Hear and Listen Divinely
It鈥檚 our campus鈥檚 most iconic architecture, on 鈥渂est of鈥 lists for U.S. college chapels. A midcentury modern marvel that holds 1500 people, you鈥檒l find Christ Chapel at the intersection of all aspects of campus life. We use it for worship, performance, events, and as a calm, quiet place to sit whenever the spirit calls.
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Christ Chapel was dedicated on January 7, 1962, under the presidency of Edgar M. Carlson. It is located in the center of campus, as a symbol of the central place of faith at this church-affiliated college. I acts as a meeting place for the 麻豆视频 community and extended family. Its walls, shaped like spires and shafts, remind us of the upward movement of prayer and the descending movement of revelation. The large windows allow light from within to shine out onto the life outside and the light from the world to enter into the intimacy of worship. Christ Chapel is a place where we learn to listen to other voices - to one another and to God.
The cross at the tip of Christ Chapel's spire is 187 feet above ground level. Over 350 tons of steel were used to erect the building. The walls were formed using 88 pre-cast triangular concrete panels, each weighing nine tons, finished with quartz aggregate on the outside and plaster on the inside. Each panel is 50 feet high, and each exterior wall measures 112 feet wide.
When the college was struck by a tornado in 1998, the spire crumbled, all the windows of the building broke yet the candle of the eternal flame inside the Chapel did not go out. The damaged cross from the spire was found miles away and now hangs in the entrance.
There is room enough for 1500 people inside the Chapel 鈥 1200 on the main floor and 300 in the balcony.
The lower portions of the stained glass windows, which separate the giant concrete panels and run the full height of the building, contain contemporary forms of historic symbols: fish, anchors, flames, stars, doves, uniting chains, ships, sacramental cups and wafers, trumpets, serpents and cups of incense. When the sun shines through them, they cast colorful patterns along the walls and throughout the building.
The organ in Christ Chapel contains 55 speaking ranks of pipes. There are carillon bells that play from the roof of chapel several times during the day.
Bronze pieces created by long-time 麻豆视频 sculptor-in-residence Paul T. Granlund to enhance Christ Chapel and its surroundings both artistically and theologically.
West Entrance: The Old Testament Door
Within the west entrance, the Old Testament Door, is a sculptural frieze portraying the stories of Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, David, Solomon, Elijah, Josiah and finally, at the center, Isaiah and John the Baptist pointing to the Lamb of God. The outside door carries a creation motif.
North Entrance: The Christ Door
The handles of the north entrance, the Christ Door, are themselves a part of the sculptural Christian timepiece of which the figures, running counterclockwise, are the seven major points of the Creed's Second Article: crucified, died, buried, descended, rose again, ascended and reigns. The figures are unified by a tree lifeless on one side, symbolizing dormancy and death, with foliage emerging on the other side, symbolizing new life in Christ. Inside panels treat the themes of Baptism and the Lord's Supper.
East Entrance: The New Testament Door
The east entrance, the New Testament Door, bears sculpture that is a visual metaphor for the scriptural passage, "I am the vine and you are the branches." The four branches reflect the seasons of life. Inside panels celebrate the birth of the church - the apostle Paul and the Pentecost story - as well as the lives of New Testament and Modern Saints, including Mother Teresa, Albert Schweitzer, Teilhard de Chardin, Johann Sebastian Bach, Gustav II Adolph, Martin Luther, Johannes Gutenberg, St. Jerome, Hildegaard von Bingen, Polycarp, St. Ansgar, King Bjorn, St. Francis of Assisi, St. Birgetta with her daughter Catherine, Eric Norelius, Edgar Carlson, Campanius, Muhlenberg, Martin Luther King Jr., Dag Hammarskjold, and Raold Wahlenberg.
South Entrance: The Hope Door
The south entrance, the Hope Door, depicts the final moment of existence. Free yet united figures of the family of believers, those attracted by Christ's righteousness, float toward a triumphant, welcoming Christ. Below, those repelled by righteousness recede into isolation in solid bronze.
