When you think about majestic church buildings and architecture, you probably imagine something from centuries ago.

But what if I told you that some of the most spectacular church buildings have been built in just the last decade?

Let’s take a look.

Knarvik Church

📍Knarvik, Norway

This is a parish church of the church of Norway, which is a Protestant Evangelical Lutheran denomination - the most prominent church denomination in Norway.

And the architects of this beautiful design won a competition to get it.

The church has about 500 capacity, and the building was finished in 2014.

Behind the Design:

The idea behind the design was a modern interpretation of a traditional Scandinavian church. So you've got the big spire, and then the exterior is all pre-weathered wood, so it already has that worn-in look.

This makes sense when you consider the Norweigan climate and how the elements would take their toll on a wooden exterior.

But forgive me.

I find it amusing to imagine these brilliant architects looking at wood samples and thinking, "Nah, this one is too new looking. We need something pre-worn."

It's like they're trying to track down some vintage Levis. Nonetheless, the exterior is sublime.

A peek inside:

Then, on the interior, a row of vertical windows allow sunbeams to come through, allowing you to see the outdoors so the inside doesn't feel too clinical.

Tamkang Church.

📍New Taipei, Taiwan

Finished in 2021, this high-rise concrete building was completed by German architects.

It's a combination of a church and a community center.

Behind the Design:

Rather than follow the typical cues you might think of when designing a church, these architects opted to have the 11-story building informed by the residential towers built around it.

In fact, the cross skylights in the roof and cross window are the only visual cues that this is also a church.

The church is just 500 meters from the coast, which makes for harsh weather conditions - very similar to the Norweigan church.

Because of this, the architects decided against the decorative elements that are commonly seen in churches. Instead, they constructed a tower that is illuminated at night, serving as a beacon in the dark - very much like a lighthouse.

A peek inside:

Inside the building are event spaces, lecture halls, congregation areas, play areas for children, a teaching kitchen, and on the top floor, another church hall for ceremonies like weddings and baptisms.

Here's how the architects described this project, and I think it's very illuminating what they have to say:

"Churches in Taiwan play a different role in society than they do in Europe. The pastor of Tamkang Church once said that it would be a church where anyone would be welcome, and he wanted to put the focus on its role of social welfare.

Thus, the Tamkang Church leaves more than half of its facilities to be used as a community center. The architecture must reflect on its social responsibility, bearing the cross to serve this land."

A beautiful vision.

They go on to say,

"All church buildings are built with the hope of interpreting the Christian doctrine. Because of the difficulty to acquire land rights and the crowdedness of metropolitan spaces in Taiwan, religious architecture in this country often ought to confront the distance between man and heaven caused by the vertical massing of buildings.

Unlike European churches that are able to create sanctity through structure, the Tamkang Church also has to face the challenge of fulfilling the building code and floor area requirements, vertically stacking both the day‐to‐day and sacred spaces of the church.

How to build a holy and sanctified place that embraces the love and compassion within the society is the most critical focus on the design of the church."

De-Guang Presbyterian Church

📍Taichung, Taiwan

This church is in a high-density, residential area, and so it plays a vital role as a community center and a place of worship.

Behind the Design:

Also completed in 2021, the idea behind this design is very pointed.

In the Old Testament, before the temple was built, there was the "meeting tent" where people would join for worship. And that was the inspiration for this design:

A humble meeting place that harmoniously fits in with the community that surrounds it.

The sanctuary is on the top floor of the building, with light flooding in. Diana Tai, the wife of the church's pastor, said,

"The first time I stepped into this space, I smelled the scent of wood."

A peek inside:

On the first and second floors, semi-open staircases and passageways connect small plazas, symbolizing the church’s mission to serve the neighborhood.

And then here's something really cool: once the building was done, they had to make some modifications that were initially not part of the plans. So, colored grillwork from stainless steel screens was added to help with temperature regulation.

However due to safety concerns, glass panels were installed as railing on the inside.

So now, when the sun shines through the grillwork and the glass layer, a rainbow appears on the floor. To quote Commonwealth Magazine:

"From dawn till dusk, this place of worship is now bathed in the seven colors of light."

Church of the Holy Family

📍Brasilia, Brazil

Located in the heart of the Brazilian Highlands, this church design is four different buildings.

Completed in 2022.

