Crystal Cathedral

The Crystal Cathedral is a Protestant, Christian megachurch in the city of Garden Grove, in Orange County, California. The church was founded in 1955 by the Reverend Dr. Robert H. Schuller and his wife, Arvella, on the campus of what was known until that time as Garden Grove Community Church. One of the church's mission statements is, "Find a need and fill it; find a hurt and heal it." The church is considered the world's first "seeker sensitive" church. World-famous architect Philip Johnson designed the main sanctuary building, which was constructed using over 10,000 rectangular panes of glass and which can hold over 3,000 worshippers. The church is also known for its 280 rank, five manual pipe organ constructed by Fratelli Ruffatti. The instrument incorporates the large Aeolian-Skinner pipe organ built in 1962 for New York's Avery Fisher Hall.
According to a History Channel program about the Crystal Cathedral, construction began in 1977 and ended in 1980. The initial estimated cost of the church was $7 million, but the final cost was over $17 million (about $55 million in 2007 dollars). Also according to the History Channel TV show, one way Dr. Schuller found to help finance the construction of the Crystal Cathedral was to sell each one of the 10,000 rectangular panes of glass for US$500 each, when the sale of the panes of glass was completed Dr. Schuller had raised over US$5 million. Also, according to the show, the rectangular panes of glass are not bolted to the structure, instead they are glued to it using a silicone based glue. This and other measures allow the building to withstand an earthquake of magnitude 8.0. (...) more....