城牆中的教會

教會的建堂都是希望藉由教堂建築來詮釋教義的世界觀，淡江教會宗教的世界觀是永恆、普遍及公共性的。

宗教建築在台灣因為土地取得的困難及都會空間的壅擠，常常必須面對垂直量體造成人與天的距離，不像歐洲的教堂都在接地的地面層及屋頂中，透過結構及空間的高聳和光線的神祕來創造神聖性；淡江教會也不例外，必須在容許的建蔽容積中，垂直堆疊教會所需要的日常及神聖的空間，如何在神聖中不帶著權威，並在日常中可以感受到愛與憐憫的社會性，是設計淡江教會最重要的議題。

教堂建築的設計原則上都是以純粹的十字作為空間主體的，設計淡江教會是以廣義的十字作為原則，將人的生活交織在慶典及日常之間，將自然帶進都市的生活。教會基地位在台灣最北端的淡海新市鎮，是一個風大、多雨、面海的基地，建築必須面對風景雖好但氣候條件比較嚴苛的自然環境，雙層厚牆的設計可以作為調節氣候物理環境的建築元素，也可以同時扮演著生活交織的空間角色。

台灣的教會在社會中扮演的角色也與歐洲不同，淡江教會的莊牧師曾經說過，淡江教會是一個所有人都可以擁有的教堂，他們強調的是社會福利的工作、在承認每一個都是罪人，沒有人是完美的前提之下，去填補社會的缺陷。所以淡江教會基本上有一半的機能是作為一個社福中心，強調的是溝通而不是階級、安全而不是距離。建築必須反映這個社會責任，背負著十字的光架默默地為這塊地服務。（撰文者：林友寒）

A Church Within A Fortress

All church building projects are built with the hope of interpreting the christian doctrine world perspective (weltanschauung in German) through cathedral architecture, with the Tamsui Church’s emphasis on eternity, universality and community.

Because of the difficulty to acquire land rights and the crowdedness of metropolitan spaces in Taiwan, religious architecture in this country confront the distance between man and heaven caused by vertical massing of the buildings. European churches create sanctity through structure, elevated space and mysterious lighting between the ground level and roof. The Tamsui Church is no exception. It has to confront the challenges of fulfilling the building code on building lot coverage and floor area by vertically stacking both the day-to-day and sacred spaces of the church. To build a holy and sanctified place expressing love and compassion without the oppressive sense of authority is the most critical focus on designing the Tamsui Church.

The principle of designing cathedral architecture is usually purely on the basis of cruciform shape as the main element; the design concept of the Tamsui Church is also based on the cross, but in a broader sense. It interweaves people’s living between church festivals and their daily life while bringing in nature into the urban life. The site is located on the northern tip of Taiwan, known as the Danhai New Town. It is a windy and rainy city facing the sea. Although the buildings face beautiful scenery, the city is in a harsh environment. The customized thick double layered wall system was employed to regulate the harsh climate as well as intertwining lives in and out of the church space.

The Church in Taiwan plays a different role in society than in Europe. Pastor Juang of the Tamsui Church believes that the church can be embraced by everyone. His work is akin to social welfare. By acknowledging that everyone is a sinner and nobody is perfect, the church remedies the ills of our society. Thus a social welfare center occupies more than half of the facilities used by the Tamsui Church. Emphasis is given to communication and security. The architect must reflect on this social responsibility, bearing the cross to serve this land. (written by Emi Tsui)