Skip to main content

The Most Beautiful (and Unexpected) Houses of Worship Around the World

Whether your form of prayer is singing to the heavens or quiet contemplation, these stunning houses of worship will leave you in awe.

Basílica de la Sagrada Família

2017 Experience the Sagrada Família

A labor of love for famed Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí, Basílica de la Sagrada Família is one of the most famous examples of Catalan Modernism. While it is technically unfinished, Gaudí worked on the basilica for forty-three years right up until his death in 1926. Today a UNESCO World Heritage site, the basilica dominates the skyline of Barcelona, standing out thanks to its massive size and the constant presence of construction cranes. In every corner of the church, you can see Gaudí’s passion for religion, nature, and architecture. Intricate sculptures, towering spires, and beautiful stained glass leave visitors in awe when standing inside of this impressive feat of architecture.

Related Videos

Cathedral of Hope

Flickr User Jason John Paul Haskins

What happens when a world-renowned architect famous for Modernist style designs a church? You get the Cathedral of Hope, an interfaith peace chapel in Dallas, Texas. The creation of Philip Johnson, the Cathedral of Hope is more sculptural art piece than building. Gently sweeping forms that resemble the classic Gothic arch are cut into the sides of the building acting as the openings for windows and doors. The stairway features glass railings, allowing light to easily flow unobstructed throughout the interior levels. The interior of the chapel is simplistic, a serene and intimate space for quiet prayer.

Lotus Temple

Wikimedia Commons

New Delhi, India’s Lotus Temple is one of the most visited places of worship in the world. Each day, nearly 10,000 people visit this Bahá’í House of Worship, a non-denominational temple open to all. The beautiful, sculpture-like structure draws in worshipers and lovers of architecture alike. The creation of Iranian architect Fariborz Sahba, the Lotus Temple was named for its shape, which resembles the lotus flower. Consisting of twenty-seven, marble-clad “petals,” and surrounded by nine ponds and nine gardens, the Lotus Temple stands out for its stunning architectural symmetry. Inside, the central space can hold 2,500. Pews are arranged in a circle under the 131-foot high dome. Built according to Bahá’í House of Worship rules, there is no altar, pictures, or statues inside of the temple, allowing worshipers to sit in quiet contemplation.

Chapel of the Holy Cross

Chapel of the Holy Cross

Commissioned by sculptor Marguerite Brunswig Staude, Chapel of the Holy Cross is a Roman Catholic chapel in Sedona, Arizona. Striking for its location, the chapel is built into the buttes of Coconino National Forest. To truly appreciate this work of art, the chapel should be seen from below. Looking up the hill, the sand-colored structure rises prominently from the surrounding rock with a simple cross in the center. This central cross acts as both structural support and a sign of the faith practiced within. The cross is surrounded by glass, allowing light to flood into the space. It towers over the altar, appearing to glow in the afternoon sun. Completed in 1957, Chapel of the Holy Cross has been designated a National Historic Landmark.

Notre Dame du Haut

Wikimedia Commons

Located in Ronchamp, France, Notre Dame du Haut is the creation of one of the greatest architects of the 20th century, Le Corbusier. Famously an atheist, Le Corbusier still devoted a portion of his career to religious structures, believing architecture was able to create a feeling of spirituality. Notre Dame du Haut does just that. Outside, the Modernist structure features concrete walls with small cutouts for stained glass windows. On one end of the building, the walls come to a point under a sweeping roofline called “the sails.” This overhanging roof shelters a small spot outside with a lone pew and simple cross. Inside the chapel are beautifully sculpted wooden pews, a minimalist altar made of concrete, and unpolished concrete walls. The simple space is illuminated from candles and light that come through the stained glass windows. The concrete walls are up to ten feet thick in some places, causing these windows to cast beautiful colored shafts of light onto different spots within the chapel. Despite the lack of ornamentation, the architecture of Notre Dame du Haut speaks to the sacredness of the site, leaving visitors in awe.

For an entirely different look at houses of worship, check out this former church-turned office space.

Editors' Recommendations

Gloves up, here are the 12 best boxing matches of all time
Boxing has a lengthy history of incredible bouts. Here are the best boxing matches of all time.
Roberto Duran II Sugar Ray Leonard 1980

“The Brawl in Montreal" pitting Roberto Duran II (left) and "Sugar" Ray Leonard (right) in 1980. Focus On Sport/Getty Images

What is it about boxing? There's just something about two athletes in the ring, dueling it out. It's a sport that combines quickness, stamina, and sheer ability. The sport dates back to ancient Greece and continues to be a big draw, as the many prizefights in Las Vegas and beyond attest to.

Read more
The 10 best Amazon Prime original movies to stream today
These incredible Amazon Prime original movies are worth a watch (or two)
best amazon prime original movies report

If you know anything about Amazon (and let's be honest, who doesn't), you probably know it as one of the biggest retailers in the world. As that retail business continues to grow, though, Amazon has also gotten into the streaming game in a major way. There are lots of movies on Amazon Prime movies as well as plenty of shows, but this list is focusing on the streaming films that have been produced by Amazon as a studio. Amazon clearly wants to be a dominant player in Hollywood, in addition to the dominance it already has in the world of retail, and based on this list, it's well on its way.

Because Amazon is such a new studio, all of the movies on this list are quite recent. Hopefully, that means that they feel vibrant and relevant, and will continue to hold up for years to come.

Read more
Easy, Intuitive Cleaning with DEEBOT T10 OMNI: Hey YIKO, Vacuum and Mop My Home
ECOVACS DEEBOT T10 OMNI cleaning floors

This content was produced in partnership with ECOVACS.
Picture this, you've just sat down after a hard day's work, barely have a moment of respite, and your phone rings. It's your mother-in-law and she's going to pay an impromptu visit. Before even hanging up you're wracked by a state of panic. The house is a mess. There's clutter everywhere. It will take forever to organize, vacuum, mop, clean, and get everything else done before she arrives. It's not a fun situation but let's rewind here. If you had ECOVACS' newest state-of-the-art smart vacuum and all-in-one cleaning system, the DEEBOT T10 OMNI, the situation would be barely an inconvenience.

The DEEBOT T10 OMNI has an all-in-one station that handles just about everything you'd need it to, like auto-emptying the dustbin, auto-cleaning the mop attachments, and auto-hot-air-drying the mop. It's the most advanced docking station on the market, but AI is baked into this system at nearly every touchpoint. Intuitive AI voice controls allow you to issue voice commands without moving a muscle. It could be as easy as calling out, "Okay YIKO, start cleaning here!" It knows exactly where "here" is thanks to a built-in voice locator. AI is also leveraged to prevent the spread of granular particles while it's vacuuming, so it won't make a bigger mess. Coupled with sophisticated mapping and object detection, plus a large battery, this thing will just keep going as long as it needs to. If all of that sounds like something you might need, keep reading.
Buy Now
 
The Best Features First

Read more