The newest Cathedral

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I would love to see this cathedral for myself, but I have to say, I think it is absolutely beautiful! Awesome, really, especially the image of Jesus.
in my own humble opinion…
 
Now I see the “Chernobyl-ness” of the Oakland cathedral.

In reality it looks like a horrifying waste of money to spend $190 million on this. What ever happened to being good stewards?
 
Sarabande said:
LOL!!! It does resemble it in a way.
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Corporate headquarters, Jetsons house, beehive, Protestant church, nuclear cooling tower, baseball trophy…sigh. It looks like everything but a Catholic cathedral.

If this confused building was a person it would have gender identity issues. :confused:
 
Mea_Culpa said:
That looks like the embodiment of the spirit of dissent and heterodoxy that we’ve had for the last 40 years (especially in the Bay Area). Will the first service there be a clown mass?
It looks like a roller coaster ride.
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I don’t know if that’s on purpose or not - is the model supposed to be that the faith is like a roller coaster?

It says it’s made of wood and glass. I wouldn’t want to be inside there when an earthquake hits. I’m surprised they were able to get it approved - it doesn’t look safe. It looks like the “Crystal Cathedral” by Disneyland (Robert Schuller “Hour of Power” ministry). Why the Catholic Church would want to copy the design of a marginal protestant church is beyond me. $190 for this? I’m glad St. Peter’s in Rome and St. Patrick’s in New York weren’t designed by these “award-winning” architects.

Thank you so much for finally naming it. I’ve known for some time that this “Church” reminded me of something familiar. You’re right…it looks like an amusement park ride.
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The outside looks like a fancy office building and the inside reminds me of an upside down basket. It kind of has that island hut feel. If you put some sand on the floor it would look real beachy.😃 Maybe the previous Bishop thought that would give it a multi-cultural feel.
The statuary looks primitive in some instances and garish in others. I guess that is also a nod to the “multi-cultural” make up of the diocese. I wonder how the people of different heritages like it.
I wonder if they find it inviting. I come from a Euro-American background so the traditional churches are awe-inspiring for me. I also love mission churches. My favorite is the San Xavior Church in Tuscan, AZ.
It’s too bad that they didn’t incorporate artwork based on artwork from the countries of the languages used for the masses or did they?
 
Galnextdoor said:
The outside looks like a fancy office building and the inside reminds me of an upside down basket. It kind of has that island hut feel. If you put some sand on the floor it would look real beachy.
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Yeah, it does kinda have an island feel. It reminded me of the feeling of being inside a wooden closet with blinds. But the hologram image is pretty cool.

http://ivotevalues.com/images/uploads/iStock_Peeking_through_blinds-resize4.jpg

http://www.ilovealamos.com/Loma_Guadalupe_Web_Site/images/masterbedroomclosetlouvers.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2394/2316128654_a9c3ffa4a7.jpg
 
I have been following this thread with some intrest, I have never been to the Cathedral of Light, but went to a university attacheched to a monestary. The monestary got a new Abby church in the 60s right before Vatican II, so the church was built in the “new” style. It is generally a very hidious building, built out of contrete in a very blocky style with very dark pews. However, as a student I attended daily mass and some Sunday masses here. The church provided a great atmosphere of prayer and austerity (which for a benedictan monestray a good thing). I particularly enjoyed daily Mass where “guests” at in the choir stalls opposite of the monks. I still prefer old style churches, but these “modern” churchs may still perform the functions they were ment to. I now attend a Catherderal church which is in the old style, but often it is the things in the church rather than the actual building. At chuch today people were very loud before mass and it was much more distracting than ugly building.

Though I still would prefer a more traditional church, with stained glass, an abundance of statues, and the like.

