A cathedral sits just off Capitol Square, hollowed by a fire. Two years ago, a fire ripped through 150-year-old St. Raphael's Cathedral, and it now lies as a gutted shell of its former glory.
The razing of St. Raphael was a terrible, tragic loss. It left the city missing an integral part of its history and an architectural treasure. Catholics suffered the most of all: they lost a place of worship, the mother church of the diocese and their community center. Recently, a professor from the University of Notre Dame proposed transforming the nigh-demolished monument into a cathedral whose grandeur will rival the Capitol itself.
According to the Wisconsin State Journal, University of Notre Dame professor and architect Duncan Stroik spoke before interested Catholics last Thursday. Mr. Stroik — who is already working on similar projects in locales ranging from La Crosse to California — wants to rebuild St. Raphael's Cathedral in a classic, more traditional style of architecture. Such a style often includes a dome, towers and a large courtyard, similar to a garden or public plaza. To fit the needs of a modern diocese, Mr. Stroik's vision would likely require other on-site buildings three to five stories tall as well as underground parking.
Mr. Stroik's lecture contended that the cathedral provides the "opportunity, maybe even the obligation, to build something that speaks with, and politely debates, the Capitol and university." Pointing to landmark cathedrals in smaller cities such as Omaha, Neb., and Helena, Mont., that compare to those in major cities like Paris, Rome and New York, Mr. Stroik argued that Madison needs a church in the lofty, grand tradition of the surrounding government and university buildings. A church that, in the words of Bishop Robert Morlino, is "worthy of Madison."
No final decision has been made and probably won't be until after Easter. No cost estimates have been presented yet, and the extent of the building will depend on how much money the diocese can raise.
I have reservations about this proposal, though not for economic or aesthetic reasons. If the diocese can raise enough money, then great for them — they should feel blessed to have a community that shares and supports its aspirations. Catholic fondness for grandiosity and pomp has long ceased to faze me. After all, the secular capitols throughout the United States, often modeled after buildings of the Roman Empire, positively gleam with bright white marble and imposing domes and pillars that suck the eye in like some freakish black hole.
My biggest problem with Mr. Stroik's proposal is the presented motivation — something that "speaks with" or "politely debates" the state Capitol and university buildings. The husk of St. Raphael certainly deserves restoration or reconstruction, and many Catholics view elaborate ornamentation as a way to praise God. But constructing the cathedral in reaction to surrounding secular buildings completely warps the purpose into something irrelevant and unnecessary.
Billing the cathedral as some physical counterpoint to the state Capitol and university buildings implies that Catholicism offers radically different alternatives to government and academia. In fact, religious teaching in general is not and should not be used as an alternative to the government or higher learning. People might use their faith as a foundation for their moral code and then use those values in politics and their education, which is all very well and good, although in our increasingly diverse society, other values should always be considered and respected. In our society, however, the church does not serve as an opposing state government or educational institution. Differences between public and Catholic schools are largely grounded in additional theology classes with little change in secular subjects. Separation of church and state does not mean the two are mutually exclusive. Conflict arises when people believe in this mutual exclusivity and don't respect other people's views or overstep the church's function in our modern world. The two do not have to wage eternal war on each other, not even by building bigger and more impressive buildings. If you want to inspire awe, if you want to create something you feel correctly portrays your love of your God, then build your massive cathedral. But please, don't turn it into part of the fabricated battle between church and state.
Jack Garigliano ([email protected]) is a freshman majoring in English.
