GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. — The Chapel of the Transfiguration boasts a near perfect blend of beauty, reverence and solitude.
With the rugged Teton Range as a backdrop, no stained glass windows are necessary behind the pulpit of this rustic log church. A clear glass altar window there solidly frames the tallest Teton Peaks.
Located a little more than a mile north of the Moose entrance gate (south end) of Grand Teton Park, the chapel is accessible by a short side road of a few tenths of a mile.
It's a must side trip for any Teton visitors.
For 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, the chapel door is unlocked and open to the public (although on the snowiest of days, it might not be accessible).
It is "a popular destination for visitors to Grand Teton National Park," according to the official Grand Teton Park website, operated by the National Park Service.
However, "Please be respectful, the chapel is a house of worship," The NPS' guide to the chapel stresses.
The chapel is operated under the leadership of St. John's Episcopal Church in Jackson, Wyo.
The Chapel of the Transfiguration is also an operating church — worship services (Holy Communion) are held there each Sunday, at 8 a.m. and 10 a.m., from the end May through the end of September.
Weddings are also popular at the chapel, from Memorial Day through September. Up to two weddings a day are held there some summer days. During weddings is the only time the chapel is closed to the public.
There is also a small bride's cabin available nearby, to the northwest.
"With the Tetons as a background, visitors come to the Chapel of the Transfiguration to exchange wedding vows and/or to simply take in its awe-inspiring views," www.jacksonholewy.net states. "It has become a favorite spot for photographers, sightseers and weddings."
Constructed in the summer of 1925, the small, 85-year-old building was constructed from lodgepole pine. Its pews are made from local quaking aspen and can seat up to 65 people, with overflow available outside (weather permitting).
The first discussion of having a possible chapel in the area was made in 1920 around a campfire by a group of summer campers, headed by Dr. George Woodward of Chestnut Hill, Penn.
Mrs. Woodward thought it long and tiresome to attend church in Jackson, some 12 miles distant. Her wish was that a chapel could be built at Menor's Ferry, the center of the "Dude Ranch" of the day. A friend of hers, Maude Noble, eventually donated the land where the chapel now sits.
Plans for the chapel were finalized in the spring of 1925, by Archdeacon R.H. Balcom, who was in charge of the Episcopal Mission in Jackson. He designed the chapel and secured significant funding from C.B. Voorhis of Pasadena, Calif., who also owned a ranch on Torrey Lake, near Dubois, Wyo.
The bell in the bowery outside the chapel, which visitors can ring, was cast in 1842 and was originally used in the St. Barnadas Church in Irvington, N.Y.
The chapel is named very appropriately, in honor of the Gospel story of the Transfiguration (Luke 9:28-36), where Jesus went a mountain to pray with Peter, James and John. Jesus then appeared in "glistering" white clothing to his apostles, in the company of Moses and Elijah. A cloud then enveloped them and a voice said, "This is my beloved Son: Hear him."
The Western Center for Historic Preservation assisted St. John's Episcopal with a three-part window restoration project at the Chapel of the Transfiguration in 2008, according to the NPS.
Broken glass was replaced in the two stained glass windows at the east side the chapel and the glass refurbished.
In addition, repairs were made to the building's exterior framing and damaged wood was replaced.
A new organ was donated for the chapel in 2009.
A rugged fence and sagebrush around the chapel enhance its already rustic, ranch-like setting.
The Grand Tetons soar to as much as 13,777 feet above sea level.
According to USAtourist.com. "the Grand Teton Mountains are the youngest mountain range in North America. They are also the most rugged and most beautiful mountains in the USA. This tiny offshoot of the Rocky Mountain Cordillera is but 80 miles long and less than half as wide."
The entrance fee into the park is $25 per vehicle, is good for seven days and also offers admission to connecting Yellowstone National Park.
For more information on the Chapel of the Transfiguration, go to: www.stjohnsjackson.org or www.nps.gov/grte/index.htm.
e-mail: lynn@desnews.com