A thousand years ago as the world approached the year 1000 there were dire predictions that the millennial year would mark the end of the world. But the year 1000 came and the world did not end. Something else began -- the greatest advance in the building of centers of worship that the world has even seen.

Cathedrals began to arise across Europe that stand majestically till this day. It would be fascinating to know what percentage of the economy of their time that church building represented. Beyond doubt, it would be staggering to compare what it would mean if a similar percentage of our economy were devoted to the honor and worship of God. Between 1050 and 1350 in France alone, over 500 large churches were built and 1,000 parish churches, so that there was a church or chapel for every 200 people. During the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, more stone was quarried in France for building churches than had been used in all the buildings of ancient Egypt.

In style the earliest of these churches later came to be known as Romanesque. Descended in form from the ancient Roman basilica, which was a large meeting hall or law court; an altar was placed at the rounded apse at one end, where the raised platform for the presiding magistrate once was. The walls of the Romanesque churches were heavy and thick with few windows. Such churches created a feeling of solidity and repose. Bright tapestries along the walls with gilding and jewels on statues and chalices attempted to brighten the dark interiors.

The New Style Disdained
By the middle of the twelfth century, a new style of church came into prominence which men of the Renaissance looked down upon and labeled "Gothic" -- a nice way of saying"barbarian." Many of the European cathedrals flocked to by tourists today are Gothic in style. In an age when the vast majority of the people were illiterate, the Gothic cathedrals and churches became a kind of Bible, opening a spiritual world to the masses. As soon as one walks into a Gothic cathedral, the soaring architecture draws the eye upward to heaven, for the church's purpose was to draw the soul away from the things of earth. The walls of the Gothic cathedrals were thinner and lighter than Romanesque structures. External "flying buttresses" supported the walls, and the stonework seemed to lose its massive weightiness. Stained glass windows, which began to be manufactured in the twelfth century, allowed colored light to illuminate the interior. The style of pointed arched windows was adopted from Arabia. Some said the point was to keep the demons from finding a resting-place in the church.

How High Can You Go?
The building of the cathedral was a community affair and a matter of civic pride. Cities competed with each other for which could have the tallest spire. When Notre Dame de Paris soared to 114 feet, Chartres built to 123 feet and Amiens followed with 138 feet. Beauvois tried for 157 feet, but the vault collapsed and the people ran out of money trying to build. Each church had its wealthy patrons, but ordinary citizens too contributed sheep, poultry, cheeses, animal skins and vegetables to the building of their cathedral. While the cathedral was under construction an entire village of workmen would be established at the site. Roads would be constructed to quarries, and even rivers were diverted to provide transportation for the heavy materials.

It Took Generations to Build!
Most cathedrals took over a century to build, with several generations becoming part of the building. Salisbury Cathedral is unusual in that it was completed in less than 50 years, though the famous spire was added later. The Cologne Cathedral, considered by some the most perfect specimen of Gothic architecture, undoubtedly took the longest to build. The foundation stone was laid in 1248. By 1437 one of its towers was finished to one-third of its present height, but at the time of the Reformation its roof was still covered with boards. When the original plans of the cathedral were discovered in the nineteenth century, the completion of the cathedral became a national undertaking. The cathedral was completed in 1880, over 640 years after construction first began!