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The Richmond Symphony is a non-profit organization meeting a need in the community for cultural enrichment through music. The Symphony, needing a temporary place for its performances due to construction in the downtown Richmond area, has asked us to open our "home" to it. Sound familiar? It hasn't been that long since we asked Short Pump Middle School, Good Shepherd United Methodist Church, Bennett's Funeral Home and others to open their homes to us. What an honor to have been asked.

The Catholic Church has always been a refuge for cultural beauty, open to all those seeking beauty. St. Michaels has an opportunity to become a center of cultural beauty in the West End of Richmond in very much the same manner as the Cathedral is a center of cultural beauty in downtown Richmond.

What an inspiring way of extending the grace of our sacred space to the community!

This potential relationship carries on a tradition of partnership between the arts and the church that dates from the infancy of Christianity. As the Pope noted in his Easter '99 letter, "(t)his partnership has been a source of mutual spiritual enrichment." The arts have an intrinsic value towards our faith life and the building up of our communities that the church has always valued. "Society needs artists...who ensure the growth of the person and the development of the community...(T)hey also render an exceptional social service in favor of the common good." (Letter of Pope John Paul II to artists, Easter Sunday, 1999.)

Through this exciting opportunity, we as a community are challenged to widen our understanding of what is sacred. Through this challenge we discover anew the pervasive and all-encompassing nature of God's grace in the world. We look to the writings and teachings of the church for guidance as we begin this process.

On the Historic Relationship Between the Church and the Arts


"The fine arts are rightly classed among the noblest activities of human genius...Of their nature the arts are directed toward expressing in some way the infinite beauty of God in works made by human hands. [The arts] praise him and extend his glory to the extent that their only purpose is to turn people's spirits devoutly toward God." (Sacrosanctum Concilium, The Constitution of the Sacred Liturgy, #122. Documents of Vatican II)

"...The Church is especially concerned for the dialogue with art and is keen that in our own time there be a new alliance with artists." (Letter of Pope John Paul II to artists, Easter Sunday, 1999.)