CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

The Maranatha Church is a Born Again Christian ministry under the

G12 evangelical organization. The word “Maranatha” means “Come,
Lord Jesus” in Greek which was a popular Christian phrase during the
1970s and is also present in the book of Revelations 22:20. However, the
Maranatha Church in Baguio City is not affiliated with the other
Maranatha Church Ministries scattered all over the world.

Figure 1. Maranatha Church Adiwang Location Map

(Google Earth, 2018)

At exactly 16°22’34.50” N 120°34’38.97” E, 7.5 km away from the

Baguio City Hall is the location of the study. The church primarily
functions as a worship place during Sundays. The Maranatha church has
a small worship hall that is being used for all of their church-related
activities such as Sunday services, bible studies, cell groups, youth
camps, anniversary, birthday celebrations and others. The recorded
church members as of October 2018 is 221. The average number of
church-goers every Sunday is 205 and 5% of it is visitors and guests.

Due to their growing community, the researchers conducted an

initial survey to know the problems that they currently have, and the
result shows that they don’t have enough space for their church
activities. They don’t have prayer rooms, storage rooms, dining area for
celebrations and enough parking spaces.

The mission of the Maranatha Church is to “win souls and make

disciples” which means that they need to spread the word of God by
teaching, preaching and sharing the gospel to everyone. And for them
to live by this mission, the Maranatha Church aims to expand its facilities
and put up a spiritual center with its location at Purok 6 Adiwang Road,
Dontogan, Baguio City.

In response to this, the researchers conducted a study entitled,

“Introducing Phenomenology through Experiential Architecture in
Maranatha Spiritual Center”. This research is studied to help the
Maranatha Church propose solutions through a phenomenological and
experiential architectural approach to the planning and designing of
the spiritual center.

A spiritual center is a place where the members of the church,

visitors, and tourists gather to pray, quietly reflect or integrate their
spiritual exploration with different spaces and functions (Adinolfi, C,
2011).

According to Price (1997), architecture communicates the traits

of spirit, quality, and character of an individual through the experience
of their relationship with the place, the use of color and light, and the
composition of form. Experience is a term generally used to describe
how a person knows his world, and a place is mostly constructed by
experience. To know a place means in two ways: first is to understand it
abstractly and second, is to know it as how one person knows the other
(Tuan, 1975). Phenomenology is the study of human experiences and
practices which aims to examine and clarify human situations, events,
experiences, and meanings as they occur in daily life (Eckartsberg,
1998).

The proposal is for the Maranatha Church and community

participation will be a vital part of the design process. With the
community’s involvement, it can aim and maintain a good quality of
living and satisfaction in spaces. It can set an appropriate environmental
standard, cultural identity through belongingness and overall
involvement of the community in the research (Abdel-Kader, N 2017). By
applying the community participation, this will lead to a safe, fun,
comfortable and accessible space and provide an effective positive
change in improving the research (Bergon, 2019)

1.1. Background of the Study

A place is mostly constructed by experiences and the people’s

desire to know more about a place is highly abstract. To know a place
means to understand it abstractly and to know it as how one person
knows another (Tuan, 1975). In a research made by Seamon (2015), he
examines three ways in how a building works as places through a
phenomenological approach: first, as lifeworlds; second, as
architectural atmosphere; and third, as physical and spatial fields
sustaining environmental and place wholeness.

Architecture as a lifeworld refers to how a building is understood

as a constellation of actions, events, situations, and experiences
associated with the people that are using it. Architecture as atmosphere
refers to how a building is understood through a strong character and
ambiance that contributes to the particularity or uniqueness of that
building as a place. Architecture as environmental and place wholeness
is how a building is understood as it facilitates or undermines a lived
integration and connection between architecture and users.

Architecture plays a central role in human life in terms of providing

well-designed human-made places and buildings to support and
enhance the world, and the major aim of the architectural
phenomenology with these three themes is to facilitate a self-conscious
awareness of the architecture and place aspects of lifeworlds.
Understanding architecture via lifeworld, atmosphere, environmental
and place wholeness offers one powerful springboard for imagining
buildings in our daily livings and evoke wonderment, imagination,
elegance, and grace.

