The Occasional Pilgrim: San Francisco's Grace Cathedral
SAN FRANCISCO (RNS) Grace Cathedral, begun in 1928, is now an epicenter of spirituality in the City by the Bay. Fifty years after its formal completion, the landmark cathedral attracts pilgrims from around the world.
The Occasional Pilgrim is an online feature from the staff of Religion News Service, highlighting pilgrimage destinations from around the world.
SAN FRANCISCO (RNS) Grace Cathedral is the spiritual home of San Francisco’s Episcopal community and is almost as old as the city itself. It was established as Grace Chapel in 1849, when the city pulsed with Gold Rush fever. That church fell to the massive fire that followed the 1906 earthquake. Today’s Grace Cathedral, begun in 1928, is now an epicenter of spirituality in the City by the Bay. Fifty years after its formal completion, the landmark cathedral attracts pilgrims from around the world.
Click on any photo below to view slideshow. Scroll down to listen to Grace Cathedral’s sound.
Grace Cathedral crowns Nob Hill, one of the highest points in San Francisco. It massive front doors are reproductions of Lorenzo Ghiberti’s “Gates of Paradise” doors on the Baptistry in Florence. The message to pilgrims is clear – enter here and get a glimpse of heaven.
Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
A large carving of St. Francis of Assisi – the city’s namesake – spreads his arms wide just inside the cathedral’s front door. The thrum of the city outside is stilled by stone walls.
Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
The cool, still water of the baptismal font is a symbol of the peace and serenity the cathedral offers. Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
Grace is famous for its two labyrinths, one inside and one outside. Pilgrims move silently across it, their feet picking out a path among the fragments of colored light.
Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
The cathedral’s 7,200 square feet of satined glass depict leaders old and new, from Jesus and John to Albert Einstein and Thurgood Marshall. Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
Ribbons stream down , just out of the pilgrim’s reach. Artist-in-residence Anne Patterson calls this installation, which runs the length of the main aisle, “Graced by Light.” Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
Artist Keith Haring created this silver tryptic, “The Life of Christ,” for the cathedral’s AIDS Memorial Chapel – a quiet corner decked with orchids and a panel from the AIDS Quilt.
Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
Blue votive candles flicker and burn with the prayers and hopes of visitors. Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
Brass and silver murals show “the fishers of men” Jesus called. Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
The whispers of pilgrims reach the Bishops Chair near the high altar, where Martin Luther King, Jr, the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu have all preached. Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
Mary Magdalene was installed here by Barbara Harris, the Episcopal Church’s first female bishop. Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
A wooden crucifix from Spain, its feet so close to the pilgrim you can see the nail holes. Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
A monk prays on an east wall mural by a 20th century artist. Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
On leaving, the pilgrim walks out beneath a window depicting St. Francis’s “Canticle of the Sun” – “Praise and bless my Lord, and give thanks,
and serve Him with great humility.” Religion News Service photo by Kimberly Winston
Click below to listen to Grace Cathedral’s sound, courtesy of Grace Cathedral and made possible by SoundCloud.
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