Peace,
 
jilly4ski said:
I have been following this thread with some intrest, I have never been to the Cathedral of Light, but went to a university attacheched to a monestary. The monestary got a new Abby church in the 60s right before Vatican II, so the church was built in the “new” style. It is generally a very hidious building, built out of contrete in a very blocky style with very dark pews. However, as a student I attended daily mass and some Sunday masses here. The church provided a great atmosphere of prayer and austerity (which for a benedictan monestray a good thing). I particularly enjoyed daily Mass where “guests” at in the choir stalls opposite of the monks. I still prefer old style churches, but these “modern” churchs may still perform the functions they were ment to. I now attend a Catherderal church which is in the old style, but often it is the things in the church rather than the actual building. At chuch today people were very loud before mass and it was much more distracting than ugly building.

Though I still would prefer a more traditional church, with stained glass, an abundance of statues, and the like.

Peace,
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Hi, welcome to CAF!

IMO some of these modern churches do not perform the functions of the old ones. Many of the new ones leave one feeling like one’s in any other normal place, yes Mass can be celebrated there reverently enough but it does not provide a particularly nice place to come and pray, which is quite true for my local church (I’d say my church is half modern but still quite plain and ugly); but then a few weeks ago I went to my second nearest church (in “the old style” from the 1920s) and it was much nicer, I could go there for a quiet time to pray; a church chould transend the world outside and be completely aimed at God, when one walks in one should be separated from the outside world into the divine, instead of brought into a 1970s theatre with an altar. So I’ll have to say no, they do not perform the function (at least not completely).

I definately agree about the loud peopel before (and after) Mass though.
 
It is my opinion that the cathedral is quite nice. The thing that I like most about this church and many new cathedrals (Our Lady of the Angels in LA, for example) is that the mass is celebrated “in the round” (there are pews all around the altar). I believe that this is how the masses during early Christianity were celebrated. This experience also promotes a general feeling of community, which so many Catholic churches (especially) today lack. I think that it is wonderful that a new cathedral church should be built in a way that is in accordance with Vatican II, and I think that it is wonderful that a cathedral, the leading parish in a diocese, should be taking the steps to make a parish more accessible to all that come to it. Catholicism is today more than ever becoming extremely conservative, glorifying the liturgy (especially the Latin Rite) instead of glorifying the act of the communion, in which Christ invites ALL to participate, not just the priest or the altar servers (as seen in pre-Vatican II times).
 
I have been inside and do not care for it. It is “urban” to an extreme, lacking a sense of quiet and “apartness.” There’s a lot of bustling going on, with everyone and his cousin wanting to take a bleeping tour. The reconciliation room is completely open with zero door on the outside & zero option of anonymity. There are two side areas which feature two different ethnic displays. If you are of one of those 2 ethnic groups, you can relate; if not, you can’t. There’s not much “universal” (catholic) about it, i.m.o.

I did not experience it as a prayerful place. Sad, with all the money spent on it. I’ve been in better modern cathedrals, and much better old cathedrals.

One confession was being heard randomly out in the open. I wouldn’t go to confession there. Didn’t feel a sense of privacy.
 
cholman said:
It is my opinion that the cathedral is quite nice. The thing that I like most about this church and many new cathedrals (Our Lady of the Angels in LA, for example) is that the mass is celebrated “in the round” (there are pews all around the altar). I believe that this is how the masses during early Christianity were celebrated. This experience also promotes a general feeling of community, which so many Catholic churches (especially) today lack. I think that it is wonderful that a new cathedral church should be built in a way that is in accordance with Vatican II, and I think that it is wonderful that a cathedral, the leading parish in a diocese, should be taking the steps to make a parish more accessible to all that come to it. Catholicism is today more than ever becoming extremely conservative, glorifying the liturgy (especially the Latin Rite) instead of glorifying the act of the communion, in which Christ invites ALL to participate, not just the priest or the altar servers (as seen in pre-Vatican II times).
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I attended several round-style churches growing up and never felt a special sense of community in them that I didn’t also feel in more traditional buildings. If anything, I found traditional buildings more stimulating.

