Ano ba yung patusok tusok na nasa mga kapilya ng Iglesia ni Cristo?

Maraming ipinapakahulugan ang mga naninira sa Iglesia tungkol sa mga patusok tusok na makikita sa mga kapilya ng Iglesia ni Cristo. 

Andyan yung sinasabi nilang "sungay" daw ng demonyo, o kaya eh missiles daw, meron pa silang paniniwala na ayon daw saming mga miyembro ang kapilya namin sa pamamagitan nito ay lilipad papuntang langit pagdating ng araw ng paghuhukom.

Talaga namang mapapakamot sa ulo at matatawa ang mga architect at iba pang may kaalaman sa pagdidisenyo at paggawa ng isang gusali sa mga ganitong kwento ng mga naninira sa INC. 

Nagtataka ko, bakit, mga kapilya lang ba ng INC ang merong tinatawag na TOWER/SPIRE/STEEPLE?

Basahin po natin ang history ng paglalagay nito sa mga simbahan:

"We frequently receive e-mail messages and letters from around the country from people expressing an interest in learning more about the history of church steeples. Steeples are certainly an interesting architectural feature, and one that we see represented around us daily in architecture. But we rarely stop to ask where church steeples come from. What do they represent? What is the function of a steeple?

This brief introduction should acquaint you with the various architectural styles of steeples and how the steeple designs that we see around us today originated in our churches.

American church architecture originated from European influence as the early American settlers brought with them what they had seen in Europe, which established their ideas of proper church design. These ideas came from the great churches in England and other areas in Europe that, to them, were correct "church architecture." Certainly their churches in their new home should not be lacking in grandness or detail.

Georgian architecture was the style of the 18th century, especially from the reign of King George I, who ascended the throne in 1711, until the American Revolution (King George III). Buildings during this period closely adhered to English precedents, which were made accessible through printed books on architecture, such as the Book of Architecture by English architect James Gibbs. The Georgian style was relatively consistent from Maine through the Southern states. Probably the two most influential European church architects, who are responsible for the traditional church architecture that we most associate with today's steeple and church designs, were English architects James Gibbs and Sir Christopher Wren. Much of America's early architecture was styled from their work overseas.

These early church architects designed grand cathedrals and churches that had intricate, soaring steeples. The vertical lines of the steeple helped to visually enhance the lines of the church, directing the viewers' eyes vertically to the heavens. Obviously, this verticality complements part of the mission of the church, to keep us in a heavenly frame of mind, but from an architectural standpoint, this vertical lift gives the architecture a more graceful and pleasing look. The shorter the building, the more squat the appearance; the taller the building, the more graceful it becomes. The early church believed that the church could communicate the truth of the Bible in pictures and symbols to those who were illiterate, such as using the picture in the stained glass to tell stories, as well as the steeple, which helped by pointing upwards devotedly to Heaven. Therefore, the steeple has a dual role in that it helps the congregant in his or her spiritual mindset, and the steeple also helps the architect with a design feature that enhances the overall harmony of the architecture." source: religiousnewsproducts.com

 Kung di po ninyo alam, ang mga nagdisenyo ng kapilya ng INC noong una ay sila Carlos Raúl Villanueva, Juan Nakpil at siyempre si Carlos Santos Viola.

Ang mga STEEPLES o SPIRES na ito ay hindi ginawa para magrepresent ng "sungay ng demonyo" at missiles, kundi ito ay for aesthetic beauty ayon na rin sa apo ni Carlos Santos Viola na nagkomento sa isa sa mga artikulo ko, sabi niya:

Dominic Benedict Santos-Viola Faustino

Hi,
I am Dominic Benedict Santos-Viola Faustino, grandson of Arch Carlos Santos-Viola and Caridad Nakpil Santos-Viola. It's amazing on how profound you described and compared church designs from other religions and how the aesthetic design of the INC central came from. My father was his right hand architect and they worked together on those INC project as well as catholic convents, semenaries and schools. By the way the spires were designed for aesthetic beauty not as a missile or spaceship nitrogen blasters, hehehehe. ;)

Karamihan din naman ng mga simbahan may STEEPLE, eto ilan sa mga halimbawa:

Local

 San Sebastian Church (Roman Catholic)

Church of Jesus Christ latter day saints (Manila Temple)

United Church of Christ in the Philippines

International

 Calvary Church Manhattan (Episcopal Church)

St. John's Church, Helsinki (Lutheran Church)

Tutal wala naman kaming KRUS sa kapilya namin kaya bilang tanda na isa itong "chapel" ay nilalagyan ito ng steeple. Dahil kung hindi, magmumukha lang itong bahay. Kaya sa ibang bansa, ang mga property na nabibili ng INC hanggat maaari ay nilalagyan nito...

 Locale of Kent, Washington USA

Local of Austin, Texas USA

 Locale of Maili, Hawaii USA

Ang mga SPIRES na ito ay hindi lang pandekorasyon sa mga kapilya, kundi nakakakay na tumingin sa itaas, sa langit, sa Diyos, para lagi natin siyang maalala. Ayon na rin sa sinasabi sa Pasugo:

"Ang malimit na paggamit ng mga tulis ng tore, tilos at ispaik ay hindi walang kabuluhan sa paningin. Bahagi ito ng disenyo hindi bilang dekorasyon lamang, kundi upang maging kongkretong inspirasyon na umaakay sa mga mata upang tumingala sa itaas, sa sangkalangitan, sa Manlalalang." source: Pasugo March-April 1986

Kaya ang mga "patusok tusok" na ito ay hindi po MASAMA at walang masamang ibig sabihin, nasa sa nag iisip lang. Kaklaruhin ko na rin po na kaming mga miyembro ng Iglesia ni Cristo ay hindi naniniwala na lilipad ang aming mga kapilya papuntang langit pagdating ng araw ng paghuhukom. Itoy kasama lamang sa arkitektura ng gusali.