Abstract

European architecture in the second-half of the 20^th century had many different roles to fulfil. Initially it sought to reconnect to what had been the ›modern style‹ before the outbreak of World War II, or rather, before the rise of National Socialism in Germany and Austria. This is true in a very special way for sacral architecture. After the human catastrophe of the Nazi regime with its destruction and desperation, all eyes were on the Church awaiting a statement. This was made not only through the erection of newly-built churches – in a density unique in the history of church building – but also in their contextual placement. The thesis of this article claims that the embedding of sacred rooms within newly-built architecture, such as in residential buildings, universities and student accommodation, is an ideal way of creating new – and hopefully better – societies based on a foundation of religious values

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