Not bigger, just more.
Calatrava's design will have movable glass-and-steel sections. "The idea was for a building that would be like a pair of hands," Calatrava says. "The hands can be brought together in prayer or they can be opened to the sky."
Posted on 05/08/2004 11:44:19 AM PDT by MegaSilver
BISHOP ALLEN VIGNERON, shepherd of the Roman Catholic Diocese, heard something he didn't like from his flock about Diocesan plans for the 17-story Christ the Light Cathedral last week at a community meeting.
These were not sheep-like Catholics, and they knew the scriptures.
What the bishop heard was a respectful bleating. "Baaaaa ..."
Several who spoke said the $131 million price tag for building the cathedral complex should instead be spent on the poor and homeless as taught by Jesus Christ and the Bible.
The proposed soaring edifice would be a "symbol of wealth and the pride of man," said one critic, asserting he knew of no one who had been asked for an opinion about the building.
Another speaker said, "I will be ashamed to enter the Cathedral if $131 million is spent to build it. That's money that should help the poor and
homeless. Our priorities are wrong."
Vigneron seemed dismayed but not discouraged, and launched a defense that there's a need for a stronger Catholic presence in downtown Oakland to "sanctify, educate and serve."
Cost of the 110,000-square-foot site, previously approved by the city for an office building, was $30 million. The cathedral design calls for a glass veil to reflect sunlight and glow in the dark. Thirty-three existing trees on the vacant site will be removed and replaced with new ones.
An unusual use of the ground under the cathedral will be a mausoleum where deceased Catholics could be interred for $1,600. For those who prefer cremation -- permissible under new rules of the Vatican -- there will be 6,000 spaces for urns of ashes. The money will be used to offset cathedral expenses,
Underground mausoleums are common in Europe and in some older U.S. churches such as the California missions. But none has such large spaces reserved for the dead as this sizable underground cemetery.
The bishop said there is a need to establish a "strong identity and sense of unity" in the Diocese, which covers Alameda and Contra Costa counties with extremely diverse populations.
He maintained the cathedral will be a parish, as well as a gathering place for the 500,000 Catholics in the diocese. Vigneron said the cathedral will be completed in 2006, and the entire complex of buildings could be completed by 2007. Of the $131 million, $80 million is for the sanctuary building.
The complex will include a new rectory, chancery offices, a conference center, a 200-seat chapel, cafe and bookstore and a 200-car parking garage expected to create revenue of $300,000 a year. The present chancery office on Lakeshore Drive and the rectory on 21st Street will be sold.
After Vigneron left the session midway to prepare for a trip to Rome, John McDonnell, Oakland attorney and choir director of the celebrated St. Francis de Sales choir, answered questions. He was assisted by Lee Nordlund, both volunteers with the project. The two men are leaders of 150 select Catholics who have participated in the Holy Names committee, previously known under former Bishop John Cummins as the Cathedral Project.
As for the anticipated core congregation, Vigneron said members of St. Mary's/St. Francis Church on Jefferson Street will move to the cathedral and become the new parish. With such a spectacular building, many Catholic and non-Catholic visitors are also expected.
But an active parishioner of St. Mary's said most people who attend are poor Vietnamese who say they would feel uncomfortable worshipping in a grand building like Christ the Light. They prefer the old St. Mary's.
A woman who lives three blocks from Grand Avenue and Harrison Street declared she would never become a member of the parish, preferring to remain in her present parish, Our Lady of Lourdes on Lakeshore Drive, where the meeting was held. About 60 people attended.
Vigneron spoke of the Forest City uptown development of 1,000 residences yet to be started that will generate new members for the cathedral parish.
Anticipating questions about his decision to close three Catholic schools, Vigneron said the Christ the Light Cathedral is not being built at the expense of the schools. They are being closed because of the quality of education, changes in the community, low enrollment and financial instability, said the bishop. The two issues are completely separate financially, he said.
The project is on its way with $65 million already pledged by a foundation whose name the bishop said would not be made public until a future date.
On May 23 at 3 p.m., Bishop Vigneron will bless the ground at the Grand and Harrison site. Everyone is invited to attend.
E-mail Peggy Stinnett at pstinnett@angnewspapers.com.
Google for pictures of the wrecknovation Sinky, it's appalling. Rembert was kind enough top leave a large picture of himself inside though.
I've seen his writings in the diocesan newspaper and at a priest's funeral where he used the 's' word (sin),which, as you know is rare these days.
I know that the libs are up in arms because he has kept out VOT(un)F from a conference.
These are all good signs and I am hoping for the best, but I know that he wants this cathedral (as did his predecessor of unhappy memory) and I think it is as ugly as sin and not becoming of a Catholic place of worship.
Can you imagine what it would cost if it was the government building it?
The planners on the building committee should be shot.
Not bigger, just more.
Calatrava's design will have movable glass-and-steel sections. "The idea was for a building that would be like a pair of hands," Calatrava says. "The hands can be brought together in prayer or they can be opened to the sky."
I am guessing Vigneron is only taking this Beached Whale because it doesn't cost him a dime. Sort of like either accept a free brand new Toyota xB or keep walking. Take it or leave it type of deal.
It also appears the old flunky bishop Cummins still has a big hand in this deal. After all, it's his groupies that put together the money. The original designed has been modified since Vigneron's arrival but I understand it's still ugly. No chance the modernists will put money into a new orthodox design at this stage.
Is Bishop Cummins, now retired, still involved in the Cathedral Project?Yes. Bishop Cummins was appointed Episcopal Vicar of the Cathedral Project by Bishop Vigneron. He is a member of the steering committee, and remains active in the project.
Like the saying goes, architects should be forced to live in the buildings they design.
I agree; it's just about the ugliest "Cathedral" design I've ever laid eyes on. It's even worse than the Taj Mahoney.
You know what's funny, I went to the official website - www.christthelightcathedral.org - and I couldn't find a picture of this beast. I ran through quickly, maybe I missed it, but it is most definitely NOT prominent.
Maybe we should start a campaign to change the design.
Surprised? I'm not. If the parishioners ever found out precisely WHAT was being built, I wager they'd burn Vigneron's house down.
I've seen it. And I wouldn't be surprised if you were right on the money.
We have to expose this thing. We have to do whatever it takes to make sure that gawdy monstrosity never sees the light of day, lest we turn the page to a very humiliating chapter in the history of the Church.
CHRIST THE LIGHT CATHEDRAL [Oakland, California] Since Calatrava's complex feats of engineering are often described as cathedral-like (perhaps because the ribs of his structures resemble Gothic buttresses), it is fitting that he won the competition to design the Christ the Light Cathedral in Oakland, California. Brother Mel Anderson of the Diocese of Oakland's building committee says it will be "a dazzling signature" for a city that is often considered a lesser stepsister to San Francisco. The building has no skin inside or out, so the nave (above) is a direct extension of the exterior (shown in Calatrava's watercolor).
We can all be Jonah living in the whale. Sailors do not like a Jonah on their boats!
There's a couple of photos on this thread. And yes, the previous bishop still has a hand in this, though the plans have been slightly modified.
Especially when one considers that it's a multimillion dollar venture, it's probably the cheapest-looking Cathedral I've ever seen.
Yes, John started this misadventure and tried to get JPII to keep him past retirement so that he could build his edifice complex, but JPII 'accepted' his retirement at 75.
His buildings are dreadful to look at. Modern architecture is nothing if not vomit-worthy.
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