House of one

House of one is intended to be a worshipping place where believers of three faiths could pray. The author of this project is Kuehn Malvezzi. Not only will it be a church, mosque and synagoge under one roof but there will also be a room in the middle for dialogue and discussion and a room for people without any faith. Brick building with high, squared, central tower. Each of the areas will be the same size but different shape. They are all designed according to religious needs. In church there will be an organ, in mosque a place to wash feet etc. A group of architects did a research and surprisingly found more similarities than expected. They said that it is all about going back to the origins. Long time ago these three faiths were close and shared a lot of things, they also used the same buildings to pray but not exactly in the same period. In Turkey, for example, churches became mosques whereas mosques in Spain became cathedrals after the Christian conquest.

It all started in Periplatz and the idea came from the Christian side. Being situated in the heart of Berlin, near the Museum Island, Periplatz is one of the most foundarional sites of the city. Since the early Middle Ages it was a place of religious cult. The last church which was built on this land, was badly damaged during World War Two and destroyed later in the 1960s. In 2006-2009 there were remains of three previous churches uncovered. Asked if they wanted to use the site again, the Christian congregation chose a different solution instead. In cooperation with Jewish and Muslim societies, they set up a project of a house for all of them. Then the architecture competition started. The project of Archinet company won and now it is called 'House of One'.

According to Rabbi Tovia Ben Chorin, one of three involved leaders, location is significant. "From my Jewish point of view the city where Jewish suffering was planned is now the city where a centre is being built by the three monotheistic religions which shaped European culture," (Stephen Evans's radio report on the House of One on the Sunday programme at 07:10 BST on 22 June on BBC Radio 4). Berlin as a city where people from all over the world come is a great choice of such enterprise.

It will be a place where three different cultures will have an opportunity to learn from each other. It will be a good example of union for the whole world.

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REFERENCES

1. Michel Koczy / Betund Lehrhaus Petriplatz Berlin e.V.; Available at: https://archinect.com/features/article/149983433/designing-the-house-of-one-a-worship-space-for-three-religions-by-kuehn-malvezzi

2. VIEW FROM GertraudenstraSSe © Kuehn Malvezzi, Visualization: Davide Abbonacci, Kuehn Malvezzi; Available at: https://archinect.com/features/article/149983433/designing-the-house-of-one-a-worship-space-for-three-religions-by-kuehn-malvezzi

3. BBC 2018; Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-27872551

4. The Future Stars Here. Victoria and Albert Museum, London. 12.05 - 04.11.2018.