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Christ Cathedral (Garden Grove, California)

Coordinates: 33°47′15″N 117°53′56″W / 33.787396°N 117.898933°W / 33.787396; -117.898933
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Crystal Cathedral" redirects here. For the church organization previously headquartered there, see Shepherd's Grove.

Christ Cathedral
The former Crystal Cathedral
Christ Cathedral in 2018
Map
33°47′15″N 117°53′56″W / 33.787396°N 117.898933°W / 33.787396; -117.898933
CountryUnited States
DenominationCatholic
Previous denominationReformed Church in America (1980–2013)
Websitechristcathedralcalifornia.org
History
Founded1955
Founder(s)Robert H. Schuller
(as Crystal Cathedral)
Dedicated1980 (as Crystal Cathedral)
2019 (as Christ Cathedral)
Consecrated1980 (as Reformed Church in America)
2019 (as Catholic Church)
Architecture
Architect(s)Philip Johnson
John Burgee
StyleModern architecture
Groundbreaking1977
Completed1980
Construction cost$18 million
Administration
DioceseOrange
Clergy
Bishop(s)Kevin Vann
RectorBảo Quốc Thái

Christ Cathedral (Latin: Cathedralis Christi; Spanish: Catedral de Cristo; Vietnamese: Nhà Thờ Chính Tòa Chúa Kitô), is an American church building in Garden Grove, California, that serves the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange. It was previously known as the Crystal Cathedral, one of the largest and most distinctive Protestant churches in the country.

The reflective glass building, designed by Philip Johnson/John Burgee Architects, seats 2,248 people.[1][2] After its completion in 1918, it was described as "the largest glass building in the world".[3] The building has one of the largest musical instruments in the world, the Hazel Wright Organ.[4][5]

From its opening in 1981 to 2013, the building was home of Crystal Cathedral Ministries ,a congregation of the Reformed Church in America that was founded in 1955 by Robert H. Schuller. The ministry's weekly television program, Hour of Power. was produced at the cathedral.

Crystal Cathedral Ministries filed for bankruptcy protection in October 2010 and in February 2012 sold the building and its adjacent campus to the Diocese of Orange for use as its new cathedral. The diocese renovated the building and its interior to accommodate Catholic liturgy and address problems with heat, glare and acoustics.

Following the building's renovation, the diocese consecrated and formally renamed it as "Christ Cathedral", the seat of the Diocese of Orange,[6][7] on July 17, 2019.[8]

History

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Origin of congregation

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Robert H. Schuller and his wife Arvella Schuller founded the Garden Grove Community Church in 1955.[9] A member of the Protestant Reformed Church in America, the congregation first held services at the Orange Drive-In Theatre in Orange, California. The congregants would sit in their cars while Robert Schuller delivered his sermon from the top of the concession stand. He also rented a 300-seat former Baptist church in a different location for those who wanted inside seating.[10]

To accommodate the growth of their congregation, the Schullers in 1958 bought 10 acres in Garden Grove for a larger combination drive-in/sit-in church. Designed by architect Richard Neutra, the new church opened in 1961.[11]In 1968, the Schullers opened the 13-story Tower of Hope building on the campus for classrooms and office space. It was topped with a large illuminated cross.

The rapid growth of the congregation soon outstripped the capacity of the current church. Schuller then commissioned the architectural firm of Philip Johnson/John Burgee Architects in New York City to design a church with a seating capacity of 2,248 worshipers on the Garden Grove campus.

Construction of Crystal Cathedral

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The congregation began construction of Crystal Cathedral in 1977; it was completed in 1980 at a cost of $18 million (equivalent to $67 million in 2023). It was 415 feet long by 215 feet wide, with a height of 128 feet. It was topped by a beacon for aircraft.[12]

Chrystal Cathedral interior (2005)
Crystal Cathedral (2009)
Crystal Cathedral (2011)

The architects designed the cathedral to withstand a magnitude 8.0 earthquake. The 10,000 rectangular panes of glass on the building were reflective on the outside and transparent on the inside. They were attached to the framework with a silicone-based glue to mitigate earthquake damage. No crystal glass was used in its construction. The altar, constructed of red marble, was 185 feet long. The cathedral featured 52-bell carillon. The cathedral also has an underground chapel with a revolving crystal cross.[12][13]

The opening gala for the cathedral was held on May 14, 1980, with 3,000 guests paying $1,500 each. The gala included a recital of music by Vivaldi, Shubert, and Rossini, with the operatic singer Beverly Sills performing solos.[14]

