B O O K SCOUNTER-REFORMATION 2000<strong>The</strong> Renovation Manipulation: <strong>The</strong> ChurchCounter-Renovation Handbookby Michael S. Rose, Cincinnati, Ohio:Aquinas Publishing Ltd., 2000. 161 pages.$12.95.Reviewed by Christopher CarstensTaking to heart the final words of thecurrent Code of Canon Law, that “thesalvation of souls, which in the Churchmust always be the supreme law,” the recentbook by Michael S. Rose gives clarityand advice to the troubled soul experiencinga church renovation project. <strong>The</strong> RenovationManipulation: <strong>The</strong> Church Counter-Renovation Handbook attempts, in the wordsof its author, to “give the average layCatholic a clear understanding of the renovationprocess and ultimately theknowledge necessary to bringabout honesty and integrity inthe renovation of existingchurches as well as in the constructionof new ones” (p.6).Succinct, accessible, and rich inChurch documentation, <strong>The</strong>Renovation Manipulation will be auseful resource to all parties involvedin the process of churchrenovating.In the years following the SecondVatican Council, Rose explains,many liturgists and architectsmanipulated more than justthe renovation process, interpretingthe principles of re<strong>for</strong>m andsubsequent documents accordingto pre-conceived visions ofsacred architecture. <strong>The</strong> first ofRose’s chapters shows, ratherconvincingly, how much of thedirection of modern church architecturehas its roots in the theories of Lutheran architectEdward A. Sövik. Citing Sövik’sbook <strong>Architecture</strong> <strong>for</strong> Worship, Rose illustrateshow Sovik’s theories later came to beexpressed in the 1978 document of theBishops’ Committee on the Liturgy, Environmentand Art in Catholic Worship. Söviksays: “Down through the centuries churchbuildings have not been consistently seenas exclusively places of worship. Churchbuildings have been multi-purpose buildings,houses <strong>for</strong> people, used <strong>for</strong> a varietyof public and secular activities that nourishthe human and ‘secular’ life” (Sövik, p. 19;cited in Rose, p. 11). Accordingly, this“meeting place <strong>for</strong> the people” (Sövik, p.68) should have portable chairs rather thanpews; a separate room <strong>for</strong> eucharistic adoration;few religious images; and an altar“table” surrounded by the congregation.Familiar suggestions today, to be sure.St Joseph’s Church, Scotia, New York, after renovationAfter this brief history Rose familiarizesthe reader with what to expect “when thechurch renovators come to your parish.”<strong>The</strong> main facilitator of the renovationproject is the Liturgical Design Consultant,or LDC. <strong>The</strong> LDC, in conjunction withother professional liturgists, serves toimplement the renovation project. But beware:“While appearing to give architecturaladvice, the design consultant’s realfunction is to manipulate parishioners intoaccepting controversial changes to theirchurch building and into believing thattheir own input…is being taken into considerationin the renovation of theirchurch” (p.23). To this end the LDC incorporatesa manipulative strategy called theDelphi Technique, wherein a “consensus” isreached by creating factions among thepeople in the parish and then, under the directionof the LDC, propelling his or herown plan to the top: a “divide and conquer”strategy. Rose even goes so far as todissect the “anatomy of the process”: hiringthe design consultant, introducing theidea of “restoring” the parish to its originalcondition (which is, in fact, “renovation”),planning educational sessions where novelinterpretations of Magisterial documentsare presented, selecting a small likemindedcommittee to carry out the renovation,and finally the implementation of theplan itself.How does one avoid falling prey to sucha design? Rose spends the remainder ofthe book arming the “guy in the pew” withthe pertinent in<strong>for</strong>mation. He gives a list ofresources that the LDC will most likely recommendto parishioners, answers some ofthe most commonly heard suggestions put<strong>for</strong>th by manipulative consultants, andprovides the appropriate excerpts fromChurch documents and a comprehensivelist of the documents that should be usedwhen responding to suspected dubiousclaims.Although speculative and cynical attimes, <strong>The</strong> Renovation Manipulation providesan articulate defense <strong>for</strong> “traditional”church architecture, a position not oftenheard today. <strong>The</strong> handbook (and it truly isa handbook) gives expression to many ofthe sentiments that disappointed parishionershave often felt but have been unable toexpress or defend. A work rooted in theConstitution on the <strong>Sacred</strong> Liturgy(Sacrosanctum Concilium) of the SecondVatican Council, as well as documents appearingbe<strong>for</strong>e and after the Council, thisbook can help the current debate in liturgicalarchitecture.What the handbook lacks,though, is a clearly-defined theology of“the Church” in all her dimensions(hierarchic, apostolic, pilgrim,etc.) and the worship of thisChurch. Only with a clearlystated ecclesiology as a base cansacred architecture, in whateverstyle, reflect the true nature andliturgy of the Church. Only thencan such arguments concerning“traditional” versus “modern” architecture,pews versus chairs, orapse reservation versus a separatechapel <strong>for</strong> Eucharistic reservationbe resolved, since liturgical legislationis at times unclear or altogethersilent.<strong>The</strong> Holy Father, in TertioMillennio Adveniente (n.36), called<strong>for</strong> “[a]n examination of conscience[concerning] the receptiongiven to the Council.” At the endof this examination, held fromFebruary 25 th to the 28 th of thisyear at the Vatican, the Pope said: “Certainly,[the Council’s teaching] requiresever deeper understanding…the genuineintention of the Council Fathers must notbe lost: indeed, it must be recovered byovercoming biased and partial interpretationswhich have prevented the newness ofthe Council’s Magisterium from being expressedas well as possible.” <strong>The</strong> RenovationManipulation, while certainly having avantage-point of its own, does offer an intelligentand well-documented interpretationof the “genuine intention of the CouncilFathers” and should be considered seriouslyby any involved in this particular dimensionof the Catholic spiritual life.Photo courtesy Michael RoseChristopher Carstens is the Assistant Directorof the Office of <strong>Sacred</strong> Worship <strong>for</strong> the Dioceseof Lacrosse, Wisconsin.32 Fall 2000 <strong>Sacred</strong> <strong>Architecture</strong>
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