The following comes from a May 18 story in the Christian Post Reporter.

Crystal Cathedral’s newly minted president said Wednesday that the ministry behind the “Hour of Power” might be moving to a Catholic church in their Orange County neighborhood, although probably not for another year and a half.

John Charles, president and CEO of the ministry, reportedly said in a meeting of the congregants and the church board that St. Callistus Catholic Church in Garden Grove was the only option the bankrupt ministry could consider moving to when it comes time to relocate, as its campus was sold to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange in February.

Following the famous ministry’s bankruptcy filing in Oct. 2010 and subsequent sale, the congregation was given three years from when the escrow closed to find a new venue.

Although not as impressive in looks as the glass building that Crystal Cathedral was famous for, St. Callistus lies only two blocks from the ministry’s current home, which it currently leases from the Roman Catholic diocese.

Click here to read entire story.

 

READER COMMENTS

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 3:43 AM By Thomas Edward Miles
As my JEWISH mother-in-law would say…..”SUCH A DEAL”!!

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 5:15 AM By Matthew
St. Callistus mist indeed be a good fit for the Crystal Cathedral Ministries. It’s actually a fair big place and it’s not a long, skinny bowling-lane type of church. I can’t wait to attend a Mass at the former Crystal Cathedral! I really hope they do a decent job of re-purposing it as a Catholic cathedral!

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 7:16 AM By MacDonald
Some Catholic churches have closed down due to low attendance, and have become restaurants (in Rome), art academies (in San Francisco), etc. If the Catholic population in the Diocese of Orange is growing and taking over the huge “Crystal Cathedral,” I’m happy that the Lord Jesus will still be worshipped in St. Callistus Church if the Protestants switch buildings with the Catholics. In Germany, as in our American military chapels, the same building is often used by Protestants and Catholics for worship. And fire and brimstone have not destroyed these buildings…imagine…

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 7:33 AM By juergensen
Can’t decide which one looks more Protestanty.

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 8:47 AM By Sarah
The purchase of the Crystal Cathedral by the diocese of Orange, seemed like a bad idea from the beginning. If the Crystal Cathedral congregation moves to St. Callistus parish, where will Masses for St. Callistus parishoners be held? Will crucifixes, statues, holy water fonts, etc. need to be removed so the new tenants won’t be offended? How ecumenical is this going to be? The president of the the Crystal Cathedral group said that moving to St. Callistus is the only option they would consider. Huh? In the beginning, the founder of the Crystal Cathedral, Robert Schuller began his church in a drive-in theater and it thrived.

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 9:12 AM By Old Roman Collar
It is my option that we come back to out real roots in the Church and attend the only mass worth its way t heaven, The Traditional Latin Mass. for beauty and most reverence to Our Lord, and forget that Nerous Ordor mass, its a one mass show, and places Our Lord second in the church.

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 10:38 AM By A Lady
Crystal Cathedral Ministries must give the Diocese of Orange 6 months notice of their intention to move. The St. Callistus Parish and school will move to the Cathedral Campus. The Diocese of Orange & the Crystal Cathedral Ministries have a good working relationship. CCM is well aware that St Callistus Church contains “crucifixes, statues, holy water fonts, etc”. This won’t be an issue. And Jurgensen — the photo of St Callistus is of the back of the church taken from the street. The church itself is quite pretty and a wonderful place to worship.

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 12:29 PM By michaelp. Mc Croryy
The whole thing’s just a mess. I think I ‘ll just tune it out like I did with the multimillion dollar Cathedral in LA., sports with their recurring violence, movie going and television in general. The truly good stuff that I will miss by doing so is worth the peace of mind it brings. Count me out.

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 4:22 PM By Warren Memlib
The Crystal Cathedral becomes a Catholic church, and a Catholic church becomes the Crystal Cathedral.

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 5:09 PM By Mac
I get a warm/good feeling these days when people denigrate the Crystal Cathedral campus. It’s good that they effectively advertise themselves as bitter rabble-rousers with bad taste.

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 5:25 PM By Millard
If you are listening Bishop Brown I want you to consider commissioning a giant thurible to swing from the ceiling at the Crystal Cathedral like the famed Botafumeiro at the Santiago de Compostela Cathedral in Spain. That would be awesome!

