St Joseph's Cathedral, Dunedin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids St Joseph's Cathedral
St Joseph's Cathedral as it appeared in 2011
45°52′28″S 170°29′53″E / 45.87444°S 170.49806°E / -45.87444; 170.49806
Location	City Rise, Dunedin
Country	New Zealand
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Architecture
Functional status	Open
Designated	14 February 1886
Architect(s)	Francis Petre
Architectural type	Cathedral
Style	Gothic Revival
Administration
Archdiocese	Wellington
Diocese	Dunedin

St Joseph's Cathedral is a very important church for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Dunedin in New Zealand. It is located in a part of Dunedin called City Rise. This cathedral is the main church for the bishop of the Dunedin Catholic area. It was officially created on 26 November 1869.

History of St Joseph's Cathedral

The design of St Joseph's Cathedral is in the Gothic Revival style. This means it looks like old Gothic churches from the past. The famous architect Francis Petre designed it. He also designed several other important churches in New Zealand.

The first St Joseph's Church was built in 1862. It was a simple brick building. This was the very first Roman Catholic church in Dunedin.

Building the Cathedral

In September 1868, the Catholic Diocese bought land for the new cathedral. They paid £59 for one acre from the government. The land was officially given to Bishop Moran in 1871.

Building the cathedral was not easy at first. The land had a gully and underground streams. Bishop Patrick Moran helped get soil from another street to fill the gully.

Work on the cathedral's foundations began in May 1878. Because of the filled-in gully, workers had to sink 40 large piles deep into the ground. These piles were then connected by concrete arches. This created a strong, level base for the building.

On 26 January 1879, Bishop Moran laid the special foundation stone. The cathedral held its first church service on 14 February 1886. It was mostly finished by May 1886. The cost was about £22,500. The original plan was for a much larger building. It was meant to have a tall spire, 200 feet high. This grand design was never fully completed.

Cathedral Upgrades and Changes

The cathedral has been changed inside several times. One big change was moving the main altar after a church meeting called Vatican II. It was later brought back. A special altar from 1896, designed by Petre, was taken apart in the 1970s. Parts of it are now used for a special cabinet called a tabernacle. A new room for reconciliation was also added.

In the 1950s, the stone decorations on top of the two towers had to be removed. They were getting old and damaged. In 1974, new concrete copies of these 12-foot tall decorations were made. They were put back on the towers by August 1975.

Bringing Back Old Traditions

In March 2023, the old confessional booths were fixed up. They were returned to their original use. A special shrine to Our Lady of Perpetual Succour was also brought back.

On 19 November 2023, the Blessed Sacrament was moved back to the main altar. It had been kept in a different chapel. The cathedral angels, made in Melbourne, were also restored. Their wings and the candle holders they once held had to be remade. The wings were put back on the angels in December 2023.

There are plans to bring back more original features. These include new altar rails, the wooden canopy over the altar, and the large cross at the entrance.

Special Features of the Cathedral

Baptismal Font

The baptismal font is as old as the cathedral itself. It is made from Oamaru limestone. The inside of the bowl is lined with shiny quartz pebbles from Moeraki Beach. This beach is where Bishop Pompallier first landed in the south in 1840. He performed the first baptisms in the region there. The font was designed by Francis Petre. Its beautiful carvings were done by Louis John Godfrey.

Stations of the Cross

The 14 Stations of the Cross are special pictures or carvings. They show Jesus' journey to his crucifixion. These stations were made in the Gothic style. They were brought from Munich, Germany, and put in the cathedral in October 1890.

Organs and Cathedral Choir

Cathedral Organs

The main organ was bought in 1866 for the first St Joseph's Church. It was built by George Fincham and Sons in Melbourne. After the new cathedral was built, the organ was moved there in early 1886. Edward Henry Jenkins helped rebuild it in the new cathedral.

The organ was rebuilt again in 1976. It still uses some of the original pipes. After this rebuild, two wooden statues were given as gifts by the Cathedral Choir. These statues now sit on either side of the organ. The organ has three main parts: Swell, Great, and Positive.

A second organ was added in early 2023. It was first used on Good Friday 2023. This organ is called a Casson's Patent, Opus 226. It was made by the Positive Organ Company in London. It used to be in another church before coming to the cathedral. A plaque on the organ says it was given by Edward Herbert in memory of his wife, Magdalene, on 15 November 1897.

Cathedral Choir

As of 2023, the cathedral choir has about 15 members. They are part of the Royal School of Church Music New Zealand. Since 2017, David Burchell has been the choirmaster and organist. He also leads the City Choir Dunedin. He took over from Michael McConnell, who was choirmaster for 41 years.

Choir History

The St Joseph's Cathedral Choir started on 23 July 1862. This was when the first St Joseph's Church opened. When Bishop Moran arrived in Dunedin in 1871, the old church became the main church. The choir then became the official cathedral choir.

Albert Vallis was the choirmaster and organist from 1891 until 1932. He wrote five music pieces during his time at the cathedral.

Raffaello Squarise became the honorary conductor in March 1891. He later returned as conductor in 1914. He held this position until 1921. Squarise was made a life member of the choir. His name is still on a plaque in the choir loft.

Vernon Griffiths, a New Zealand composer, was choirmaster from 1936 to 1939. He changed the choir to include only men and boy sopranos. They sang traditional church music during Masses.

St Dominic's Priory and Cathedral Chapel

St Dominic's Priory is a large building next to St Joseph's Cathedral. It was also designed by Francis Petre in 1876. When it was built in 1877, it was the biggest unreinforced concrete building in the Southern Hemisphere. It is considered a very important historic building in New Zealand.

In 2020, the Priory was broken into. Intruders caused damage to paintings and other valuable items.

The Priory has a neo-Gothic design. It is four stories tall and has over 70 rooms. These include music rooms with special windows. The Priory is not used for anything now. There have been ideas to turn it into a hotel, but nothing has happened yet.

The Cathedral Chapel is behind the Priory and is still used. It has its original main altar. Church services are held there twice a week. A special traditional Latin Mass is also held there every Sunday. The Cathedral Choir uses the chapel for their practice.

The Catholic Pastoral Centre is behind the Cathedral. It has offices for the church administration. It also holds the Bishop's office and the Dunedin Catholic Library.

Images for kids

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  St Joseph's Cathedral as Petre intended it. This design was never completed.

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  St Joseph's Cathedral (August 1912)

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  Interior view of the nave and sanctuary of the cathedral (April 2023)

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  Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Shrine (April 2023)

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  The High Altar (April 2023)

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  Squarise and other members of St. Joseph's Cathedral Choir with dates of their election as life members (April 2023)

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  St Dominic's Priory, March 2023

See also

In Spanish: Catedral de San José (Dunedin) para niños