A new exterior cross installed on Oct. 11 above the main doors of the Cathedral Church of St. Paul in Boston marks the completion of renovations many years in the making.
"The cross is the final piece of a long process, but cathedrals are always that way," artist Mac Dewart said, by e-mail, of the new cross. It is five feet tall and four feet wide and made of welded plate bronze.
Dewart styled it on the Celtic design of the cross that was formerly suspended in the sanctuary, above the approach to the altar. (That cross, by the generosity of the William Crozier family who originally donated the funds for it, now graces the Barbara C. Harris Camp and Conference Center's Doran Center, which overlooks an outdoor chapel toward Otter Lake and is often used for worship services.)
"Most importantly, the cross has to share the portico with the modern nautilus [pediment sculpture above it] and speak a complimentary language. I hope I have accomplished this," Dewart said.
Ellen Kittle
While the actual production and installation of the new exterior cross hit some delays, it was part of renovation planning that began about a decade ago to make the cathedral church as welcoming as possible: for the congregations that pray there each week, for Episcopalians across the diocese and for anyone who might come to a service or program or simply stop in and pray.
A well-lit and enhanced facade was among the renovation plan's goals. In 2013, artist Donald Lipski's "Ship of Pearl" nautilus sculpture was installed in the cathedral church's unfinished pediment.
Then, after closing for more than a year for major indoor renovations, the cathedral church re-opened and was officially rededicated in November 2015.
Some of the significant changes achieved by the renovations included new glass doorways providing views into the church and back out into the world; a new chapel; flexible worship and gathering space, with chairs replacing fixed pews; a sanctuary brightened by skylights and enhanced lighting; an elevator that makes all levels of the building accessible to everyone and a ramp into the chancel; a reconfigured lower-level Sproat Hall featuring dividable space for meetings, events and the weekly meal program, as well as new accessible restrooms and a footwashing station.
"Our cathedral church now is an open space, full of light, full of color. Part of the continuing work of finalizing the renovation has been about tweaking some things but also reclaiming sacred objects--many that have been in storage and some that are brand new. We remain a space that welcomes all of God's people to a house of prayer," the Rev. Nancy Gossling, who is serving as acting dean, said.
"The new ‘Episcopal Church Welcomes You’ signs out front, the new digitized kiosk that proclaims all the activities, Monday through Sunday, that are going on in our cathedral church, and the new cross are all ways of extending the presence of our cathedral community onto Tremont Street," Gossling said. "These are all outward and visible signs of an inward and spiritual grace, our sacramental presence, on Tremont Street and on Boston Common that says: ‘We're here, come and see!’"
--Tracy J. Sukraw