A small chapel, built in 1940, situated in the center of the Alpe d'Huez, was initially dedicated to the Marian cult. In 1960, the priest, Jaap Reuten, asked Jean Le Boucher and architect Jean Marol to build a church-shaped tent, representing Abraham, the first Biblical patriarch, to replace the chapel with a structure visible from the Meije, in preparation for the Olympic Games of 1968.