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Presbyterian Research Centre
The Archive and Library for the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand
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Buildings
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Collection DescriptionPresbyterian churches come in all shapes and sizes, from the traditional cathedral model where the focus is on the altar with the pulpit highlighted and the configuration designed for church services, to the modern multi-use and multi-configurable spaces being built today. This collection illustrates the humble wooden churches first erected by European settlers, the grand brick and stone churches illustrating New Zealand’s success as a country, the simple and solid mid-century churches and the light-filled modern churches.
“It has sometimes been said that if you want to find a Presbyterian church anywhere in New Zealand, you should look for the plainest building in town. That characterisation harks back to the Reformed distrust of ornate decoration in church architecture and to a mistaken perception of Calvinist austerity. There may be a sameness about many Presbyterian churches up and down the land, but Presbyterian churches do speak nevertheless, sometimes elaborately but often in simpler and more subtle language, of deep theological convictions and of the sacred purpose to which the buildings are dedicated.”
Items below are just some of the highlights from this collection - please use the search bar to locate more.
Collection SummaryPhotos, plans and documents relating to churches and associated buildings.
“It has sometimes been said that if you want to find a Presbyterian church anywhere in New Zealand, you should look for the plainest building in town. That characterisation harks back to the Reformed distrust of ornate decoration in church architecture and to a mistaken perception of Calvinist austerity. There may be a sameness about many Presbyterian churches up and down the land, but Presbyterian churches do speak nevertheless, sometimes elaborately but often in simpler and more subtle language, of deep theological convictions and of the sacred purpose to which the buildings are dedicated.”
Professor Murray Rae, Department of Theology, University of Otago
Items below are just some of the highlights from this collection - please use the search bar to locate more.
Collection SummaryPhotos, plans and documents relating to churches and associated buildings.Images
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Buildings. Presbyterian Research Centre, accessed 16/10/2024, https://pcanzarchives.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/629