Prayer spire (2009)

After moving into the new sanctuary in 1981, the congregation changed its name to Crystal Ministries.[13] The $5.5 million stainless steel prayer spire was constructed in 1991. The Crystal Cathedral became the new venue for Robert Schuller's Hour of Power television broadcasts on Sunday mornings. These broadcasts regularly reached a worldwide audience of 20 million viewers.[15] In a 2011 Los Angeles Times article, Bishop Tod Brown mentioned that, over the years, foreign priests visiting the Diocese of Orange invariably asked to visit the Crystal Cathedral.[16]

Bankruptcy

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By early 2010, Crystal Cathedral Ministries was in deep financial trouble due to his high costs and reduced contributions resulting from the Great Recession of 2007 to 2009. It was facing multiple lawsuits from unpaid creditors, with one board member estimating that they were $55 million in debt. It was also facing a contentious transition from the leadership of Robert and Avella Schueller.[17][18]

The ministries' board filed for bankruptcy protection on October 18, 2010, citing $43 million in debt, including a $36 million mortgage. Ministries officials tried to negotiate a payment plan with their creditors. However, after receiving several lawsuits writs of attachment, the Ministries was forced to file for bankruptcy.[19]

After the filing, the ministries received offers for the Crystal Cathedral campus from a real estate investment group and Chapman University in Orange. Chapman offered $59 million for the campus, planning to use it for health sciences studies and possibly a medical school.[20]

Sale of Crystal Cathedral

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On July 7, 2011, the Diocese of Orange announced its interest in buying the Crystal Cathedral campus.[21] The diocese had previously purchased land in Santa Ana, California to build a new cathedral as it had outgrown Holy Family Cathedral in Orange. Crystal Cathedral offered the diocese three main benefits as a cathedral site :

  • Garden Grove was a more central location than Santa Ana
  • The cost of renovating Crystal Cathedral was far less than building a new cathedral
  • The diocese could readily use the other buildings on the Chrystal Cathedral campus for offices and ministries, further reducing the project cost.

The diocese made an initial offer of $50 million for the property, then increased it to $53.6 million. The offer also allowed Chrystal Cathedral Ministries to lease the campus and the former St. Callistus Church for several years.[22] Sheila Colman, the new director of the Ministries, accepted this offer. The Ministries board originally planned to accept the higher offer from Chapman, then decided to sell it to the diocese because they wanted the cathedral to remain a religious institution.[23]On November 17, 2011, Bankruptcy Court Judge Robert N. Kwan approved the sale of the cathedral to the diocese for $57.5 million (equivalent to $78 million in 2023).[23][24]

Days after the judge's ruling, the Italian newspaper La Stampa published an article about a new a Vatican commission. The paper said it would "...put a stop to garage style churches, boldly shaped structures that risk denaturing modern places for Catholic worship". La Stampa used a photo of Chrystal Cathedral in the article.[25][26] The Vatican approved the diocese using the Chrystal Cathedral two weeks after the judge's ruling.[27]

The Crystal Cathedral sale was finalized on February 3, 2012. The diocese then transferred the St. Callistus parish to the old Garden Grove church on the cathedral campus, renaming it Christ Cathedral Parish.[28][29] The campus cemetery was immediately transferred to the diocese, which quickly moved offices into the other campus buildings.[29] Bishop Brown stated that once Crystal Cathedral Ministries moved out, the diocese would renovate the cathedral to make it suitable for the Catholic liturgy. They made no plans to substantially change the building exterior.[30]

Crystal Cathedral (2009)

Planning of Christ Cathedral

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On June 9, 2012, the diocese announced that new cathedral would be named "Christ Cathedral",[31]with the Reverend Christopher Smith serving as its first rector and episcopal vicar.[32] The Vatican chose this name after taking input from the diocese and its members.[33] In October 2012, before the property transfer, the diocese held its first event at the cathedral, the 7th Orange County Catholic Prayer Breakfast [7] The Christ Cathedral Parish would continue until June 2013 to celebrate masses and other liturgies in the old Garden Grove church, now known as the Arboretum.

