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Leo Hanssen, senior minister at the Majestic Church, says their recently reopened complex was built with its modern design to stop it from looking like “an old church.”
“We didn’t want it to look like a church [and we] didn’t want it to feel like an old church.
We wanted it to be a place and a space that the community can come into and be a part of no matter who you are.”
Before the earthquakes the Majestic Church was located in the heritage art deco building Majestic House on Manchester St.
It was a cinema until 1970 before being turned into a nightclub and then a base for the church in 1978.
The cost of purchasing the 10.500 square metre site for $10 million was funded by the church’s insurance payout.
Development cost a further $8.9 million.
The church complex includes a sport and recreation area, a commercial kitchen, a coffee machine, a large church auditorium, and sound and video editing studios.
“We’re quite proud of the fact that we have repurposed some buildings that could’ve been pulled down and … we love the look of the old and new together. To us, it speaks to humanity that nobody’s perfect,” Hanssen said.
There are mementos such as old church pews, carpet and candlesticks from other Canterbury churches lost in the quakes scattered throughout the complex.
Who are the Majestic Church?
On their website, the Majestic Church says:
“We believe God has a purpose for each and every life and that this purpose is never fully realised alone, but rather in the context of community and relationship.
At Majestic, we endeavour to provide such an environment where each person can discover and develop their life’s purpose.”
The Majestic Church opened in Christchurch in 1962. It has 800 members.
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