Cathedral

A type of church building in Christianity. It gets its name because it contains the cathedra or "chair" of the bishop. Bishops are religious leaders in Catholic, Orthodox, and some forms of Protestant CHRISTIANITY. They have charge of all the churches in a certain area. In the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches the area is known as a diocese. Other branches of Christianity use other names. A cathedral is a bishop's home church. It is the most important church building in a region. That importance is generally refl ected in the size of the building. Cathedrals have tended to be monumental structures. Until the middle of the 18th century, the cathedral was one of the most important architectural structures in Europe. As a result, up to the mid- 1700s the history of European architecture was largely a history of the changing styles of cathedrals. After the mid-1700s, cathedrals continued to be built. But developments like the Industrial, American, and French revolutions made them less important. Architects turned their creative energies to structures like government buildings—think of the Capitol Building and the White House in Washington, D.C.—train stations, theaters, museums, and eventually airports, offi ce buildings, and shopping centers. Many of the earliest Christians were Greeks and Romans who converted to Christianity. The earliest cathedrals, however, were not converted Greek and Roman temples. They were inspired by law courts known as basilicas and certain kinds of bath houses. These kinds of buildings allowed Christians to assemble in large groups for worship and BAPTISM. Unlike the law courts and bath houses, Greek and Roman temples were not very well-suited for such activities. Later cathedrals in many different styles are extremely impressive. Hagia Sophia in Constantinople (sixth century)—now a mosque in Istanbul, Turkey—is a supreme example of a Byzantine cathedral. Its massive, central dome seems to fl oat in the air above a lighted, unearthly space. St. Peter's in Rome contains the chair or throne of St. Peter himself, at least as designed by the Renaissance artist Giovanni Bernini (1598–1680). Built in an early baroque style, the richness of the church's decoration as well as the "arms' that surround the plaza in front of it were meant to draw people back into the Catholic Church after the Protestant REFORMATION. Many people consider Gothic cathedrals to be the most sublime cathedrals of all. The Gothic style began in the area around Paris, France, in the mid-1100s. Gothic cathedrals are long, narrow, and tall. On the inside tall columns support the roof. On the outside a kind of support called a fl ying buttress supports the roof and the walls. Gothic cathedrals generally have arches that come to a point at their doorways, windows, and interior roofs. Earlier cathedrals had arches that were round. Gothic cathedrals also have large windows fi lled with stained glass. The cathedral at Chartres, France, is especially renowned for its stained glass. Two extremely large church buildings in North America refl ect the attitude that Gothic is the supreme form of the cathedral. One is St. John the Divine in New York City; the other is the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.