Tag Archives: church

Going to the Chapel…

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Located within the boundaries of Grand Teton National Park are two chapels, both of which are open daily to the public.  Both offer services on Sunday for park visitors and area residents, during the summer.  And weddings are held at both chapels, with a special permit through the national park service.

CHAPEL OF THE TRANSFIGURATION

Built in 1925, this is an Episcopal Church, affiliated with St. John’s Episcopal Church in Jackson, WY.  It was built to provide local ranchers and residents a place of worship without having to make the 12 mile ride into Jackson, which was a treacherous trip at that time, before automobiles and roads were commonplace.

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Chapel of the Transfiguration

The cozy chapel seats 65 people, and does offer additional outdoor seating, weather permitting.  They do have a Christmas service, but you need your cross country skis, or snowshoes, to make it to the chapel.  The roads to the chapel are closed in the winter.

The window behind the altar offers a spectacular view of the Tetons.

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I think it might be hard to focus on the sermon, when you are staring out at this view!

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CHAPEL OF THE SACRED HEART

Built in 1937, the Chapel of the Sacred Heart is a Catholic Church, affiliated with Our Lady of the Mountains in Jackson, WY.  It is right on the shore of Jackson Lake.

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Unlike the other Chapel, it does not take advantage of the views of the lake, as there are no windows overlooking the lake.  My guess is the Priests want you to pay attention during Mass!

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No view out this altar!

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The chapel holds 115 people for mass.  The stations of the cross are very simple plaques.

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stations of the cross

AND A WEDDING TOO!

Well I can’t have a post about the chapels, without putting in some wedding photos!  The step-sister of our boss was getting married on Sunday, and they had the wedding on the grounds of our cabins.  I was working in the office that day, and fortunately all of my check-in’s for the day had arrived.  Many of our guests noticed several people all dressed up, and I mentioned there would be a wedding in the early evening.  They  all commented on what a beautiful setting it would be for a wedding.

Since all my office work was technically done, I decided to be a ‘wedding crasher’, and attended the small family wedding.  It was a nice ceremony, and Brad gave away his step-sister.

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Despite the clouds from a recent rainstorm, it was a beautiful backdrop for a wedding.

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ATTENTION BIRD NERDS

One final note, when I was out watering the planter boxes by the cabins, I noticed this small bird, or a large moth, pollinating the plants.  I have never seen this type of bird/moth before, so if anyone knows what it is, let me know!

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Quote for the day: “Faith makes all things possible.  Love makes all things easy.” – Dwight Moody

 

Chapel in the Hills

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Rapid City, SD is home to the Chapel in the Hills, an exact replica of the Borgund Stavkirke built around 1150 in Laerdal, Norway.  A stave church is a medieval wooden Christian church building, named because the load-bearing posts are called stav in Norwegian.  The Chapel, completed in July of 1969, was originally built as the home for the “Lutheran Vespers” radio program.  When that program moved to Minnesota in 1975, it left no support for the Chapel, and a non-profit organization was formed.  The Chapel is now an ELCA church, although it has no congregation, and receives no funding from the organization. Private donations, gift shop sales and wedding fees support the Chapel.  It is now on the National Register of Historic Places.

 

front view

front view

The front door of the Chapel is known as the “men’s door”, as men stood on one side of the church, women and children on the other side, in early times of the church.  Women and children entered through the side door, known as the women’s door.

side view

side view

 

inside facing altar

inside facing altar

In the photo below, Dan is looking though the leper’s window.  A person with leprosy, an infectious skin disease, was not permitted to enter the main church, but could receive communion through this window.

the leper's window

the leper’s window

A prayer walkway has been added to the grounds behind the Chapel.

view back on prayer path

view back on prayer path

There are sculptures along the path with inspirational messages.

never lose faith

never lose faith

The gift shop has a grass roof and displays the flag of Norway.

gift shop

gift shop

There is also a small museum, in an original Norwegians settler’s log cabin, that was relocated from Keystone, SD.  The museum has many items used by the early immigrants.  And of course, they have statues of Ole and Lena in front!

Ole and Lena

Ole and Lena

inside their cabin

inside their cabin

We were surprised at how tiny the Chapel was, but enjoyed the visit.  It would be a nice place to have a small wedding at.

Quote for the day:  (well it’s more of a Norwegian joke of the day) “One Sunday morning, the Lutheran pastor noticed Ole standing in the foyer of church staring up at a large plaque.  It was covered with names and small American flags mounted on either side of it.  The old Norwegian had been staring at the plaque for some time, so the pastor walked up, stood beside Ole, and said quietly, ‘Good morning Ole.’

‘Good morning Pastor,’ he replied, still focused on the plaque.  ‘Pastor, vat is dis?’  The pastor said, ‘Well, it is a memorial to all the men and women who died in the service.’  Soberly, they just stood together staring at the large plaque.

Finally, Ole’s voice, barely audible and trembling with fear asked, ‘Vich service, da 8:30 or da 10:45?’