CV NEWS FEED // The Catholic Diocese of Madison, Wisconsin has begun renovations to transform a nearly 120 year-old parish into a new cathedral.
The diocese has been without a cathedral since March 2005, according to local reports, after a homeless man set fire to the historic St Raphael’s Cathedral, which was constructed shortly after Wisconsin established its statehood in the 1850s.
Bishop Donald Hying explained his decision to Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR), stating that it made more sense for the diocese financially to convert an existing structure than to start anew:
To have the opportunity to create a new cathedral is extraordinarily rare, except if a new diocese is created, which is not the case here. So that’s why we want to do it so carefully and so well, because we realize we are building for the ages.
The renovation process will include the installation of Luigi tiles imported from Italy, restoration of the Church’s bells, and the installation of two pre-World War I era organs, according to WPR.
The Church’s project manager, Paul Lang, told WPR that “There won’t be a square inch of this Church left untouched by the artist’s brush.”
The bottom portion of the new cathedral will feature terracotta and light brown colors to symbolize the earth, while the ceiling will be painted a deep blue with stars to symbolize the heavens.
The diocese received Vatican approval to convert Madison’s St Bernard Church into a Cathedral in January.
Construction is set to reach completion by late 2025, according to local reports, which estimate the project to cost approximately $15 million.
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