In Nebraska, we are used to seeing brand-new, neo-Gothic churches on sprawling lands in the suburbs. We are used to seeing familiar, old monolithic, curb-to-curb churches downtown. We are not used to seeing brand-new, neo-Gothic, “curb-to-curb” churches downtown – not until now, at least.
After two years of construction — what might have taken decades in past generations — the beautiful new St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church now stands as an impossible-to-ignore inspiration to downtown Lincoln residents. The church was built specifically to serve and inspire students at the nearby University of Nebraska, where one of every four students is Catholic.
The beautiful Gothic-influenced design was, in part, the result of surveys to find out what students wanted in a new church. Among other things, they asked for beauty to inspire them. Bishop James Conley explained their request in his address on groundbreaking day. He quoted Russian writer Fyodor Dostoevsky, who wrote: "Beauty will save the world."
The new St. Thomas Aquinas church is secondary to something even more powerful for students: The Newman Center. From 1906, then known as the Newman Club, the Newman Center has offered students worship services, Bible studies, mission opportunities and meeting spaces. Numerous accounts have been written of deep religious experiences that various alumni remember at the center. On church-related holidays at the old Newman Center, a line of waiting attendees stretched out the door.
The old building was demolished to allow for construction of the new Newman Center and the church. The new facility includes a social hall, meeting rooms, classrooms, offices, a library, student lounges, a technology center, a counseling office and a rectory.
It is the adjacent church, however, that calls to students and the downtown community with all of its neo-Gothic, curb-to-curb glory.
Kindra Foster is our ground reporter for Lincoln, Neb.
From Lincoln Nebraska
New Curb-to-Curb Downtown Church Inspires Through Beauty
By Kindra Foster
THE CONNECTOR’S REGIONAL REPORTS