Academic Approaches in the Study of Church Buildings in Urban Space: A Typology

Abstract

This article is devoted to an analysis of scholarly literature dealing with church buildings in contemporary urban space, both outside and inside Russia. Five analytical approaches were defined: historical, sociological, spatial, theological, and economic. In the historical approach, a church building is taken by itself, with no active relation to the social environment. In the sociological approach, the social processes around the church become central. The theological approach is similar, but here the focus is on the spiritual dimension of church activities. Spatial characteristics of the church building and its environment are central for the approach we call spatial. The last approach deals with the church economy as a part of urban economic life. The presence of a church is an absolute necessity for Christians, and research into templelike structures must be complex and combine all various approaches.