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 6:30 PM By Dana
…ensure your getting into heaven then you’d better really stick to it. We are all so different but God knows us and loves us anyway, despite all our silliness and weaknesses. I think He must get a chuckle out of us too. I sure do.

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 8:32 PM By Kenneth M. Fisher
When I attended Catholic Schools, we were taught that before a consecrated building could be sold to anyone except another Catholic group, it must be de-consecrated. Is that non ecumenical practice another casualty of the “Spirit of VII”? I know of one parish in Orange County that doesn’t seem to even remove the Blessed Sacrament when that church is rented for a non Catholic event. That seems to be a victim of Brown’s leadership. I checked, it is required by the Holy See that whenever such an event is held, the Blessed Sacrament is to be removed, the Sanctuary light put out, and the Tabernacle left open, but they don’t bother to do that and there is loud conversational talking going on in the Divine Presence. Is this a practice from the USCCB or Bishop Brown? God bless, yours in Their Hearts, Kenneth M. Fisher

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 10:17 PM By k
Millard, you don’t do windows, do you?

Posted Wednesday, May 23, 2012 11:36 PM By MGM
The acoustics in that Catholic Cathedral to be will be awesome for a Latin mass, I feel like attending mass there from Las Vegas every other Sunday. We can sing as one big family together with the saints and angels where heaven comes down to earth during mass in every church on Sunday. Glory to God.

Posted Thursday, May 24, 2012 1:43 AM By Maxwell
St. Callistus parish isn’t being “sold” so it doesn’t need to be “de-consecrated.” I’ll bet that it was never solemnly consecrated anyway, nor was your own parish church. Unlike cathedrals and basilicas, few parishes churches are actually “consecrated.”

Posted Thursday, May 24, 2012 6:14 AM By k
Mr. Fisher, they are not selling it to them. But no, there is not a deconsecration, it is done by decree of the ordinary. However, the altar is a separate case. I think we talked about the parish with the secular concert and decided they were doing an illicit practice by not removing the Blessed Sacrament.

Posted Thursday, May 24, 2012 7:50 AM By JLS
“smaller, holier Church” (Pope BenedictXVI) may not be coming to a neighborhood near you.

Posted Thursday, May 24, 2012 12:50 PM By k
Maxwell, they are dedicated.

Posted Thursday, May 24, 2012 1:06 PM By New Observer
Maxwell, isn’t it about time the church finally stopped being all about rules and regulations? This is hardly something Jesus would make a big deal over.

Posted Thursday, May 24, 2012 6:14 PM By Kenneth M. Fisher
New Observer and Maxwell, “Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in Heaven, and whatever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in Heaven”! God bless, yours in Their Hearts, Kenneth M. Fisher

Posted Thursday, May 24, 2012 7:04 PM By FrMichael
Maxwell, you are in error. Every new parish church I have heard of has had a opening Mass with the bishop anointing the walls, the altar, etc. It is a major event in the life of a parish.

Posted Thursday, May 24, 2012 10:51 PM By Maxwell
Catholic parishes churches are not merely dedicated, they are blessed. That doesn’t mean they cannot be consecrated but they usually aren’t. This process hasn’t chanced for a very long time. I think if a parish church is historic and/or monumental and without debt the pastor should make an effort to have it consecrated by the local bishop.

Posted Friday, May 25, 2012 10:39 AM By John F. Maguire
Taking into account the liturgical-architectural tradition of the Catholic Church, which tradition, as we know, is in no way committed to one particular style of Church architecture, be it Gothic or Baroque (however splendid); further, taking into account Bishop Fulton Sheen’s observation that where the Catholic diocesan Pastoral in question is situated in missionary territory, then to be sure adherence to familiar liturgical-architectural traditions is NOT prerequisite. Accordingly then, taking these considerations into account, the Diocese of Orange and the Vatican agreed to seal the deal in the case of Bishop Sheen’s good friend, the Reverend Robert Schuller’s monumental Garden Grove venue. All to the good! ~ All the while, Garden Grove, we know, remains superabundantly blessed by Our Lady of the Gardens, Mary most Holy, the Patroness of Garden Grove’s Catholic Cathedral.