Sacré-Cœur in Geneva rises from the ashes – kath.ch
The Sacré-Cœur church in Geneva is not to be rebuilt immediately after the fire of 2018. A diverse church building is planned as an example. A “headquarters” for Geneva’s Catholics and a meeting place for everyone. The foundation stone was laid on March 28, 2022.
Silvana Bassetti, ECR / Adaptation: Regula Pfeifer
The former Catholic church Sacré-Cœur is to become a new, multifunctional building. It will house a place of worship, public meeting rooms, a restaurant, a banquet hall and the new “headquarters” of the Catholic Church in Geneva.
In two years, the Sacré-Cœur building in the heart of Geneva’s Plainpalais district, which burned down in 2018, is to rise from the ashes. Completely renovated and in a new shape. The foundation stone was laid on March 28, 2022.
The authorities had approved the rehabilitation and conversion of the building and work had begun, the Sacré-Cœur Parish and the Roman Catholic Church of Geneva (ECR-GE) attending the event together. They are partners in the extensive renovation project. The construction time is estimated at two years, the construction costs are estimated at 21 million Swiss francs.
Sacré Coeur Church on fire, July 19, 2018
The exterior facades of the building will remain as before. They were not damaged by the flames. The interior, however, is completely destroyed. It had to be reinvented with the new project. Around four and a half thousand cubic meters of space was to be re-played.
A cosmopolitan place
“We want to build a church of our time that is for everyone and every offensive, a place of participation, effective cooperation and fruitful synergies,” said Philippe Fleury at the laying of the foundation stone. Fleury is president of the council of the French-speaking parish of Sacré-Cœur, the owner of the building.
“The inauguration of the construction site is an important step that we have been waiting for for a long time,” says Fleury. “It is with great emotion that we give the go-ahead for the renovation and conversion of this historic building.”
A house of the church
From now on, three ecclesiastical institutions will have their headquarters in the new church building: the French-speaking parish of Sacré-Cœur, the Spanish-speaking Catholic parish (PCLE) in Geneva, which was already there before the fire, and now also the Roman Catholic Church of Geneva (ECR – GE).
The Episcopal Vicariate and its authorization will move from the rue des Granges in the old town of Geneva to Plainpalais. Likewise the pastoral team and the administrative staff of the Catholic Church. But the scattered pastoral services – such as youth, family and work pastoral care – will also move to the church building. Around 100 ECR employees come under one roof.
Dominique Pittet, Secretary General of the ECR, is hoping for “many synergies, new collaborations and initiatives” from the merger. Thanks to several reception areas, it would be possible to organize several cultural, spiritual or cultural events at the same time.
the liturgical space
The renovation of the liturgical space is at the heart of the project. The French architect Jean-Marie Duthilleul was commissioned to do this. The project tries to get to the roots of the word «church». It wants to revive the «Ekklesia», the assembly of the people.
Bishop Charles Morerod speaks about the laying of the foundation stone of the new Sacré-Cœur.
The new church on the ground floor will revolve around a sacramental axis. The pews will face each other on both sides – not one behind the other as is usual in churches and theaters. “This almond-shaped form will allow the faithful to form a body around Christ,” says Episcopal Vicar Pascal Desthieux. This underlines the community dimension and the full participation of the people of God in the celebrations.
Jean-Marie Duthilleul’s project was incorporated into the work of his colleague Christian Rivola from Atelier Ribo+, who is responsible for the implementation of the entire construction project. The altar, the baptismal font, the ambo and the table of the word – for celebrations of the Word – are arranged along the sacramental axis, ending in a monumental cross. Likewise an olive tree—the biblical tree par excellence—that WILL be planted in the ground.
More than a church
The project has one major goal: the church building, which is located in an office and university district, is to become a lively hub in the heart of the city. A place to welcome, collaborate and recharge, a place to pray, celebrate, have coffee and meet.
A restaurant open to the public will be set up on the Place de Neuve. In the future, there will be several modular rooms in the house. These can be rented for meetings, conferences, festivals, concerts or exhibitions.
Architect Christian Rivola says: “We want to give the building a new center, physically and spiritually.” So she would have planned a pillar of light that stretches from the roof to the crypt in the basement, with a 120 square meter glass opening in the ridge of the roof. «This vertical axis will connect the earth to the sky. And their light will flood the space through all four floors of the building».
Fundraising is still ongoing
More than 68 percent of the CHF 21 million construction costs have already been covered, in particular through insurance and private donations. The interior of the Church House will cost an estimated additional CHF 2.2 million. To this end, the ECR launched a special fundraising campaign with private donors in 2021, which is continuing. So far, 50 percent of the setup costs could be collected in this way.
Data on Sacre Coeur
- The building was constructed in 1859, originally as a Masonic temple.
- In 1873 it was bought by the Catholics. It became the new church of the parish of Saint-Germain, which had been expelled from its previous church by liberal Catholics. The Sacré-Cœur church became the temple on the Plaine de Plainpalais. The community was now called Sacré-Cœur.
- In 1958, the Spanish-speaking Catholic community also moved into the Sacré-Cœur premises.
- On July 19, 2018, the church was engulfed in flames – with immense damage.
- At the end of 2020, an application for the renovation and conversion of the building was submitted.
- Renovation and construction works will start in March 2022.
- In 2023 or 2024 the house of the Sacré-Cœur church will be inaugurated.
© Catholic Media Center, 03/29/2022
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