Catholics hold first event at Crystal Cathedral

Hundreds gathered there for a service before a prayer breakfast. Details, from the Orange County Register:

The Crystal Cathedral sanctuary known around the world for its flying angels and messages of positive thinking on Wednesday became a place of prayer for its new owners: Orange County’s Catholics.

More than 1,200 Catholics filled the cathedral for the first Roman Catholic event held in the Protestant megachurch since the campus was bought by the Diocese of Orange in a court-ordered bankruptcy sale.

Congregants listened to chanting Carmelite nuns and recited a rosary.

They prayed in front of an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, blessed by Pope Benedict XVI.

And they heard messages from priests and a bishop.

“This is an example of what future events and gatherings can be like – the space, the spirit, the message,” the Rev. Christopher Smith said following the prayer breakfast.

Smith will lead the transformation of the Crystal Cathedral into a Catholic place of worship the diocese will rename Christ Cathedral. The Crystal Cathedral Ministries will stay on the campus until June, when it will transfer to the nearby St. Callistus Catholic Church under an arrangement with the diocese.

On Wednesday, the diocese rented the facility for the morning and brought in a large wooden crucifix and other accoutrements to give the cathedral a more Catholic feel.

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Photo: Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register