Crystal Cathedral Ministries held its final worship service in Crystal Cathedral on June 30, 2013.[34] They held their next service at the former St. Callistus Church on July 7, 2013. The congregation, now much reduced, moved in 2018 to another facility, which it named Shepherd Grove, in Irvine, California.[35] The St. Callistus Catholic school moved into the former Crystal Cathedral Academy facility, changing its name to Christ Cathedral Academy, in September 2013.[36] Robert Schuller died in 2015; his funeral service was conducted outside the cathedral.[15] On September 24, 2014, the diocese unveiled it plans to remodel Christ Cathedral.[37] The diocese chose the Los Angeles design firm Johnson Fain as the architects and Snyder Langston as the general contractor.[38]The diocese appointed Brother William J. Woeger of the De La Salle Brothers to serve as the principal liturgical consultant.[39][37]

To fund the renovations, the diocese first allocated $59 million of the proceeds of the 2021 "For Christ Forever" fundraising campaign. In 2014, an anonymous benefactor contributed $20 million in additional funding. However, it was later determined that the diocese reached its cost estimates for the project without "serious study or professional recommendations". In July 2016, the diocese revised the cost estimate for the renovations to $108 million. To save money, the diocese opted to use a locally-sourced marble veneer instead of solid marble from Italy and decided planning to "keep the bones of the building intact". This lowered the project cost to $72 million.[40][41]

Renovations

[edit]

Construction began around June 1, 2017, with an expected completion date of late 2018.[38] The main problem with the exterior of the building was the glass walls, which contributed to excessive glare and heat inside.[42] The diocesan vice president of philanthropy, Tony Jennison, explained that "you could see people fanning themselves and even wearing sunglasses on Hour of Power". The glass walls also hampered the ability to illuminate the interior at night and created bad acoustics.

  • To solve the glare, heat and sound problems, the contractor lined the exterior of the glass walls with angled quatrefoils. They reduced the amount of heat and outside light entering the building and improved its acoustics.
  • To improve the interior illumination, the contractor installed lights on the quatrefoils, giving the Chrystal Cathedral a shimmering effect at night, described as a "box of stars".[37][43]

The contractor planted crape myrtle trees on the path from the parking lot to the cathedral plazas; these were mean to symbolize the "beginning" of holiness as worshippers progressed to the alta inside. The contractor removed the Hazel Wright Organ was removed from the cathedral, disassembled and shipped back to Italy for an extensive restoration; it was also painted white so that it would not distract from the altar.[44][6][45]The contractor also installed air conditioning in the Arboretum and seismic retrofitting of the cathedral.[43][42]

The diocese placed several first-class relics in the reliquary of the cathedral altar to reflect the diversity of the Catholic community. These relics were connected to the eight Canadian Martyrs, the Reverend Andrew Dũng-Lạc, the Reverend Junípero Serra, the Reverend Andrew Kim Taegon, and Bishop Rafael Guízar y Valencia.[46]

Dedication of Christ Cathedral

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Christ Cathedral interior (2019)

On June 29, 2018, the Bishop of Orange, Kevin Vann, proclaimed a "holy year of preparation" ahead of the solemn dedication of the new cathedral.[47] On October 13, 2018, the quatrefoils were blessed and officially illuminated for the first time.[43]A formal celebration event and concert by the Pacific Symphony were held at the cathedral on July 13, 2019.[48] The formal dedication mass took place on July 17, 2019;[49][50][51] [52][53][6]

The diocese opened the shrine of Our Lady of La Vang on the cathedral campus in 2021. The shrine includes a 12-foot-tall (3.7 m) statue of the Virgin Mary capped by a spiraling canopy.[54] The St. Callistus Chapel and Crypts were completed in October 2024 and dedicated by Bishop Vann on October 14, 2024. This event marked the formal completion of the Christ Cathedral renovation project.[55][56]

Cathedral organ

[edit]
Hazel-Wright Organ

Main article: Hazel Wright Organ

The Christ Cathedral is home to the Hazel Wright Organ, the fifth largest pipe organ in the world,[5] It was constructed by the firm Fratelli Ruffatti in Padua, Italy, based on specifications provided by the organists Virgil Fox and Frederick Swann. Swann served as the organist at the Crystal Cathedral from 1982 to 1998. The Hazel Wright pipe organ has 273 ranks and five manuals. It incorporates the large Aeolian-Skinner pipe organ built in 1962 for New York's Philharmonic Hall along with the smaller Ruffatti organ that was installed in the original Garden Grove church. [5]

In 2013, the diocese dismantled the Hazel Wright Organ and shipped it back to Fratelli Ruffatti for a $2 million refurbishing.[57][6][35] It was reinstalled in Christ Cathedral in early 2020. However, the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the re-voicing of the organ until late 2021. The organ restoration was completed on February 7, 2022. A re-dedication concert featuring organist Hector Olivera was held on September 30, 2022.[58]

