historian indicated that this church was then named Sophia during the reign of Emperor Constantius. It was first constructed in 360 during the reign of the Eastern Roman Emperor Constantinus, son of Emperor Constantine, who had liberated the Christian faith from centuries of persecution. However, it was burnt in 404 by mobs during the riots, when Emperor Arcadius sent the Patriarch of Constantinople, John Chrysostom, into exile for his open criticism of the Empress. By October, 405, the Emperor Theodosius built a new church in the same place but it was destroyed in the fire. Then, Emperor Justinian I who was a strong believer of Christianity made the third and last church in 537 to enlarge the scope of Christianity. In 1935, Hagia Sophia was turned into a museum and it is opened to the public for a visit. Now, the Hagia Sophia Church is regarded as one of the most elegant, austere and symmetrical architecture of Early Christian in South-eastern Europe, as well as one of the Turkey’s most popular museums.

When Turks conquered Istanbul On Tuesday, May 29, 1453, Sultan Mehmet was amazed at the beauty of Hagia Sophia Church and decided to convert the church into his imperial mosque, a place of Islamic worship. During the reign of Ottoman, the original twelfth-century frescoes were destroyed and four minarets were added on the corners of the main edifice in the different periods. The frescoes and mosaic figures of Christian saints on the walls were shaded with plaster as the Islamic code forbids figural representation. The mosque was carpeted and the pulpit (minber) was placed on all the southern part of the church. As it was used as a mosque for nearly 500 years, many Islamic structures such as the fountain (sadirvan), mausoleum (turbe), preacher’s pew (muezzin mahfili), soup-kitchen (imare), a library and a primary school (mekteh-I sibyan) were added during the Turkish era, giving Hagia Sophia a mosque-like appearance. In the 19th century, one of the minarets was destroyed by two earthquakes and later the mosque was abandoned until the restoration work was carried out after 1900. Hagia Sophia was served as a mosque until Mustafa Kemal Ataturk ordered the change of its status to a museum on February 6, 1935. In 1929, the plasters were removed and it was reopened as a museum in 1940s.

The church measures 77x 79m and contains nine gospel-books, two of which remain in the church for the use of the priests while the rest are kept in the Skeuophylakion. A total of 600 persons are assigned to serve in Hagia Sophia, of which 80 of them are priests, 150 deacons, 60 subdeacons, 25 chanters, 160 readers, 40 deaconesses and 75 doorkeepers.

From the main gate of the church, visitor passes through two different narthexes (entrance) and the red building is relatively huge and vast with its splendid dome. There is also a big bronze gate situated in the second entry hall (endonarthex) which was believed to be built during the reign of Justinian I. There is a mosaic on the apse dating from 9th century right above the gate, depicting Jesus Christ in its middle, Blessed Virgin on the left hand side and on right is Angel Gabriel. The depiction of Emperor Leo VI can also be found in the mosaic.

In the interior of the church, one can see the most remarkable feature of a 56m big central dome decorated with Arabic calligraphic writings during the reign of Ottoman. The dome is supported by four massive piers, with each measuring approximately 100 square meter at its base. While walking into the church, visitor can see a square which was “Coronation Square” during the reign of the Byzantium Emperors. There is the “Library of Mahmud I” on the right wing of the church. The nave of the church is beautiful with a pulpit on its left. On the left of the nave, there was a secret lodge for prayer ceremonies of the Ottoman Sultans called “Lodge of the Sultan.”

At the center of the church, there sits the phiale (fountain of purification) with the popular inscription that could be read from left to right and from left to left. The written inscription is: “Cleanse our sins, not only our face.”

The Crystal Cathedral, California, America

The Crystal Cathedral or Garden Grove Community Church is a well worth visit Protestant Christian mega church which is situated in the city of Garden Grove, a couple miles away from Disneyland, out in Orange Country, California. This largest glass building was built by the Reverend Dr. Robert H.Schuller in 1955, as pastor of California’s first “drive-in” church in Garden Grove (who started out with a “drive-in” church located in an actual, old drive-in movie theatre!). Its main sanctuary building was designed by the world’s famous architect, Philip Johnson. Its construction began in 1977 and ended in 1980 with its final cost over $17 million. One of the church’s mission statements is, “Find a need and fill it; find a hurt and heal it.” The church broadcasts its church services to the world via a television show known as the Hour of Power and provides facilities for those of a similar faith to congregate. Each year, the Crystal Cathedral puts on two major pageants: “The Glory of Christmas.” (in December), and “The Glory of Easter” (in March).

This is one of the amazing churches as it was constructed using more than 10,000 rectangular panes of glass that are not bolted to the structure, instead they are attached together using a silicone based glue. This structure can hold 2,900 worshippers and allow the building to withstand an earthquake of magnitude as high as 8.0.

