Newspaper Page Text
Vol. 64 No. 39
Thursday, November 8,1984
$10 Per Year
November 17
Cathedral Chapel Will Re-open
A STITCH IN TIME SAVES NINE -
Ninety-one year old Deborah Harrison, resident
of the Rose of Sharon Apts, gives new meaning to
“the Widow’s mite.” A devout and active
parishioner of Cathedral since moving to
Savannah only a few years ago, she recently
contributed over $100.00, to the Cathedral
Fund-proceeds from the sale of her knitted
handiwork. Mrs. Harrison is shown here with her
pastor, Father Herbert Wellmeier, getting ready to
weave some more magic stitches to help save the
diocesan Mother Church.
The chapel beneath the Cathedral of St. John the
Baptist, which has been closed since May for major
repairs, will re-open November 17.
Access will be from a side door on E. Harris Street,
according to Father William Simmons, Vicar General. The
normal entrance, through a door and stairway at the
botton of one of the bell towers, will remain closed and a
plywood wall will be erected to screen off the back of the
chapel.
The main sanctuary of the cathedral will remain closed
while repairs continue, Father Simmons said in
announcing the re-opening of the chapel.
Some repair work and “freshening up” will be done to
the chapel before the date scheduled for re-opening, he
announced. The paint work and ceilings will be redone,
and the pews freshly varnished for the occasion.
Major repairs were not needed to the chapel, which lies
below the main building and was not affected by the
shifting of the bell towers which caused the closing of the
87-year-old structure. Only the entrance flooring, which
had to be removed to allow workmen access to the base of
the south bell tower, was involved.
The chapel, which holds 400 - 500 people, will remain
open for the Thanksgiving and Christmas ceremonies as
well as for the daily and weekly masses normally
scheduled at the Cathedral. The Jubilee Mass for those
celebrating their golden or silver wedding anniversaries
will also be held in the chapel.
The $2 million dollar drive to repair the cathedral,
combined with the annual Confraternity of the Laity
Cathedral Reflection
"It Is Almost Impossible To Turn
The Mind Away From God"
(Monsignor Felix Donnelly was Rector of the Cathedral
for five years from August 1976 - August 1981)
BY MSGR. FELIX DONNELLY
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the
earth” - the first Cathedral! Since that time architects
and builders have tried to capture a portion of God’s
masterpiece, the universe, in light, shadows, mountains,
valleys, air and waters, stone and wood. Moses stood
like a poet-architect in the midst of God’s work and
taught his people of creation.
When Solomon planned to build his Temple he
sought all available wonders of God’s creation. He sent
messengers to Hiram, King of Tyre, asking, “Send me
cedars from Lebanon, great and costly stones, men
skilled in hewing wood and workers in stone and gold,
for I wish to build a Temple to the Most High God.”
People of the early Catholic Community of
Savannah were similarly inspired in union with their
Bishops, Gross and Becker, to raise up to God a worthy
sign of worship, from the wonders God has given us.
The past and future are made present to us in stained
glass, paintings, and symbols to create a symphony of
praise to God. One could make a thorough study of
Religion in the wonders found represented there. It is
almost impossible to turn the mind away from God
when in the Cathedral. One Christmas afternoon an
airline pilot and a few attendants forgot they were
away from home in the joy of finding so magnificent a
Church. We should well pause and thank God that we
are at present able to share the sacrifice of our
forebears.
The same joys and blessings found in all parishes are
experienced in Cathedral parish, but there is the
additional blessing of a greater sense of unity with all
in the Diocese of Savannah, since the Cathedral is the
Church of the Chief Shepherd. It is the center of
Authority in the diocese, even as the “Chjur of Moses,”
leader of God’s people. Holy Thursday Eve, Pentecost,
and other special celebrations bring a sense of oneness
with all in the diocese, as representatives of each parish
join with the bishop in the celebration of the unity of
the people of God in the Eucharist.
Here are represented many nations outside the
U.S.A., with many Irish priests, faithful Vietnamese
Community who share the Cathedral as home, devout
from the Philippines, Spanish speaking Catholics and
others, all in unity as the People of God uplifted by the
beauty of the music and devout movement of the
Liturgy in praise of God.
A mystical sense of unity comes from the celebrant
as we hear, “Father, you are holy.. .by your Holy
Spirit, gather all who share this bread and wine into the
one body of Christ, a living sacrifice of praise. ”
May the bells from the Cathedral towers ring out for
many years this announcement of the coming of our
Redeemer, in the Angelus and the Eucharist.
MBMraaMManMMMNI
Next Saturday
Cathedral Progress Report
The repairs to the cathedral are continuing in
stages.
According to Father William Simmons, Vicar
General, the foundation work is complete and the
work on the steel trusses in the roof has also been
finished. Workmen are now repairing the seating for
the bell in the south tower.
It is still impossible to estimate when the upper
church will be re-opened. There is extensive work
still to be done on the steeples as well as plastering
and painting of interior walls.
drive, reaches a major peak on November 18, the date
chosen as “commitment Sunday” in parishes throughout
the diocese. Parishes are being asked to raise a given quota
towards the total, over a three-year period.
Some parishes have already reached the half-way mark
towards their goal, according to diocesan officials. Spot
checks with priests in other areas have shown the effort is
going well.
In an earlier phase of the fund-raising effort, business
corporations were approached for contributions.
The cathedral was closed May 25, when engineers
reported a significant shift in the bell towers, due to a
settling of the foundations.
The Cathedral parish is well on its way to raising its
own quota, in the combined drive, according to Father
Herbert Wellmeier, rector. The $250,000 endowment
fund established to repairs was contributed to the
combined fund.
AUGUSTA
LCOlUMBUS
'STATESBORO
iAVANNAHj,
Valdosta
Cathedral/Confraternity Fund
To meet the urgent need posed by the
emergency repairs to the Cathedral of St.
John the Baptist in Savannah, this year’s
Confraternity of the Laity Appeal is
combined with the Cathedral Fund drive, for
a total target of $2 million.