Cathedral of Mary Our Queen

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Cathedral of Mary Our Queen
View of the front of the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen
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Location 5200 North Charles Street
Baltimore, Maryland
Country United States
Denomination Roman Catholic
Website www.cathedralofmary.org
History
Dedication Blessed Virgin Mary
Consecrated October 13, 1959 (1959-10-13)
Architecture
Status Cathedral
Functional status Active
Architectural type Cathedral
Style English Gothic/Neo-Gothic
Groundbreaking October 1954 (1954-10)
Completed 1959 (1959)
Specifications
Capacity 1,900 sitting
Length 373 feet (114 m)
Width 132 feet (40 m)
Number of spires 2
Spire height 163 feet (50 m)
Materials brick, limestone
Administration
Archdiocese Baltimore
Clergy
Archbishop The Most Reverend William E. Lori
Rector Reverend Monsignor Richard W. Woy
Assistant priest Reverend Andrew DeFusco
Deacon(s) Mr. Charles Hiebler and Mr. Bill Senft

The Cathedral of Mary Our Queen is a cathedral of the Roman Catholic Church located at 5200 North Charles Street, in northern Baltimore, Maryland, USA. The structure is remarkable in size and since its completion in 1959, ranks as the third largest cathedral in the United States.[citation needed]

Cathedral

File:Baltimore Metropolitan Cathedral Interior.jpg
Cathedral interior

The Cathedral is the seat of the Archbishop of Baltimore, succeeding the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, on Cathedral Street at Mulberry Street, in downtown Baltimore. Because Baltimore is the Premiere see of the United States and downtown basilica was the nation's first Roman Catholic cathedral, it now serves as Co-cathedral of the archdiocese.

On March 20, 2012 Bishop William Lori of Bridgeport, Connecticut became 16th Archbishop of Baltimore succeeding Cardinal Edwin F. O'Brien, who was named Grand Master of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem by Pope Benedict XVI. Monsignor Richard W. Woy is Rector. The Cathedral is located in the Homeland area of northern Baltimore City and near Loyola University Maryland and St. Mary's Seminary and University, the first Catholic seminary in the United States. It was constructed using funds bequeathed by an Irish Baltimore merchant, Thomas J. O'Neill.

Groundbreaking

File:1cathemoq.jpg
Cathedral of Mary Our Queen from the south

In October 1954, ground was broken for the new cathedral and on the morning of October 13, 1959, a few days past the fifth anniversary of the groundbreaking, Bishop Jerome Sebastian consecrated the cathedral. The design is modified Gothic with Art Deco accents, constructed of brick faced with limestone, and uses a classical east-facing cruciform floor plan. The cathedral measures 373 feet (114 m) long, 132 feet (40 m) wide and 163 feet (50 m) to the top of the two spires and can accommodate 1,900 people.[1]

Crypt

The crypt under the main floor of the cathedral is reserved for the remains of archbishops and auxiliary bishops of Baltimore. The list of bishops buried in the crypt:

  1. Bishop Jerome Aloysius Daugherty Sebastian, d. 1960
  2. Archbishop Francis Patrick Keough, d. 1961
  3. Cardinal Lawrence Shehan, d. 1984
  4. Bishop Thomas Austin Murphy, d. 1991
  5. Bishop Philip Francis Murphy, d. 1999[2]
  6. Archbishop William Donald Borders, d. 2010[3]

Additional

A cellphone antenna is concealed within one tower, generating revenue for the congregation and diocese.[4]

Pope John Paul II visited both the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen and the Basilica, as Pope in 1995 and in 1976 as Cardinal Karol Wojtyla. A plaque outside the Blessed Sacrament Chapel in the north transept commemorates the 1995 visit.

Organs

File:Cathedral of Mary our Queen gallery.JPG
The rear gallery and some of the organ pipes

The cathedral has two organs. The original organs were Opus 9200 of the M. P. Moller Company of Hagerstown, Maryland. After 46 years of use and some considerable damage due to water and smoke the congregation decided to restore the cathedral organs in 2005. It chose Schantz Organ Co. of Ohio to restore and replace many parts of the original instruments. The restoration began with the removal of the Great Gallery organ and, after it was reinstalled and operable, work began on the Chancel organ.

In addition to new pipe work, voice work, new wind chests, Schantz built two new identical four-manual consoles: one for the Gallery and one for the Chancel allowing the organist to control both organs from either location. The chancel console can moved around the sanctuary to suit various needs. In the original Moller installation, the Great Gallery organ console had four-manuals and could control over both the Gallery and Sanctuary organs. The Sanctuary organ console was two manuals, had complete control over the Sanctuary organ and the Gallery organ through "blind" controls. The Sanctuary console was replaced in 1974 due to a fire in the console which caused smoke damage to both organs' pipework. After the renovations, the Great Gallery organ holds 100 ranks and the Sanctuary organ holds 27.[5]

The first solo concert performance on the restored organ occurred July 5, 2007 by Cherry Rhodes as part of the closing ceremonies of the American Guild of Organists regional convention held in Baltimore.[6]

See also

References

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External links

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