Sacred Senses in Sacred Space: A Journey into a Church

By John Lawrence Darretta and Ph.D.

Entering a church, our senses are sparked. We see candlelight, the colorful windows, and statues. We smell the faint burning wax and incense. We touch our foreheads with holy water and our knees to the floor. During Mass, we hear bells and the choir singing, and taste the sacrament. Some would say we are overwhelmed with physical objects but not spiritual essence. However, how does one know the spiritual essence if not through the physical objects? Knowledge comes through the senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. We achieve understanding and move further into spiritual awareness. Our senses communicate symbols that are physical signs of the abstract, the spiritual, and the metaphysical.

SACRED SENSES IN SACRED SPACE contributes to a greater understanding and reverence for sacred objects as perceived through the senses designed for the layman rather than an academic study of the historical or liturgical origins of sacred objects and images. Sacred Senses guides the reader through a church on a meditative journey down the sanctuary’s central aisle. Along the way, it reveals what we see, hear, smell, taste, and touch, which moves us from the physical to the spiritual.

It begins with an introductory chapter on using your senses and recognizing signs in a sacred space. The book is organized according to the five senses: sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. Listed under each specific sense are various objects and practices that we experience in church with a page of description, definition, background, and meditative comments, and a scriptural reference. Each chapter showcases a relevant photograph and ends with a pertinent quote or poetic verse, so that the sacred objects are revealed and revered. Together, the pages quickly explain and show each object with its beauty, meaning, and purpose within the sacred space.

Teaching the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA) and Religious Education programs for adults and youths, I discovered students of the Catholic faith must know the truth about the “smells and bells” of the Catholic Church and their spiritual significance. Yet, I have known Catholics who do not fully understand why we have statues, fonts, tabernacle, ringing bells, burning candles, swirling incense, and more. Sacred Senses in Sacred Space is an excellent devotional and educational experience for use in RCIA and Religious Education programs, book clubs, and for inquisitive audiences.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Gatekeeper Press
• Release date: Sep 12, 2022
• ISBN: 9781662932564

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The views and opinions expressed in this book are solely those of the author and do not reflect the views or opinions of Gatekeeper Press. Gatekeeper Press is not to be held responsible for and expressly disclaims responsibility of the content herein.

SACRED SENSES IN SACRED SPACE

Published by Gatekeeper Press

2167 Stringtown Rd., Suite 109

Columbus, OH 43123-2989

www.GatekeeperPress.com

Copyright © 2022 by John Lawrence Darretta, Ph.D.

All rights reserved. Neither this book, nor any parts within it may be sold or reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.

Photography: Steven Grubiak

Cover Design: Zdenka Hudakova

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022937134

ISBN (hardcover): 9781662927225

ISBN (eBook): 9781662932564

Dedicated to the Memory of

Sr. Dorothy Marie Kelley, RSG

CONTENTS

PREFACE

INTRODUCTION

1. SIGHT: WHAT WE SEE

DOORS

FONTS AND HOLY WATER

CRUCIFIX

TABERNACLE

ALTAR

STAINED-GLASS WINDOWS

CONFESSIONAL

CANDLES

SACRED ART

FLOWERS

MONSTRANCE

VESTMENTS

2. SOUND: WHAT WE HEAR

BELLS

MUSIC

SCRIPTURAL READINGS AND PRAYERS

3. SCENT: WHAT WE SMELL

INCENSE

4. TASTE: WHAT WE SAVOR

BREAD AND WINE

VESSELS FOR BREAD AND WINE

5. TOUCH: WHAT WE FEEL

MOVEMENTS AND POSTURES

SIGNS AND GESTURES

PROCESSIONS

AFTERWORD

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

POEMS AND QUOTATIONS CITED

PHOTO REFERENCES

BIBLIOGRAPHY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

PREFACE

When entering a church, the senses are sparked. We see candlelight and the colors of windows and statues. We smell the faint scents of burning wax and incense. We touch our foreheads with holy water and our knees to the floor. During Mass, we hear bells and the choir singing, and we taste the sacred bread and wine. Some would say that we are overwhelmed with physical objects and not spiritual essence. However, how does one know and reach spiritual essence if not through the physical objects in time and space?

Teaching in RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) programs, it became quite obvious to me that those who are interested in or those who are preparing to enter the Catholic Faith must know the truth about the so-called smells and bells in the Catholic Church, and they need to understand their spiritual significances. Then, too, I have known a number of born and raised Catholics who do not fully understand why we have statues, fonts, tabernacle, ringing bells, burning candles, swirling incense, and so on; hence, the origins of Sacred Senses in Sacred Space: A Journey into a Church.

In my years as a professor of literature and Communication Arts, I researched, wrote, and taught about the origins and meanings of symbols and allegories in the visual arts and in literature. As a poet, I have been blessed with the gift of seeing through and beyond their physical appearances and abstract meanings to, as Gerard Manley Hopkins calls it, the deep down things.

As a Roman Catholic, from my early learning and practices all the way to teaching in various Religious Education and the RCIA programs, I continuously studied the significance of symbols and allegories in Catholic art, literature, and liturgy. Having done so, I thought to bring my experiences and insights together in a simple