Spiritual center according to Kateryna Holubchak (2017), has

many combined functions that are mostly aimed at providing a proper
spiritual, educational, and even housing environment. Such center
would satisfy the needs of the parishioners, pilgrims, and tourists, and as
well as helping in the formation of deep religious consciousness and
spirituality. The architectural and spatial arrangement of the spiritual
center is an integral structural system and plays an important part for
church groups and organizations to have their activities and
celebrations like weddings, baptisms, and other devotional activities are
held and at the same time, experience a strong sense of spirituality with
all the spaces provided. It will also help the youth’s personal growth and
development as they can go and utilize each space and facility to do
their planning and self-evaluating (Jericho House Youth Leadership,
Justice and Spirituality Centre, 2010). Therefore, it requires deep and
multi-method research and considerations.
 Figure 2. Principles of the Architectural and Planning
Arrangement of Spiritual Centers (Holubchak, 2017)

Religious practices are based not only on the textual and

ideological grounds but also on affective everyday experiences. These
practices are aestheticized through the embodied experiences of one’s
sensory perceptions such as sight, smell, sound, touch, and memory
(Moallem, 2016).
The development and application of this research to the design
process can help the church organization and the researchers to form
and understand how well the community can change the aspects of
the proposed spiritual center by solving other problems that are
needed to be considered.

Leaning Into the Future: A Study of the Benedictine Center of St.

Paul’s Monastery (Rahberg, S., 2014)

The case of the Benedictine Center of St. Paul’s Monastery

propose that retreat centers can help develop a vision for monastic
ministry into the future by learning about the pattern of institutional
change, the needs of the users and the future effects which
researchers can apply in developing an architectural design
solution for the Marantha Spiritual Center.

The Benedictine Center, like any other retreat ministries in

monastic communities, has been a symbol of a desire to bring the
riches of Benedictine spirituality to the world. Such centers have
 provided first entry into the world of Benedictinism for countless
oblates, writers, ministers who draw on the Rule’s wisdom.

As has been stated in this article, it consists of two main parts:

(1) exploring the original ambitions for monastic revitalization and
ministry through spirituality center as what have seen on monastery
archives, and (2) examine a recent Benedictine Center study which
sought to better understand the needs of the guests. These will help
interpret the study and develop a series of principles for effective
Benedictine retreat ministry.

Mount Tom Self-transformation Retreat: Designing Experiential

Architecture to Provoke Stimulatory, Expressive and Sensory Self-
Exploration (Young, K. 2014)

The project proposes to construct a Self-Transformation

Retreat in Holyoke, Massachusetts that will help individuals to
reconnect to their “core-selves” and their surrounding environment
through experiential architecture which the researchers can adapt
in conducting the planning stage of the research proposal and can
help in satisfying the needs and goals of the users of the proposed
spiritual center.

As what have been stated in the article, discovering a greater

understanding of the natural environment and how we perceive the
world around us is the first step to being able to design spaces for
others to experience. Through a series of unique and experiential
filters between people, the natural environment and built space,
the Self-transformation Retreat by providing the users the option of
managing their own time and activities which uses architecture to
promote: the practice of mindfulness, the injection of sensation and
the feeling of recalling experiences.

1.2. Statement of the Problem

The concern for the Maranatha Church is the insufficiency of
specific facilities and/or amenities for church-related activities
and social gatherings. One principal reason is the growing number
of church community members. During church gatherings and
occasions, stakeholders experience a limited course of action
within the existing temporary church building. This factor
contributed to the church community to seek and rent other
available spaces that are costly and inconvenient.
 1.2.1 Research Questions

1. What are the preferred spaces according to the user’s

experiences of the church community which will be
applied in the design approach and strategies?
2. What design parameter will be formed based on the
needs and considerations of each church activity that
needs a specific facility and/or amenity?
3. How will the phenomenology and experiential
architecture be able to determine possible design
solutions for the proposal of the Maranatha Spiritual
Center?

1.3. Hypothesis

The main problem of the Maranatha Church is that they don’t

have enough facilities and/or amenities to cater to all their
community members and guests during worship and feast
celebrations. Due to the non-existence of enough facilities, it
lessens the capability of the church to operate such big massed
activities. If phenomenology and experiential architecture will be
utilized as the main basis in designing the spiritual center, it will
formulate the design parameters through the user preferences
and experience, thus influencing the possible design solutions that
are to be applied throughout the proposal.

