Towards a Theology of Architecture

Is architecture a moral issue? Buildings can be put to immoral use, but does that mean that the building in and of itself is immoral?

If we're talking about styles of architecture, some are surely more pleasing than others.

This building
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is certainly superior to this building.
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It's likely that the theology behind the first building is superior to the theology behind the second, but now we're talking about the building's use, not just the building itself.

Everything about the cathedral points to the beauty, the majesty, and the transcendance of Almighty God, whereas the metal building looks like a warehouse. Come to think of it, it would make a fine warehouse, and the cathedral would make a sorry one because the construction would imply that we're worshipping the stuff it's storing, but that doesn't say anything about any inherent morality of the building.

At the other end of the spectrum, you have buildings that were built for an evil purpose: pagan temples, gas chambers.... And now I am reminded of how I phrased my second question: in and of itself. Particular buildings cannot be taken "in and of themselves," but they are bound up with the purpose of their construction, and therefore can be called moral or immoral.

What about architectural syles? When we say that Gothic is good because it's beautiful and Bauhaus is bad because it's ugly, is that a moral judgment?