See also

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References

[edit]
  1. ^ Rojas, Rick (November 26, 2013). "Catholic Renovation of Crystal Cathedral to Begin". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  2. ^ "Cathedral Transformation FAQs". Archived from the original on March 25, 2019. Retrieved July 29, 2019.
  3. ^ Ferrell, David (April 6, 2015). "Crystal Cathedral founder Robert Schuller achieved his vision, but couldn't sustain it". Orange County Register.
  4. ^ Epstein, Benjamin (May 15, 1996). "Crystal Clear Devotion: Cathedral's Organist Will Be Happy to Solo With Four Seasons Symphony on Home Turf". Los Angeles Times.
  5. ^ a b c "The Top 20 – The World's Largest Pipe Organs". Sacred Classics. Archived from the original on October 13, 2018. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  6. ^ a b c d Esquivel, Paloma (September 24, 2014). "Diocese of Orange unveils planned alterations for former Crystal Cathedral". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
  7. ^ a b Kopetman, Roxana (October 11, 2012). "Catholics stage first event at Crystal Cathedral". Orange County Register. Retrieved September 9, 2018.
  8. ^ Kandil, Caitlin Yoshiko (July 18, 2019). "Crystal Cathedral is reborn as Christ Cathedral, the center of O.C. Catholicism". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 18, 2019.
  9. ^ Taxin, Amy (October 18, 2010). "Crystal Cathedral Bankruptcy: Megachurch Files For Chapter 11". Huffington Post. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  10. ^ Penner, James. Goliath: The Life of Robert Schuller (1992), p. 119.
  11. ^ Schuller, Robert H. "My Journey"
  12. ^ a b "Garden Grove Church". GreatBuildings.com. 1979. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  13. ^ a b Smith, Lynn (September 18, 1990). "Garden Grove : Architects Praise Spire at Cathedral". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  14. ^ Lindsey, Robert (May 15, 1980). "Opening of Glass Cathedral Is a Feast for Eyes and Ears" (PDF). The New York Times. p. A20. Retrieved March 5, 2010.
  15. ^ a b TAXIN, AMY. "Rev. Robert Schuller remembered as dreamer, pastor, dad". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved January 6, 2025.
  16. ^ Santa Cruz, Nicole (December 18, 2011). "Crystal Cathedral sale to diocese a milestone; some see a miracle". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 14, 2021.
  17. ^ "Crystal Cathedral Owes $7.5M To Small Business Owners". KCBS-TV News. October 16, 2010. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  18. ^ Bharath, Deepa (May 15, 2014). "Crystal Cathedral, creditors at $7.5 million impasse". The Orange County Register. Retrieved November 18, 2011.
  19. ^ Cathcart, Rebecca (October 18, 2010). "California's Crystal Cathedral Files for Bankruptcy". The New York Times. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  20. ^ Bharath, Deepa (May 26, 2011). "Crystal Cathedral to be sold to pay millions in debt". The Orange County Register. Retrieved May 27, 2011.
  21. ^ Medlin, Marianne (July 8, 2011). "Southern California diocese considers buying Crystal Cathedral". Catholic News Agency. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  22. ^ "Orange diocese increases bid for Crystal Cathedral". National Catholic Reporter. Catholic News Agency. August 15, 2011. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  23. ^ a b Taxin, Amy (November 17, 2011). "Crystal Cathedral to be sold to Catholic diocese". The Seattle Times. Associated Press. Archived from the original on December 4, 2013. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  24. ^ Taxin, Amy (November 17, 2011). "Judge approves Crystal Cathedral sale to diocese". San Diego Union Tribune. Archived from the original on June 14, 2018. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  25. ^ Tornielli, Andrea (November 21, 2011). "New Vatican commission cracks down on church architecture". La Stampa. Archived from the original on May 2, 2012. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  26. ^ "Cement cubes, glass boxes, crazy shapes". California Catholic Daily. November 22, 2011. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  27. ^ Gibson, David (January 6, 2012). "Some see Crystal Cathedral's purchase by Catholic diocese as calculated risk". Baptist Standard. Religion News Service. Archived from the original on August 7, 2016. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  28. ^ Campbell, Ronald (February 4, 2012). "Crystal Cathedral is sold". The Orange County Register. p. Local 1. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  29. ^ a b "Diocese of Orange Formally Acquires Crystal Cathedral and Adjacent Campus". Diocese of Orange. February 3, 2012. Archived from the original on February 4, 2012.
