Bishop Kevin Vann blesses the ground on which the Christ Our Savior Parish will be built. (image: Challenge Roddie)[/caption]
Already bursting at the seams, Christ Our Savior Catholic Church hit the breaking point. That is, breaking ground Saturday, June 1, to build new church buildings on the undeveloped campus in Santa Ana, bounded by Alton Avenue, Bear Street and MacArthur Boulevard.
With Bishop Kevin Vann and Monsignor J. Michael McKiernan in attendance, and filmed by Saigon TV, a packed house of 600 congregants came out for an 8 a.m. Mass, followed by the groundbreaking and a reception.
The new facility will be built on a land that had formerly been used to grow lima beans. Officials hope to begin work on the first phase of the project in August with move-in and dedication by November, 2020.
Construction of parish offices and other facilities will follow.
Because of its central location in Orange County and convenient freeway access, the Diocese of Orange purchased the land from the Segerstrom family in 2002 with the intention of making it the Diocese seat with a large cathedral, parish and diocesan offices.
However, after the former Crystal Cathedral property became available and was purchased in 2012 plans changed. Christ Cathedral is scheduled to be dedicated in July.
A 6.7-acre portion of the Christ Our Savior campus was rezoned for residential use and sold to Shea Homes for a development.
The parish is using $15.6 million in proceeds from the sale, plus more than $2 million raised by the congregation, for the new construction.
At a time when Catholic churches in the U.S. are closing and parishes merging, the Diocese of Orange continues to grow. And Christ Our Savior is a poster child for the continued growth, spurred in part by a vibrant and diverse immigrant congregation.
Masses at the parish are celebrated in English, Spanish and Vietnamese languages, as well as American Sign Language for the deaf community. Parish membership has grown to 1,700 registered families and continues to grow.
Full story at Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange website.
So, the diocese purchases the former farm in order to build a Cathedral. However, along comes the bankrupt Crystal Cathedral and Bishop Brown buys that for $50 million and many millions more are still being spent. Then we learn that part of the farm land was sold and $15.6 million was gifted to the local parish for a new church, monies that should have gone to pay for a new Cathedral.
I think if you look closely at the real numbers, the Diocese of Orange is not growing. Growing old, yes. But not growing.
The cost of buying and renovating the former Crystal Cathedral is surpassing original estimates, and the result is an ugly Protestant cathedral. Bishop Brown should have stuck to the original plan. Diocese of Orange will be the Diocese of Red from embarrassment at its goofy, overpriced glass Protestant cathedral.