Although Chapel Hill and Durham have lots of tourist attractions, an informal survey suggests that among the top draws in the Triangle are Duke Chapel and Duke Gardens. Officials at both places estimate that more than 300,000 visitors from all over the world visit them during a normal year.

If you're a Triangle resident or a newcomer who has never toured the great Gothic church that towers over Duke University's West Campus, why not make a visit? After all, it's summer and in the South summer is a time for visiting.

Lois Oliver, head docent at the chapel, has been a volunteer for 14 years. She said this week that visitors come from all over the world to tour the campus church.

Often, she said, Triangle residents bring their visiting relatives and friends and end up dumbfounded themselves because in all their years of living in the area, they have never walked the long center aisle and enjoyed the beautiful stained glass windows or listened while Oliver tells stories and shares folklore about the building that was intended by the Dukes to be the centerpiece of the university campus.

If you decide to put Duke Chapel on your list, here are some tips.

The chapel is open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily and worship services are held at 11 a.m. on Sundays. As a university church, the chapel does not fly a denominational flag.

Even so, some folks think it is a Methodist church, possibly because the Dukes of Durham who endowed the university were Methodists. Or because the chapel is closely aligned with the Duke Divinity School, which is a Methodist-related institution.

At this time, the chapel is led by an Anglican priest whose title is Dean of Duke Chapel. That person is the Rev. Sam Wells, who came to Durham from Cambridge, England, in the summer of 2005. In the past, the chapel has had deans who were Methodist, as was the immediate past dean the Rev. Will Willimon, now a Methodist bishop, but it has also had a dean who was a Quaker and another who was a Presbyterian.

Oliver, or another docent on the volunteer staff, leads a tour of the building immediately after Sunday services. Among the many stories she can tell about the building, her favorite is a rather sad one, she said, but is a real part of the chapel's history.

James B. Duke selected the Philadelphia firm of Horace Trumbauer to design the West Campus. Julian Abele, co-worker with Trumbauer and the first black architect with a national reputation did most of the chapel design work. "But neither one got to see it built," Oliver said. "James Duke died after it was started and the architect probably did not come to the campus because of Jim Crow in the South."

On your visit, be sure to note the green devils in one of the stained glass windows on the right side of the main floor, an irony I always enjoy. Also, look around the chancel area carefully, because one of the wood carvers is purported to have created a church mouse and hid him among the intricacies of the beautiful design. Also, don't miss the statues located on both sides of the great portals at the front. One of my favorites is that of Robert E. Lee, located on the right side. The stone carver put "USA" on Lee's belt buckle and then realizing the error of his way went back, scratched it off and added "CSA."

As with all great buildings, folklore is rife. Oliver tells this one.

When the bodies of Washington Duke and his two sons, James Buchanan and Benjamin were moved from their graves in Maplewood Cemetery to the Memorial Chapel the actual move had to be done by night, because folks in Durham were stirred up about the disturbance of these graves and were opposed to the move.

Oliver said that children never fail to ask if the Dukes are "really" in the three marble sarcophagi that line the left wall of the Memorial Chapel, located to the left of the chancel area.

"Yes, they are," she says.

One of the most popular uses of the chapel is for weddings. These have to be scheduled a year ahead of time. It's not unusual for a bride or a member of the family to sleep out under the magnolia trees near the chapel on the night before Mollie Keel opens the wedding appointment book. Being in front of the line makes it more likely they will get the particular date they want.

Although Christian worship is conducted at the chapel, it is used by dozens of other religious groups represented in the student body of the university.

The chapel cornerstone was laid in 1930, and the building was dedicated in 1935. It was first used for commencement in 1932.

Discussion to focus on economic justice

An open discussion of economic justice in hard times will continue on Sunday, Aug. 2, from 8:30 to 10 a.m. at Community Church of Chapel Hill Unitarian Universalist, 106 Purefoy Road.

The discussion is expected to include thoughts about the present economic crisis, how it is impacting all in the community and what can be done to promote economic justice.

A light breakfast will be served. For further information call Ruth Gibson at 259-2894

Work resumes on new church building

Good news came this week from St. Barbara Greek Orthodox Church, a new church building on N.C. 751. Construction work has begun again and an October completion date has been announced.

To folks who travel 751, the great golden dome that sparkles in the sunlight and the exterior of the building suggest the congregation may be almost ready to move in. This is not the case. The interior portion of the project is being completed by a local general contractor, Riggs-Harrod Builders Inc.

In April, construction came to an abrupt halt after a problem with the out-of-town general contractor developed.

Since that time, the building has stood vacant and church officials have refused to discuss the details of the problems.

On the church's Web page, Father Andrew Koufopoulos wrote, "Our former contractor did us wrong. We lived up to our contract with him. I cannot judge him; he may have had reasons, but reasons or no reasons he wronged not only the Greek Orthodox Community of Durham but every one of our parishioners and our church in general."

St. Barbara serves a congregation from the Chapel Hill-Durham area.

Economy hinders Church World Service

The economic downturn has adversely affected the work of Church World Service, according to Mary Catherine Hinds, an official in the regional CWS office.

"This is the very time when the poorest of the world need help the most," she said this week. "For the most vulnerable families who benefit from CWS programs around the globe, the current crisis is overwhelmingly harsh."

Regional director Joe Moran of Durham said that CWS is calling on the community's help to build resources to fight hunger. He cited the following projects:

•Host a Blankets + event. Donations to the CWS Blankets + program provide items such as blankets, tents, tools and livestock.

•Assemble CWS Kits. Summer camps, school groups, Sunday school classes, women's groups and youth groups have found that putting together baby kits, hygiene kits, school kits and emergency clean-up buckets is a tangible and meaningful service project.

•Make a donation. Cash donations allow CWS to serve the most vulnerable wherever the need is greatest. For more information about any of these programs, call the CWS regional office at 888-297-2767.

Jewish Film Festival set for November

The Jewish Federation of Durham-Chapel Hill has announced dates for the Triangle Jewish Film Festival.

The opening reception is set for Thursday, Nov. 5, at 7 p.m. at the RTP Hilton. Festival Days are Saturday evening on Nov. 7 and Sunday afternoon on Nov. 8 at Galaxy Cinema in Cary.

The festival will feature a combination of full-length features, documentaries, shorts and animated films, some serious and others comedic. Some of the films are in English; those in other languages will have subtitles. All of the films have strong Jewish content and/or themes.