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April 11, 2005 
VOL.
43, NO. 7Oakland,
CA
In
His Light
Cathedral of Christ the Light:
mission and ministry
Soon in the pages of The Catholic Voice you will see the latest renderings
for the design of our new Cathedral of Christ the Light, and you will
read about the plans for the groundbreaking festivities on Saturday, May
21.
This historic event gains renewed poignancy for me now as I reflect on
my meeting last May with Pope John Paul II, during which we discussed
with great hope the life of the Diocese of Oakland, including our new
cathedral.
As we approach this exciting moment, I have been asked to share with you
my sense of what the building of our new cathedral will mean for the life
of our Catholic community in the East Bay.
After all, building a new cathedral is not an end in itself. The cathedral
is a means for us and future generations to grow in our identity as God’s
People and to be strengthened to live out our mission of witnessing to
Christ and serving in His name.
Cathedral’s unique mission
Let me begin with a word about the identity of the cathedral:
Just as the home supports and fosters the life that family members share,
the Cathedral of Christ the Light nurtures the life that we Catholics
in Alameda and Contra Costa counties share. It is our Mother Church, our
“parish-in-common.”
The cathedral is a highly visible sign of both our presence here and our
ongoing commitment to our neighbors in the city of Oakland and all the
cities and districts that surround it. An elegant architectural work of
the highest quality, the cathedral enriches our civic community and is
a welcoming place for visitors of all faiths and cultures.
The Second Vatican Council’s “Constitution on the Church”
tells us that the Church’s mission is to be “a sacrament –
a sign and instrument… of intimate union with God and of the unity
of the whole human race” (n. 1).
It is from this mission which Christ has given to his Church that the
Cathedral of Christ the Light receives it own unique mission, as the foremost
resource for our diocese to build up the unity of men and women with God
and with one another.
The ministries at the cathedral and its adjacent campus foster this unity
through worship, teaching and evangelization, and service – particularly
to the needy and those at the margins of society.
These ministries are accomplished by the whole Catholic community of the
East Bay, the cathedral parishioners, and by all persons of good will
who want to join with us in working to establish a society of justice
and peace, according to God’s plan for the human family.
Fulfilling the mission
Let’s speak then about ways for the cathedral to fulfill its mission
of being the Mother Church of the Diocese of Oakland.
• The Cathedral of Christ the Light is the ideal gathering place
for unifying events in the diocese.
Among the events that will be moved to the cathedral immediately after
its dedication are events that solidify the Catholic community in our
two counties: the bishop’s celebration of the most important holy
days (especially Christmas and Holy Week) and culturally important feast
days, ordinations, adult Confirmations, welcoming of new Catholics from
across the diocese (“Rite of Election”), the Mass for the
Blessing of the Holy Oils, celebrations of Catholic organizations and
associations, gatherings from our many Catholic schools, and Chautauqua
– our annual celebration of the ethnic diversity with which God
has blessed our diocese.
Needless to say, the cathedral would be the site of Masses of remembrance
for people loved by our community, such as our dear, departed Pope.
Our cathedral will also be extremely active with new events that allow
us to reach out to the broader community: annual celebrations for police
and firefighters, doctors and health care workers, teachers, members of
the bar, university professors and administrators, nuns, brothers, and
other members of religious orders, and more.
We will invite clusters of parish groups for Sunday Mass, and we will
offer to Confirmation classes the opportunity to come there for their
celebrations.
I envision the cathedral being a center for furthering the renewal of
Eucharistic devotion in our diocese: for example, as the site for an annual
Diocesan Corpus Christi procession on the plaza, or gatherings to pray
for peace and solace in times of tribulation.
One more idea I have in mind: an annual celebration of Epiphany, as the
Feastday of the Cathedral, with a solemn Mass preceded by the pageant
of the Three Kings arriving in the plaza to distribute gifts to children,
truly bringing Christmas to downtown Oakland.
• The Cathedral makes greater impact when we lead by example.
Gathering people together frequently from all parts of our diocese strengthens
the awareness that, despite our wide-ranging backgrounds, we are one faith
family.
This heightened bond accomplishes two important aims:
Our fellow citizens see the Church as a model of unity that can and should
be woven all across the rich diversity of our area.
We educate the next generation to realize their responsibilities for the
city of Oakland and for the whole region. For example, our city schools
depend upon the support of suburban Catholics for their survival.
•The liturgical celebrations at the Cathedral of Christ the Light
will enrich liturgies throughout our diocese.
The Church also expects that the celebrations at the cathedral will exemplify
the highest standards in liturgy, and so the experience of prayer and
worship in the cathedral by people from throughout the diocese aims to
raise the caliber of liturgical celebration in our parishes.
