The following comes from a Nov. 21 story on the Huffington Post.
A fire blazed through a nearly 100-year-old church building in San Jose, California on Sunday.
But remarkably, the Catholic congregation’s precious crucifix survived.
Father Fermo Mantovani, the pastor of Holy Cross Parish, remembers watching a firetruck hoist the gilded, 10-foot cross high up into the air and over the building’s charred remains before carefully bringing it back down to earth.
“It was very emotional for all of us,” Mantovani told HuffPost. “I understand it as a miracle.”
The San Jose Fire Department captured the moment in a photograph, showing the firefighters surrounding Jesus to create a striking tableau vivant.
The historic crucifix, made in Italy, was first erected over the altar of the church in 1907, according to the church’s website. Back then, it was Italian immigrants who crowded into the church’s pews. Now, the parish’s 600 families are a diverse mix of Italian, Spanish, and English speakers, with mass said in all three languages every Sunday.
The blaze broke out at around 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, mere minutes after Mantovani closed the building after a mass. He noticed smoke hovering over the church’s roof. Rushing back inside, he noticed fire in the choir balcony.
The roof of the building later collapsed.
No one was hurt in the incident. The parish’s adjacent parsonage and church hall remained untouched. The church’s treasured Virgin Mary statue was also retrieved from the sanctuary.
The fire was accidental and “probably electrical” in nature, according to Brad McGibben, spokesperson for the San Jose Fire Department.
To read the original story, click here.
Note doubt this once beautiful old church suffered many Vatican 2 renovations like so many other once Roman Catholic parishes in our nation and world-wide. Many intentionally destroyed and replaced with sterile buildings and a central table. I know because that happened to my own childhood parish in the 1960s, and traveling across the country many times, I have witnessed the same in many other parishes. According to this report, it sounds like all that was Vatican 2 in this church didn’t survive, only the true Roman Catholic artifacts. I wonder if God was trying to tell them and us of something? The sad thing now is, what modern sterile architectural endeavor will the liberals pursue to replace it with?
So what happened to the tabernacle and its contents, or were they kept in a separate building?
Excellent question, of course. My understanding is that they were also salvaged. It is easier, in a sense, in that they are hardened for such eventualities. But of course, this is a great concern.
I do not know about the tabernacle but if you click the link it says that other statues, books and religious artifacts were spared.
Speaking of what became of the books and religious artifacts, this is a question that has always concerned me. What should we do with old Bibles that are falling apart? When I was a protestant, I used to recycle them! I checked on a site online that said we must never recycle them…that it is disrespectful and irreverent. One suggested burying them..another to burn them. I’ve ended up wrapping my first Bible that I received at my first Communion/Baptism in black wrapping paper and putting it away. I’ve heard that muslims treat their korans as though they were holy. Why do we seem so cavalier in our treatment of God’s word? My Douay-Reims, 1955 ed. John XXIII table Bible with gorgeous illustrations has pride of place on my library table and it truly seems holy. Is it because so many editions are so cheap and unsubstantial? Should we allow paper back Bibles? Just wondering. Have a very blessed Thanksgiving everyone. I pray everyone has someone to share their bounty with and a thankful heart. God bless you all!!
I have gone to this church for many years with my now-deceased two aunts: the interior of Holy Cross prior to the blaze remarkably retained its Itallianate quasi-basilica, traditional Catholic design and layout, even through the V2 changes. Most notably, it retained its single bilateral symmetry and focus on the altar (where the cross hung above and behind it on the wall). It still had many of the classic statues of the saints that remained from the 1920’s (it was actually staffed by Italian Jesuits for some years then): statues of S. Ignatius Loyola, St. Aloysius, a beautiful Blessed Virgin statue, many others, and lovely stained glass). I suspect the stained glass windows were mostly blown out by the collapse of the roof on the east side of the church (the west side is still intact, from what i have seen and can make out) and the interior damage is extensive.
