Christ Cathedral is formerly known as the Crystal Cathedral, an American church building said to be the “the largest glass building in the world”. It is located in the city of Garden Grove, California about 4 miles away from Disneyland. It was the main place of worship for Crystal Cathedral Ministries founded by Robert H. Schuller. It has a capacity of about 2,7000 in movie-theater style seats. This was the backdrop to the popular “Hour of Power” TV evangelical program which in its heydays reached 100 million viewers all over the world.
Crystal Cathedral was not only a place of worship but has also housed the famous musical stage production of “The Glory of Easter” and the “Glory of Christmas”. Tourists both local and foreign flocked to watch these annual musical stage plays.
In October 2010 Crystal Cathedral Ministries filed for bankruptcy and in February 2012 sold the building and its adjacent campus to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange. After a two-year, $72.3 million renovations, Crystal Cathedral reopened its doors as a Roman Catholic church now called the Christ Cathedral. Today, it is the spiritual home for an estimated 1.6 million Catholics in the diocese, where masses are celebrated in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Chinese.
The towering megachurch, in the form of four-pointed star is 39m high, 126.49m long and 6.3m wide, constructed entirely of glass and steel.
Inside The Church
The Crucifix
The 1,000 pound crucifix (the symbol of Christianity) hanging atop the marble altar and platform is the center piece of the renovated sanctuary. It is made from blackened steel and encrusted with jewels.
The Organ
The Hazel Wright Organ was removed in 2014 and shipped to Padua, Italy for restoration. It was now fully restored and reinstalled in early 2020. It is one of the largest organ in the world with 16,000 pipes. It could play a range from the lowest pitch to the highest. It could produce all sounds from the softest to the most majestic. Hearing its beautiful sound on a worship day, feels like getting closer to God.
The Ceiling
The ceiling and the upper walls have thousands of steel powder coated quatrefoils to deflect UV glare and heat from the glass. This allows the building to be air conditioned at a reasonable cost and without sacrificing the beauty of the glass structure. Looking up the ceiling seems like gazing into glittering stars in the open skies.
Outside the Cathedral
Christ Cathedral sits on a 34-acre campus. The vast open space has big parking space, green grass, gardens, and blooming flowers in spring time. It is common to see people in the early mornings or late afternoons, brisk walking or just lazy strolling, but all through out the day, visitors from walks of life.
On special occasions and holidays, we hear mass at the cathedral because aside from the reason that we love their choir and the accompanying sound of the organ, we visit our dad, who was interred in the columbarium. On our dad's birthday, their wedding anniversary, All Saint's Day and Christmas we drop by and offer flowers and prayers.
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