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Show THE INTERMOUNTAIN CATHOLIC 12) ' One Hundred and Fifty Years of Catholicity in Utah Rev. Louis J. Fries, S.T.B. (Continued from October Issue) Dedication of New Cathedral Oneof the crowning events in the lively growth of Catholicism in Utah took place on Sunday, August 15th, 1909, the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, when the new Cathedral, dedicated to St. Mary Magdalen, the finest ecclesiastical structure west of the Missouri River, was dedicated with the most solemn ceremonies of the Church in the presence of His Eminence, James Cardinal Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore and Primate of America. It was a scene of Papal magnificence; the atmosphere was redolent of classical memories and historical associations of Mother Church. Bishop Scanlan, who celebrated the Pontifical High Mass, offered his prayers of gratitude to God, for this was the consummation of forty years of ceaseless toil on his part. 1 1 was the realization of the dream of his noble life. The Salt Lake Tribune of August 15th, 1 909 has this to say about the dedication : , f ' Dedication Today There will be a great and solemn dedication in this city of a splendid religious edifice, the Cathedral of St. Mary Magdalen, that has been under construction for a good many years. Under the wise direction of Bishop Scanlan, this edifice has been constructed with- out debt, and has been paid for as the building proceeded. It is a magnificent structure; it has an imposing front which makes a magnificent appearance; it is centrally located, convenient of access, and will unquestionably be a great religious center, from which will radiate piety, charity, and all the virtues, to a wide area. It is, no doubt, the only structure of the kind in the country. Reaching east and west it will cover a field from Denver to Sacramento, north and south its influence will extend from the Canadian border to the land of Mexico. This great edifice will be dedicated today with the grand ceremonies that the Catholic Church provides for such occasions, and there is gathered here a noble assembly of ecclesiastics for this occasion. At their head is Cardinal Gibbons, famous for his learning and his sympathy and charity. There is also here an assemblage of other distinguished prelates. The exercises will be grand, as is proper in the dedication of so noble a house to God and as befits the high office of those who will participate in the ceremonies. This dedication will be an occasion to be long remembered in the progress of this city, and will be especially enlivening and invigorating to the hearts of the faithful members of the great Church which this edifice represents. all-embraci- ng In its issue of August 14th, 1909 the Intermountain Catholic contains a splendid editorial apropos of this ceremony, as follows: The dedication of St. Marys Cathedral, tomorrow, will mark an epoch in the history of the Catholic Church in Utah and the intermountain region. On Sunday morning our venerable Prelate will witness the fulfillment of his dreams of twenty years ago, the consummation of his dearest hopes, and the consecration of a contract entered upon years ago. This great Catholic temple, overlooking from its commanding site, the expanding city, the fascinating valley and its wondrous salted sea, imparts a tone of dignity and quiet grandeur to its immediate neighborhood. It is an architectural achievement worthy of the Ages of Faith, a dream of plastic art materialized in stone, and an enduring monument to the faith of Bishop Scanlan and the generosity of the men and women that made it possible. The Dedication tomorrow will be an event in the history of Utah and in the annals of our city, the importance of which can hardly be overrated. Sunday, the 15th of August, will be a memorable day, not alone in the history of the Catholic Church in our own state, but also in that of the entire region lying west of the Missouri River. To the Catholics of the state of Utah, and of Salt Lake City in particular, the opening of our great Cathedral for Divine Service will be a subject of religious consolation and patriotic joy. To Catholics everywhere in America it is a consolation and a motive for honorable pride that the zeal, the energy and the patriotism of our Bishops and priests, strengthened ! |