wfn.org | Upper Room Chapel reopens after repairs for water damage

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.ORG>]

Aug. 23, 2001 News media contact: Thomas S.
McAnally7(615)742-54707Nashville, Tenn.     10-71BP{361}

NOTE:  Photographs are available for use with this story.  

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) - The Upper Room Chapel, damaged by a faulty
humidifier during a five-day holiday period in December, reopened Aug. 22
with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a service of reconsecration.

Built in 1953, the chapel is a landmark in Nashville and has been visited by
millions of visitors from around the world.  The chapel and a wide array of
Upper Room programs and resources are linked to the United Methodist Board
of Discipleship but serve interdenominational constituencies. Best known
among the Upper Room resources is the pocket-sized daily devotional booklet
by the same name, first published in 1935. It is produced in 70 editions and
44 languages.

Participants in the ribbon-cutting ceremony and reconsecration service
included workers who refurbished the chapel; Nashville Mayor Bill Purcell;
the Rev. Thomas Albin, dean of the chapel; the Rev. Stephen Bryant, world
editor and publisher of the Upper Room; and Kathryn Kimball, Upper Room
hostess, manager and curator. 

Though damaged, the chapel remained open on a limited basis until May 29,
when it was closed for repair. The malfunctioning humidifier pumped massive
amounts of steam into the sanctuary during the Christmas holidays, and
backup and monitoring systems failed. The chapel's paintings, woodwork,
drapes, pews, cushions and pipe organ were damaged. With one exception, all
walls in the chapel were badly marred with condensation streaks. The front
wall, featuring a 17-by-8-foot woodcarving of the Last Supper, escaped harm.
 
The focal point of the chapel, the woodcarving is patterned after a painting
by Leonardo da Vinci. Subjects in the carving are two-thirds life size.
Sculptor Ernest Pelligrini and 50 artisans of the Irving & Casson Co. in
Boston created the carving. The chancel area also was adapted from da
Vinci's painting. It features linen tapestries, heavy wooden beams and a
15-foot altar-communion table made of walnut.

Above the chapel's outside entrance is a 20-by-8-foot stained-glass window
that tells the story of Pentecost. The D'Ascenzo Studios in Philadelphia
created the window, using more than 9,000 pieces of glass.

Purcell said that seeing the Upper Room Chapel and Museum has been
considered a "must do" for many Nashville visitors through the years. An
active member of East End United Methodist Church in Nashville, the mayor
noted that he was born in the year the chapel was constructed.

Bryant told the story of a woman touring the Holy Land who declined an
invitation to visit the site traditionally believed to have been Christ's
Upper Room, saying she had already seen the "real Upper Room" in Nashville.
For many people, Bryant said the "real Upper Room" is their home where they
meet God daily in the pages of the devotional guide. He said the chapel
provides sacred space, much like the space between people and God that is
found with the help of Upper Room publications and ministries.

The Upper Room and Chapel and Museum, located in the United Methodist Center
near Vanderbilt University, are open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through
Friday. Services are held each Wednesday morning from 8:30 to 9. 

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United Methodist News Service
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