The Churches at the Fair

As Mammon puts his best foot forward this week at the Brussels World Fair, he will find his ancient competition on hand--the Roman Catholics in a mammoth pavilion called Civitas Dei (The City of God), and the Protestants in a modest prefab, one-eleventh the size, with no name at all.

The Catholics were in the fair on the ground floor four years ago. "It is inconceivable that the Catholic Church should not be represented at such a gathering," said the Rev. Jan Joos, secretary-general of the Holy See's pavilion. "Since most people no longer come to the church, we must bring the church to them." To help raise money, the church went farther than the fair itself: 53 national committees were organized, and representatives appointed in other countries. Posters were printed in ten languages, a pavilion magazine published in seven.

Catacombs & Souvenirs. A whole college of architects headed by Belgium's Paul Rome was appointed to design the pavilion. On a 153,000-sq. ft. plot just across from the U.S. pavilion, they built a high plaster wall around Civitas Dei. Inside is a slope-roofed church with a capacity for 2,500 standees (only the aged and infirm may sit), a 200-seat chapel and six smaller chapels. The pavilion also includes a restaurant for 2,000 and a three-story display building. Besides numerous Masses and multilingual confessors, attractions will include a 40-yd. mock-up of the catacombs, an exhibit of "the vital problems that frighten mankind" (which includes two gigantic U.S. dollar bills), and souvenirs (scarves with the papal coat of arms, a special issue of Vatican stamps, money of the Vatican State). Total cost, not counting the donated cement, glass, carpets, wood, altar, organ and two carillon systems: about $2,500,000.

The Protestants got off to a slow start about three years behind the Holy See. When Belgium's few Protestants (approximately 90,000) asked the World Council of Churches about a pavilion, they were told they could use the World Council's name, but not its money. Gradually, support for the idea gained ground. The first contribution from overseas was $560 from New Zealand Protestants; among others, the Belgians set themselves a quota of $20,000; a Netherlands committee is halfway to its goal of $26,000; and in the U.S. the United Church Women are raising $100,000. Total collected so far: $80,000 of a $170,000 goal.

Carillon & Congresses. On a plot of only 13,500 sq. ft., the Protestant pavilion consists of a prefab circular church that will hold 200 people and a prefab one-story display building. Wide arcs of the church wall are glass, so that the passing crowd will be able to look in upon the worshipers at the two daily services (four on Sundays). "We wanted the public to see what Protestant worship is like," says the Rev. Pieter Fagel of The Netherlands, Evangelical Reformed chairman of the pavilion committee.

"We didn't want to make our pavilion big," Fagel explains. "There's such a crying need for money for other purposes. People don't come to the fair to go to church. We didn't plan congresses, the way the Catholics did." (The Catholics will hold some 60 congresses, will bring the faithful to Brussels from all over Europe in 1,000 buses and numerous special trains.) One Protestant worry is the electronic carillon in the Civitas Dei bell tower 570 yards away. "I hope they don't play it too much," gloomed Fagel last week. "We'd like to make ourselves heard, too." Father Joos was reassuring: "We probably won't be allowed to play it at top volume. The Protestants don't have to worry."

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