SANTIAGO, Chile — Significant progress is being made in the construction of the Baha'i House of Worship here, the final one to be erected to serve an entire continent.

Work has been completed on a complex three-storey structure and underground service tunnel, requiring more than 2,000 cubic metres of concrete and 190 tonnes of reinforced steel.

Now the next major phase of the project - the erection of the Temple's distinctive superstructure - has commenced.

The recent developments were announced in a letter from the Universal House of Justice, dated 26 November.

"We are delighted to share news of the progress on the construction of the continental House of Worship for South America rising in the foothills of the Andes in Chile," the Universal House of Justice wrote.

The 30-metre high superstructure will include an exterior envelope made of cast-glass pieces that will be mounted on some 3,200 aluminium frames, as well as more than 8,000 robotically milled panels of translucent stone which will clad the Temple's interior.

They are being fabricated in several facilities in Europe and the Americas and shipped to Chile for assembly and installation by a small team of engineers now working on-site together with local contractors, staff, and volunteers.

"Discernible on the horizon from the city of Santiago is the structure's central scaffolding tower, upon which has been hoisted into prominent position the steel oculus ring that will unite eighteen arched tubular columns at the uppermost point of the edifice," observed the Universal House of Justice.

When completed, the edifice in Santiago will be the eighth in a series of continental Baha'i Houses of Worship-distinctive buildings, open to everyone-established to integrate worship with service.

An integral concept of each Baha'i House of Worship is that it is a place of prayer and meditation as well as a spiritual center around which agencies and institutions of social, humanitarian, and educational service will emerge to serve the surrounding population.

Two videos released

A new video depicting the progress of the House of Worship's construction has recently been released. It shows the completion of the concrete structural elements and highlights the fabrication work of the components of the building's superstructure. A second video shows initiatives that are under way to develop vibrant united communities dedicated to the service of humanity in the neighborhoods surrounding the House of Worship. The videos can be viewed here in English, and here in Spanish.