An international competition to design a new national landmark in honour of answered prayer was launched in the UK last week in conjunction with the Royal Institute of British Architects.
The idea of Richard Gamble, the former chaplain of Leicester City Football Club, the structure will be made up of million bricks, each of which will represent an individual prayer to Jesus which He has answered. Earlier this year more than £47,000 was raised from Christians across the globe through a crowd-funding campaign for the project.
Mr Gamble said it was a “real thrill” to hit the crowdfunding target earlier this year. “That has enabled us to partner with RIBA to run a global design competition,” he said. “Now in just a matter of months we will be able to get an idea of what ‘The Wall of Answered Prayer’ will look like.”
Entries for the design are being accepted online at www.thewall.org.uk/riba-competition. A judging panel including Mr Gamble, architect Renato Benedetti, curators Anna Pepperall and Jes Fernie, MP Stephen Timms, Baroness Sal Brinton, Pam Rhodes, presenter of BBCs’ Songs of Praise, and, Victoria Lawrence, founder of Abigail Ministries, will announce a short-list of designs in January.
The proposed site of the monument – which could be the size of 62 houses and is intended to be built alongside a motorway – is expected to be announced in the middle of next year.