This tradition of leadership started with Mission San Jose in Fremont,
which was renowned throughout the California missions for its liturgies.
It was very much the case before we lost St. Francis de Sales Cathedral
in 1989, and it will be the case in our new Cathedral of Christ the Light.
To intensify this result, I have in mind initiatives like: form at the
cathedral a “College of Preachers,” who exemplify “best
practices” through their preaching at the cathedral and who can
assist our priests and deacons to improve their preaching; or establish
an annual choral competition in order to stimulate improved music programs
in our parishes.
•The Cathedral of Christ the Light will be the new home of the parish
community of St. Mary’s / St. Francis de Sales.
A cathedral is uniquely positioned to attract a wide range of talents
from throughout the diocese and connect them to serve those in need. Many
of the most important forms of ministry at the cathedral will be those
offered by the cathedral parish itself, whose current home is St. Mary
– St. Francis de Sales in Oakland.
Our first cathedral parish continues to have a vibrant life that models
ethnic diversity, worship, learning and outreach to the central city.
All the current social ministries of St. Mary’s-St. Francis de Sales
will be continued when the parish moves to its new home, including: community
organizing, Habitat for Humanity, tutoring and winter shelter.
The parish’s close ties to local services such as St. Vincent de
Paul Dining Room, A Friendly Place and Friendly Manor, and the Next Step
Learning Center may be expanded.
I deeply hope that the energy generated by the cathedral dedication will
enable us to add more ministries, particularly to sponsor a health clinic
for those who cannot afford care.
At its new site on the shore of Lake Merritt, the parish will offer a
warm welcome to the many new members that demographic experts tell us
we ought to anticipate, including over 1,500 planned new residences in
the immediate area.
The parish and its clergy will also evangelize and minister to the spiritual
needs of the many people who work in that part of the city.
• The other buildings on the cathedral campus strengthen our diocese’s
effectiveness.
The Cathedral Center will bring together in one place, alongside the cathedral,
a large meeting facility and central chancery and pastoral offices —
the support services for all our parishes, schools and communities throughout
the diocese.
This arrangement will provide greater efficiency and effectiveness in
the delivery of these services, and heighten the sense of our common mission
throughout all our parishes and schools.
Locating the personnel of the diocesan central services on the very campus
where so many people from throughout our diocese come together will increase
their interaction, to the mutual enrichment of all.
This will generate new ways to serve and renew energy for our mission.
The large conference center is an ideal and convenient gathering place
for major education events, workshops and addresses.
In the spirit of hope
I have high hopes for the cathedral and its mission.
The past 16 years of changing sites, disrupting parish schedules and using
less than adequate and less than central locations, has severely limited
our ability to shine out in witnessing to the God who makes us one-in-many
and many-in-Christ.
The vibrant program of ministries at the Cathedral of Christ the Light
– our “parish-church-in-common” – will profoundly
strengthen the bonds that make us not just 89 separate congregations,
but one Church, one Catholic Church, from Byron to West Oakland, from
Richmond to Lafayette and Orinda, and from Fremont to Martinez.
In recent years, while Bishop John Cummins and I have strived publicly
and privately to rectify mistakes of the past, you lay and ordained Catholics
throughout our diocese have quietly continued the Church’s mission
and looked to its future.
These inspiring efforts, for which Bishop Cummins and I are humbly grateful,
include thousands of volunteer hours and substantial financial pledges
committed independently to build our new Cathedral of Christ the Light.
Just as we began the Third Christian Millennium, the Holy Father wrote
an Apostolic Letter urging all of us to take up initiatives to build up
Christ’s Kingdom in our own age: “Now we must look ahead,
we must ‘put out into the deep,’ trusting in Christ’s
words: Duc in altum! What we have done this year… should inspire
in us new energy, and impel us to invest in concrete initiatives the enthusiasm
which we have felt.” [n.15. (www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_letters/documents/hf_jp-ii_apl_20010106_novo-millennio-ineunte_en.html)]
I believe the building of our new cathedral is very much a response to
the Holy Father’s call.
In building the Cathedral of Christ the Light for 300 years and then using
it to build up our local Church and our East Bay community, we are, indeed,
putting out into the deep.
The cathedral will, as the sign on the site says, “Gather Good Together”
– because from the energy that it produces God will be glorified
and his work will be done.
The many cathedral volunteers, Bishop Cummins and I cordially welcome
you to gather with your Catholic community at the cathedral groundbreaking
on May 21!
Previous "In His Light" Columns by Bishop Allen H. Vigneron
