Rejuvenated

As students streamed into the Cathedral of the Ozarks for the first chapel of the semester, you could hear the oohs and aahs as they caught their first glimpse of the newly renovated Cathedral. Refinished pews and woodwork gleamed, a classic artwork tied to that day’s message filled the new lobby screen, and the sounds of the new organ, played by Seung-Won Cho, D.M.A., filled the sanctuary.

Later in the semester, during the Homecoming chapel, the university held a special rededication service to celebrate the completion of the $1.5 million interior renovation. President Emeritus John Brown III reflected on his grandfather’s vision for the Cathedral and its centrality to the Christ-centered education John E. Brown Sr. envisioned when he founded JBU in 1919.

Brown decided to break ground to build the Cathedral in 1945. World War II was just ending, enrollment was low, and the university was under bankruptcy restructuring. No fundraising consultant would have advised launching this ambitious project. However, in faith, the founder started construction.

It took over 12 years to complete, and Brown died just months before it was finished. But because of that bold faith, the Cathedral has been the university’s central place of worship for almost 70 years. More importantly, the worship, prayers, scripture reading, and preaching in that building have changed so many lives.

During the service, President Chip Pollard offered a brief homily based on Psalm 126:1-6, drawing a parallel between the physical restoration of the Cathedral and God’s ongoing work of spiritual restoration in our lives.

We rejoice that we were allowed to restore the interior to its original beauty for the next generations of JBU students and are deeply grateful to the many donors who generously supported the project.

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