The ultimate urban experience

A while ago a former colleague at the Museum changed jobs and went across the street to work at the School of the Art Institute. He told me that he was leaving the realm of dead artists for the realm of the living. That gave me pause to think. On the surface it seemed like a compelling idea. His description conjured up images of leaving the old, creaky fossils behind in favor of the new, the exciting, and most important, the relevant. Thinking it through a bit however I realized that somewhere in the future, maybe ten years, maybe one year, heck maybe even less, much of what we find relevant today will become trivial, trite, or just plain silly. Yet the important work that has stood the test of time will remain fresh, enlightening, yes even relevant, while most of the art produced today, (as is the case with most of the art that has ever been produced) will be forgotten.

I was reminded of this today, on the Solemn Feast of All Saints. We Catholics dedicate the entire month of November every year to our departed ancestors. During today's feast, we celebrate the lives of people who lived exemplary lives, so much so that we believe they unquestionably dwell as citizens of that very unearthly place that St. Augustine described as the City of God. On the second day of November, the day of the Feast of All Souls, we reflect on the lives of all our departed. The two feast days are most popularly observed in Mexico as El Dia de los Muertos. Contrary to its (to our ears) macabre name, the Day of the Dead is very much a day of celebration and festivity as people reconnect with their deceased loved ones.


If there is one thing that distinguishes the Roman Catholic faith from most other Christian traditions, it is our devotion to those who came before us. We believe that the history of God's love for His people does not end with the last page of the Bible. At mass we proclaim that we believe in the "communion of saints." That is, we are members of an extended family of believers that not only encompasses the living of every race and nationality, but also those who came before us, and by extension, those who have yet to come.

Today in the Cathedral, the point could not have been clearer. We worshiped in a building that was built well over a century ago but is filled with adornments from our own era. The congregation every week comes from every corner of the globe. The liturgy, a work in progress for the past 45 years is based on liturgy that is almost two thousand years old. The music ranged from the Renaissance to practically yesterday. Jesus' words in the Gospel reading, commonly known as the Beatitudes, uttered so long ago, are pointedly centered on the present:


"Blessed are the poor in spirit, there's is the kingdom of God..."


And while mass was devoted to those who lived in the past, the squeaks and squawks of the children sprinkled throughout the building reminded us of our future.

The Church is indeed about the timeless, as well as the here and now.

Which is perhaps why so many have strayed. Our culture today hasn't much time for, or interest in the timeless. I often hear the sentiment, "I just don't get anything out of going to church." It's trendy these days to say "I'm spiritual but not religious", meaning of course, "I believe in God but I don't go to church". The churches that do have growing numbers are charismatic, ones that offer a heaping helping of "spiritual experience". More reflective, traditional churches are struggling.

For me, the point of going to church is not what I get out of it. It is the collective experience of belonging to something that is much greater than myself, something much greater in fact than the sum of all its parts. I believe that we go to church for each other, for God, for our families, past, present and future, for our friends, for people we will never know, and yes even for the guy sitting next to us who shakes our hand during the greeting of peace but who wouldn't otherwise give us the time of day.

That to me is what sums up the urban experience. Our destinies are all tied together, whether we like it or not. Along with those who came before as well as those who will succeed us, we live, love, work, struggle, fight, build up, tear down, care for, and leave our mark on a place that we will eventually leave behind. That in a nutshell is the fabric of a city.


City of Man, or City of God, one thing is certain, we all need each other.

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The ultimate urban experience

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Back in the Cathedral, again

We attended mass at Holy Name Cathedral today. Would have gone last week for the first mass since the church opened after the fire in February, but we had an appointment with a steam engine. As pastor Dan Mayall said a few weeks ago, the place indeed has never looked better. Every inch of the cathedral was polished to the extreme, the shine and the smell of wax and wood polish were almost overwhelming.

One new element I noticed was the seal of the Archbishop of Chicago above the bishop's chair, the cathedra at the very front of the church. I suppose it was deemed appropriate to add a little pizzaz to the ambulatory which was reduced to remarkable blandness after the removal of the main altar during the major renovation in 1969, but I found the seal to be a little distracting and unnecessary.*

Other than that, the experience was breathtaking. The place was packed, the small choir was in good form and even the congregation sang with vigor, for Catholics anyway.

For me the most poignant part was the fact that the celebrant this morning was Bishop Timothy Lyne, who celebrated the very first mass I attended at Holy Name some 35 years ago. It's good to see that some things never change!

There is still work to be done on the 134 year old church but it is truly a time for the entire city to celebrate the reopening of this remarkable building.


*The seal was gone as of August 16th

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Back in the Cathedral, again

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The Cathedral

We attended mass at the Auditorium of the Holy Name today. As most know by now, Holy Name Cathedral, the mother church of the Archdiocese of Chicago, suffered a from a string of bad luck over the last two years. Last year, pieces of the ceiling came crashing down early one morning. Fortunately no one was under them. The incident forced the parish to close the 134 year old church for several months for the restoration of the magnificent ceiling, unquestionably the most important architectural feature of the building. Services were held in the auditorium next door.

After many delays the cathedral was re-opened for a limited mass schedule last fall. Then this past February, a fire in the loft area in the north transept again forced the closing of the cathedral. Amid the terrible news, a near miracle occurred. Had it not been for the heroic actions of the Chicago Fire Department, the entire church may have been destroyed as this was a tremendously stubborn fire.

Pastor Dan Mayall assured parishioners and visitors alike today that the cathedral will open, "more magnificent than ever" in three weeks. Much yet needs to be done as the Pastor pointed out. As construction cleanup continues, the pews need to be put back into place as does the west rose window. From our own impromptu inspection, so do some of the massive doors. But I've been involved in a few construction projects over the years and have been amazed at how much can be accomplished as a deadline approaches.

After mass they were selling copies of commemorative books cerebrating the 100 and 150 year anniversaries of the parish, published in 1949 and 1999 respectively. I picked up a copy of the older book as it had a detailed history of the parish and archdiocese as well as several photographs of the church before its massive renovation in 1969. The photographs are a revealing document of the thoughtless desecration of Roman Catholic churches during the period following the Second Vatican Council in the early 1960s. In the name of liturgical reform, Holy Name was gutted, and the high altar was removed and replaced by a simple granite slab. As for the sacred artwork, all of the statuary, the paintings and stained glass were replaced with contemporary work which reflected the period. Only the ceiling and a few architectural details were spared. Today while the exterior is firmly set in the 19th Century, the interior screams 1960s and seems much more dated than the original which from the photographs anyway, seemed to have a timeless quality.

Yet I've grown quite fond of the interior as I have attended mass at Holy Name many times in the last 35 years, never having known the original. There is a simple elegance which I have come to appreciate. The light transmitted through the geometric stained glass windows is especially graceful and compelling. My feelings for the architecture are no doubt influenced by many fond memories such as the exceptional music programming, and by some truly great priests, especially Joseph Cardinal Bernadin and Father Bob McLaughlin, both unfortunately no longer with us. Probably most significant is the fact that this was the place where I rediscovered my faith, so many years ago.

Personally I look forward to the reopening of the cathedral, to the sounds of the massive Flentrop organ in the choir loft and the smaller Casavant antiphonal organ in the sanctuary. I look forward to the sights and smells of the incense wafting heavenward and hearing the magnificent choir singing the kind of music that evokes the sacred and eternal. And I look forward to that magnificent light.

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The Cathedral

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