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There are times when a Catholic might believe that the church has been utterly despoiled of beauty at the hands of the new reformers. One can visit many new, expensive buildings, and find that there is little real beauty both within and without, and the craftsmanship and style is not at all condusive to prayer and things of the Divine Order.
Thankfully, there are still places where the Catholic glory of old is preserved, even if these places are neglected or nearly abandoned.
The Rochester Chapter of Una Voce America was privileged to travel to Buffalo, New York, on July 17th, 1999 to visit the city's beautiful Catholic landmarks. Our tour guide was Mr. Albert Huntz, President of Una Voce Buffalo, and through his skillful manuvering about the city, and his good knowledge of the churches, we were blessed to discover some hidden treasures of Catholic art and architecture. The images on this page were captured on our trip and they are posted here for the benefit of all, especially for those who have been deprived of the excellence of Catholic architecture through the destructive work of the new liturgical reform.
Thanks to Mr. Gene Cherkis for providing these photos for viewing on the web. His love for the greatness of these churches is well-expressed in his photography.
Our first visit was to Blessed Trinity Church pictured in these photos above and below. Blessed Trinity has been called one of the purest examples of the 12 century Lombardic Romanesque style architecture in the United States -- complete with Byzantine details characteristic of that style. The building was constructed between 1921 and 1927. The exterior was built with handmade bricks that have a very unique shape (some are curved) and fit together in an interesting pattern. The exterior features what might be the most extensive use of terra cotta ornamentation on an ecclesiastical structure in the United States. The church itself has over 2,000 christian symbols of medieval iconography representing a vast diversity of shape, content and style that was the hallmark of the medieval genius.
Blessed Trinity's High Altar is still intact (as seen above). This church was built for the celebration of the traditional Latin Mass, and one can easily see how it reflects the beauty of the ancient liturgy.
The photo above shows the tile floor of the church with some of the many Christian symbols placed therein. The angels above surround the sanctuary.
Our second stop was St. Ann's Church pictured above. From the outside, it is impressive in stature, but one might think that the windows are boarded up. The steeple, pictured here, was hit by lightning not long ago and was severed off. It remains unrestored. Sadly, just a few days after our visit, the Buffalo News featured a story about St. Ann's. With only 100 people at Mass each Sunday, there is a real danger that the church will close. One might imagine that less that 1% of the Buffalo citizens even know that this church exists. It is located in a decaying neighborhood, as was Blessed Trinity Church above.
One can see that the interior of St. Ann's features spectacular hand-crafted woodwork. One would not guess that this was to be found inside. The panels blocking the windows from the outside are translucent so the windows show their glory to the faithful inside the building.
Corpus Christi Church was another stop for us this day. The photos below are of this beautiful church.
While we all marvelled at the beauty of these Catholic buildings, the Una Voce members who visited were not mere tourists. We came also to pray in these great temples to God. The beauty of these buildings is not simply to be admired as fine artwork, but rather, it is to bring each person to a deeper prayer and a closer contact with the spiritual realities of the Blessed Trinity. This great day left each of us with an inspiration and encouragement to continue the important effort involved in preserving and sustaining our traditional Catholic heritage, in the traditional Latin Mass, and in the works of Catholic culture that flow from the traditional liturgy and from the teachings of Christ.