As for the cathedral - I like the wood slatted ceiling (gives a little warmth modern churches sorely lack) and the Christ image, but overall it looks like the type of church I would have been bored silly in when I was little because it is, on the whole, rather stark and sterile. However, the inside looks way better than the outside.
 
cholman said:
It is my opinion that the cathedral is quite nice. The thing that I like most about this church and many new cathedrals (Our Lady of the Angels in LA, for example) is that the mass is celebrated “in the round” (there are pews all around the altar). I believe that this is how the masses during early Christianity were celebrated. This experience also promotes a general feeling of community, which so many Catholic churches (especially) today lack. I think that it is wonderful that a new cathedral church should be built in a way that is in accordance with Vatican II, and I think that it is wonderful that a cathedral, the leading parish in a diocese, should be taking the steps to make a parish more accessible to all that come to it. Catholicism is today more than ever becoming extremely conservative, glorifying the liturgy (especially the Latin Rite) instead of glorifying the act of the communion, in which Christ invites ALL to participate, not just the priest or the altar servers (as seen in pre-Vatican II times).
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And just how is this cathedral “in accordance with Vatican II” as you stated?

Please quote the Vatican II documentation that called for churches to be built in this way, as apparently there are printing errors in all the copies of the VII documents to which I have been exposed, given the fact that none of them call for this.
 
Although I haven’t visited, my first impression of the photos was that they built a cathedral covered with glass in an area known for severe earthquakes. I would not want to be sitting in there if a quake happened.

While Mass was celebrated in different ways in the early Church because of persecution, the Latin word circumstare (standing around) was generally interpreted to mean “standing in proximity” rather than “standing around the altar in a circle,” which was a pagan practice. Since the time of Constantine, churches ordinarily took on the interior form of the Temple in Jerusalem, with a rectangular nave and a sanctuary symbolic of the Holy of Holies. No official Church document ever mandated churches “in the round.” Our model was the Roman basilica, not the theatre or the circus.

Bayside: New York.
Bay Area: San Francisco and Oakland.
 
Elizabeth502 said:
I have been inside and do not care for it. It is “urban” to an extreme, lacking a sense of quiet and “apartness.” There’s a lot of bustling going on, with everyone and his cousin wanting to take a bleeping tour. The reconciliation room is completely open with zero door on the outside & zero option of anonymity. There are two side areas which feature two different ethnic displays. If you are of one of those 2 ethnic groups, you can relate; if not, you can’t. There’s not much “universal” (catholic) about it, i.m.o.

I did not experience it as a prayerful place. Sad, with all the money spent on it. I’ve been in better modern cathedrals, and much better old cathedrals.

One confession was being heard randomly out in the open. I wouldn’t go to confession there. Didn’t feel a sense of privacy.
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I haven’t read anything about any ethnic displays in the cathedral. If you’re talking about statues of Our Lady of Guadalupe or LaVang, they are fairly common in Catholic churches.
 
JPUSC said:
I haven’t read anything about any ethnic displays in the cathedral. If you’re talking about statues of Our Lady of Guadalupe or LaVang, they are fairly common in Catholic churches.
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It’s better to visit than to “read anything.” There is not just a statue or a picture, which I agree is a common sight in many a traditional, old church, even. These are entire sections of displays. I do not believe there is any Latin Mass (I could be wrong about that), but there are daily masses in various ethnic languages.
 
Elizabeth502 said:
I have been inside and do not care for it. It is “urban” to an extreme, lacking a sense of quiet and “apartness.” There’s a lot of bustling going on, with everyone and his cousin wanting to take a bleeping tour. The reconciliation room is completely open with zero door on the outside & zero option of anonymity. There are two side areas which feature two different ethnic displays. If you are of one of those 2 ethnic groups, you can relate; if not, you can’t. There’s not much “universal” (catholic) about it, i.m.o.

I did not experience it as a prayerful place. Sad, with all the money spent on it. I’ve been in better modern cathedrals, and much better old cathedrals.

One confession was being heard randomly out in the open. I wouldn’t go to confession there. Didn’t feel a sense of privacy.
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In the earliest practices of ‘confession’ in the Church, it was ‘not’ private but public. This eventually created scandals within the Laity and Clergy alike and was eventually practiced as a ‘private’ matter between the Laity and the Priest (who represented the Church).

Orthodox Christians still practice a largely ‘public’ confession. Although it’s normally difficult to actually hear what is said.
 
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