Cathedral Thinking

(You will find this on "The Transforum" website, which I write for on a regular basis.)


A few years ago my wife and I had the opportunity to visit Europe for the first time. One of the most memorable experiences during our travels involved seeing the massive cathedrals that are found in the major cities of the continent. Not only were they impressive in size, but the age of these structures in many instances, pre-dated the discovery of the “New World” by Columbus. In addition, when one understands what was involved in the building of these cathedrals you are struck with the long range planning that was essential to their construction.

Not only did it require vast amounts of material resources; it was a task that would take many decades to complete. The average cathedral took 80 years to complete and some took over 200 years of continuous labor. (The current St. Peter's Basilica in Rome required 150 years of work to complete by 1656. More so - the cathedral in Cologne, Germany, with its two great bell towers, each bursting more than 500 feet skyward, required 350 years of work spanning six centuries.)

It involved a generational effort. The generation that began the cathedral would not live to see it through to completion. The first generation passed on their building skills and in many instances their tools, to the next generation, which did the same to the third generation, so that there was an unbroken continuity in the construction. The first generation hired the architect, who not only designed the building, but also supervised its construction.

The vision of that first generation would only come into reality long after they were gone. They labored in faith, believing that the “seed” they were sowing would ultimately grow to maturity. They passed on the responsibility of the vision to the next generation. They built into their children a reverence for the task, and a sense of meaning and purpose. They imparted to their children a vision that would govern their lives.

In order to build a cathedral, there had to be “cathedral thinking.” They had a “long range vision” that saw into the future and shaped their daily lives. They did not live for the present, but lived for the future in the present. They laid down their “today” in order to pick up their “tomorrow.” They sacrificed the present for the future. But they believed that the task that they were involved in was worth the blood, sweat, and tears.

We must think generationally. We must pass on the “building skills” that we have acquired to the next generation. We must impart to our children a vision that will govern their lives and provide them with a sense of meaning and purpose. We must labor in faith realizing that we may never see our vision fully realized in our lifetime. Cathedral thinking enables us to press ahead despite setbacks, and what seems to be the slowness of progress. This means that we must live strategically, rather than simply “day-to-day.” We must manage our resources and prepare for the future. We must leave an “inheritance” for the next generation. We must prepare the next generation to receive the “baton” from the current generation.