The church was made almost entirely of glass with a spider-web framework of white steel, and the Crystal Cathedral is shaped like a giant four-pointed star-shaped “cathedral” rising some 12 stories above the ground, with an angular, mirror-like exterior, its transparent, sun-lit interior features a giant television screen, and an altar of rich marble (bearing a natural image that some think resembles Christ on the cross). From the interior the view is even more amazing in which the transparent glass permits the merge of surrounding view, sunlight and the sky.

The planes of glass, together with a sparkling and contemporary bell tower of the “cathedral” have become an Orange Country landmark seen from miles around. The giant, sliding glass doors on the side of the church allow more worshippers to watch the services in the parking lot from their cars.

The church is also well-known for its huge pipe organs in the world, called the Hazel Wright Pipe Organ, featuring with 31 digital ranks, 5 manual pipe organs controlling 320 ranks, and more than 16,000 pipes constructed by Fratelli Ruffatti. At the tower’s base, the visitor can see a dome-shaped chapel houses an unusual, cross-shaped crystal. The patio is studded with marble plaques bearing short, inspirational Bible verses and the names of the contributors to this church.

Notre Dame de Paris, Paris

Notre-Dame de Paris is also known as Notre Dame in English. In French, Notre Dame means “Our Lady.” It is the Paris Catholic cathedral since the Middle Ages, and is widely considered as one of the finest masterpieces of French Gothic architecture, particularly with its most impressive and intricate carvings of human figures. It has a history of more than 700 years old, and it is one of the masterpieces of Gothic art in Western Europe that stands magnificent and it is also the most easily recognizable ancient sacred monument in Paris which lies next to the Eiffel Tower and the Arc du Triomphe. Built on the eastern half of the Île de la Cité, where the city was founded, it took about 170 years to construct this stunning Gothic masterpiece. It was during the reign of the king of France, Saint Louis, during 13th century, this amazing cathedral was constructed. Maurice de Sully, the Paris bishop at that time, started its construction in 1163. Its building went on for two centuries. Most of the work (architects, sculptors) is anonymous.

Chapels were constructed between the buttresses of the nave from the middle of the 13th century to the beginning of the 14th century. This Gothic cathedral underwent numerous changes in the 18th century as new elements were added. The sculpture, furnishings and stained glass windows which were destroyed during the French Revolution were then restored, that gave the cathedral its current aspect. The additional of each element has added the fame of Notre-Dame de Paris until today.

Notre-Dame is 130 meters in its length, 48 meters in width and 35 meters in height. Its pillars have a diameter up to 5 meters and its rose window is about 10 meters from the base. Notre-Dame has the twin towers culminate 69 meters and 386 stairs above the ground. The visitor has to climb 147 steps to reach the southern bell tower which houses the 13 tons Emmanuel bell. This Emmanuel bell, the biggest bell of Notre-Dame with its 28,000 pounds, of course, well worth to think of Quasimodo, the hero of Victor Hugo’s popular story “The Huntchback of Notre-Dame” (1831). Another interesting thing to note is that the giant bell at Notre-Dame rings 6 times on Sunday and 4 times on weekdays and once on Saturday. This is because the morning prayers are held on Saturdays at 9:30 a.m., afternoon prayers between 5:45 to 6:10 p.m. on every weekday and various times on Sunday.

“Each face, each stone of this venerable monument is not only a page of the history of the country, but also of the history of knowledge and art…. Time is the architect, the people are the builder.” – Victor Hugo.

Interestingly, the pavement by the west door of Notre-Dame is a spot called kilometre zero. This is a site where all of the main road distances in France are calculated.

Equally impressive is the façade which is the most striking part. It has three entrances, all decorated with outstanding and intricate sculptures. Each of its entrance has a slightly different shape. The wonderful rose windows (stained glass) are more than 700 years old with the one at the west façade as the most famous one. It is said that the interior of the cathedral can accommodate up to 9,000 people. Its 35 meters high nave is divided from the choir by a wide transept with two splendid rose windows. In the southern part of the transept in the cathedral is the treasury that holds manuscripts, art works and liturgical objects.

While walking inside the cathedral, the immediately striking feature that captures your attention is the dramatic contrast between the darkness of the nave and the light falling on the first clustered pillars of the choir, placing an emphasis on the extraordinary nature of the sanctuary. There remains a strong feel of Romanesque in the stout round pillars of the nave. Apart from all the stained glass and artifacts inside, other best feature of the cathedral is the steep to climb up to the 69m-tall left tower, where the visitor will have a spectacular view of the spire and of the city around Paris.

The 255 steps will take the visitor to the “Gallery of Chimeras” added during the restoration program beginning in 1845. These numerous gargoyles and funny-looking chimeras make for really good pictures!

La Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain

La Sagrada Família, “Expiatory Temple of the Holy Family”, or Catalan for “The Holy Family”, is a massive Roman Catholic Church situated in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. This magnificent and amazing building stands between the streets Marina, Provença, Sardenya and Mallorca. Its construction began in 1882 under architect Francesc Villar and later the project was passed to Gaudí in 1891. Today, it is still constructed based on Gaudí’s general plan and studies and it is scheduled to be accomplished by 2026. When it is completed, it will has a combination of Modernista elements and a unique version of the Gothic style which is primarily seen in its height, triple portals, architectural sculpture and the use of rose windows and arches. Originally, it was designed by Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí (1852 – 1926), who had worked on this project for over 40 years by devoting his last 15 years of life. When someone enquired Gaudí about the timetable for the completion of his mammoth project, he replied, “I’m building the church for God, and my client is not in a hurry.” He then became famous for “God’s Architect.” He has an initial intention to build a modest, neo-Gothic church, but it has now become the most well-known building in Barcelona. This enormous church is still under construction after the death of Gaudí in 1926 under the direction of Domènech Sugranyes, but parts of the unfinished church and Gaudí’s models and workshop were destroyed by the Spanish Civil War in 1936.

La Sagrada Família is one of Gaudí’s most impressive works that has attracted over 2,000,000 visitors annually, and thus making it the most visited tourist and popular attraction in Spain. It was reported in the newspaper of El Periódico de Catalunya that approximately 2.26 million people visited this partially constructed church in 2004. The surreal creation of Gaudí has conceived as nothing short of a Bible in stone, or in other words, a gigantic representation of the whole history of Christianity and which is now remained as a wonder to the world. Sheer curiosity, if nothing more, this amazing building will truly draw you into it!

The cathedral is packed with many Christian symbolised sculptures, furnishings and other unique artworks. Its exterior is all divided into numerous facades with each representing a portion of the life of Jesus Christ. As the whole, the exterior design features to represent the Catholic Church and is festooned with statues of the Apostles, the Saints, and the Virgin Mary. Generally, a cloister surrounds the building is linked to three facades, with each of them describing an event in the life of Jesus Christ as well as the symbols of the Old Testament: the Nativity on the east front, dedicated to the Birth of Christ; the Passion on the west side, dedicated to the Passion and Death through the symbolization of sharp geometrical shapes and the six columns which resemble bones; and the Glory on the south front is the façade of the Glorification, the largest of all. The four towers of each of these three monumental facades jointly symbolize the 12 apostles.

On the Nativity facade, Gaudí added birds, mushrooms, even a tortoise to go along with the rest of the religious imagery. High up the Nativity façade is a cypress tree symbolizes the “Tree of Life.” A pelican at the foot of the tree symbolizes the Host and angels at the bottom hold chalices, a reminder of the Eucharist. At the top of the tree the letter T (or Tau) stands for God (as the first letter of God’s name in the Greek alphabet). It is red with diagonal bars crossing it forming an X, representing Christ’s name. A Dove at the top with outspread wings represents the Holy Spirit.

This impressive church contains three facades with three porches each. The facade of the Nativity was first completed and it has three doors related to the Christian themes of faith on the right, hope on the left, and the charity in its center. In the Nativity facade itself, Gaudí had addresses the fundamental mystery of Christianity: “Why does God the Creator become, through Jesus Christ, a creature?” The answer is found in the stone as explained by Gaudí as “God did this to free man from the slavery of selfishness” which is symbolized by the iron fence around the serpent of evil (with an apple in its mouth) at the base of the central column of the portal of Charity. The column is covered with the genealogy of Christ going back to Abraham. To its left is a sea tortoise which is located at the base of the parabolic arch, while to its right is a land turtle with flora and fauna from Catolonia above and behind. Therefore, this Barcelona must-see church is always considered as a Bible in stones due to its large quantity of catholic symbols which Gaudí had shaped them into the facades of Sagrada Família.

The most striking features of its present structure are the eight bell towers that rise 98 to 112 meters over the east and west facades. The wonders at the cathedral to behold: flowers, fruits, and birds abound, while angels trumpet the good tidings. Jesus Christ is represented by a 170-meter dome topped with a glistering cross, illuminated during the day by sunlight reflecting off the ever- Gaudíesque mosaics, and at night by spotlights. A dome-shaped tower which crowns the apse is the symbol of the Mother of God, and the four large towers dedicated to the evangelists encircle the central spire symbolizing the Saviour. The Evangelists’ towers are embedded by its traditional symbols: a bull (St. Luke), an eagle (St. John), a lion (St. Mark), and a winged man (St. Matthew). The sculptures above the portal depicts the Sacred Heart, the Visitation by Mary to her cousin Elizabeth, the Holy Family in their house at Nazareth, the presentation of the baby Jesus in the temple, among other scenes and symbols.

Inside the cathedral, its unique artworks feature in the representation of Jerusalem. As the Passion façade and its bell towers which portray the suffering and death of Jesus Christ, it contains less amount of ornamentation in order to convey a message of grief. Another striking feature to note is that the towers are decorated with words SANCTUS, SANCTUS, SANCTUS, HOSANNA IN EXCELSIUS (Holy, Holy, Holy, Glory to God in the Highest), and the great doors of the Passion façade reproduce words from the Bible in various languages.