When you think of cathedrals you think stained glass windows, pointed arches and ornate decorations. But how about robo-cams, levitating video screens and electronic missalettes? Step into Our Lady of the Rosary Cathedral in San Bernardino and soon you’ll see it all.
“We have smartphones, smart homes and slowly we’re building a smart church,” says Father Duong Nguyen, SVD, Pastor of Holy Rosary. “We have to upgrade our church with the times.”
During the course of the Covid-19 pandemic, Fr. Duong has spearheaded a major interior renovation of the 94-year-old church. So far, about $250,000 worth of repairs have been made to the the aging Cathedral in both form and function. High dollar items include state of the art sound and live streaming systems, new lights, carpeting and upholstery. Additionally, stained glass windows now gleam after being refreshed, and Bishop Alberto Rojas’ motto hangs near the altar to reflect the presence of a new Ordinary Bishop. The mottos of prior bishops grace the church’s entryway….
“The Cathedral is the mother of all churches,” explains Fr. Duong. “One of the aspects of this is our evangelization. We want to have an impact on society, an impact on the lives of people…With all this technology that we have here, we can go beyond the walls of the church to share the good news.”
What makes that possible is the advanced sound system and live stream cameras. Tired wires and speakers were upgraded to Bose equipment designed for churches and their specific sound needs. That includes an induction loop system which allows parishioners with hearing aids to connect directly to the sound system. At the entrance, you’ll see two mounted cameras for live stream events. Newly installed sensors underneath the floor trigger those cameras to follow the priest, lector or cantor wherever they go. No camera operators are necessary. The combined cost of the systems was about $140,000, with the Cathedral and the Diocese, through a grant from Caritas Telecommunications, splitting the tab….
The above comes from a June 13 story in the Inland Catholic Byte.
It’s very homey and welcoming. Looking at the pic I feel like I do when I walk into the lobby of a fancy hotel. All the flowers and planter beds, the generous use of color and banners to direct the eye’s attention, I bet it smells absolutely wonderful with all those flowers in the space. That is a church where I could really pray!
And to think The Church survived for centuries without even padded kneelers. All these upgrades are for human comfort but remember the Holy Mass is first and foremost a sacrifice and it’s sacrificial nature must never be obscured.
Ah yes the old Novus Ordo wreckovation at work again, such a shame. 94 years old it must have been a nice looking Roman Catholic church prior to the banners, levitating altars, an array of flowers to boggle the mind and big screen tv’s, but what about Our Lord who should be front and center and I’m sure there is no Traditional Latin Mass.
Building the true church of the 21st century. Jesus would have used advanced technology if it existed in 30AD, so the church should use it today.
Are you sure? How to you know that?
I wonder. I wonder if the Incarnation came when it did partly because there wasnt technology. God decided to trust His humans to have the cardinal virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity. You dont need a internet router for evangelization to be effective or the Church would never have gotten out of the upper room. Heck, they could have all just tweeted about the resurrection on Easter morning. :)
I know this will fall on deaf ears, but folks… really.
I dunno… I kinda want my church to look like a church instead of Apple or Google headquarters.
The whole part of the Roman Catholic Church is to be away from the world not in the world. Our reward is not on earth our reward is in heaven with Our Lord Jesus Christ. When we go to holy Mass we are to remove ourselves from the world we live in.
Bishop Rojas signed the unnecessary Clementi Foundation “Anti-Bullying” statement. Out of touch Bishop, I don’t think all the technology in the world can help him. Or he’s just compromised. Local faithful beware.
How about an electronic rosary that shows the beads on a screen and highlights the one you’re on so you don’t have to hold your own rosary anymore?
Hey, they can hand out virtual-reality goggles at the entrance and the environment can be digitally changed depending on the parishioner’s preference? Prefer the TLM? Select 1. Prefer Praise and Worship? Select 2.