The Crystal Cathedral, home of the Hour of Power televised services, succumbed to bankruptcy and will lose its famed building. The California church will be selling its Philip Johnson-designed architectural landmark to the Catholic Church. One of the first megachurches in the country, the Crystal Cathedral revolutionized religious architecture. The Crystal Cathedral, completed in 1980, was designed for televangelist Robert Schullers congregation of more than 10,000 people. The building spans 416 feet in length, 207 feet in width and 128 feet in height, and is covered by 10,000 panes of tempered silver-tinted glass held in place by steel trusses. Doors of 90 feet in height open during services to let the morning sunlight and breeze into the church. According to the cathedral, Johnson considered the structure, designed with his partner John Burgee, to be his capolavoro, or lifes work.
Click for Full Text!