'God Box' turns 50

When the 19-story Interchurch Center in Manhattan, N.Y., was planned by philanthropist John D. Rockefeller Jr. and others, mainline churches dominated the U.S. religious landscape.

Fifty years later, these denominations work in a culture of religious pluralism. The center, called the "God Box," once housed national denominational headquarters for Lutherans and Presbyterians.

Today it is home of the main United Methodist mission body, the National Council of Churches and "a richly diverse community of many faiths: Protestant, Orthodox, Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, and more," said NCC General Secretary Michael Kinnamon.