St. John's Cathedral (Los Angeles) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Saint John's Cathedral |
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| Saint John's Episcopal Cathedral | |
| Catedral Episcopal San Juan
聖約翰大教堂 세인트 존 성공회 대성당 |
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| Location | University Park, Los Angeles |
| Language(s) | Primarily English, readings might be performed in Spanish, Korean, Chinese. |
| Denomination | Anglican |
| Tradition | Central churchmanship |
| Churchmanship | Liberal Anglo-Catholicism Broad church |
| History | |
| Former name(s) | Saint John's Church |
| Status | Active |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Cathedral |
| Specifications | |
| Bells | None |
| Administration | |
| Deanery | Deanery 4 – El Centro |
| Diocese | Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles |
| Province | Province 8 of the Episcopal Church |
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St. John's Cathedral
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 Location in the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Location in California
Location in the United States
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| Location | 514 W. Adams Blvd Los Angeles, California |
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| Built | 1925 |
| Architect | Davis, Walter and Pierpont; Hanson, Luis |
| Architectural style | Romanesque Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 00000425 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | May 5, 2000 |
St. John's Cathedral is an Episcopal church located near downtown Los Angeles. It serves as both a local church and the main church (called a cathedral church) for the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles. This area covers more than five counties in California.
St. John's Church was first started in 1890. The church building you see today was built in 1925. It is designed in the Romanesque Revival style. In 2000, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places, which lists important historical sites.
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How St. John's Cathedral Began
St. John's Church was founded in 1890. The Los Angeles Times newspaper wrote about the groundbreaking ceremony on its front page. Many people gathered to watch the laying of the first stone for the church.
The clergy (church leaders) and parish members walked in a procession to the building site. The first church was a beautiful Gothic style building. It was made of brick with stone parts and wood. It could seat about 150 people. The church was built in a way that allowed for a larger building to be added later. This first church was officially opened in June 1894.
A Long-Serving Leader: George Davidson
In 1913, George Davidson became the rector (head priest) of St. John's. He held this position for a very long time, until 1951. Under his leadership, the church grew a lot. The number of members went from 400 to 2,300.
Davidson was also a professor at the USC for 14 years. He served as president of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). He also helped start the city's Community Chest drives, which raised money for charity.
When Davidson retired in 1951 at age 71, over 1,000 people attended his last service. He expressed his thanks and prayers for St. John's and its members. Davidson passed away in July 1967 in Los Angeles.
Building the New Church
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By 1920, the original St. John's Church was too small for its growing number of members. A competition was held to design a new church. Brothers Pierpont and Walter Davis won the contest. They designed the church in an Italian neo-Romanesque style. It was inspired by an 11th-century church called San Pietro in Tuscania, Italy.
The new church opened in 1924 after two years of building. It was officially dedicated in 1925. The Los Angeles Times reported that the last service in the old church was full of "tender memories." When the new church opened, the Times called it "one of the most beautiful and costly edifices in the country." Other critics also said it was the most beautiful church in Los Angeles.
The church's walls are made of strong concrete, about two and a half feet thick. The building is 69 feet tall from the floor to the ceiling. The wooden ceiling looks like a church ceiling from the 11th century at San Miniato near Florence. The altar is made of Italian marble. The triptych (a three-paneled artwork) was carved by workers from Oberammergau.
The inside of the church also has a beautiful stained glass window. This window shows Martin Luther King Jr. and was put in place in 1977. Other windows include a round rose window in the Romanesque style. Another amazing part of the church is the gold mosaics on the chapel walls. One mosaic shows the Virgin Mary and Christ child. It is based on a 13th-century mosaic from the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta in Torcello, Italy. There is also a mosaic of Jesus as a judge, holding a Bible and giving a blessing. This style was common in the 12th century.
When the new church opened in 1924, St. John's had 2,000 members. It was the largest Episcopal church west of Chicago at that time.
In 1947, the "Seven Angels" mosaics were added to the church. These mosaics cost $150,000. The angels are eight feet tall and hold musical instruments. They are made of Italian marble with gold mosaic. Five artists in Italy spent two years creating these mosaics.
The Lady Chapel is a small prayer room to the left of the main altar. It is used for smaller services, private prayer, and other church events.
St. John's Becomes a "Metropolitan Church"
From 1958 to 1974, Reverend E. Lawrence Carter was the rector of St. John's. During this time, the area around the church changed. It went from being a wealthy, mostly white neighborhood to a mixed-race area with more poverty.
Carter led the church to change with its community. It moved from being an upper-class church to what he called a "metropolitan" church. This meant it welcomed leaders from all races and economic backgrounds. In 1973, Carter explained that the change was slow but steady. He described a "metropolitan church" as an urban church that helps its community. He believed that churches must be involved in all parts of life in their area. During his time as rector, Carter started the St. John's Well Child Center. He also worked to help people experiencing homelessness.
Protesting the Vietnam War
In 1970, Carter gained media attention when he closed the large front doors of the church. This was a protest against the Vietnam War. He said the doors were closed as a sign of sorrow and protest. It showed sadness for the church's silence and protest that the country chose war instead of peace.
The doors stayed closed for three years until the war ended. At the ceremony in April 1973 when the doors were reopened, Carter said it was not a moment of triumph. He said reopening the doors was an affirmation of peace. This peace would offer a new life to humanity. The ceremony included the sounding of a shofar, a ram's horn used in Jewish services. Carter felt the peace was more like a truce held by the threat of nuclear warheads. Still, he said the church chose this moment to show thanks that bombers were no longer attacking, prisoners of war were home, and troops had left a war that hurt the country's spirit and resources.
In recent years, the St. John's community has spoken out against the Iraq War and other conflicts in the Middle East. Each Sunday, the names of American military members who died in the war were read during church services. A banner at the back of the church had a cross for each American death in the war. During Palm Sunday services, members of the church carried anti-war protest signs along with their palms.
At the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the church raised the flag of Ukraine. This showed support for Ukraine and its armed forces. They also called for a quick and peaceful end to the conflict.
Regarding the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, the church holds a mostly neutral view. They support a Two-State solution and Israel's full withdrawal from the West Bank. During the 2023 Israel–Hamas war, the church community called for a ceasefire. They pray weekly for the conflict to end.
Becoming a Procathedral
In October 2007, Bishop J. Jon Bruno announced that St. John's had been named the procathedral of the Diocese of Los Angeles. This means it shares cathedral duties with the Cathedral Center of St. Paul in Echo Park. Larger church events for the diocese are held at St. John's. All other diocesan offices are at St. Paul's. The official dedication happened in February 2008.
The Very Rev. Canon Mark Kowalewski, a former rector of St. John's, said these changes were the result of many years of talks. He noted that when the current church was built in the 1920s, its first rector, Father Davidson, wanted it to become the main church for the diocese.
St. John's is home to the cathedra, which is the historic bishop's chair. This chair was originally in Los Angeles' former St. Paul's Cathedral. That building was torn down in 1980 after being damaged by an earthquake. The chair was then moved to the Cathedral Center in Echo Park.
There are plans to build housing and shops on the city block owned by St. John's. This block is located at 27th Street, Flower Street, Figueroa Street, and West Adams Boulevard. These plans are waiting for different church and government approvals.
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