Christian Churches

A church built for a Sri Lankan congregation still uses a vocabulary that travelled from Europe: a nave leading to an altar, pointed or rounded arches, a spire or bell tower marking the building from a distance, and stained glass used less for decoration than to tell a story in coloured light.

For this lesson, look at how the building's shape signals its purpose before you even reach the door - height and symmetry draw the eye upward and forward, the same way a temple's design draws the eye toward its shrine. Comparing that shared idea across the different places of worship in this unit is more useful to remember than any single building's details.