"Is this really a church?" A natural reaction people have when experiencing the effect created on the cloister facade. Positioned between the two panes of glass are spoons, light bulbs, stones and cloth. During the Expo, this extraordinary facade was apparently criticized for being "too secular", "too bold", and "too grandstanding" for a church building. On the contrary, however, these elements were intentionally integrated into the facade in order to realize the Expo's theme of "People - Nature - Technology". Specifically, on one side are things taken from the natural environment (such as charcoal, rush, bamboo, lumber cut in round shapes, poppy seeds and feathers) and on the other side are things with technological origins (such as cogwheels, tea strainers, hoses, disposable lighters and hypodermic needles). Within the panels, elements that relate to each other are placed on top and bottom so that they touch. For instance, a lava flower from which oil is extruded would be above a lighter, a safflower that represents the sun would be above a lamp, and so on. There are also some ironic combinations such as poppy seeds with a hypodermic needle and a sugar cane with a toothbrush.

Just as the stained glass in churches of yesteryear have narrated the life of Christ, these significant facades have allowed people to raise awareness of and reflect on the many existing issues that the world is faced with today. Furthermore, the elements that fill Volkenroda's cloister facade each possess their own unique level of light translucency or transparency. When illuminated, the pure pattern of light created on the elements is beautiful. This effect goes beyond the original expectation of stained glass of the depiction and telling of a story. Light throughout the cloister changes according to these elements and this effect provides dramatic color to the space.

Although the qualities of "Christ's Room" and the "cloister" completely differ from each other, the themes of the two are the same. To explain this, the designer stated that "the combination of natural materials and innovative modern design and the combination of historic church windows and present day advanced building technology, symbolizes that synthesis - dialectical integration - has occurred." These two spaces of differing qualities positioned side-by-side allows this dialectical integration to be created and felt.

(written by editor)