  30. ^ Medlin, Marianne (November 30, 2011). "A true miracle!". California Catholic Daily. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  31. ^ Palmer, Melissa (June 9, 2012). "Landmark Crystal Cathedral gets a new name – Christ Cathedral". NBC News. Archived from the original on June 15, 2012. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  32. ^ "Catholic Diocese of Orange Announces Cathedral Name" (Press release). Diocese of Orange. June 9, 2012. Archived from the original on December 17, 2013. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  33. ^ Cruz, Nicole Santa (February 3, 2012). "Diocese of Orange officially takes over Crystal Cathedral". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 15, 2014.[dead link‍]
  34. ^ Rokhy, Ron (June 30, 2014). "Crystal Cathedral Holds Last Service Before Relocating". NBC Los Angeles. NBCUnviersal Media, LLC. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  35. ^ a b Baharath, Deepa (May 19, 2017). "Diocese picks contractor for Christ Cathedral's $72 million reconstruction project". Orange County Register. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
  36. ^ Morino, Douglas (September 9, 2013). "Catholic schoolchildren move into former Crystal Cathedral". Orange County Register. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  37. ^ a b c Hawthorne, Christopher (November 17, 2016). "The Crystal Cathedral redesign: Why tasteful updates add up to architectural disappointment". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  38. ^ a b Luppi, Kathleen (May 25, 2017). "Bishop of Orange signs construction contract for renovation of Christ Cathedral". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
  39. ^ Holman, Jim (January 24, 2013). "Liturgical consultant hired for Orange County's Christ Cathedral". California Catholic Daily. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
  40. ^ "Changing course: Diocese works to trim price tag of renovating iconic Christ Cathedral". Orange County Register. April 23, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
  41. ^ "Christ Cathedral Receives $20M From Anonymous Donor; Catholic Diocese to Renovate Former Crystal Cathedral". Christian Post. December 5, 2014. Retrieved July 10, 2019.
  42. ^ a b Paletta, Anthony (September 4, 2019). "The Rebirth of the OC's Crystal Cathedral". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
  43. ^ a b c Goulding, Susan Christian (October 14, 2018). "For Christ Cathedral, heat-deflecting quatrefoils prove to be a blessing". Orange County Register. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
  44. ^ "Christ Cathedral organ getting dismantled for Italy trip". Orange County Register. January 31, 2014. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  45. ^ Haire, Chris (September 25, 2014). "Redesigned Christ Cathedral: 'You'll be able to see it from a long, long way'". Orange County Register. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
  46. ^ "Holy relics gifted to Christ Cathedral". occatholic.com. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
  47. ^ Gryboski, Michael (July 3, 2018). "Former Crystal Cathedral Begins 'Holy Year of Preparation' for Grand Opening as Catholic Church". Christian Post. Retrieved July 10, 2019.
  48. ^ "Pacific Symphony starts July with a bang". Orange County Register. July 2, 2019. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  49. ^ "Its remodel underway, Christ Cathedral will look the same — except inside". Orange County Register. June 29, 2018. Retrieved July 8, 2019.
  50. ^ Luppi, Kathleen (May 17, 2018). "Christ Cathedral construction crews celebrate 100,000 accident-free work hours". Los Angeles times. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
  51. ^ "'Nhà Thờ Chính Tòa Chúa Kitô phản ảnh đức tin và lòng sùng kính'". Nguoi Viet Daily News (in Vietnamese). July 17, 2019. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  52. ^ "Christ Cathedral acquires its first Holy Relic — the bone of a Vietnamese saint". Orange County Register. December 14, 2018. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
  53. ^ Do, Anh (June 29, 2013). "St. Callistus Catholic Church moves to Crystal Cathedral site". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  54. ^ Do, Anh (July 15, 2021). "New Lady of La Vang statue expected to attract faithful from around the Vietnamese diaspora". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  55. ^ "From Crystal Cathedral to Christ Cathedral: Major Renovation Completed After 12 Years". NCR. October 16, 2024. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
  56. ^ "Christ Cathedral opens St. Callistus Chapel and Crypts, and with that its remodel is complete". Orange County Register. October 14, 2024. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
  57. ^ Berg, Tom (May 17, 2013). "How will church fix Cathedral's organ?". Orange County Register. Retrieved May 15, 2014.
  58. ^ "A Year of Hazel - Events & Tickets".
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