MIRACLE ON 3RD Will Open at Ministry of Awe in Philadelphia

For generations, Philadelphia families have made a holiday pilgrimage to see the lights at the Wanamaker Building. This year, with the holiday light show on hiatus while the building undergoes renovation, the Ministry of Awe (MoA) is offering families a chance to see a new holiday event.

Housed inside a transformed 19th-century bank at 27 N. 3rd Street in Old City, Ministry of Awe is a six-story immersive art experience filled with large-scale installations, labyrinthine passageways, soundscapes, interactive elements, and unexpected discoveries. For the 2026 holiday season, MoA is adding a new, offbeat holiday experience. Opening on Friday, November 20, Miracle on 3rd will transform the Ministry into a surprising, participatory world of light, projection, sound, art and imagination, inviting visitors not simply to watch a holiday spectacle, but to become part of it.

At the heart of Miracle on 3rd is a simple idea: Miracles aren't supernatural…they happen when people come together. “At Miracle on 3rd, you do not only watch the holiday spectacle—you enter it, see yourself in it, contribute to it, and discover something miraculous with others,” says Meg Saligman, Founder and Bank President of MoA. “Across cultures and centuries, the darkest days of the year have inspired humanity to make light. At the winter solstice, the sun begins its return. Sacred oil meant for one night miraculously burns for eight. A beautiful baby is born beneath a star, carrying hope into a troubled world. We light candles, gather around fires, exchange gifts, tell stories, and sing together—insisting, against all evidence, that brightness will return. That insistence is the miracle.”

Across MoA's three-story atrium, familiar holiday materials will be transformed, visitors will see themselves become part of a monumental work of art, and an immersive light-and-sound spectacle will unfold every half hour.

Three ways to experience the Miracle

Instead of a traditional holiday display, MoA's atrium will be transformed using recycled, repurposed, donated and collected materials — including donated and broken holiday decorations, glowing lights, ornaments, paper and repurposed gift boxes. The holidays of the past become the raw material for something entirely new, as lanterns, lights, movement and sound will combine to create a layered, handmade environment that feels unmistakably Ministry of Awe. Objects that might otherwise be discarded or forgotten will take on new life, becoming part of an ever-changing holiday world.

A monumental puppet will also inhabit MoA's three-story atrium — but the star of the show might be the person standing in front of it. Via projection technology, visitors will see their own faces become part of the giant puppet, creating a magical and highly personal encounter. Designed to be experienced, photographed and shared, the installation turns an individual visitor into part of a much larger work of art.

Every half hour, MoA's Heavens become the setting for an immersive spectacle of projection, music, sound and light. But this is not a show that simply happens to an audience. Visitor contributions, voices, and interactions become part of what unfolds, creating a shared experience that changes throughout the day.