How Eastern Orthodox churches are reimagining sacred space for the modern world When Santiago Calatrava's St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine opened at the World Trade Center in 2022, it replaced the only house of worship destroyed on September 11. Its luminous form and Byzantine references posed a larger question: How can Orthodox architecture remain faithful to an ancient tradition while speaking in the materials, technologies, and visual language of the present? The Shape of the Sacred is the first wide-ranging exploration of Eastern Orthodoxy's encounter with modern architecture. Bringing together historians, theologians, critics, and practicing architects, the book examines roughly 150 years of exchange between modern architecture and Orthodox theology, liturgy, and artistic tradition. Its contributors challenge the idea that modern architecture is necessarily secular and that Orthodox design must repeat a small set of inherited forms. The essays trace unexpected exchanges between religious tradition and modern design. Le Corbusier's visit to Mount Athos offers a surprising new perspective on the discipline and spirituality of his work. A church designed and largely built by Archimandrite Euthymius Wendt in Moisenay, France, combines Russian Orthodox theology with the fractured geometry of the avant-garde. Other chapters explore converted buildings, icons, materials, worship, and the ways churches shape both religious life and public space. St. Nicholas anchors the book as a compelling example of sacred architecture in a pluralistic society. At the World Trade Center, it serves as a parish church, national shrine, and public place of remembrance. A gallery of nine recent Orthodox churches in Europe and North America shows how architects are using new materials, technologies, and forms while keeping worship and community at the center. With 128 color illustrations, The Shape of the Sacred brings Eastern Orthodoxy into the history of modern architecture. It offers architects, clergy, and readers interested in sacred space a striking range of examples for creating churches that neither copy the past nor abandon it. Contributors: Robert Arida, Valery Baidin, David Bains, Joseph L. Clarke, Justin Davidson, Kyle Dugdale, Archbishop Elpidophoros, Evan Freeman, Jeremy Ingpen, Inga Leonova, Jaime Rall, Cornelia Tsakiridou, Jerzy Uscinowicz, Alexis Vinogradov