Now, the greatest worry is that loyal Pope-Francis-ista, Bishop PJ McGrath will have his clueless diocesan wreckovationists destroy the church’s graceful architectural and liturgical orientation and tilt its altar sanctuary on its side, to make a theatre-in-the-round style, as they did to historic St. Clare’s Church in Santa Clara, destroying that church’s focus and orientation on the altar reredos. Never hope for too much from this crowd.
Thank The Lord for this sign for the faithful.
This story provides timely analysis of the truly Miraculous Fact that so far the ‘Church’ has been Lucky Beyond Belief… That More and More Deadly Fires have Not Killed Anyone – Yet.
Thus I Say with the knowledge and experience to back me up, that Unless We Repent our Failures to follow the Modern Fire & Life Safety Codes Religiously, we are not going to remain fireproof for ever & ever.
Although the biggest offenders are Christmas, and Easter – When Churches & Parish Halls are often so over crowded that the Emergency Exits are essentially Blocked; Fires & Emergencies can happen at almost any event – whether at School or a Meeting Hall or Social Event…
– and Far Far too many Parishes, Particularly Older ones Without Fire Sprinklers, are Not only Not Prepared – but often Invite Disaster with practices that scare the heck outa me.
Like Parties & events with Open Flame Candles on food tables – burning Near Paper Decorations,
Next to Blazing Hot Sterno burning underneath chafing dishes on rickety tables – just waiting to spill and send liquid fire across the crowded meeting hall blocking off some or most Emergency Exits – and sending the Parishioners in a frenzied stampeeed toward the last door…
It has happened in crowded pubs & nightclubs, theaters and circus tents – which is why the Fire Codes are known as a ‘Tombstone Code’.
Those wanting further information about this Issue, including analysis of the ‘Top Ten’ Crowd Killer Fires & their Causes – and what We need to Look Out For,
SEE
“Top 10 Modern Night Club Fires
https://listverse.com/2010/03/08/top-10-modern-night-club-fires/
By Listverse Staff March 8, 2010
Nightclubs, a place for fun, dance, drink, and celebration, can quickly turn into deadly fire traps, killing hundreds of guests, entertainers, and staff. Here are ten of the deadliest nightclub fire disasters from 1940-2009.
Though almost 60 years separates the oldest from the most recent, common threads run through all of these nightclub fires, overcrowding, locked exits, flammable decorative and construction materials, making them, in most cases, preventable catastrophes…
Sad but good news the crucifix was saved and no lives were lost, but Tom is correct the Church was totally wreckovated, high altar ripped out, communion rail gone and altar girls running around and lay lectors abound, their web site confirms the wreckovation according to Vatican II.
I heard through the priest grapevine that the Tabernacle was saved and its Contents perfectly preserved. Apparently many of the items on the floor (Tabernacle, altar, statues, and pews) are basically intact, the fire being in the upper reaches of the church.
Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, the Lord and his cross always come back no matter who or what tries to destroy them as the cross did on Ground Zero of the Twin Towers. This crucifix is a really lovely and ornate one as I saw a picture of it on another website up closer. It was also an awesome but sad sight to see in one picture the crane lifting the cross out and up over the ruined building before they brought it down.
Recently an old cross on a hill in Ireland was cut down by an unknown vandal. Some seem to think they can get rid of it, but they never will. Some radical Muslims will not even eat tomatoes as when they are cut horizontally, a cross is in the flesh. Well, they are the only ones missing out.
In my last post I did not mean to imply that Holy Cross Church was set on fire. As far as I know at this time, there is no evidence of that. One news report said the church went up fast because of the timber out of which it was constructed.
Dana, There are book binding companies where you can go to have your bible’s hard cover restored, just look around. Interesting to note you have a 1955 Douay-Rheims edition John the XXIIIrd Holy Bible. He wasn’t elected until 1959. I would have thought it would be more like a 1960’s edition.