Behind the Design:

The church's sanctuary is a circular structure sunk into the landscape and reached by a shallow ramp leading downwards.

The roof has ringed roof lights, bringing natural light down across the interior walls adorned with wood.

And then, at the ground level, there is a ring of narrow windows, which creates a constantly shifting pattern of light throughout the day.

A peek inside:

This main sanctuary sits above a small underground chapel, and then both of those meeting areas connect to the long, linear building.

In terms of the architectural vision, the designers noted three fundamental premises:

"an architecture open to the horizon, the inseparability of public and private space, and the role of the landscape as “a structuring and fundamental element.'"

Have you noticed?

One of the main commonalities coming up again and again in all of these designs is the intentional marriage between the church as a sacred place and a place that serves the community.

Not a closed-off church separate from society but an integral part of it.

This is precisely what you think of when you recount old church designs in the middle of the public square, and so I love seeing how that vision is being reimagined in these modern designs.

Church of Seliger Pater Rupert Mayer

📍Poing, Germany

Near Munich, you'll find the Church of Seliger Pater Rupert Mayer clad with 15,000 white, three-dimensional ceramic tiles.

The church gets its name from a German Priest, Rupert Mayer, who was a leading figure in the Catholic resistance to the Nazis in Munich.

This project was completed in 2018.

Behind the Design:

When you enter the church, you head down towards the sanctuary through a room of three large light openings meant to represent the Trinity.

On the exterior, there's a cross with a rooster on top of it, looking East, meant to symbolize how, as each day begins, we look toward Christ, the rising sun.

The church's foundation is stone; when you contrast that with the pure white ceramic, it’s meant to characterize the relationship between Heaven and Earth.

A peek inside:

You can see these two materials converging on the inside of the sanctuary as well. Where Heaven meets Earth.

And I can't help but call attention to the colorful board for kids.

Sanctuary of the Lord of Tula

📍Jojutla, Mexico

On September 19, 2017, a powerful earthquake in Mexico reduced to rubble a 500-year-old church building, the Sanctuary of the Lord of Tula.

This is the reconstruction of that church.

Behind the Design:

In response to the earthquake and with the idea of creating a public space again, the proposal for the church became this awning type of structure without defined limits between the interior and exterior.

Significant gaps in the arches allow for natural air and light filtration because the walls only touch the ground on the corners.

This means no artificial lighting and no mechanical air conditioning systems either.

A peek inside:

The sanctuary's floor is a stepped floor running the entire length, which is very cool because it means the overhead height is the lowest at the church’s entrance and the highest at the altar.

This reconstruction project was completed in 2020.

Finally, let’s head over to South Korea to the oldest Protestant church in Korea.

Saemoonan Church

📍Seoul, South Korea

This church was founded in 1887, and in 2019, they unveiled their new building.

Behind the Design:

It is a 13-story building consisting of two connected towers, the taller of which is a modern take on a steeple and is topped with a suspended cross that contains a small chapel and observatory.

A peek inside:

The main chapel is set in a large multi-floor auditorium lined with warm wood.

This church is often called the mother church because it was the first Protestant church in Korea, and so part of the design's proposal was for the structure to resemble a mother's outreached arms.

The architects designed the church to have a modern form, rejecting a traditional gothic appearance, to represent the church's current position in the country and culture,

"Protestantism was derived when Martin Luther started the reformation, so representing a transformation of gothic style is important."

Conclusion

Now I have a question for you…

Of the seven modern church designs highlighted in this blog, which one would you want to meet in the most?

Perhaps the modern take on the traditional Scandinavian church?

Or the indoor-outdoor awning sanctuary in Mexico?

Or maybe one of the hybrid buildings that serve as both a community center and church, like Tamkang Church in Taiwan?

I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments on YouTube.

I'll see you there.

Photo Cred:

• Knarvik Church: Photography by Melissa Hegge

• Tamkang Church: Photography by YuChen Chao

• De-Guang Presbyterian Church: Photography by Li Guomin

• Church Of The Holy Family: Photography by Joana França

• Church of Seliger Pater Rupert Mayer: Photography by Michael Heinrich and Florian Holzherr

• Sanctuary of the Lord of Tula: Photography by Sandra Pereznieto

• Saemoonan Church: Photography by Juneyoung Lim

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