Last Thursday all of the Catholic churches in Santo Domingo were open until the early morning hours on Good Friday so that people could visit and pray as they pleased. I went with A's parents and nephew to the Zona Colonial late that night and we walked through 6 different churches within 3 square blocks of one another. I had never visited any of them and never realized there were so many, so close!
Each was unique and I loved roaming around and noting the tombstones in the walls and the details in the alters, the doors, the floor, the ceilings, with the sound of someone strumming a guitar close by.. I think that even if you don't consider yourself religious or even if you don't believe in God, its still possible to appreciate such beautiful architecture!
My favorite of all was the Catedral Primada or Iglesia Santa María, which was the first Cathedral built in the New World. I've read that the construction began in 1514, but was not completed until 1544 because the Spanish workers had abandoned their jobs to search for gold in Mexico. It takes up an entire block and you can find Gothic, Roman, and Baroque architectural details inside.
What do you think?
Do the catholic churches in your area look like these?
wow gorgeous! I never think about that part of world with beautiful churches... but wow!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful. The churches looked like this in the UK and Spain... not so much in Florida. :)
ReplyDelete