1.4. Objectives of the Study

The study aims to promote convenience to the church community

members and alike. To achieve the goal of the study, the researchers
aim to apply a phenomenological and experiential approach to the
proposed Maranatha Spiritual Center, located at Purok 6, Adiwang
Road, Dontogan, Baguio City.

1.4.1. Specific objectives of the Study

1. To identify the preferred spaces according to the user’s
experiences of the church community to be applied to the
design approach and strategies.
2. To identify the specific church activities, its needs, and
considerations, to come up with a design parameter for the
spiritual center.
3. To utilize phenomenology and experiential architecture
to uncover user preferences and experiences as the main
basis in creating a church community-based facility.
1.5. Conceptual Framework

For the researchers to come up with a Spiritual Center,

different factors that affect phenomenology and the experiential
design approach are considered. First, measurement of the
varying demographics: population count to identify the carrying
capacity. Second, the user’s preferences of spaces needed to be
included in the design. Third, existing structures in the site and
lastly, church activities for designation of such facilities and/ or
amenities, are considered. On the other hand, geography,
topography, location, climate, size and shape of the lot, site
orientation, access road, adjacent properties, and activities serve
as variables unchanged on the proposed Maranatha church.

The study will use various laws and ordinances set by the
authorities, such as National and International guidelines, and city
ordinances. National Building Code (PD 1096) is one of the
guidelines here in the Philippines, this would give the minimum
building requirements, safeguard the property and occupants of
the proposed spiritual center being supported by the local
ordinances such as zoning ordinances and building height limits.
Other required spaces and ideas of an effective location of areas
that will be used are discussed in the Time Saver’s Building
Standard and BP 344 for PWD (Person with Disability) accessibility.
Other guidelines include existing case studies and church design
guidelines such as the Rardin & Carrol Architects church guidelines
will be followed.

Methods in achieving the output involve the synthesis of

community output by the use of phenomenology and experiential
design approach. All these processes and methods will come up
with the design and conceptualization of the Maranatha Spiritual
Center.

(See Figure 3. Conceptual Diagram)

1.6. Scope and Limitations of the Study

This study seeks to apply the theory of phenomenology and

experiential architecture in the planning and designing of a
spiritual center for the Maranatha Church in Dontogan, Baguio
City. The research is limited to the practical usage and application
of the two approaches in greater consideration of the needs of
the camp. Both the Phenomenology and Experiential
Architecture is then defined in this study as the application to
answer only three main problems. Another plan of the church is to
make the spiritual center an income-generating facility, however,
the marketing strategy is not included in this study as it will be
another subject for separate research. The research is also limited
to determine possible architectural design solutions for the
proposed Maranatha Spiritual Center in Baguio City.

1.7. Significance of the Study

This can be a guide for the church's future development plans

for their expansion and can be a good basis for the facilities that
they can build in the future.

Providing facilities like spiritual centers with the application of

phenomenology through experiential architecture can help the
researchers understand the practices and beliefs of the church
that needs to be considered in the design. In this way, the
researchers can provide people a place where they can relax,
calm, find ways to be closer to God and experience spirituality of
space. It can also attract and encourage people to be part of a
community that will be their group for social support that gives a
sense of belonging, security, and family. These relationships
increase wellbeing, improve health, mood, and perceptions
about life and can make people closer to God. This proposed
center can also satisfy the needs of the church community for their
different church activities, special events, and special
celebrations. The design will be based on what the community
thinks and experiences. It is really important to take into
consideration their participation in the design process for they will
be the users of the project.

This is also a good way of helping the church community in

visualizing the place that they want to have in coming up with a
good design solution for their dream paradise. This project is also
for people who want to rent their facilities in the future that is not
part of their community, in that way, the community can raise
funds for their future developments.

This study can help enhance the knowledge of the researcher

and readers about phenomenology and experiential architecture
in a spiritual center and this study suggests ways of figuring out
ways of coming up with a good design that is community-
centered.