The Cathedral Church of St. Peter and St. Paul
Diocesan Press Service. April 26, 1974 [74121]
The city of Washington, D.C., like many others, is a city set upon and around several hills. Perhaps the most famous is Capitol Hill, crowned by the dome of the Capitol, and the site of the legislative and judicial branches of the U.S. government.
Equally visible in the city is Mount Saint Alban, crowned by the majestic tower of the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, known to millions of Americans as the Washington Cathedral or the National Cathedral. Dominating the skyline of the city, the tower can be seen from every section of the city and from many of the suburban communities in nearby Virginia and Maryland.
A cathedral is so called because it is the site of a bishop's chair or "cathedra." Washington Cathedral is the only cathedral in the world that is the seat of two bishops -- the Bishop of the Diocese of Washington and the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church.
The Washington Cathedral contains three cathedras : the Glastonbury Cathedra, of stones from Glastonbury Abbey, and to the left and right of each end of the choir, the seats reserved exclusively for the Presiding Bishop and the Bishop of Washington.
The official seat for the Presiding Bishop was established in October, 1941, in accordance with the action of the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in 1940. Since that date, four leaders of the Episcopal Church have been installed as Presiding Bishop in the Washington Cathedral: Bishop Henry St. George Tucker ( 1938), Bishop Henry Knox Sherrill (1947), Bishop Arthur Lichtenberger ( 1958), and Bishop John Elbridge Hines (1965).
The Rt. Rev. John Maury Allin will be installed as the 23rd Presiding Bishop on June 10-11, 1974, in the cathedral.
Though the Presiding Bishop's official seat is in Washington, his office is in New York City and his residence is near Greenwich, Conn.
The cathedral has no congregation of its own and it is supported by gifts from people throughout the country, with no support from the government, the national church or the diocese.
The cathedral dates from 1893 when the U.S. Congress granted a charter creating the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation. The idea, however, goes back to George Washington, who, in planning the Federal City, requested "a great church for national purposes."
The Washington Cathedral, basically in the shape of a cross, was inspired by the most highly developed examples of 14th-century Gothic architecture. Built of Indiana limestone, it is being constructed just as the great medieval cathedrals of Europe were built, without any modern short cuts such as steel beams. The only true Gothic cathedral now under construction in the world, it is supported by large columns, with flying buttresses balancing the thrust of its vaulted ceiling.
Under construction since the laying of the cornerstone on September 29, 1907, the cathedral has expanded year after year as the stonemasons have added stone upon stone from east to west. The cathedral has been used for worship since 1912 when the Bethlehem Chapel on the Crypt floor was finished. Over that chapel rose the apse with its Jerusalem Altar. Work on the cathedral came to a halt during World War I.
When construction was resumed, there followed the choir in the 1920's, the north transept and great crossing in the 1930's, the south transept in the late 1940's and 1950's, the majestic Gloria in Excelsis tower (dedicated May 7, 1964) and the extension of the nave in the 1960's.
And now, in the 1970's, the construction of the west facade is progressing, with the completion of the full length of the nave of the cathedral expected in 1976. At that time, a year-long celebration, in conjunction with the bicentennial of the nation, will take place with major services of dedication and consecration.
When completed, the cathedral will be the second largest in this country, second only to the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York, and the sixth largest in the world. It is hoped that the twin towers of the west front can be completed by 1980. The estimated cost for the entire construction between 1907 and 1980 is $60 million.
The Gothic cathedral -- the inside of which is the size of a 10-story football field -- focuses on the crossing -- where the choir, nave and two transepts intersect, forming the shape of a cross -- surrounded by four huge pillars soaring 104 feet up, holding the vaulted roof, the Gloria tower and its bells.
The inlaid marble floor of the crossing, featuring the Jerusalem or Crusader's Cross, is the design focus of the cathedral and contains the Canterbury pulpit and lectern. The crossing area is surrounded by carved wood and stone and by inlays and mosaics.
Above the crossing is the Gloria in Excelsis tower, soaring 301 feet above the ground. The tower houses the cathedral's unique combination of a 53-bell carillon and a 10-bell English ring.
The high altar (Jerusalem Altar), of stones quarried from near Jerusalem, has for a hack-drop the recently completed statue of Christ in Majesty. The majestus is the work of sculptor Walker Hancock and master carver Roger Morigi. Nearly 12 feet high and eight feet wide, the statue dominates the center of the Ter Sanctus reredos (the wall behind the high altar). Four different models for the statue have been tried over the years, the most recent one having been in place from 1942 until 1972, when Hancock's model was first brought to the cathedral from his studio in Massachusetts. The angels surrounding the statue were modeled in 1942 by the late Italo Fanfani.
The cross upon the altar is made of wood, gilded brass, crystal and enamel. Nearly six feet high, it is designed to capture the attention of the viewer upon entering the west doors of the completed cathedral, which will be a tenth of a mile in length.
The crowning feature of the cathedral will be the twin-towered west facade, under construction now. It is said that the Rt. Rev. Henry Yates Satterlee, first Bishop of Washington, referred to the two west towers as the Nunc Dimittis tower and the Magnificat tower. As time went by, it became obvious to cathedral officials and the architect that these towers should bear the names of the two apostles for whom the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul is named. Thus, the south tower will bear the name of Saint Paul and the north tower that of Saint Peter.
The twin towers of the west facade will have a middle section (Narthex) topped by a ten-petal rose window, which will be provided by a bequest for the stained glass which was received many years ago.
The initial plans for the Washington Cathedral were drawn up by Dr. George F. Bodley, the foremost exponent of English Gothic architecture, but he died before work began on the cathedral in 1907. Henry Vaughan of Boston became the cathedral's first officially appointed architect. When work on the cathedral was resumed after World War I, Philip Hubert Frohman of the Boston firm of Frohman, Robb and Little became the architect and served until 1972. Upon Frohman's retirement, the firm of Godwin & Beckett, Inc., of Atlanta, Ga., was appointed superintending architects of the cathedral.
On the 57-acre grounds ( "The Close ") of Mount Saint Alban are four institutions of learning: Beauvoir, the cathedral elementary school; two preparatory schools, the National Cathedral School for Girls and St. Albans School for Boys; and the College of Preachers for the post-graduate training of clergy. On the Close also are the administrative offices for the Diocese of Washington and the cathedral; residences; sculptors' shops and assorted other buildings. St. Albans Parish Church, though separate from the cathedral, is on the grounds.
The Very Rev. Francis Bowes Sayre, Jr., has been dean of the cathedral since 1951. The Rt. Rev. William Forman Creighton has been Bishop of the Diocese of Washington since 1962, and the Rt. Rev. John Thomas Walker has been Suffragan Bishop of the diocese since 1971.
(NOTE: The source of the material above is The Cathedral Age, A Guide to Washington Cathedral, and other printed material from the cathedral. This story may be of help to editors in reporting the installation of the Presiding Bishop on June 10-11. Included in the press kits at the installation will be a fact sheet on the cathedral.)