From the Chalice to the Smart City: Attraction and Repulsion within Sanctified Space in the 21st Century: Projects in the New Urban Centres

Abstract

Which are the issues posed for the construction of a church in the urban fabric of the third millennium? Which are, currently, the places of worship -- more or less visible -- capable of attracting the faithful, not just the inhabitants but also migrants or visitors in transit? What kind of conflicts can the construction of a church, or more generally of a sanctified space, create in a neighbourhood and, which could be the conditions to avoid it? In some cases, places of worship contribute to reinforce the feeling of belonging and/or identity. They are also points of orientation in the cities, which exceed the scale of their communities, opening up to other confessions, also. They participate in urban life through many events (concerts, kermesses, theatrical plays) that we can qualify within culture. This paper interrogates the notion of sanctified space from the spatial point of view, through the analysis of the sanctified space built in Rome in the new place of urban centre, but also from the standpoint of dividual and collective representations. Between tradition and future, attractiveness and repulsion, beyond the symbolic dimension (brand) of the sanctified building, the text places the question of methodological processes that lead to the construction of a space, both real and virtual. In the final argument, the comparison between the Italian and French experiences can help to identify the differences between the two systems -- of a technical and sociological nature -- in order to identify the manner in which we can overcome the mono-functional and restrictive use of the worship sites, in favour of multi-functional uses, both internal and aggregated, thereby allow a wider ownership of these spaces, in the present era where the churches are gradually becoming more and more empty.