The Modern-day Chapel
Christ Church was rebuilt on a smaller scale in the late 1950s and early 1960s, following the destruction of the original church during the Second World War, and was combined with Upton Chapel (Baptist), which had also been destroyed during the war (the Lambeth Road Upton Chapel had been built in 1862, providing a purpose-built chapel for baptist meetings that had been originated in 1785 by James Upton).
Today the chapel is known in this combined form, as Christ Church & Upton Chapel United Reformed, and more recently as Church.co.uk, Waterloo following its association with the Oasis Trust (the aims of the Oasis Trust are to provide and support education, housing, health care and employment across the world, as well as support and leadership to local churches).
The modern-day chapel looks inconspicuous on the outside, being integrated into an office block of a modernist architectural style. Its historic roots become clearer in its interior, which is now used as a cafe as well as a chapel. Here, a plaque, dating from 1894, has been displayed – salvaged from its bomb-damaged predecessor chapel built by Christopher Newman Hall. This reads:
In this pulpit Rowland Hill preached the first sermon in Surrey Chapel, June 8, 1783 'We preach Christ crucified' & continued to preach in it until April 2, 1833 nine days before his decease. His successor James Sherman preached in it till 1854, after which Newman Hall occupied it till June 25, 1876 when the congregation and institutions removed to Christ Church. This pulpit was opened to faithful preachers of all churches and amongst others was occupied by Venn, Scott and Berridge amongst episcopalians, and by Chalmers, Robert Hall, Jay, James, Parsons, of other churches.
This inscription was placed in the ministry of F.B.Meyer, 1894.
The interior also hosts an attractive stained glass window of considerable span, which partially illuminates the chapel from the east and depicts religious scenes.
On the exterior of the modern chapel, a foundation stone records some of the details its rebuilding in 1959. The architect was P.J.Darvall ARIBA, the minister was Rev. P. Saunders, and the stone was laid by J. Rider Smith.
Read more about this topic: Christ Church, Lambeth
Famous quotes containing the word chapel:
“I never went near the Wellesley College chapel in my four years there, but I am still amazed at the amount of Christian charity that school stuck us all with, a kind of glazed politeness in the face of boredom and stupidity. Tolerance, in the worst sense of the word.... How marvelous it would have been to go to a women’s college that encouraged impoliteness, that rewarded aggression, that encouraged argument.”
—Nora Ephron (b. 1941)